Manor New Construction by Price Point: 2026 Guide

Bottom line: Manor is the most affordable new construction market inside Travis County. Entry-level homes start at $300K. Four active masterplan communities — Mustang Valley, Carillon, Lagos, and ShadowGlen — offer new homes from $300K to $600K, with Manor ISD serving all of them. Here is what each price tier actually buys.

Manor sits 17 miles east of downtown Austin on US-290 and FM-973. It is not Pflugerville. It is not Round Rock. It is not as polished, as retail-complete, or as close to the central tech corridor. But it is inside Travis County, in a 78653 zip code, with new construction prices that are $100K-$150K below the next closest comparable suburb. That gap is real, it is persistent, and it is the reason a specific type of buyer keeps showing up at Manor model homes.

For the full city overview, see the Manor new construction guide. For context on what buyers most often get wrong, see new construction mistakes in Austin.

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Under $350K — Entry-Level Manor

Three communities serve buyers under $350K in Manor. This is where Manor’s affordability advantage is most concentrated, and where the volume of active inventory is highest.

Mustang Valley — KB Home

Starting price: $300K. Range: $300K-$378K. Sizes: 1,491-2,980 sqft. Floor plans: 11.

KB Home is the anchor builder for Manor’s entry market. Mustang Valley is KB’s primary Manor community, and it offers 11 floor plans across a 1,491-to-2,980 sqft range — a wider spread than most production builders offer at this price. At $300K, you are looking at a 3-bedroom layout in the 1,400-1,600 sqft range. At $350K-$378K, the plans open up to 3-4 bedroom configurations with more living space.

KB Home’s Energy Star certification is standard across all Mustang Valley homes, not an upgrade option. For first-time buyers focused on ongoing utility costs, that matters: Energy Star homes typically run 20-30% lower on monthly utility bills than standard construction.

KB Home also operates with a built-to-order model, which means buyers select their lot, floor plan, and finishes through KB’s design studio. The trade-off is a 4-7 month build timeline versus immediate move-in. If you need to close quickly, ask about spec homes — KB typically has a small inventory of near-complete homes at each community.

What $300K gets you at Mustang Valley: a brand-new 3-bedroom, 2-bath home with a 2-car garage, Energy Star certification, stainless appliances, and a builder warranty. In Travis County. That combination does not exist anywhere else at this price.

Carillon — Entry Tiers (D.R. Horton / DRB Homes)

Starting price: $300K-$320K.

Carillon is Manor’s largest and most builder-diverse masterplan. At the entry end, D.R. Horton and DRB Homes offer the lowest-priced product in the community. D.R. Horton is the largest homebuilder in the United States, which translates to standardized designs, efficient construction timelines, and consistent pricing. The entry-level Horton product at Carillon is practical rather than elevated — expect functional layouts, standard finishes, and no-frills landscaping.

DRB Homes targets first-time buyers with its entry configurations and prices to compete directly with Horton at the low end. Multiple builders sharing the same masterplan creates real competition: when a buyer can walk from a Horton model to a DRB model to an M/I model within the same community, each builder has a reason to keep pricing and incentives honest.

ShadowGlen — Terrata Homes Entry

Starting price: $300K.

ShadowGlen is Manor’s established golf-course community. Terrata Homes is the entry-level builder in ShadowGlen, starting around $300K. The community includes a golf course, resort-style pool, fitness center, and multiple parks — amenity infrastructure that typically costs more to access in other markets.

The catch with ShadowGlen entry-level is inventory. Terrata’s production at ShadowGlen is smaller-volume than KB’s Mustang Valley output, which means fewer available floor plans and fewer spec homes at any given time. Buyers targeting ShadowGlen at $300K should expect a tighter selection and potentially longer waits for their preferred configuration.

What $300K Actually Buys You in Manor

At $300K in Manor today, you are buying:

• A new construction home. Not resale, not deferred maintenance, not 1980s tile.
• 1,400-1,600 sqft, 3 bedrooms, 2 baths, 2-car garage.
• Energy Star or comparable efficiency standards at KB and Meritage.
• Full builder warranty (1-year workmanship, 2-year systems, 10-year structural at most builders).
• Community amenities: pool, parks, walking trails, depending on community.

What you are trading for that price:

• Commute: Manor is 35-45 minutes from downtown Austin without traffic. The nearest toll access is US-290/SH-130. Budget 40-50 minutes on bad days.
• Schools: Manor ISD is a growing district with B and C-rated schools on TEA accountability. It is not Lake Travis ISD or Leander ISD.
• Retail: The nearest H-E-B is in Pflugerville or east Austin. Manor’s retail infrastructure is thin and improving slowly.

That is the full picture at the entry level.

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$350K-$500K — The Manor Sweet Spot

This is where most Manor buyers land. The $350K-$500K range gives you a full family home — 4-5 bedrooms, 2,000-3,200 sqft, upgraded finishes — at prices still $80K-$150K below what that configuration costs in Pflugerville or Round Rock.

Carillon — M/I Homes, Chesmar, Richmond American

Range: $330K-$510K.

Carillon’s mid-range is the most competitive segment in Manor. Three builders — M/I Homes, Chesmar Homes, and Richmond American — compete for the same $330K-$510K buyer within the same masterplan.

M/I Homes is a national builder with a reputation for customer service ratings above the production-builder average. M/I’s Carillon product runs from the mid-$300s into the $400s. The floor plans lean toward open-concept family layouts with dedicated flex rooms — a practical choice for buyers working from home.

Chesmar Homes is a Texas-based regional builder that builds to a higher finish standard than the national volume builders. Chesmar’s Carillon homes run from the mid-$300s to $510K. At the top of that range, you are getting above-average cabinetry, tile, and fixture packages relative to what Richmond American or D.R. Horton provide at the same price point. Chesmar’s local presence also means tighter build supervision and faster warranty response than a national builder serviced from a regional hub.

Richmond American Homes completes the three-builder picture at Carillon. Richmond American uses a design center model similar to KB Home — buyers customize their home through a studio visit. The resulting product tends to be a step up from base D.R. Horton but priced competitively with M/I.

Three builders in the same community creates leverage for buyers. Each builder has a reason to compete on incentives, design, and service. I regularly walk buyers through all three model homes in a single Carillon visit so they can make a direct comparison.

Lagos — Pulte, Tri Pointe, Ashton Woods

Range: $350K-$530K.

Lagos is Manor’s newest large-scale masterplan, and it has attracted three quality-tier builders: Pulte Homes, Tri Pointe Homes, and Ashton Woods.

Pulte Homes is a national builder known for its Life Tested floor plans, which are designed around real buyer feedback about how families actually use space. Pulte’s Lagos product starts in the mid-$300s and runs to the $450K range. Pulte consistently ranks above average in builder customer satisfaction surveys, which matters when you are committing to a 6-9 month construction process.

Tri Pointe Homes is a national builder with a design-forward product at a mid-tier price. Tri Pointe’s Lagos homes run from the upper $300s to the low $500s. The finish level — tile selections, cabinet hardware, exterior detailing — tends to be a step above Pulte and well above Horton. If design quality matters to you and you are comparing homes at $420K-$490K, Tri Pointe is worth a model tour.

Ashton Woods is the design leader of the three Lagos builders. Ashton Woods is known for architectural variety — elevation choices, interior color packages, and above-average standard finishes. At Lagos, Ashton Woods runs from the high $300s to $530K. Buyers who care about how a home looks — not just how many square feet it has — gravitate toward Ashton Woods over the other volume builders.

Lagos is earlier in its buildout than Carillon or ShadowGlen, which means buyers today are entering a community with years of development ahead. Earlier-phase buyers typically get better lot selection. They also get to live through the community buildout, which is a real factor for buyers who want to be in an established neighborhood immediately.

ShadowGlen — Meritage Boulevard and Reserve Collections

Range: $350K-$500K.

Meritage Homes builds two step-up collections at ShadowGlen: the Reserve Collection and the Boulevard Collection. Both carry Meritage’s energy efficiency standard — spray foam insulation, low-E windows, and fresh-air ventilation — as base features, not upgrades.

At $350K-$500K in ShadowGlen, you are getting Meritage’s efficiency package in a golf-course community with established infrastructure. ShadowGlen has been actively building since the early 2010s. The golf course, clubhouse, and resort pool are built and operational. Buyers at Meritage’s mid-range are not waiting for community amenities to materialize.

The Meritage efficiency standard delivers a measurable monthly cost reduction. On a $400K ShadowGlen home, expect utility bills $80-$120/month lower than a comparable home in a community without spray foam insulation. Over a 7-year hold, that delta is $6,700-$10,000 in energy savings — meaningful at any price point, but especially so at this range.

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$500K+ — Move-Up Manor

Manor’s move-up market is a small but real segment. These homes are priced $100K-$200K below comparable homes in Pflugerville or Round Rock, and they offer larger footprints in communities with full amenity infrastructure.

ShadowGlen — Perry Homes

Range: $440K-$600K.

Perry Homes is one of Texas’s largest private homebuilders, and its ShadowGlen product represents the top of the Manor market. Perry builds larger floor plans — homes at the $500K-$600K range typically run 2,800-3,500 sqft with 4-5 bedrooms, 3-4 baths, and elevated standard finish packages.

Perry Homes has a loyal Texas buyer base for reasons that are visible in the product: better cabinet quality, more architectural detail, and a build process that moves faster than most national builders. At ShadowGlen, Perry buyers get the golf-course setting and established community infrastructure to match the home quality.

At $600K in Manor, you are buying what costs $700K-$750K in Pflugerville and over $800K in Round Rock. That spread is the argument for Perry Homes at ShadowGlen.

Carillon — Chesmar Upper Range

Range: to $510K.

Chesmar’s upper tier at Carillon pushes to $510K with larger floor plans and more elevated finish packages. At this price point, Chesmar is competing on quality rather than value — the buyer choosing Chesmar at $480K-$510K is choosing the builder for its Texas roots, local build supervision, and better-than-average finish standards, not for the lowest price in the community.

Lagos — Upper Ashton Woods Range

Range: to $530K.

Ashton Woods’ highest-tier homes at Lagos reach $530K. These are Ashton Woods’ larger design-forward plans with the most architectural differentiation. For buyers who want the move-up experience in a newer community with long-term buildout potential, Lagos/Ashton Woods at $500K-$530K is an option that does not exist in Pflugerville at this price.

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How Manor Compares to Pflugerville and Hutto by Price

At $300K: Manor vs. Hutto

Both Manor and Hutto offer new construction at $300K. The question is what each city gives you for that price.

Factor	Manor ($300K)	Hutto ($300K)
County	Travis	Williamson
School District	Manor ISD	Hutto ISD
Distance to downtown Austin	17 miles	30 miles
Builder options	KB Home, D.R. Horton, Terrata	Lennar, Brohn, CastleRock
MUD tax rate	1.77-2.37%	1.75-2.25%

Manor’s advantage at $300K: Travis County address and shorter commute. Hutto’s advantage: more competition among builders at this price tier and more spec homes available at any given time. Neither has a clear school district advantage — both Manor ISD and Hutto ISD score similarly on TEA accountability.

For buyers where Travis County matters — either for resale positioning or employer subsidies tied to county residency — Manor is the clear choice at $300K. For buyers focused purely on monthly payment and care less about county, Hutto offers more builder competition.

At $400K: Manor vs. Pflugerville

This is the most relevant comparison for the majority of Manor buyers.

Factor	Manor ($400K)	Pflugerville ($400K)
What you get	4-5 bed, 2,000-2,500 sqft new construction	3-4 bed, 1,700-2,100 sqft new construction
School District	Manor ISD	Pflugerville ISD
Distance to downtown Austin	17 miles	20 miles
Commute to Apple/Domain	30-35 min	20-25 min
Community amenities	Full (Lagos, Carillon, ShadowGlen)	Full

At $400K, Manor buys you more house. Pflugerville buys you a slightly better school district and a marginally shorter commute to the central tech corridor. The $50K-$80K gap between comparable homes in the two cities is real and consistent.

For buyers who work at Samsung Taylor, Tesla Giga Texas, or along the SH-130 corridor, Manor’s commute advantage over Pflugerville is genuine. For buyers whose jobs are at Apple on Parmer Lane or at the Domain, Pflugerville saves meaningful commute time.

School district is the honest tiebreaker. Pflugerville ISD scores modestly better than Manor ISD on TEA ratings. The gap is not enormous, but it is real. Families with school-age children who treat ISD quality as the primary decision factor will generally find Pflugerville the right call at $400K. Buyers who weigh home size per dollar above school ranking will find Manor the better trade.

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The MUD Tax Reality at Each Price Point

Most Manor communities sit inside Municipal Utility Districts. MUDs are how Texas funds infrastructure — water, sewer, drainage — in newly developed areas. Buyers pay an additional property tax rate on top of standard county and city rates to retire the bonds used to build that infrastructure.

In Manor, MUD rates run from 1.77% to 2.37% depending on the community and the age of its bonds. Here is what that adds to your annual property tax bill at each price point:

Purchase Price	MUD Rate 1.77%	MUD Rate 2.37%	Annual MUD Impact
$300,000	$5,310/year	$7,110/year	$443-$593/month
$350,000	$6,195/year	$8,295/year	$516-$691/month
$400,000	$7,080/year	$9,480/year	$590-$790/month
$500,000	$8,850/year	$11,850/year	$738-$988/month

Three things to know about MUD taxes:

They decline over time. As MUD bonds are retired, the rate drops. A community that carries a 2.37% MUD rate today may be at 1.50% in 10-12 years. Buyers planning long holds benefit from this trajectory.

Not all of Manor is in a MUD. Some established sections of Manor proper are not in MUDs. If MUD avoidance is important to you, ask specifically for the tax rate disclosure before signing — do not assume.

The rate is disclosed before closing. Texas law requires MUD disclosure. Any reputable builder and any buyer’s agent will walk you through the full tax picture before you sign a contract. If someone is not showing you a detailed tax estimate at your target price, ask for it.

On a $350K home, the MUD impact ranges from $516 to $691 per month added to your tax obligation. That is not trivial. But it is also not different from what comparable communities in Hutto or Pflugerville carry — most new masterplans in the Austin metro have MUD structures. What varies is the rate and how far along the bonds are in being retired.

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Frequently Asked Questions

**What is the cheapest new construction in Manor TX?**

Mustang Valley by KB Home starts at $300K for a 3-bedroom Energy Star home. Terrata Homes at ShadowGlen also starts around $300K. These are the cheapest new construction options from major builders in Travis County.

**How much does a family home cost in Manor new construction?**

A 4-5 bedroom family home in Manor runs $350K-$530K at Carillon (M/I Homes, Chesmar), Lagos (Pulte, Tri Pointe), or ShadowGlen (Meritage). That is $100K-$150K less than comparable homes in Pflugerville or Round Rock.

**What is the most expensive new construction in Manor?**

ShadowGlen tops out around $600K with Perry Homes for larger family homes up to 3,500 sqft. Carillon reaches $510K with Chesmar. These are move-up homes with above-average finishes for the Manor market.

**How does Manor pricing compare to other Austin suburbs?**

Manor averages $353K-$374K for new construction. Pflugerville averages $464K, Round Rock $555K, Georgetown $520K. Manor is 15-25% cheaper than the closest comparable suburbs for similar square footage.

**Are all Manor communities in MUDs?**

Most are. MUD tax rates in Manor range from 1.77-2.37%. On a $350K home that adds $6,200-$8,300 per year in property taxes. Some established sections of Manor are not in MUDs -- always ask for the disclosure.

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Work With William

I am a licensed agent at eXp Realty (TREC #811948) and I work with new construction buyers across the Austin metro. I tour Manor communities regularly — Mustang Valley, Carillon, Lagos, and ShadowGlen — and I know which builders are running the best incentives, which lot positions have the strongest long-term resale value, and how to negotiate with a builder’s sales rep without using their preferred lender.

My representation is free to buyers. The builder pays the commission.

Call or text: (512) 766-3188

Or learn more about how I work before reaching out.

For community-specific detail, see the Manor new construction guide. For context on how Manor fits the broader market, see the Austin new construction overview and the 2026 Manor community guide. For the mistakes buyers make that cost them most, read new construction mistakes in Austin.