Luxe Austin Homes

"Housing Market Filled With ‘Wait-and-See’ Home Buyers"

Realtor Magazine reports, "Contract signings fell last month to the lowest level on record, as the housing market continued trudging through a sluggish summer. The National Association of REALTORS®’ newly released Pending Home Sales Index—a forward-looking indicator of home sales based on contract signings—dropped 5.5% in July and was down 8.5% compared to a year earlier.

“A sales recovery did not occur in midsummer,” says Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist. “The positive impact of job growth and higher inventory could not overcome affordability challenges and some degree of wait-and-see related to the upcoming U.S. presidential election.”

Some prospective home buyers also may be waiting for mortgage rates to drop. Federal Reserve Chair Jerome…

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"Outside Austin, the metro's wealthiest ZIP codes are up north"

Austin Business Journal writes, "The Austin Business Journal recently revealed that the metro's wealthiest ZIP code is in the core of the city: downtown Austin.

But what about when you venture outside of city limits? That honor belongs to Cedar Park's 78613 ZIP code, which came in at No. 18 on the list.

American City Business Journals, ABJ's parent company, used a weighted formula with numerous factors, including per capita income, home equity, typical home value, estimated savings and poverty rate to determine the wealthiest ZIP codes.

That determined that wealth looks different in the suburbs. The 78613 ZIP code, which roughly spans north from the Lakeline Mall off Farm to Market Road 620 to New Hope Drive, has a per capita income of around…

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"Austin's apartment construction rate is 3rd highest in the nation"

CultureMap Austin writes,"Austin has been in such an building boom that even a slowing rate of new apartment buildings is still one of the fastest in the country. According to a new insight report from RentCafe, the Austin metro area has the third highest new apartment construction rate nationwide, after previously holding the No. 1 title in 2023.

The report from August 7 analyzed new apartment construction data across 369 U.S. metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs). For the purpose of the study, only apartment buildings containing 50 or more units were included. Any U.S. metros with fewer than 300 units or fewer than two properties/buildings were excluded.

The top two metros that outperformed Austin are New York (No. 1) and Dallas (No. 2) with…

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"3 Austin neighbors are the best Texas suburbs for house renters"

CultureMap Austin shares, "For single-family home renters, finding the right suburb to live in around Austin can be a complicated process. But three distinct Austin neighbors have come out among the top 10 best best suburbs for house renters in Texas: Hutto, Lakeway, and Leander.

This crowning achievement was awarded in online real estate marketplace Point2Homes' new study, "Top Texas Suburbs for House Renters." The report compared suburbs within a 20-mile radius (or 30-mile driving distance) from Texas' five largest cities — San Antonio, Austin, Houston, Dallas, and Fort Worth — based on 12 metrics, including a suburb's cost of living, share of single-family rental listings, five-year renter income growth, and more.

Hutto ranked as the No. 3…

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"Buyers are snatching up starter homes"

RealEstateNews.com shares, "While the market remains tepid overall, starter homes are drawing more interest as mortgage rates trend lower and inventory rises.

Pending sales for starter homes jumped more than 10% in July year-over-year, according to the latest Redfin report, reaching the highest level in nearly two years. That's in stark contrast to pending sales for all other tiers, which fell by between 6-10% over the same time period. 

Sale prices of entry-level homes were also up, but increased at a slower pace than other home segments, a sign that inventory and demand are more balanced in the lower price tiers. Redfin defined starter homes are those with a sale price in the 5th-35th percentile. 

Redfin Senior Economist Sheharyar…

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"Slight Uptick in Home Sales as More Listings Hit Market"

Realtor Magazine reports, "Home affordability conditions are improving slightly, which helped to fuel more real estate transactions in July. Existing-home sales, which account for completed transactions for single-family homes, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, saw their first uptick in about four months, rising 1.3% in July compared to June, NAR’s latest housing report shows.

“Despite the modest gain, home sales are still sluggish,” says NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun, adding that sales are still down 2.5% from a year ago. “But consumers are definitely seeing more choices, and affordability is improving due to lower interest rates.”

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 6.49% as of Aug. 15, down from 7.09% a year earlier, which is…

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"Townhomes — why aren't they popular here?"

Austin Business Journal writes, "Even with a ballooning population and pushes for increased density, Austin has shied away from townhome development.

There are about 570 active single-family projects in Austin, and 40 of them are townhome developments, said Keith Hughes, vice president of sales at housing analytics company Zonda. And that’s keeping in track with other Texas cities, according to Zonda’s National Outlook report, but lagging behind other metros across the country.

Zonda defines townhomes as multilevel, single-family residential units sharing a common wall with another similar structure. These homes are typically built in series or rows.

Zonda's data shows that, while townhome deliveries have slowed since the pandemic in many…

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"D.R. Horton could bring around 1,500 homes to Bastrop"

Austin Business Journal shares, "The busiest volume homebuilder in the region plans to bring around 1,500 homes to a small town outside Austin.

Bastrop City Council was shown new plans for a public improvement district called Valverde on Aug. 13 that could be valued at $557 million at full buildout. The property is owned by D.R. Horton Inc. through its Continental Homes of Texas LP subsidiary, according to property records.

The Valverde plans are the latest evolution of a project that was formerly called Viridian, which was also a D.R. Horton project.

Valverde would rise on 399 acres north of State Highway 71, and plans call for both single and multifamily development. In a statement, D.R. Horton Austin Division President Scott Wilburn…

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"Homeowners and developers can now build on smaller lots under HOME Phase 2"

Austin Business Journal reports, "Developers can now build on smaller lots as part of an effort to allow denser and more affordable housing throughout Austin.

Beginning Aug. 16, homebuilders and homeowners can apply to participate in the second phase of the HOME Initiative, a city of Austin spokesperson confirmed, which allows homes to be built on lots as small as 1,800 square feet — down drastically from the previous minimum lot size of 5,750 square feet.

Many density and affordable housing advocates in Austin have long pushed for smaller minimum lot sizes for single-family homes, calling the change one of many code updates that could move the needle for affordability and housing stock concerns. HOME Phase 2 also establishes new rules for lot…

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"Where wealthy people live"

Austin Business Journal writes, "In his 2005 State of the City address, then-Austin Mayor Will Wynn — fresh off leading the Downtown Austin Alliance — had a goal of 25,000 people living in downtown Austin.

At the time, about 5,000 people called the Central Business District home. Almost 20 years later, downtown is still far short of that goal but growth has ramped up as thousands of new apartments and condos rise toward the sky. 

The DAA now pegs downtown's population at about 15,000. Almost 900 were added last year, DAA reports. They come for the high-rise living, entertainment, quality restaurants and urban hike-and-bike trails.

It's an appealing package if you can afford it — the downtown ZIP code, 78701, is now the wealthiest in the area…

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