Luxe Austin Homes - developers

What could $350M affordable housing bond mean for Austin's economy?

With the fate of a $350 million affordable housing bond now in the hands of Austin's voters, the referendum carries the potential to inject a substantial sum of money into the hands of developers and contractors — while also addressing a mounting housing crisis.

But the idea has its opponents.

The $350 million bond, the largest of its type proposed in city history, if approved would increase property taxes by more than $45 a year for a "typical" Austin home, valued at $448,000 with a taxable value of $358,400, assuming there's a homestead exemption.

Such a gain could cause pain during this time of drastically rising prices. Yet proponents argue that is why now is the time to invest in much-needed housing for essential workers.

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Grand plans, deep-pocketed backers revealed for what will be tallest building in Austin — and all of Texas

The skyscraper being constructed at 98 Red River St. in downtown Austin, which is set to be the tallest building in both the city and state when complete, finally has a name: Waterline.

In addition to its official moniker, the development team revealed Sept. 6 a slew of additional details about the project, which is set to take the skyline to new heights. That included a breakdown of space within the hotel-office-residential tower and community benefits like pedestrian access and a seven-figure donation to the nearby trail system.

"Downtown Austin offers one of the most dynamic markets and skylines in the nation, and we're excited to help drive its ongoing transformation," said Seth Johnston, senior vice president in Austin for Dallas-based…

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Good News for Buyers: 10 Cities Where the Number of Homes for Sale Is Soaring

Today’s housing market is one of the strangest that many real estate experts have ever seen. After years of bone-dry inventory and sky-high demand that led to soaring prices, bidding wars, and a breakneck sales pace, the market is correcting—and rapidly at that.

In fact, the number of U.S. homes for sale is rising at the fastest pace in five years, up more than 200% since its lowest point this February, according to a Realtor.com® analysis. That’s great news for frazzled buyers who’ve been struggling over the past few years to find anything—anything—to buy. However, housing supply is still well below normal. The number of listings would need to nearly double to get inventory back to what had become normal before the COVID-19 pandemic—and even that…

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Apartment construction on fire in Austin area

By year’s end, Austin is projected to rank No. 4 among major metros nationwide for new apartments brought online, a welcome sign of relief in a region starving for both rental and for-sale housing.

That’s according to an Aug. 23 RentCafe study which found that Austin is projected to deliver 18,288 apartments in 2022.

That would be a five-year high and continue a trend of increased apartment construction since 9,107 units were delivered in 2019.

Already this year, the Austin metro ranks No. 2 in the nation with 4,236 apartments delivered, according to RentCafe. Houston ranks No. 1 with 4,746 apartments delivered and Seattle ranks No. 3, with 3,232.

Multifamily builders are rushing to meet a huge level of demand. A July study by Hoyt…

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ABoR: Study calling Austin's housing market overvalued is flawed without context

We all know buying and building homes in the Austin area is expensive. Austin is outpacing other Texas cities when it comes to development fees for builders, and home prices have skyrocketed.

A recent study by Florida Atlantic University ranked Austin as the second-most overvalued housing market in the country. But is that true? Ashley Jackson, president-elect of the Austin Board of Realtors (ABoR), joined KVUE Midday to dig deeper.

Jenni Lee: According to Florida Atlantic University, buyers in Austin pay just a little bit more, but 67% more than they should. So, demand for new and existing homes is there, but there's not enough supply. Is the Austin housing market overvalued?

Ashley Jackson: "No, I do not believe the Austin…

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Austin booms among hottest markets for industrial construction in new report

It's not just Austin's residential real estate market that's hot. Austin is among the hottest markets in the Southwest for under-construction warehouse and distribution centers.

Data published by Community Property Executive shows Austin had nearly 8.3 million square feet of industrial space under construction in late June. That represents a little over 7 percent of the existing industrial space (more than 114 million square feet) in the region. 

Austin ranks third in the Southwest, behind Dallas and Houston, according to Commercial Property Executive, at Nos. 1 and 2, respectively. Dallas is also the No. 1 market in the U.S., beating out Phoenix (No. 2) and Southern California's Inland Empire (No. 3) nationally.

In Austin and throughout the…

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