Sky Residence on West Avenue

This is the downtown condo people describe when they say they are ready to trade the yard for the skyline. A corner residence on the twenty-ninth floor, wrapped on two sides in floor-to-ceiling glass, with Lady Bird Lake to the south and the Capitol lit up to the north.

Inside, one open room holds the kitchen, dining and living, finished in wide-plank white oak and stone. The kitchen keeps its appliances behind cabinetry so the island stays clear for the view. Two bedrooms sit at opposite ends for quiet, the primary with a marble spa bath and a walk-in closet, and a glass-walled study off the entry works as a third room or a home office.

We are honest that downtown is not one of the eight neighborhoods we know house by house. It is, though, one of the simplest addresses in Austin to live well: the lake trail at the door, the music and the restaurants on foot, and a parking space you can forget about for a week at a time.