ROSELIND HEJL'S AUSTIN REAL ESTATE GUIDE
Austin Real Estate Market Trends:
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| Austin Real Estate Market: 4th Quarter 2011 | |
| An end of year look at the at the Austin real estate market tells a simple story – demand is exceeding supply. The overall months of inventory for the Austin area reached 3.61. By comparison, 2010 ended the year with 5.1 months of inventory; 2009 ended with 4.6 months. We have moved from a balanced market into seller’s market range for most areas. Read More... | |
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| Austin Real Estate Market: 4th Quarter 2010 | |
The collapse of the subprime bubble in 2007 began a chain of events something like this: Sudden loss of loan funds = fewer buyers = unsold homes on the market = price reductions = loss of equity = foreclosures = more loss of value = fear of even more loss of value = buyer hesitation. This is a difficult chain to break. But, I think the chain was broken here in Austin, and the tipping point was late 2009. Read More... |
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| Austin Real Estate Market: 3rd Quarter 2010 | |
Austin continues to maintain a balanced market - with 6.2 months of inventory for sale. At the end of the 3rd quarter of 2009, we were in about the same place - with 6.9 months. So, no harm, no foul. |
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| Austin Real Estate Market: 2nd Quarter 2010 | |
The Austin real estate market ended the 2nd quarter of 2010 with 6.9 months of single family homes for sale – a balanced market inventory. However, the state of the market varies by geographic area and price range. Read more... |
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| Austin Real Estate Appreciation | |
“Clowns to the left of me, Jokers to the right, This old song comes to mind when I think of Austin real estate values. We have been stuck in the middle for years. This has not always been the most coveted spot. But, a few months ago, Time Magazine held Austin up “as a model of hope.” Read more... |
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| Austin Real Estate Market: 1st Quarter 2010 | |
The Austin real estate market ended the 1st quarter of 2010 with an overall supply level of 5.9 months. This is up from 4.6 months in the 4th quarter of 2009. Rising supply during the first part of the year is part of the normal real estate cycle. Homes tend to enter the market in greater volume during first two quarters, and the inventory whittles down during the year. Read more... |
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| Austin Real Estate Market: 4th Quarter 2009 | |
The Austin real estate market continued on an even keel through the 4th quarter of 2009, with an overall supply level of 4.6 months, down from 5.7 months in the 3rd quarter. We normally see a drop in supply during the last few months of the year, so the market is behaving as expected. Here is a map showing the variations in the Austin market by area: Read more... |
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| Austin Real Estate Market: 3rd Quarter 2009 | |
The Austin real estate market tightened slightly during the 3rd quarter of 2009. Inventory for Austin as a whole continues to stay in balance - with a level of 5.7 months of supply. This is down from 6.3 months of supply at the end of the 2nd Quarter. However, throughout the Austin area, there are local variations in the market. Read More... |
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| Austin McMansion Ordinance: Walking the Walk | |
The Residential Design Ordinance of 2006 (revised 2008) controls certain aspects of the design and construction of homes in Austin’s central neighborhoods. In this discussion, I would like to ask our panel two basic questions: What does the design ordinance say? And, how does it work out in practice? Read more... |
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| Jumbo Loans: Questions & Answers | |
Our market analysis at the end of 2nd Quarter, 2009, revealed an overhang in inventory in the over $800,000 price range. This market segment has been moving slowly partly because of the higher interest rates and tougher requirements for jumbo mortgages. This interview focuses on jumbo financing today. The good news is that these loans are becoming more available and have better rates. Read more... |
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| Austin Real Estate Market: 2nd Quarter 2009 | |
We have analyzed market data for the 2nd quarter of 2009, with a focus on the number of months of inventory for sale in each MLS section. Below is a comparison between the 1st and 2nd Quarters of 2009. We looked for changes in inventory that indicate a trend in the market. Read more.. |
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| Austin's McMansion Ordinance: Considering the Consequences | |
Austin attorney, Chris Bradford, published an interesting article about Austin’s demographics entitled, How Austin’s Rise Became a Tale of Two Cities. He shows census data that reveals that households with children are more concentrated in the suburban parts of the Austin area. The reason, he says, is simply that people can get larger, cheaper, and newer homes in surrounding suburbs than they can in central Austin. I would like to add to his piece with a story from our own experience. Read more... |
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| Reflections on Austin - A Talk With Joel Kotkin | |
(First I want to thank Mr. Kotkin for sharing his highly valued opinion with me. Joel Kotkin is executive editor of NewGeography.com and is a presidential fellow in urban futures at Chapman University. He is author of The City: A Global History (Roselind) I was pleased to read your recent article about the best cities for job growth. You selected Austin as the #1 Big City for job growth. What put Austin at the top of the list? Read more... |
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| Austin Real Estate Market: 1st Quarter 2009 | |
It has been said that real estate markets are very local. This is clear to us as we work throughout Austin. On one day we may find ourselves dealing with multiple offers, or see clients lose their favorite choice because they did not act quickly enough. And, on another day in another part of town, we pull up a long list of homes with multiple price reductions to show a client. Even just within the Austin region, painting with a broad brush can hide the nuances in the marketplace. Read more... |
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| Austin Real Estate: The Downtown Effect | |
(Roselind) Randy, I appreciated your comment about Austin on the Forbes.Com - Investing Panel. Austin is blooming as a cultural capital, and downtown plays a big part in the Austin experience. I recall going to the closing sale of Scarborough’s Department Store downtown in 1981, the same year that Barton Creek Mall opened. That seemed to be a low point in the abandonment of downtown as a retail destination. City task forces and business groups have worked hard for years to re-vitalize Austin’s center. Music venues led the way, bringing young people downtown. Real more...
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| Austin Real Estate - The Status Quo | |
The Case-Shiller Index of housing prices has received a lot of attention lately. It uses the closest comparable – a sale and resale of the same house – to give an indication of changes in value. The index has tracked repeat sales prices since the year 2000. An interactive map showing the changes in home values in the 20 cities monitored by the index is posted on the New York Times website. The graph shows that there are big differences in the magnitude of price increases and declines in the various cities. Read more...
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| Sub-Prime Loans: Playing Against the House | |
A subprime mortgage used to be an alternative for borrowers who did not fit standard guidelines. Perhaps they just started a new business or had some past credit problems. These borrowers paid a high interest rate or put more money down to compensate the lender for making a risky loan. Private investors who would accept higher risk for higher returns funded these loans. In recent years we began to see a new type of subprime loan. Read more... |
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| A Talk with Economist, Angelos Angelou | |
I recently had the opportunity to interview well known Austin Economist, Angelos Angelou. He shared these thoughts with me: |
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and is finishing a book on the American future.)
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