Austin Home Values…

Austin Texas home sales have certainly nbeen affected by the economy, but it is easy to see that Austin’s real estate consumers are paying too much attention to national statistics instead of local ones.

If they looked closely at Austin’s specific economic statistics, they would be qute impressed and yes, far less concerned.  Yes, Austin home sale are down, but home values in Austin have actually maintained current levels… you read it right… Austin home vales have NOT FALLEN.

The median price of a home in Austin, TX is the same as it was a year ago.

Job growth, employment, small business growth, and other economic factors have kept Austin housing stable.  Yes, the number of sales are down, and the number of homes available for sale is up, BUT prices have remained stable.  That speaks to the strength of Austin’s local economy!

Austin, TX home prices…

Defying the national trend, prices of existing homes rose in Austin last month, by a healthy 7 percent, the Austin Board of Realtors said today. The median price rose to $192,520. This beat September’s median home value statistic, which was unchanged from a year ago in September.

Another positive statistic was the number of active listings, which was down 5 percent, dropping to 9,944, less than 10,000 for the first time in quite a while.  The number of homes on the market has been steadily increasing over the past 18 months, so a  decrease is a positive sign.

All of the news surrunding the Austin real estate market is not necessarily positive. The number of home sales was down 25 percent from October 2007, and sales in the pipeline for November, meaning those homes currently under contract and due to close soon, were down 37 percent to 1,234.

Thought the Central Texas housing market is off sharply this year, but is in better shape than many other cities. Real estate markets in Texas as a whole are mucvh better off than other markets around the U.S.  In Dallas, for example, the median price was down 2.3 percent last month.  This is a far cry from areas on the West and Easts Coasts, where home values have decreased 50% and more.

Williamson County Real Estate…

It was Nevada, California, Arizona, Virginia and Florida where the housing prices SOARED for years. They were also the first to have their housing bubble burst. Prices in those markets fell almost 40%, and in some areas, even more!  FORTY PERCENT!!

Well look where properties are selling once again. Smart money investors are getting back into in the market and buying foreclosed properties in those States. That is a great sign. Recovery won’t start until this happens. And it has started. Remember, California sales were up 96.7% last month.

That does not mean prices are up, but prices cannot recover until sales do.  Foreclosures are selling.  In Texas foreclosures are down almost 20% and that is WITHOUT our housing prices falling.

Like the rest of the country the sales volume in Williamson County is the lowest we have seen in a long time. HOWEVER. our median prices have stayed steady and are still at the highest they have ever been.  No bubble- just good, solid, steady growth.

Units sold are down here as well, BUT unlike almost everywhere else in the country look at our prices.

We ARE where the rest of the country hopes their housing will get to soon!!

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