Luxe Austin Homes - housing

"Austin rents lose steam, with second-steepest decline in December among major U.S. metros"

Austin American-Statesman reports, "just as it is a buyer's market in Central Texas' single-family housing market, so too is it a renter's market in the Austin-area apartment market.

Likely to the dismay of landlords and delight of tenants, Austin saw the second-steepest yearly decline among metros in the latest study by Rent.com.

Rents in Austin dropped 12.5% in December compared with December 2023, according to the study, which tracked rates in the nation's 50 largest metros.

Asking rents in Austin were $1,985 a month in December, versus $2,270 a month the prior December, the study said.

Austin's decline was followed by Raleigh, North Carolina, where rents dropped almost 12.2% to $1,873, and the Las Vegas-Henderson-Paradise metro, where…

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"Austin takes top spot as 'best-performing' US city"

Austin Business Journal reports, "the Austin area has retaken the top spot on the Milken Institute's prestigious 2024 Best-Performing Cities list.

Such a listing will undoubtedly draw the eyes of people looking for a new place to live or start a business, and it combats anyone's perception that Austin has passed its prime.

The index from the nonprofit think tank has been published annually since 1999 and ranks cities on a variety of metrics, including job creation, wage growth and output growth. Designed to help the public and private sectors evaluate and compare cities throughout the nation, the list is particularly handy for Realtors, job recruiters and site selectors.

Austin's position this year at the summit of Milken's largest cities…

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"Pending Home Sales Post Biggest Jump Since June 2020 as Mortgage Rates Fall"

Realtor.com shares, "The numbers: U.S. pending home sales shot up in December as falling mortgage rates brought buyers back into the market.

Pending home sales rose 8.3% in December from the previous month, according to the monthly index released Friday by the National Association of Realtors.

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

The jump in pending-home sales was the largest since June 2020, when it rose by 14.9%.

The sales pace exceeded expectations on Wall Street. Economists were expecting pending home sales to increase by 2% in…

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"Hutto is Austin's best suburb for first-time homebuyers, report indicates"

Austin Business Journal shares, "Hutto is the best market for first-time homebuyers in the Austin area, according to a new analysis by Realtor.com.

The analysis identified the best markets nationwide for first-time homebuyers, as well as the top local city or suburb in major metro areas. Realtor.com examined median home listing prices, available inventory, forecasted price growth, commute times and unemployment rates when compiling the data.

The report lists median home prices of about $387,000 for Hutto, which is about 30 miles northeast of downtown Austin in Williamson County. That compares to a metro-wide median price of about $500,000, according to Realtor.com. The Austin Board of Realtors tracks slightly lower numbers on those fronts. ABOR…

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"Travis County lifts moratorium on PID agreements"

Austin Business Journal shares, "after a four-year hiatus, Travis County is reintroducing a tool designed to support large-scale developments.

The Travis County Commissioners Court on Jan. 30 lifted a moratorium on public improvement districts, or PIDs, after nearly a year of review.

That means developers can begin submitting applications for new PID agreements Feb. 1.

PIDs enable counties and cities to levy additional taxes on sites to pay for specific project-related improvements. They're used in counties across Texas to help cover some costs to developers, such as road construction, water and wastewater systems and landscaping, when they build master-planned communities and other big projects.

Before unanimously voting to lift their PID…

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"Possible new subdivision could be part of Caldwell County boom"

Austin Business Journal shares, "additional details have emerged about a housing development in Maxwell that could be part of a boom in rural Caldwell County. 

Schulle Farms, an 800-plus home subdivision planned for the small community, is envisioned by Austin-based real estate brokerage and land development company La Tierra Realty LLC, said Trevor McManis, a broker with the firm.

La Tierra, which has amassed around 1,100 acres over the past four to five years in what it considers a region primed for growth, will be marketing the land to homebuilders.

“This is an area that we really believe in,” McManis said. “We think there’s a lot of value here, and it’s kind of been the area outside of Austin that a lot of people have maybe overlooked…

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"Austin-area home foreclosures were up in 2023, joining nationwide trend"

Austin Business Journal reports, "property foreclosures in the Austin metro climbed in 2023 — tracking a rise in local unemployment — but were relatively low by historic standards.

Foreclosures, which are legal proceedings by mortgage lenders to seize property when borrowers are in default, numbered 1,438 in the area last year, up 389 from 2022, according to Attom Data Solutions, a real estate information company.

Despite what equates to a 37% increase, however, the figure is below the levels immediately prior to the Covid-19 pandemic and well under those seen more than a decade ago on the heels of the last recession.

Foreclosures were up across the state and nation last year. They rose 51% in the Houston metro compared to 2022, 19% in the…

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"Real Estate Roundup: Local firm snatches up lots of space in St. Elmo, plus more deals to know"

Austin Business Journal reports, "one of the biggest property owners in South Austin’s St. Elmo Arts District acquired a whole lot more real estate in the neighborhood in December.

Austin-based Veloway Threads — owners of The Yard and other properties where business such as Icon, Tesla, Still Austin and St. Elmo Brewing lease space — purchased eight properties within the district last month, said Priscilla Sauceda, vice president of operations and community at Veloway Threads. The area, which a few years ago was a sleepy industrial hub, has piqued the interest of many developers and is rapidly changing into a mixed-use destination.

The firm also purchased four other properties outside of St. Elmo, and all 12 properties together pushed Veloway’s…

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"How a ‘Dry January’ Mindset Can Get You Closer to Buying a Home in 2024"

Realtor.com writes, "the “dry January” challenge of giving up alcohol for a month got us thinking about kicking some other bad habits that might be holding us back.

We’re not talking about giving up carbs for a month or an afternoon latte, but the not-so-great things you might be doing as a wannabe homebuyer. Not to point fingers here, but many home shoppers fall prey to a faux pas or two when making what’s likely the most significant purchase of their lives, especially in today’s brutal housing market.

To help you get closer to your homebuying dreams, consider taking the month of January to hit the reset button and think about the strategies that aren’t working in your favor. Ready for a homebuying reset? Read on.

Bad habit No. 1: Shopping…

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"U-Haul: Austin ranked No. 5 among top cities for one-way moves in 2023"

Austin Business Journal shares, "Austin was among the hottest destinations in the country for where people were moving last year, according to the latest annual ranking from U-Haul International Inc.

Austin ranked No. 5 among the top U.S. growth cities in 2023, and Texas was again named the top state for move-ins for the third consecutive year, according to data released Jan. 2 and Jan. 3.

U-Haul collects migration data from more than 2.5 million one-way U-Haul truck, trailer and moving container rentals for the year. It ranks the top "growth states" and "growth cities" by net gain, which contrasts the number of one-way U-Haul trucks entering a city or market versus those leaving.

U-Haul migration trends don't directly correlate to an area's…

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