Living in Westlake (78746)

Westlake — the colloquial name for the 78746 ZIP and the broader Eanes ISD footprint — sits immediately west of downtown Austin between Lake Austin to the north, Loop 360 cutting through the middle, and Bee Cave Road as the east-west spine. The ZIP contains the incorporated cities of West Lake Hills and Rollingwood, plus several large unincorporated pockets including Davenport Ranch, Lost Creek south of Bee Cave Road, and Rob Roy on the Lake Austin shoreline.

Detached single-family is the dominant housing type, spanning original 1960s–1970s West Lake Hills hilltop construction, the 1980s and 1990s estate sections in Davenport Ranch and Rob Roy, newer infill replacing teardowns across most of the ZIP, and Lake Austin waterfront. A limited pool of townhome and condominium product sits along Bee Cave Road and at Davenport Village. The ZIP trends sharply toward the luxury end of the Austin market.

• Eanes ISD — one of the highest-rated public school districts in Texas. Westlake High School anchors the district at the high school level, with multiple long-tenured elementary and middle school campuses across the 78746 footprint.
• Lake Austin frontage along the southern shore, with private subdivision boat docks at Rob Roy on the Lake, Westlake Beach, and Wood Forest, plus access through the Austin Country Club.
• Hill Country golf — the Austin Country Club at the foot of the Pennybacker Bridge, plus Westlake Country Club and Lost Creek Country Club inside the broader ZIP.
• Direct downtown Austin access — 78746 sits between downtown and the Hill Country, so the commute is materially shorter than from comparable luxury markets in Lakeway, Spicewood, or western Travis County.

• 78746 is a multi-jurisdiction ZIP. A property can sit inside the City of West Lake Hills, the City of Rollingwood, the City of Austin's full-purpose limits, the City of Austin's extraterritorial jurisdiction (ETJ), or unincorporated Travis County. Building codes, permitting paths, deed restrictions, and city-tax exposure differ materially. Verify the jurisdictional stack by parcel before relying on a renovation or build assumption.
• Loop 360 is the primary north-south corridor through the area and backs up at peak periods, particularly around the Pennybacker Bridge and at the 360/MoPac interchange. Drive your specific commute at your real hours before committing.
• Lake Austin frontage and "lake view" are not the same product. True waterfront with a permitted boat dock is materially different from a hillside home with a Lake Austin or Pennybacker Bridge view — and the price reflects it. The legal status of any waterfront access (LCRA easement, riparian rights, dock permit) needs to be verified at the parcel level, not assumed from a listing photo.

78746 falls within Eanes ISD, one of the highest-rated public school districts in Texas. The high school is Westlake High School. Elementary schools serving the area include Bridge Point, Cedar Creek, Eanes, Forest Trail, Barton Creek, and Valley View, with Hill Country Middle and West Ridge Middle at the middle school level.

Eanes ISD attendance zones inside 78746 are generally stable relative to faster-growing districts, but campus assignments still vary by section of the ZIP. Verify the current elementary, middle, and high school assignment for any specific Westlake address using Eanes ISD's school-finder before relying on it for an offer.

Bee Cave Road (RM 2244) is the primary east-west corridor through 78746, running from the MoPac frontage at Rollingwood west through West Lake Hills toward Bee Cave proper. Loop 360 (Capital of Texas Highway) is the primary north-south corridor, crossing Lake Austin at the Pennybacker Bridge and connecting Bee Cave Road to MoPac and to RM 2222 north.

Off-peak, downtown Austin is generally 15–20 minutes via Bee Cave Road and MoPac. Peak times extend that depending on conditions on Loop 360, particularly around the Pennybacker Bridge and at the 360/MoPac interchange. Austin-Bergstrom International Airport is typically 25–30 minutes via MoPac to SH 71.

• Lake Austin. The southern Lake Austin shoreline runs through 78746, with private subdivision boat docks, the Austin Country Club marina, and individual waterfront ownership. Public access from inside the ZIP is limited.
• Austin Country Club. Pete Dye-designed course at the foot of the Pennybacker Bridge, with private membership; Westlake Country Club and Lost Creek Country Club also operate inside the broader 78746 footprint.
• Davenport Village. The neighborhood retail node at Loop 360 and Westlake Drive, with restaurants, service retail, and the local grocery anchor.
• Pennybacker Bridge (360 Bridge) overlook. The hillside overlook on the north side of the bridge is one of the most-photographed Austin views; the bridge itself is the visual landmark of the western Loop 360 corridor.
• Wild Basin Wilderness Preserve & Barton Creek Greenbelt access. Wild Basin sits on the south side of Loop 360 inside 78746, and several Barton Creek Greenbelt access points (Gus Fruh, the 360 trailhead) are inside or directly adjacent to the ZIP.

My office is in 78746. I've been working the west-of-Austin luxury market since the early 2000s, and Westlake is one of the submarkets I represent buyers and sellers in regularly. My CLHMS — Certified Luxury Home Marketing Specialist — credential applies directly to this ZIP, and the Austin Luxury Network and Broker Underground memberships I belong to surface a meaningful share of Westlake inventory before it reaches the MLS.

When I'm working with buyers in 78746, the first conversation is almost always the jurisdictional stack. The same ZIP contains City of West Lake Hills, City of Rollingwood, City of Austin full-purpose, Austin ETJ, and unincorporated Travis County — and what that means for permitting, building codes, and city-tax exposure is real, especially if a renovation or teardown-rebuild is on the table. The second is what "Lake Austin" actually means for a specific listing — true waterfront with a permitted dock is a different product than a hillside view, and the price reflects it. The third is the Eanes feeder for the specific address; the campus mix across Bridge Point, Cedar Creek, Eanes, Forest Trail, Barton Creek, and Valley View matters to families.

For buyers who want Eanes ISD, Lake Austin access, and the shortest downtown commute available inside an Austin luxury market, 78746 is the defensible play. For sellers, the discreet network channels matter more here than they do in volume markets — ALN and Broker Underground move a meaningful share of $2M+ Westlake inventory off-MLS, and pricing strategy needs to account for what's quietly available, not just what's publicly listed.