Going up

New report reveals how much Austin home prices soared in past decade

With growth comes a big bump in home prices.

In the past decade, every Texas metro area saw its home prices soar. But only one metro area watched its median home price break the $300,000 mark: Austin.

A new report from the Texas Association of Realtors reviews home-selling activity across the state during the previous 10 years (2011 through 2020).

The Austin area witnessed an 82 percent bump in the median home price from 2011 ($189,000) to 2020 ($343,914), the report shows. No other Texas metro reached the $300,000 level last year, but oil-rich Midland came the closest ($299,000).

By the way, Austin homebuyers didn’t experience the greatest sticker shock from 2011 to 2020. That dubious honor went to the north Texas area of Sherman-Denison, where the median home price jumped 130 percent from 2011 ($87,000) to 2020 ($200,000).

Even among Texas’ four major metro areas, Austin homebuyers didn’t see the biggest spike in home prices during the past decade. In Dallas-Fort Worth, the median home price skyrocketed 94 percent from 2011 ($149,900) to 2020 ($291,000).

The Houston area notched a more moderate increase, 68 percent, in the median home price from 2011 ($154,500) to 2020 ($260,000).

Among the state’s four major metros, San Antonio watched the median home price go up the least, 65 percent, from 2011 ($150,681) to 2020 ($249,000).

Three-fourths of homes sold around the state in the past decade were located in the Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, and San Antonio metro areas, according to the report. Dallas-Fort Worth topped the list, with 923,528 homes sold from 2011 through 2020, followed by Houston (811,105), Austin (315,946), and San Antonio (292,322).

Across Texas, the median home price shot up 76 percent from 2011 ($146,988) to 2020 ($259,188), and more than 3 million homes were sold.

“We’ve had a dynamic real estate market in Texas over the past decade,” Marvin Jolly, chairman of the Texas Association of Realtors, says in an August 5 news release. “Some of the factors that have affected real estate transactions and property ownership include significant population growth, natural disasters big and small, new-home technologies, and, of course, the pandemic.”

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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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