Hot Hot Housing

Austin market hits all-time high as home price surges to $624,000

The median home price in Travis County is now above $600,000.

Another record-breaking month is in the books for the red-hot Austin housing market.

The latest monthly report from Austin Board of Realtors reveals all-time highs for home prices at both the city and metro levels, with median home prices surging past the $500,000 and $600,000 marks, respectively, for the very first time.

In March 2022, the median home price in the city of Austin skyrocketed to a record-setting $624,000. That figure is up more than 22 percent from March 2021, when the city's median home price hit a then record of $515,000. In February 2022, the city's median home price sat at $565,000, signaling a jump of $99,000 in just one month.

Meanwhile, the median price for the Austin metro hit $521,100 in March 2022, also up more than 22 percent from a year ago and up from $499,995 in February 2022. This marks the first time the metro's home price has officially passed $500,000.

“Rising home prices along with nationwide inflation and rising interest rates can seed caution in the market, so it’s important to remember that we are still experiencing a very active housing market driven by true demand, not investor speculation,” says Cord Shiflet, 2022 ABoR president, in a release.

“More homes are being listed and sold in Austin than ever before, and people are buying those homes because they need to live in them. The Austin area has a dire need for more housing stock across all housing types and price points, so last month’s increase in housing inventory and the number of homes on the market was a welcome sign.”

Of the five-county metro area, only Caldwell still offers a median home price below $400,000. There, the median price sits at $329,000, but it has climbed 31 percent year-over-year.

Bastrop County's median home price has reached $405,500, an almost 47 percent increase from a year ago, and Hays County homes are now priced at a median $440,000, up more than 25 percent from last March. In booming Williamson County, the median price now sits at $490,000, while Travis County has reached a record $600,500.

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Homebuyers can afford to be picky as Austin housing inventory rises

Photo by Avinash Kumar on Unsplash

Housing economist Clare Losey said the most significant factor affecting home sales in Austin is high mortgage rates.

The latest real estate report from Unlock MLS and the Austin Board of Realtors (ABoR) has revealed housing inventory is still on a steady rise in the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos MSA, creating more choices for potential homebuyers as they navigate a high interest rate market.

Residential home sales dipped by a mere 1.5 percent year-over-year from October 2023, amounting to 2,248 closed sales in the Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos MSA. Median prices have also dropped to $430,000, or 3.2 percent less than this time last year. More than 3,300 new home listings were added on the market — a 7.4 percent increase from 2023 — bringing the total number of active home listings to 11,599.

According to Unlock MLS and ABoR housing economist Clare Losey, Ph.D., October's mortgage rates stood at 6.4 percent and are showing no signs of a significant drop in the near future. Even heading into 2025, Losey says potential homebuyers who are biding their time in the hopes of seeing rates plummet "may be in for a long wait."

"In the meantime, sellers must recognize that bringing buyers to the table requires a more aggressive pricing approach," Losey said. "Even in a more balanced market, buyers with limited purchasing power are struggling to meet current price expectations."

As for the overall health of the Central Texas housing market, 2024 Unlock MLS and ABoR president Kent Redding labeled recent news reports that called Austin "ground zero" for a downturn as an "extreme over-exaggeration."

"Austin led the state and nation in record-breaking home price growth and sales activity during the pandemic," Redding said. "For three years, near-zero housing inventory, numerous offers above list price and a rapid-paced market raised home prices and left little negotiating power for buyers. During this record-setting growth, ABoR and Unlock MLS consistently emphasized the unsustainability of the rapid growth, and now, our market is working to balance those extremes."

Central Texas housing trends in October 2024

In Travis County, 979 homes were sold last month — a slight 2.5 percent increase from last year. Median prices remained flat year-over-year at $510,000. Active home listings continued growing to 5,702 homes, which is 9.4 percent more year-over-year.

In Williamson County, 807 homes were sold in October, with median prices steadily dropping to $420,000. There were 1,028 new home listings on the market, showing a 4.5 percent increase from October 2023, bringing the total number of active home listings to 3,369.

Residential home sales dropped by nearly eight percent in Hays County in October, totaling 315 sales. Median prices also fell 5.5 percent year-over-year to $359,000. Active listings rose 6.6 percent year-over-year to 1,740 homes with the addition of 534 new listings on the market.

Meanwhile, 114 homes were sold in Bastrop County last month, which is 4.4 percent more than this time last year. Median prices dropped by a single percentage point year-over-year to $355,000. There were 654 active listings on the market in October, and 152 new home listings, representing a 1.3 percent slip in new inventory when compared to last year.

Only 33 homes were sold in Caldwell County in October to reflect a near 14 percent decline year-over-year from October 2023. Median prices fell to $262,990, which was a 13.5 percent decrease from last year. There were 136 active homes on the market last month, and 40 new homes added on the market.

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