Real Estate Rumblings
Austin home sales are still hot, but people aren't buying where you think

Austin home sales continue a record-breaking trend, reports the Austin Board of Realtors. According to a report released Friday, February 2015 set a new record for homes sales in that month. However, those sales may not be where you expect.
"The first two months of 2015 have broken monthly records for single-family home sales, yet nearly half of the homes sold in the Austin area in February 2015 were purchased outside of Austin’s city limits," Cooper says. The reason? High prices.
In February, 1,775 single-family homes were sold in the Austin area. The median home price rose 8 percent year-over-year to $248,640; the average home price increased 5 percent from February 2014 to $307,928. The majority of homes sold last month (69 percent) were priced at $200,000 or higher. That's "outside of an affordable price range for many Austin homebuyers," the report states.
Transportation and affordable housing solutions are necessary to curb the problem, says Cooper. "Long-term and sustainable solutions for statewide transportation funding in addition to policies that allow more affordable housing options inside Austin’s city limits will be critical to making Austin an affordable place to live for all residents."