Austin Real Estate Statistics – Inventory Skyrockets past 13,000

13,567 – This is the current number of Austin homes (condos, houses, townhomes) on the market. Never has there been this many homes on the market in Austin…EVER. Sales flattened out earlier in the annual sales cycle  compared to every previous year since 2005. Interest rates are at historic lows. And yet, prices increased. Did we just break Economics?

Overall Market Summary Report

Property Type	Sales	% Change Year Ago	Dollar Volume	% Change Year Ago	Average Price	% Change Year Ago
Single Family	1,987	-4%	$553,882,211	6%	$278,753	11%
Townhouse/Condominium	229	26%	$43,970,977	35%	$192,013	8%
Farm/Ranches	46	31%	$16,213,620	19%	$352,470	-10%
Multifamily	46	7%	$8,308,704	-2%	$180,624	-9%
Lots	108	33%	$14,424,480	106%	$133,560	55%
Commercial	13	63%	$4,807,153	60%	$369,781	-1%
Lease	1,503	9%	$2,083,158	12%	$1,386	3%
Commercial Lease	6	-54%	$7,398	-70%	$1,233	-34%

The Wise Assessment

Let’s review. Supply, or Inventory (single family homes on the market) are at an all-time high of 11,749. Demand, or Sales (single family homes sold) are down 4% over last year. Prices are up 11% over last year (and increased 12% over last month). Yup, we broke the fundamental laws of Economics, Austin!

What do I mean? The fundamentals of Economics say that if supply increases and demand decreases, prices MUST go down. They went up!

Broken? Nah, not really. Altered by external forces? For sure. The government artifically inflated the sales for the first 5 months of the year with the tax credit for home buyers. Essentially, a majority of people buying homes under the $300,000 price range bought earlier this year to take advantage of the tax credit. So, as those buyers already closed on their purchases, demand decreased. So why have prices spiked? Well, buyers in the higher price ranges were not incentivized by the tax credit (they did not qualify) so a much higher percentage of the sales for June were in higher price ranges, thus driving the average price of homes through the roof.

SELLERS: Even though the average sales price increased by 12% in one month, your home is not worth12% more than it was last month. In fact, it is likely that it is not worth much more than it was worth even 2 years ago. Just because the average sales price increases, individual home prices are not necessarily affected.

• Are you selling your home? If you are currently selling or thinking of selling your home, please note that you now have more competition than you ever have. So is it a bad time to sell? Not necessarily. We are still successfully selling homes…that are very competitively positioned in the market.

How do I sell my home in today’s market?

Product – Your home must be in superior condition to your competitor’s home. What does this mean?

• Repairs and updates – Find a great contractor – If there are improvements or repairs that need to be made to your home to compete…complete them before you put your home up for sale
• Staging – Hire a professional stager – Ever walk into a model house and feel right at home? The builder hired a professional stager, and you should too!

Price – Ever wonder why homes sell in a few days, often for more than asking price? The home was priced correctly the very first day it went on the market.

Promotion – Intercept buyers where they begin looking for homes, and give them what they want ~ great photos, and lots of them! And ask yourself, “If I were buying a home today, what would I be looking for, and where would I look?” Then, be there when the buyers begin their search.

BUYERS: This is a great and fun time to be buying a home. Ever go to a tree lot during the holidays when they just unloaded a fresh batch of trees? There are SO many to choose from….and you get to choose the very best tree for your home! Well, real estate is no different. There are so many homes to choose from; just know what you are looking for and you will not waste time looking at hundreds of homes. Want to weed through thousands of homes to find the 7 that may work for you? Use the extensive technology that is available online when searching for homes. Want even more help weeding through the homes? Get a qualified Austin Realtor to help you get direct access to the Realtor’s database system (the Multiple Listing Service) and get up to date notifications of homes that suit your criteria.

• Get pre-qualified with a COMPETENT Mortgage Bank – Make sure that your mortgage professional is tied directly to a bank. And please, save yourself unexpected costs, delays in closings, and major breakdowns ~ hire a local mortgage banker!
• Hire a knowledgeable buyer’s agent - Make sure that your agent is knowledgeable in the area of town that you are interested in. If they specialize in Manor, they may not know Cedar Park.
• Get educated - Ask your agent lots of questions. Not sure what to ask? Click here to get some great questions.

Average Sales Price

Prices are literally OFF THE CHARTS! The average sales price spiked 12% to $278,753 from $244,953 in May. Unfortunately, my home is not worth 12% more than it was last month, darnit!

Sales Closed by Month (Demand)

Sales have taken an unseasonable turn a couple of months too early to follow previous years’ trends. This is what happens when external forces (government) impose their might on the market.

Active Listings (Supply)

Yup, off the charts again (almost). Also, it is taking homes much longer to sell in this market since there are less buyers (demand) and more sellers (supply). Right now, we have an inventory of 6-7 months of homes (this means it could take that long to sell a home). Check out Krisstina Wise’s message to our sellers here.

Offers of Help

• What Is My Home Worth? Want to get a good idea of what your home is worth … and find out right now online? Check out our Market Snapshot for an analysis of the value of your home.
• What Is That Home Worth? “Stop the car, honey … look at that house. I wonder what it’s worth?!?” Does this ever happen to you? Ever wonder what that house is worth? Find out now What’s That Home Is Worth.
• What do I need to know before I sell? Typically when a home does not sell, there is one reason…and it isn’t price. We invite you to look at several key factors to consider before selling your home. Visit One Reason for more information.

BTW, We do have very specific data for every price range and area of town. Want specific data pertaining to your Austin neighborhood or your own home? We have it! Please let us know if you would like a neighborhood-specific analysis by emailing us at experience@goodlifeteam.com or calling us at 512.892.9473.

The data provided to create these graphs are available to you by FREE subscription to our monthly update service.  Please email us experience@goodlifeteam.com to receive your monthly update. Or, catch the wave and follow @GoodLifeTeam on Twitter.

Tagged as: Market Statistics