Grossman & Jones Real Estate Blog - housing

"Big neighborhoods pitched for tiny towns south of Austin"

Austin Business Journal writes, "while housing starts across the Austin metro have retreated from pandemic highs, large residential communities continue to be pushed forward, especially in areas expected to see rapid population growth in the coming years.

That includes on the fringes of the emerging "metroplex" between Austin and San Antonio. An approximately 1,185-home subdivision called Haney Park is proposed for 245 acres in Hays County. It would in the extra-territorial jurisdiction of the small city of Uhland, between Cotton Gin and High roads, according to public documents.

In addition to the homes, the development would have three commercial lots ranging from 1.3 to 4.2 acres and an 18-acre lot for multifamily residential. Haney Park…

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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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"Lund Farm pitched as big neighborhood in rural area near Elgin"

Austin Business Journal reports, "a 570-acre community may be coming to the Elgin area with more than 1,800 single-family homes, hundreds of multifamily units and nine acres of commercial space.

A little-known company called Blossoms Development has proposed Lund Farm off State Highway 95, north of Elgin. The company wants to have a diversity of home types and prices, according to a public presentation posted online by the city of Elgin. It also aims to create a walkable neighborhood that leverages the natural features of the site by using floodplains as amenity space and restoring historic blackland prairie.

In addition to the single-family homes, Lund Farm could have nearly 650 multifamily units, plus parks, an amenity center and a possible…

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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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"Luxury homes replace church in Brentwood, a new normal juxtaposition for Austin"

Austin Business Journal writes, "a handful of new luxury homes have started hitting the market in Central Austin’s Brentwood neighborhood.

Brentwood Heights, as the community is called, is a 1.4-acre, eight-home co-development from Cascade Homes and Urbane Roost, and the luxury residences come with a hefty price tag: $1.6 million to $1.9 million, according to an Aug. 17 announcement.

It's a price point that even those already living in Brentwood may struggle to afford. But new luxury homes for sale right beside older and cheaper properties is the direction Austin is trending in, Ashley Jackson, 2023 president of the Austin Board of Realtors. The Brentwood area is located a few miles west of where U.S. Route 183 meets I-35.

Two of the homes…

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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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"AISD is building teacher housing amid affordability crunch"

AXIOS Austin reports, "in an effort to recruit and retain teachers amid the city's rising cost of living, Austin ISD is trying something new: building housing.

• It's part of a national trend of school districts working to help chronically underpaid teachers afford to live where they teach.

Driving the news: Within 12 months, the district plans to choose developers, who will construct and manage two residential complexes with 600 units on unused district land.

• It plans to lease the former Ana Ferrales Coy Facility and former Rosedale Elementary School to developers who will be able to leverage its property tax-free status to keep rents affordable, Austin ISD director of real estate Jeremy Striffler tells Axios.
• They'll be…

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"Wildhorn Capital aims to develop 2,000-plus apartments off East Riverside"

Austin Business Journal shares, "Austin-based real estate investment firm Wildhorn Capital LLC is moving forward with plans to redevelop hundreds of South Austin apartments. It could quadruple the number of residences on the site, potentially bringing more change to a busy pocket of the city and ramping up the debate over affordable housing.

The company wants City Hall to rezone the 530 units at 2207 Wickersham Lane and 2239 Cromwell Circle, which appear to be complexes called Hillside Villas and The Patten, and raise the site's building height limit from 40 feet to as high as 120 feet. The change would clear the way for the boutique investment firm to create 2,100 apartments in an area close to downtown, Austin-Bergstrom International Airport and…

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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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