Luxe Austin Homes - housing

"There Are Now 30 Renters for Every Home for Sale in the U.S."

Realtor.com reports, "the number of homes for sale for each renter household in the U.S. remains near record lows, highlighting the supply crunch that first-time buyers face in the current housing market.

Currently, there are about 30 renter households for each available home for sale, up from less than 10 in 2006, according to Freddie Mac’s latest market outlook report.

The supply shortage dates back to the Great Recession, which dealt a major blow to new home construction. Since then, construction has slowly increased, but failed to keep pace with demand, resulting in a shortage of at least 1.5 million homes.

“Therefore, not only do people seeking to buy their first home have to navigate an expensive market, but they also have to compete…

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"Texas new home sales slowed in September, prices dropped in Austin"

CultureMap Austin writes, "new analysis of the statewide real estate market has revealed new home sales in Texas have slowed since September, despite a drop in average prices, and inventory is on the rise.

The September edition of the New Home Sales Report by Dallas-based platform HomesUSA.com examined MLS data across Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, Austin, and San Antonio to determine the status of the overall real estate market.

The report found that the three-month average number of new home sales fell across all four major metros in September. Austin saw the smallest decline in home sales, down by just seven sales to 864 in September.

Out of all four markets, San Antonio saw the most dramatic decline in sales with 1,067 new homes sold in…

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"Despite Inventory Rise, Home Buyers Remain Cautious"

Realtor Magazine writes, "Home buyers may finally be finding more inventory options this fall, but they’re still being cautious about entering the real estate market, the National Association of REALTORS® reported Wednesday.

“Home sales have been essentially stuck at around a 4-million-unit pace for the past 12 months, but factors usually associated with higher home sales are developing,” says NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun. “There are more inventory choices for consumers, lower mortgage rates than a year ago and continued job additions to the economy. Perhaps, some consumers are hesitating about moving forward with a major expenditure like purchasing a home before the upcoming election.”

Total existing-home sales—which reflects completed…

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"Mortgage Rates Rise to 6.54% as Homebuyers Decide Whether To ‘Act Before Winter’"

Realtor.com shares, "mortgage rates climbed from 6.44% last week to 6.54% for a 30-year fixed home loan for the week ending Oct. 24, according to Freddie Mac.

“The continued strength in the economy drove mortgage rates higher once again this week,” Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist, said in a statement. “Over the last few years, there has been a tension between downbeat economic narrative and incoming economic data stronger than that narrative. This has led to higher-than-normal volatility in mortgage rates, despite a strengthening economy.”

Unfortunately for would-be homebuyers—and sellers—this uptick marks the fourth week in a row that mortgage rates have risen.

“This rapid run-up in mortgage rates has sapped some of the burgeoning…

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"Mortgage rates finally fell, but homebuyers still face a big problem"

Austin Business Journal writes, "The Federal Reserve may have cut interest rates last month, but homebuyers still face a challenge when assessing the current market for real estate: home prices.

Prices were up 5.9% in the third quarter this year over the same three-month period in 2023, according to data from Fannie Mae. While that increase is down from a 6.4% spike in the second quarter, it’s still a substantial jump for buyers who are looking for a home.

Mark Palim, Fannie Mae senior vice president and chief economist, said the “robust” growth is because of a lack of supply. Many current owners don’t want to sell their homes and give up the low interest rate they obtained earlier only to step into a high-interest rate environment.

“Even though…

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"New city zoning program that uses density as carrot to encourage affordable housing proving popular so far"

Austin Business Journal writes, "It will take time and it won't help everywhere, but a new zoning designation should boost the supply of housing in Austin.

That's the view of a number of developers when it comes to the so-called Density Bonus 90, or DB90, zoning program approved by the City Council in February. Residential buildings on properties with the new zoning can be up to 90 feet high — 30 feet higher than otherwise allowed — and have ground floor commercial uses, provided certain percentages of the residential units are priced at levels deemed affordable.

“It's unlocking additional properties that couldn't previously achieve the necessary density,” said Chris Affinito a managing partner at Notional Development Partners, a firm that…

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"Mortgage Rates Rise to 6.44%, Yet ‘Buyers May Be Feeling Ready To Act’"

Realtor.com shares, "Mortgage rates rose from 6.32% last week to 6.44% for a 30-year fixed home loan for the week ending Oct. 17, according to Freddie Mac.

“The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage increased for the third consecutive week, moving closer to 6.5%,” Sam Khater, Freddie Mac’s chief economist, said in a statement. “In general, higher rates reflect the strength in the economy that is supportive of the housing market. But notably, as compared to a year ago, rates are more than one percentage point lower and potential homebuyers can stand to benefit, especially by shopping around for the best quote as rates can vary widely between mortgage lenders.”

This wasn’t exactly the news homebuyers were hoping for.

“While we expect the long-run trend…

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"Developer secures $28.5M loan for East Austin infill housing"

Austin Business Journal reports, "The Geyser Group is set to build infill housing in East Austin after securing a $28.5 million construction loan.

The development, known as The Arden, will rise on about five acres at 4908 Lott Ave., beside city-owned Springdale Neighborhood Park, said Matt McDonnell, partner at Austin-based Geyser Group.

“The idea is to create additional housing stock in a neighborhood (ZIP code 78721) that has exhausted its current supply,” McDonnell said. “When you see the Mueller neighborhood complete, you see some of the StoryBuilt projects that either didn’t get fully realized or have stalled out a little bit, so the idea is trying to fill that missing-middle housing that doesn’t really exist in enough quantities.”

Embattled…

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"3D-printed houses are selling on Earth; next stop, the moon?"

RealEstateNews.com writes, "It's no wonder that 3D-printed houses seem more like science fiction than real estate fact.

ICON, one of the best-known companies in the space (pun intended), is working with NASA on housing and infrastructure for the moon and Mars, as well as here on Earth. And the rounded, dome-like test structures produced in Austin, Texas, resemble places Luke Skywalker used to call home.

But ICON is also working with Lennar to produce single-family homes at Wolf Ranch, a housing development about 30 miles north of Austin, where the tech company is based.

The company's chief operating officer, Graeme Waitzkin, told Real Estate News this summer that he thinks "people will start to see 3D-printed communities popping up in their…

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"Why mortgage rates may not continue to drop"

Austin Business Journal writes, "Relief on housing costs from interest-rate cuts issued by the Federal Reserve last month may not be as straightforward as some would-be homebuyers might expect. But some areas of the country are poised to feel the impacts of rate cuts more significantly than others.

A recent analysis by Realtor.com found 60.2% of homeowners in the U.S. lived in homes with a mortgage while 39.8% of owners owned their homes free and clear. But the share of mortgaged homeowners versus those who owned their homes outright vary — sometimes significantly — by state.

And, of course, areas with a higher share of homeowners that have a mortgage are more likely to be affected by rate movement than those where more people own their homes…

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