Six months ago I compared “typical” investments in 2010 in single family homes as rental properties in various parts of Austin. Now, I want to offer an updated look at residential real estate investments in the first half of 2011 — this time including single family homes, duplexes, and fourplexes. Continue reading
Even as chaotic market conditions still dominate press reports about real estate nationally, the Austin/Central Texas residential market continues to demonstrate fundamental strength. Sales volume is up for five consecutive months, and average and median home values have appreciated all year. Local and regional economic results and expectations are promising. Continue reading
Austin and Washington, DC continue to buck the trend, gaining value year-over-year. As I pointed out in my last post, the magnitude of the gain in Austin remains impressive, even compared to Washington, DC. Continue reading
The Case-Shiller indices have been losing ground year-to-year for several months. For much longer — about sixteen months — both Austin and Washington, DC have been gaining. And look at the magnitude of those gains — Austin vs. Washington! Yes, Washington home values have appreciated more than Austin since 2000, but it would have been very easy for five of those years to pay more for a home there than the current market would yield. Not so in Austin.
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Builders’ confidence in the Single Family sector remains weak, but strong permitting activity in the Multifamily arena bodes well for the Austin/Central Texas residential market. Continue reading
Near the median sale price, we’re getting into “seller’s market” territory in many neighborhoods, but there is still a lot to choose from. Here’s an overview. Continue reading
I wrote yesterday about some million dollar homes that have sold recently in the Austin area. Here are a few that are still available. Continue reading
The first thing you may notice is that this an over-inventoried market segmentThe difference in this high-end market segment, though, is that 126 available homes really isn’t that many in a metro area of 1.5 million people, and buyers in this segment may well be looking for THE house … Continue reading
Future market activity remains somewhat unpredictable, and much depends on the direction of the general economy and the nationwide real estate market. There is clear strength in the Austin/Central Texas market, though. Continue reading
Closed sales were down from May 2010 to May 2011, but the most immediate measure of market demand clearly shows improvement. Anecdotally, my business and that of most real estate professionals that I talk to indicate that the pace of market activity is up, and there is plenty of support in local economic reports to expect that we really are on the way to more consistent growth. Continue reading