Grossman & Jones Real Estate Blog - central texas

"Austin metro tops 2.5M residents"

Austin Business Journal shares, "The Austin metro gained an average of about 159 people a day from 2023 to 2024. While that may sound like a lot, it's down slightly from a growth rate of 171 a day during the previous 12-month period.

According to new figures from the U.S. Census Bureau, the metro's population climbed by about 2.3% from July 2023 to July 2024, an addition of 58,019 people that brings its total to 2.55 million — the first time it has topped the 2.5 million mark. That factors in everything including people who move here, babies born here and deaths.

At 2.3% growth, that's a slight decline from the 2.6% clocked in the previous 12-month period, when the metro — which consists of Travis, Williamson, Bastrop, Hays and Caldwell counties…

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"Home sales launch in massive Flora neighborhood in Hutto"

Austin Business Journal writes, "A sprawling master-planned community in Hutto is coming along as another homebuilder opens up sales within it.

Nevada-based Tri Pointe Homes, one of the busiest volume homebuilders in the metro, now has homes ready to purchase in the master-planned community, said Bryan Havel, Tri Pointe’s Austin division president. Work on Flora, an 835-acre project in Hutto developed by Precedent Land Company, began in March 2024.

Other homebuilders involved in the first phase of Flora, which Havel said is being built on about 50 acres, include Brightland Homes, Meritage Homes, Empire Communities, Perry Homes, Highland Homes and Westin Homes, according to Flora’s website. Of those, Westin is the only homebuilder not marketing…

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"A solution to housing affordability in Austin?"

Austin Business Journal writes, "Build-to-rent neighborhoods cropping up all around Austin could be one solution to the metro’s crisis-level shortage of affordable housing, some experts contend.

Developers like Arizona-based NexMetro Communities and Empire Group of Cos. have build-to-rent projects set to open here soon. The neighborhoods — which consist entirely of single-family homes built for rental use — are largely in the suburbs, such as Empire Group's projects in Hutto and NexMetro's projects in Liberty Hill and Georgetown.

Empire Group partner Randy Grudzinski said the model is intended to address affordability by offering something between renting an apartment and owning a home.

Build-to-rent homes "allow people to have an interim…

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"Habitat for Humanity's Carter Work Project targets Whisper Valley for affordable homes"

Austin Business Journal shares, "In its latest effort to help address Austin's affordability crisis, Habitat for Humanity plans to build more than two dozen homes in East Austin’s Whisper Valley community and make them available at below-market prices, with hundreds more planned throughout the metro over the next several years.

The nonprofit is doing so in Whisper Valley through its 2025 Carter Work Project, an annual event that started in 1984 when President Jimmy Carter volunteered with Habitat to build and renovate homes. In Austin, the project will see 25 homes built in a single week this year, with prices starting around $150,000.

“When we think about the Carter project, it’s really about not just a local story, but a national and…

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"New monthly data shows closed leases are up, median rents down across Austin metro"

Community Impact Austin writes, "Leasers in the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos Metropolitan Statistical Area now have access to some additional insight into the MSA's residential rental market.

Austin Board of Realtors officials announced Feb. 13 that it would begin tracking leasing data across the MSA through Unlock MLS’ monthly Central Texas Housing Report, which already includes home sales data.

Explained

Unlock MLS houses ABoR's Multiple Listing Service, or the platform that Realtors use to share information about homes on the market.

The expansion to include leases gives a more transparent and robust picture of the region’s real estate market, said Brandy Wuensch, 2025 Unlock MLS and ABoR president, in a news release.

“With the increased leasing…

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"What are Austin’s cheapest neighborhoods for renters?"

KXAN Austin writes, "After Real estate experts reported in December Austin had the largest rent decrease between 2023 and 2024 of the country’s largest metros, new insight from Rent.com data is revealing which capital city neighborhoods are cheapest for renters.

Rent.com pulled average rental data and annual change data for Austin from February 2025 figures, with all neighborhoods included listed on the apartment search engine’s rental market trends dashboard.

Rent.com’s analysis revealed the average rental prices in Austin included $1,261 for a studio (up 14% year over year), $1,387 for a one-bedroom apartment (down 4% year over year) and $1,713 for a two-bedroom unit (down 3% from this time in 2024).

Looking at the proportions of rental units…

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"John Goff's Crescent Real Estate to build luxury development in Horseshoe Bay"

Austin Business Journal shares, "A major real estate development and management firm that once owned The Woodlands outside of Houston has broken ground on a new luxury housing development in Horseshoe Bay west of Austin.

Fort Worth-based Crescent Real Estate LLC already has lots available for purchase in the 114-acre project in the Summit Rock neighborhood of Horseshoe Bay, according to an announcement.

“We look for high-quality developments where we can develop product that fits market demand,” Crescent Chairman John Goff said following the March 4 groundbreaking. “When we look at Texas, it’s just on fire. We have a lot of in-migration because we’re a business-friendly state, and there is a clear need to offer high-end resort product in the…

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"Austin Knocks Nashville Off Top Spot for U.S. Remote Workers"

Realtor.com shares, "Austin, TX, has dethroned Nashville, TN, as the most attractive rental apartment market for remote workers, after the "Music City" spent two consecutive years atop the list. Another major Texas city claimed the third spot.

Capital Economics, a London-based consulting firm, released its latest analysis on Mar. 3 looking into apartment markets based on remote workers' preference scores. The analysis examined a variety of factors, including the local job market, cost of living, desirability, and climate—revealing some major shifts in the cities' standings.

Austin grabbed the lead, followed by Nashville and San Antonio, TX, rounding out the top three. Nashville topped the list as the most desirable apartment market for remote…

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"Austin leads the nation for developing private affordable housing"

CultureMap Austin writes, "Most people like a bargain, particularly money-conscious renters in the Austin area, where rents continue to be stubbornly high. According to RentCafe, the average Austin apartment rent recently stood at $1,691, compared with the statewide average of $1,449. Fortunately, rent relief is on the way: Austin is a hotspot for affordable housing, according to a new study.

The report from data provider Yardi Matrix shows the Austin metro area leads the nation for the number of “fully affordable” apartments and other multifamily housing units under construction by private real estate developers (not by government agencies). Austin ranks first on the list with 2,717 units under construction, followed by Miami with 2,687 and Los…

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"Average new home price in Austin fell $12,000 in January sales slump"

CultureMap Austin reports, "A new statewide real estate report has shown a slow decline in new home sales across Texas, including in the Austin metro area.

The latest New Home Sales Index by HomesUSA.com discovered that Austin saw the fewest new homes sold in January out of the four biggest metros in Texas. The three-month moving average of new home sales in Austin fell to 809 last month, versus 834 sales in December 2024.

Housing prices were was also lower in January, with the average new home in Austin dropping to $483,056. That's nearly $12,000 less than the average prices in December, which came out to $494,714.

While these declines may seem atypical, a sales slump is actually normal during the winter season, according to HomesUSA founder…

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