Housing Woes
Want to buy a house in Austin? Then you better move fast.
![Austin home house 2105 E 9th St 78702 January 2016 front exterior](https://austin.culturemap.com/media-library/austin-home-house-2105-e-9th-st-78702-january-2016-front-exterior.jpg?id=31646935&width=2000&height=1500&quality=65&coordinates=0%2C0%2C0%2C0)
Homes are flying off the market all across the nation, and that means Austin homebuyers have to hustle even more now if they want to score a house.
The latest Zillow market report shows that U.S. homes are selling faster than at any time since 2010. In Austin, that means homes are on the market for a median of 57 days, one of the lowest figures in the country and a day less than last year.
In most fast-moving markets, such as San Francisco and Denver, the inventory of available homes has actually gone up since June 2015. That's barely the case in Austin, where our inventory is a meager 1 percent higher than it was last June. The median home price in Austin is $252,900; the national average is a much lower $187,000.
"Homes are selling faster than ever as the home shopping season hits its peak," says Zillow chief economist Dr. Svenja Gudell in a release. "If you’re looking for a home, be prepared to move quickly. Adding to this difficult buying environment is low inventory — there simply aren’t many homes to choose from."
How's it looking around the rest of Texas? The heat's slightly off in Houston, where homes are spending a median of 70 days on the market before selling for a median price of $172,900. Inventory is up 4.4 percent.
In Dallas-Fort Worth, homes spend 56 days on the market, but inventory has spiraled with a 20.5 percent decrease. Homes there are moving almost a week faster than last year.
The best news for buyers is in San Antonio, where inventory is up a healthy 20.4 percent and homes are on the market for 69 days. They're selling a little faster than last year, but at least there seem to be more homes from which to choose.