Category Archives: Home Buying

Homes in Austin basically out of stock

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Finding a  single-family home, condo, or townhouse to buy in Austin right now is kind of like looking for toilet paper at your local grocery store.  According to the November Central Texas Housing Report released by the Austin Board of Realtors®, the Austin-Round Rock Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) posted a record-breaking month of sales this November.  Austin – RoundRock MSA home sales jumped 23.8% year over year to 3,397 sales, indicating no sign of slowing down heading into 2021.

Understand, houses are entering the market, new listings increased 5.7% to 2,762 listings, but active listings dropped 55.2% to 2,842 listings and pending sales increased 23.9% to 3,269 pending sales. Homes for sale in Austin are getting scooped and purchased up as soon as they hit the market due to the number of buyers out there. 

For the first time ever, housing inventory dipped below one month across the five-county MSA, falling from 1.2 months year over year to 0.9 months of inventory. Continue reading →

A holiday season like never before

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Like most of the world, Austin is preparing to celebrate the holidays like never before. For some, that means drive-thru events and virtual get-togethers. For others, it is beginning to look a lot like an early Christmas as trees are already coming out of storage and being decorated, It’s “Festivus for the rest of us”, as the late great Jerry Stiller gifted us in that memorable Seinfeld episode. That grievance pole is certainly coming out this year for sure, as everyone has a bone to pick with the year 2020. Continue reading →

Austin area real estate hits a perfect storm as a blizzard of buyers meets a hot market

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The holidays bring out a plethora of emotions and this year real estate is doing that as well.  There just aren’t enough homes out there for everyone who wants to move.  The Austin Board of Realtors® does a great job creating the infographics I post every month.  The data certainly tells the story, but the graphics really paint the picture.  It is hard to express how hot the market is to people until I can actually show them.  Some buyers think only the particular market they are looking in is hot. We are in a collective buyers’ blizzard right now. It is hot all over the Central Texas real estate market right now with no signs of cooling off. Continue reading →

Real estate in Austin shows no signs of cooling down

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There have been some beautiful days here in Austin, Texas. I think it feels extra good to be outdoors after a spring season spent mainly watching the news and a long hot summer. Learning how to survive, cope, and thrive in our new normal took time away from the outdoors, as we spent even more time in front of our laptops. COVID-19 has taken us through the many stages of grief for a variety of reasons, so even though fall is already upon us, spring is somehow in the air as we leave the laptops behind to line up to vote, get flu shots, and send the kids back to school. Overall, Austin has pivoted well to life’s new hurdles, while it is not immune to the toll it has taken on the bars, restaurants, and entertainment venues. The jobless rate is continually showing signs of improvement which may be turning even more people to look in Austin’s direction. The result is that new interest in Austin only increases the demand for housing. Continue reading →

Austin home sales continue to soar

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AUSTIN, Texas—According to the latest Central Texas Housing Market Report released by the Austin Board of REALTORS® (ABoR), the Central Texas housing market continues to exhibit strength despite economic challenges and shrinking housing inventory. In September, home sales across the Austin-Round Rock MSA soared 31.5% year over year to 3,892 sales. Historically this time of year home sales are slower, but because of decreased activity during the shelter-in-place orders due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the summer selling season extended into September. Continue reading →

Austin has plenty of real estate news

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Austin is a bustling hot spot these days. The influx of new buyers and businesses moving to Austin has cast a wider net for housing development. To the east, the new Tesla gigafactory has propelled new construction near the area. Whisper Valley, a unique eco-community, is starting to pre-sell Phase 2 called Whisper Highlands and includes five different builders to date. To the west, sales and residential construction in the Westlake and Lake Travis areas are strong. The farther reaching development is partially a byproduct of the pandemic as buyers seek less dense areas and more personal space. Continue reading →

Austin Real Estate Housing Market Update for August 2020

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AUSTIN, Texas— Moving to Austin? As the summer real estate market season comes to a close, the Austin Board of REALTORS® (ABoR) latest Central Texas Housing Market Report indicates the Austin-area housing market continues to exhibit strength, despite economic setbacks amid the ongoing pandemic. The Austin-Round Rock MSA posted robust gains this August, as home sales experienced a double-digit increase of 12.9% year over year to 4,019 sales. Continue reading →