Land & Ranch · Texas · Austin Waco Hill Country
Land & Ranch · County
Bastrop County TX Land & Ranches for Sale
About Bastrop County
Bastrop County is a stretch of pine forest, post oak and river bottom along the Colorado River just east of Austin. The Texas Real Estate Research Center puts it in its Austin–Waco–Hill Country land-market region. The county seat is Bastrop, one of the oldest towns in Texas. The county covers about 888 square miles and takes in Elgin to the north and Smithville to the southeast. It works for buyers who want a homesite on acreage, a recreational tract in the Lost Pines, or a hay meadow with room for a few cows within an Austin commute. It also draws people watching one of the fastest-changing corridors in Central Texas, where farm and ranch country now sits a short drive from some of the area's biggest new employers.
Legacy Broker Group listings in Bastrop County
Search homes, land & ranches in Bastrop County
The multiple listing information is provided by LERA MLS. Copyright ©2026 LERA MLS. All Rights Reserved. Information deemed reliable but not guaranteed accurate. This information should be independently verified if any person intends to engage in a transaction in reliance upon it. The information provided is for consumers' personal, non-commercial use and may not be used for any purpose other than to identify prospective properties consumers may be interested in purchasing.
Based on information from Unlock MLS (alternatively, from ACTRIS) for the period through 10/15/2026. Neither the Board nor ACTRIS guarantees or is in any way responsible for its accuracy. All data is provided “AS IS” and with all faults. Data maintained by the Board or ACTRIS may not reflect all real estate activity in the market.
Information being provided is for consumers’ personal, non-commercial use and may not be used for any purpose other than to identify prospective properties consumers may be interested in purchasing. Some IDX listings have been excluded from this website.
Data last updated: 10/15/2026 13:32
The information being provided by Central Texas MLS is provided exclusively for consumers' personal, non-commercial use, that it may not be used for any purpose other than to identify prospective properties consumers may be interested in purchasing, and that the data is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed accurate by Central Texas MLS.
Based on information from South Texas MLS, LLC as of 2026-10-15 13:32:22. All information provided is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed and should be independently verified. South Texas MLS, LLC provides the MLS and all content therein “AS IS” and without any warranty, express or implied. MLS aggregate data is a copyright of Texas Association of REALTORS® (TAR) and that the reader may not reproduce or distribute the MLS aggregate data.
© 2026 Bryan-College Station Regional Multiple Listing Service. IDX information is provided exclusively for consumers' personal, non-commercial use and may not be used for any purpose other than to identify prospective properties consumers may be interested in purchasing. Data is deemed reliable but is not guaranteed accurate by the MLS or Legacy Broker Group. Data last updated 09/23/2023 16:30.
The data is deemed reliable, but is not guaranteed accurate by the MLS or NTREIS. Consumers may not reproduce or redistribute NTREIS data since the use of this data is only for people viewing this web site.
Information contained on the computer print-outs of the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) of the HOUSTON REALTORS® INFORMATION SERVICE (HRIS) is furnished by MLS Participants for dissemination to other MLS Participants, for their exclusive use, and should not be relied upon by Buyer/Tenant or any other person. There is no express or implied warranty by HAR or MLS as to the accuracy of such information, which should be independently verified by Buyer/Tenant or such other person. MLS does not verify the information and disclaims any responsibility for its accuracy.
Bastrop County on the map
Each marker is a Legacy Broker Group listing in Bastrop County — click for details; a sold one links to Significant Transactions.
Living in Bastrop County
- Bastrop County (official site) — The county government site, with office locations, Commissioners Court, upcoming events and news, run from the courthouse on Pecan Street in Bastrop.
- Bastrop County AgriLife Extension – Agriculture & Natural Re — Texas A&M AgriLife's county office, offering tools and training for landowners, homeowners and farmers and ranchers on farming and natural resources.
- Bastrop State Park — A National Historic Landmark park in the Lost Pines with camping, hiking, biking, fishing and CCC history. Park Road 1C runs from here to Buescher.
- Bastrop Independent School District — The public school district for Bastrop, Cedar Creek, Red Rock, Rockne and Paige, covering 433 square miles. It has P-TECH and early college programs.
- Bastrop Regional Chamber of Commerce — The chamber of commerce for the Bastrop region, with a community calendar, a member directory and local business resources. Its office is at 927 Main St.
The vibe
The land here doesn't look like the limestone Hill Country west of Austin. Bastrop County has rolling hills and sandy loam soils. Its best-known feature is the Lost Pines, a stand of loblolly pine cut off from the East Texas piney woods by about 100 miles of post oak country. It's the westernmost loblolly stand in the state. North of Bastrop State Park the tall pines give way to grassy prairie and gravel county roads. Downstream, the Colorado River runs free between steeper banks and sandstone bluffs. Rural property runs from wooded homesites in the pines to open pasture and creek-bottom tracts toward Paige, McDade, Red Rock and Rosanky. Much of the acreage around Elgin is unrestricted farm country.
The towns carry a lot of history. Bastrop grew up where the Colorado River crosses the old El Camino Real. Its downtown sits on a bluff above the river, with a walkable Main Street, galleries and the Old Iron Bridge. Elgin was founded by the Houston and Texas Central Railroad in 1872, and its 14-block historic district is built largely of local brick. The Texas Legislature named it the Sausage Capital of Texas, and it has long been called the Brick Capital of the Southwest. Smithville was once the Katy railroad's central shop town and the largest town in the county. It's a walkable river town that has stood in as a movie set more than once.
The pace is changing. Bastrop County was farm and ranch country a generation ago. Today SpaceX's Starlink operation, The Boring Company and X have facilities along FM 1209 northwest of Bastrop, and the county's population grew from 74,381 in 2010 to an estimated 114,931 in 2024. City and county leaders have said they want to balance that growth with protecting historic downtowns and small-town character. Off the main highways, the back roads still feel like the country.
Market snapshot
Regional benchmark first. The Texas Real Estate Research Center's Texas Rural Land Markets report for the second quarter of 2026, published in August 2026, put the Austin–Waco–Hill Country region at a record median of $8,040 per acre. That's up 8.63 percent year over year, with demand for recreational and homesite land holding the region up. That figure tracks large rural tracts across the whole region. Bastrop County sits close to Austin and sells in much smaller pieces, so asking prices here run far higher. Listing data checked on Land.com in October 2026 showed a median asking price of roughly $28,500 to $29,500 per acre for Bastrop County land, on a median tract of about 22 acres. These are list prices, not closed sales, and they vary a lot depending on road frontage, utilities, trees, water and how close a tract is to Bastrop or the FM 1209 corridor. We couldn't find a published days-on-market figure for county land. In our experience, well-priced small tracts with good access move first, and larger raw acreage takes longer and needs patient pricing.
On the residential side, the market has tilted toward buyers. As of May 2026, Orchard's county report showed a median sale price of $350,000, flat from a year earlier. The median price per square foot was $187.61, down 6.9 percent, and the median days on market was 68, up from 57. Inventory stood at about 13.8 months of supply. Cain Realty Group's June 1, 2026 update reported a median of 84 days on market for sold homes and an average sale-to-list ratio of 95.3 percent. It called Bastrop County the most buyer-friendly of the four Austin-area counties it tracks. For buyers, that means room to negotiate on homes that have been listed a while.
Selling in Bastrop County?
Thinking of selling land or a ranch in Bastrop County? A Legacy Broker Group Broker Price Opinion is free, and it starts with the market you are actually in.
Amenities
Public schools in Bastrop County are run by Bastrop ISD, which covers Bastrop, Cedar Creek, Red Rock and the central and western county. Elgin ISD covers the northwest, Smithville ISD the southeast and McDade ISD the northeast, and Lexington ISD reaches into the northern county from Lee County. District lines don't follow city limits or ZIP codes, and school tax rates differ by district, so check the district for any specific tract. Outdoors, Bastrop State Park covers 6,600 acres of the Lost Pines. It opened in 1937, its cabins and refectory were built by the Civilian Conservation Corps, and it became a National Historic Landmark in 1997. The hilly 12-mile Park Road 1C runs through the pines to Buescher State Park near Smithville. The LCRA's Lake Bastrop has 900 surface acres for boating. McKinney Roughs, the Colorado River Refuge and the El Camino Real Paddling Trail from Fisherman's Park in downtown Bastrop give you more ways to hike, fish and paddle the river.
For food, Elgin is the draw. Southside Market has been making Elgin hot sausage since 1882, and the town's smokehouses bring barbecue fans in from all over Central Texas. Bastrop and Smithville have Main Street restaurants, galleries and festivals, plus local history museums in Bastrop, Elgin, Smithville and McDade. Big employers include SpaceX and Starlink, which employ about 1,600 people near Bastrop, along with The Boring Company, MD Anderson Cancer Center, H-E-B, Buc-ee's, Bastrop ISD and Bastrop County. For the commute, Bastrop is about 33 miles east of Austin on SH 71. Elgin is about 25 miles east of Austin on US 290 and 17 miles north of Bastrop on SH 95. Smithville is about 10 miles southeast of Bastrop, and Taylor is 16 miles north of Elgin.
Bastrop County FAQs
Where is Bastrop County, Texas, and what is the county seat?
Bastrop County is in Central Texas, just east of Travis County and Austin, along the Colorado River. The county seat is the city of Bastrop, and the other main towns are Elgin and Smithville.
How far is Bastrop County from Austin?
The city of Bastrop is about 33 miles east of Austin on SH 71, and Elgin is about 25 miles east of Austin on US 290. Smithville is about 10 miles past Bastrop to the southeast.
Is Bastrop County part of the Texas Hill Country?
The Texas Real Estate Research Center puts Bastrop County in its Austin–Waco–Hill Country land-market region, but the land doesn't look like the limestone hills west of Austin. It's rolling, sandy country with loblolly pines, post oaks, prairie and Colorado River bottomland.
What does rural land in Bastrop County look like?
You'll find wooded homesites in the Lost Pines, open pasture and hay meadows, creek-bottom tracts, and farmland around Elgin, Paige and McDade. Soils are mostly sandy loam, and many listed tracts are in the 10-to-60-acre range rather than big ranches.
How is the Bastrop County land market doing right now?
The regional rural land market set a record high in mid-2026. Bastrop County asking prices per acre run well above the regional median because it's close to Austin and tracts are smaller. The residential market has been slower, with longer days on market and more room for buyers to negotiate.
What is driving growth in Bastrop County?
A big driver is the cluster of facilities along FM 1209 northwest of Bastrop, including SpaceX's Starlink operation, The Boring Company and X. Being between Austin and Houston helps too, and the county's population has grown by more than half since 2010.
Which school districts serve Bastrop County?
Bastrop ISD, Elgin ISD, Smithville ISD and McDade ISD serve most of the county, and Lexington ISD reaches into the northern edge. Boundaries don't follow city limits or ZIP codes, so confirm the district for any specific property.
What is there to do outdoors in Bastrop County?
Bastrop State Park and Buescher State Park protect a large part of the Lost Pines and are linked by the scenic Park Road 1C. Lake Bastrop has boating, and the Colorado River has paddling trails, fishing and riverside hiking at places like McKinney Roughs and the Colorado River Refuge.
What should I check before buying acreage in Bastrop County?
Check wildfire and flood exposure, since much of the county carries some wildfire risk and the Lost Pines burned badly in 2011. Also confirm road access, utilities, deed restrictions, the school district and its tax rate, and whether the land keeps an agricultural valuation.
Where can I get good barbecue in Bastrop County?
Elgin is the place to go. The Texas Legislature named it the Sausage Capital of Texas, and Southside Market has been making Elgin hot sausage there since 1882.
Are there small towns with historic downtowns in Bastrop County?
Yes. Bastrop's downtown sits on a bluff above the Colorado River, Elgin has a 14-block historic brick district, and Smithville is a walkable railroad town on the river. McDade, Paige and Cedar Creek are smaller rural communities across the county.
Which Legacy Broker Group office serves buyers looking at land in Bastrop County?
Legacy Broker Group's Boerne office serves Bastrop County through our Land & Ranch division. Call us to talk through tracts, access, water and how the county's growth affects a property.
Market and community sections reviewed 2026-10-30.