Thomas Ranch

The community

Thomas Ranch is the largest new master-plan on the Lake Travis south shore: 2,200 acres in Spicewood, developed by Areté Collective, with eventual capacity for roughly 3,500 homes plus a town center. In mid-2026 it is genuinely early: infrastructure (water and wastewater plants) wrapped in 2025–2026, about 1,300 units are in various stages of build-out, and first residents are expected in early 2027.

What’s actually open today is Loraloma, the private golf-club neighborhood inside the ranch — its Tom Fazio-style course opened in October 2025, and home construction started in August 2025. Everything else, including the broader amenity network and any attainably priced phases, is still ahead.

The homes

Right now this is a custom and developer-build story. Loraloma homesites start around $885,000 (developer-published, early 2026 — verify current releases), running from roughly a half acre to multi-acre estate parcels. Completed builds are trending $2M to $10M+, with developer cottages from about $2.25M. Buyers either select from Areté’s home designs or build custom with an approved builder; the approved list is short and still growing, and rosters will rotate as phases open. Later phases are expected to bring additional builders and lower price points, but nothing there is published — treat any number you hear as provisional.

This is the opposite profile from a finished community like Rough Hollow: maximum lot choice, minimum certainty. Contracts here need careful review of district financing, club membership terms, and build timelines.

Location, schools, and the drive

Thomas Ranch sits off Highway 71 in Spicewood, west of Lakeway. Expect Lake Travis ISD, but verify — school assignments for a community this new can shift before your kids ever enroll. Daily logistics are rural for now: the Galleria in Bee Cave is 25–35 minutes, downtown Austin 50–70 depending on 71.

The honest framing: this is a land-and-timing buy. Early buyers get the best lots on a lake-view ranch that will take a decade to finish. If you need a built neighborhood, built schools, and a built grocery run, look east until this one matures.