Austin Home Sales up 5%, Down in 2009

Austin home buyers returned in force last month, increasing sales 5 percent from the same time in 2008, according to a Austin Board of Realtors report Wednesday.

The median price of the 1,373 homes sold in December rose to about $194,000, an increase of 6 percent year over year.


“We saw dramatic increases in sales volume in October and November 2009, which were presumably related to the original deadline for the first-time home buyer tax credit,” board Chairman John Horton said.

“However, increases in sales volume beyond November and figures that have improved steadily throughout the year indicate that, while some demand was driven by the tax credit deadline, a sustainable recovery is also underway in the real estate market.”

Despite the encouraging numbers, home sales were still down 6 percent from 2008. Homes sold last year drifted near a $188,480 median, which was down 1 percent year over year. Officials said the overall 6 percent decline in home sales is still a significant improvement when compared to the double-digit decreases experienced in the first quarter 2009.

Source: Austin Business Journal

Central Texas Real Estate In Perspective

While headlines such as last week's about the latest monthly numbers for Austin home sales and prices can inspire debate about whether we are defying the national trends or following them, 2008 will see a volume of sales exceeding 24,000 homes. 2008 will represent the 4th highest total of homes sold in a year over the last 25+ years. This is lower than the last three years, however, home sales nationally are at their lowest level since 1999.

Year-to-date, 2008 is down 18% over the same period in 2007, however, the Real Estate Center's latest projection for 2008 only puts sales off 3,460 or 14% from last years total.There was an average of 4 months inventory remaining on the market in Austin during 2007 which increased to 6 months by September 2008. Nationally inventories currently represent a 10-month supply, while 4-5 months is considered typical.

Average home prices in Austin have held steady based on estimated 2008 data and median price has increased 3%. Nationally, the median has dropped 9% and in some areas of the United States, home values are down substantially more.More information on Central Texas economic indicators can be found at www.austinchamber.com.

by Beverly Kerr, Chamber Vice President of Research