Luxe Austin Homes - market update

"2026 Brings a Turn Toward Affordability—Even as Home Prices Keep Rising"

Realtor.com reports, "The year ahead is likely to be a more affordable one for many homebuyers, even though home prices continue to climb for sellers.

The reason affordability improves is that we expect mortgage rates to be lower on average across 2026. In fact, monthly payments are projected to drop for the first time since 2020.

On top of that, incomes will grow, dropping the share of monthly payments—which buyers have to fork over to buy a typically priced home—below 30%. This builds on the modest improvement in affordability we saw in 2025 to bring the costs under this key benchmark for the first time since 2022. 

Improving affordability will help bring more sellers back into the housing market, boosting inventory by roughly 9%. And…

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"Delayed Jobs Data Drops Surprises as Housing Market Gains Momentum"

Realtor.com reports, "After weeks of delayed data, we finally have an update on the labor market—and it’s not exactly what most people expected.

Data that was delayed by the federal government shutdown is starting to trickle out. We learned that hiring was more robust than many expected in September, with 119,000 jobs added in the month—largely in the health care, food services, and social assistance industries. Still, some sectors saw job declines, including transportation and warehousing and the federal government.

Although government data on unemployment insurance claims has been remarkably stable, private data shows a jump in layoff announcements in 2025. Against this hiring and separations backdrop, the unemployment rate trended up to 4.4%…

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"Falling Mortgage Rates Boost Housing Market for Now—as Government Shutdown Enters Second Month, Clouding Outlook"

Realtor.com reports, "Mortgage rates just hit 6.17%—their lowest in more than a year. Also this week, the Fed cut rates again. Together, this could provide some real momentum for the housing market. 

But with an economy sending mixed signals and the government shutdown clouding the data picture, uncertainty is creeping in.  

That’s this week’s big story: Momentum meeting uncertainty. Lower rates are trying to push the housing market forward, and macro risks are pulling it back.

On one side, momentum: Since May, mortgage rates have fallen by 70 basis points, saving a typical buyer about $150 a month—that’s nearly $2,000 a year in payments. 

On the other side, uncertainty: Without the usual labor market data, Fed Chair Jerome Powell compared…

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"By the numbers: Home prices cool, rental rates dip in Austin"

ATX Today writes, "Curious about the Austin housing market? Whether you’re buying, selling, or renting, February’s data reveals key trends to know.

A new Unlock MLS report shows home prices are cooling while rental costs are lowering slightly. The report compares data from February 2024 to February 2025, covering single-family homes, condos, and townhomes.

Take a look at the numbers shaping Austin’s real estate landscape."

Sales

• The median sales price dropped to $430,000 — a 3.9% decrease.
• Active listings jumped 16.7% to 10,235.
• 3,826 new listings hit the market — a 6.5% spike.
• The total sales dollar volume fell 4.9% to $1.05 billion.

Leases

• The median rent dipped 2.4% to $2,195.
• Active leases rose 3.5% to 3,899,…

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"Southwest Austin, Dripping Springs homes spent more time on market in September year over year"

Community Impact reports, "the average days spent on the market for Southwest Austin and Dripping Springs homes saw significant increases in September 2024 compared to September 2023 in all but three of the market’s eight ZIP codes, according to data from the Austin Board of Realtors.

The details

In the 78736 ZIP code, the average time spent on the market soared by over 200%. Slight decreases were seen year over year in the 78737, 78748 and 78749 ZIP codes.

Median home prices saw slight decreases from September 2023 to September 2024 in all but the 78735 and 78745 ZIP codes, which saw increases.

The year-over-year change in number of homes sold varied by each ZIP code, with 78739 seeing an increase in 90% and 78745 seeing a decrease of over…

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"Buyers are snatching up starter homes"

RealEstateNews.com shares, "While the market remains tepid overall, starter homes are drawing more interest as mortgage rates trend lower and inventory rises.

Pending sales for starter homes jumped more than 10% in July year-over-year, according to the latest Redfin report, reaching the highest level in nearly two years. That's in stark contrast to pending sales for all other tiers, which fell by between 6-10% over the same time period. 

Sale prices of entry-level homes were also up, but increased at a slower pace than other home segments, a sign that inventory and demand are more balanced in the lower price tiers. Redfin defined starter homes are those with a sale price in the 5th-35th percentile. 

Redfin Senior Economist Sheharyar…

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"Austin housing economist: forecast calls for cooling home prices, lower mortgage rates"

Shonda Novak of Austin American-Statesmant writes,  "last week, I attended the Austin Board of Realtors' second annual Central Texas Housing Summit. It was loaded with facts, figures, insights and prognostications about the Austin-area housing market. One panel featured the board's housing economist, Clare Losey; Mark Sprague, a longtime Central Texas housing market analyst with Independence Title; and Selma Hepp, CoreLogic's chief economist who gave a national economic update.

Below are a few takeaways with Losey's outlook for the Austin metro's housing market over the next several months. Losey made the comments in a weekly audio interview called "Driving It Home" that features Losey and the board's CEO, Emily Chenevert.

• Inflation will continue…

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"Seller’s Market, Buyer’s Market, ‘Nobody’s Market’? The Weird State of Housing Right Now"

Realtor.com writes, "today’s housing market has everyone wondering: Is it still a seller’s market, or has the power dynamic finally shifted in favor of buyers?

Try neither.

Uncertainty about the future of inflation, the economy, mortgage rates, and more have seized up the market—and wrenched power away from buyers and sellers alike.

“Today, real estate is ‘nobody’s market,'” notes Realtor.com® Chief Economist Danielle Hale in her analysis of housing data for the week ending Feb. 4. “The number of homeowners deciding to sell continues to lag, but inventory and time on market continue to climb, reflecting still-hesitant buyers.”

We’ll break down what the latest real estate statistics mean for homebuyers and sellers in this latest installment…

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Austin’s real estate is 'inching' toward normalcy as market shows signs of stabilizing

Knock on wood—real estate professionals are saying Austin’s housing market showing signs of stabilizing as local inventory hit two months for the first time since 2019.

Austin Board of Realtors CEO Emily Chenevert said after two years of pandemic-fueled prices, “we're inching our way toward something that feels more normal,” during the 2022 Central Texas Housing Summit—which brought industry professionals and economists together—on Tuesday.

Still, housing is one of Austin’s biggest fallbacks despite a diverse local economy, growing infrastructure investments, multiple nearby universities and a healthy job market. Stable housing falls in tandem with affordability, Austin Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Laura Huffman said.

“So what could…

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The Fed raises rates by 0.75%: Its inflation battle continues

The Fed raises rates by 0.75% and improves its inflation-fighting credibility

As expected, the Federal Reserve today raised rates by 0.75%, its largest increase in 28 years, bringing the federal funds rate to around 1.50%. Of note, Fed Chair Jerome Powell highlighted in his comments that the FOMC's primary focus currently is on bringing down inflation in a "clear and convincing" manner over the next few months.

The markets welcomed this rate hike as a signal of credibility in the Fed's inflation-fighting mandate and a step in the right direction toward bringing interest rates back to more neutral territory. The S&P 500 headed higher by over 1.0% on the back of this move, while the tech-heavy Nasdaq was higher by over 2.0%. Chair Powell did note…

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