Luxe Austin Homes - homebuyers

"Signed Contracts for U.S. Homes Rise for the Second Month in a Row"

Realtor.com reports, "the numbers: U.S. home sales inched up for the second month in a row, as the housing market continues to be hampered by high rates and a lack of home listings.

Pending home sales rose by 0.9% in July from the previous month, according to the monthly index released Thursday by the National Association of Realtors.

The figure exceeded expectations on Wall Street. Economists were expecting pending home sales to fall 0.5% in July.

Transactions were still down 14% from last year.

Pending home sales reflect transactions where the contract has been signed for the sale of an existing home, but the sale has not yet closed. Economists view it as an indicator for the direction of existing-home sales in subsequent months.

Big…

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"Austin is home to the 8th most attractive U.S. housing market, new report says"

CultureMap Austin writes, "when it comes to places to buy a house, Austin still remains near the top of the list. So says WalletHub's highly anticipated 2023 report on the best real estate markets in the U.S.

The new study by the personal finance website, released August 22, names Austin the No. 8 most attractive real estate market in the country. The state capital joins a host of other Texas cities within the top 10.

Texas housing markets have dominated WalletHub's report throughout the years, showing resilience as other markets rise and fall. Austin and its Central Texas neighbors have been at the top in similar reports, but the city has slid in WalletHub's 2023 report after ranking No. 4 in the 2022 edition and No. 2 in 2021.

With a great…

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"Austin Is The New Austin"

National Mortgage Professional writes, "there’s no such thing as a perfect housing market, but Austin is trying to check off all the boxes for would-be buyers. Young and savvy tech professionals are flocking to the funky metro known for its music scene to scoop up jobs and take the plunge into homeownership.

Since Austin is attracting new buyers and transforming long-term renters into prospective homeowners, LOs aren’t having trouble wrangling customers to buy loans. And it helps that 25.8% of homes in Austin have lower estimated monthly housing payments than they would have if they had been for sale a year ago, according to Redfin. Year-to-date home sales price data from the Austin Board of Realtors show a 12.6% decline in the median price for…

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"What’s next for the Austin housing market heading to fall 2023"

AUSTIN (KXAN) — "Mortgage rates have hit a 21-year high, and KXAN wanted to see what it could mean for Central Texans.

KXAN Anchor Jennifer Sanders spoke with Dr. Clare Losey, a housing economist with the Austin Board of Realtors, about key housing data, such as new and existing home sales.

JENNIFER: So as mortgage rates top 7% It’s a two-decade high. What does this really mean for homebuyers as well as homeowners here in Central Texas?

CLARE: Well, the primary effect of higher mortgage rates is on homebuyers purchasing power, right? So anytime the mortgage rate increases, it reduces the maximum home price affordable to any potential buyer. So, what we anticipate to see in Austin really in any housing market is just somewhat of a moderation in…

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"July data shows high interest rates not slowing Austin metro housing market"

Community Impact Austin reports, "while homes in cities across the Austin-Round Rock metropolitan statistical area have been hit with high interest rates in recent months, data from the Austin Board of Realtors shows that the market is continuing to stabilize.

According to July ABoR data for the metro, closed listings increased 0.6% year over year to 2,815 sales. Homes spent an average of 59 days on the market—37 more days compared to last year—and the number of new listings on the market also fell, but active listings and overall home inventory increased. Additionally, median home prices across the metro is down 10% for an average of $462,000.

The breakdown

In Travis County, year over year:

• There were 5.5% more sales, 15.8% more active listings…

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"What a more normal Austin housing market looks like"

Austin Business Journal writes, "Austin's housing market has had a full year of "normalization," experts say, but we aren't out of the woods yet.

After years of soaring prices and diminished inventory fueled by a pandemic-era buying frenzy, home prices began falling back toward more normal levels and inventory began rising in July 2022. Market observes have framed this as a return of more normal conditions, dictated by actual supply and demand and affected by typical season fluctuations.

A year later, what does that look like? The Austin Board of Realtors this week reported that the metro had a median sales price of $462,000 last month, down 10% from a year prior and much lower than the peak of $550,000 in April and May 2022.

Inventory, which…

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"Q&A: Austin Board of Realtors housing economist helps others ride the waves of Austin market"

Community Impact Austin shares, "Clare Losey joined the Austin Board of Realtors as its housing economist in March. She graduated from Texas A&M University with a PhD in August 2021 and previously worked at the Texas Real Estate Research Center. This interview has been edited for clarity and consistency.

What made you choose Austin?

I attended [The University of Texas] for undergrad and just really fell in love with Austin, and I love just the outdoorsy aspect of it. I think folks here tend to strike a happy medium; they tend to find jobs that they’re at least reasonably passionate about, but yet they have hobbies on the side that they really enjoy.

What do you do as a housing economist for the ABoR?

Much of what I do is focus just on digesting what’s…

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"High interest rates aren't deterring homebuyers in Austin"

CultureMap Austin writes, "real estate experts now have a much clearer picture regarding the resilience shown in Austin's housing market. The latest Austin Board of Realtors' (ABoR) report revealed that July 2022 was when the Austin-Round Rock housing market initially started stabilizing. If current trends continue, ABoR says 2023 will have a "strong finish."

"We now have a direct year-over-year comparison of when our market began stabilizing, and the big fluctuations we’ve previously seen have started to even out," said 2023 ABoR president Ashley Jackson in the report. "Potential buyers who have been on the fence about purchasing a home should know interest rates are settling, and now is the time to act."

Even with interest rates beginning to…

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"Meritage Homes eager to add to Turner's Crossing neighborhood in far South Austin"

Austin Business Journal writes, "Meritage Homes of Texas LLC continues to expand its Turner's Crossing neighborhood in far South Austin.

More homes could soon rise in the neighborhood off Turnersville Road, in Austin's extraterritorial jurisdiction near the city of Buda. Austin's Planning Commission on Aug. 8 recommended to City Council the approval of the third phase of Turner's Crossing.

Meritage is seeking a final plat for 267 new single-family lots on more than 41 acres, south of the State Highway 45 toll road.

It would be another step forward for what what's planned as a large community about 10 miles south of downtown Austin. If fully constructed, the development could have more than 1,300 single-family homes on 468 acres, Austin…

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"Home prices stabilize after historic highs in Southwest Austin area"

Community Impact Austin writes, "even as Southwest Austin remains among the most desirable and pricier areas of the metro to buy or rent, local data points to the housing market settling down after a recent burst of activity.

Movement toward a more balanced market has been underway since last year with observers crediting broader trends, such as rising interest rates, lasting inflation and more mild job growth, for spurring the changes. Every month in 2023 has seen local homes priced well below 2022 levels and taking longer to sell.

The days of new home listings drawing crowds and selling rapidly are not entirely over, some real estate experts said. Generally, they said buyers now have a better chance to explore their options thanks to narrowing…

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