As the Central Texas region continues to grow in population and economically, Cedar Park, Leander, east Round Rock and west Georgetown top the list as some of the most popular places to live, according to a real estate panel.

Austin Board of Realtors President Aaron Farmer said the fastest-growing area in Central Texas is Williamson County. The Realtor group held an economic outlook panel at the The Dell Diamond Wednesday to take a closer look at the economics that make up the fast-growing county.

The panelists included Round Rock Mayor Pro Tem Craig Morgan; Mark Sprague, the state director of information capital with Independence Title; and Metrostudy Director Vaike O'Grady. Farmer said this is the first economic outlook panel the Realtor group has held, though it is planning for more in the future.

The three panelists said the state of Williamson County real estate is strong—the county is driving almost half of the home sales in the Austin market, with new homes sales making up about 25 percent of the total.

O’Grady said some of the top-selling subdivisions are Teravista in Round Rock and Georgetown, Siena between Round Rock and Hutto, Sun City in Georgetown, Paloma in Round Rock and Crystal Falls in Leander. Her company Metrostudy provides data analysis on residential construction real estate and the housing market.

She said the market continues to grow as more houses are built in the $200,000-$350,000 range. Williamson County has about 3,200 lots under construction now, though most are in the early phases of excavating roads.

“So if you think there are a lot of new home communities in Williamson County now, just wait, because there’s a lot more coming online in the next six months,” she said.

Morgan said the No. 1 issue facing Central Texas is transportation. He said traffic affects economic opportunities, though Williamson County has stood out by engaging its cities on transportation problems.

“I think what the county understands is the cities within Williamson County really work well together on transportation ideas,” he said. “That has helped us in Round Rock to leverage our tax dollars.”

Morgan also serves on the board of the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization and said CAMPO is looking for other alternatives to the Lone Star Rail District passenger rail line. He said the board also recently dedicated $4 billion to road improvements on I-35 from Hays County to Round Rock.

Sprague said Williamson County has the most progressive government in the state in terms of planning for future growth, such as planning its roadways years in advance.

He said other cities and counties weigh down economic development with high permitting fees and longer entitlement processes, or the time between purchasing property and the beginning of development. Sprague said those factors encouraged companies to begin moving to Williamson County to do business, which he expects to continue and to drive more growth to the area.

“Guys, you’re in a great place,” he said. “If you don’t believe that, go to another city. Go to another city outside of Texas.”