February Home Sales Indicate an Early Spring in Austin // Austin Area Market Report February 2019

Central Texas REALTORS® sold more homes than any February on record last month, indicating the spring selling season may have started early this year. According to the Austin Board of REALTORS® February 2019 Central Texas Housing Market report, sales increased by 6 percent from February 2018 to February 2019 to 2,101 sales. This increase was matched with both a rise in active listings and housing inventory, signs that the Austin Metro housing market this year continues to move toward greater balance.

"We've been hearing from our members that buying and selling activity has really picked up over the past month," Kevin P. Scanlan, president of Austin Board of REALTORS®, said. "We're seeing a lot of development in North Austin, as major tech employers are looking for space with ample room for housing development and access to major transportation arterials. Mobility has become such a problem that employees want to live closer to where they work, if they can afford to move.”

Austin-Round Rock MSA

In the Austin-Round Rock MSA, the median home price decreased by 0.3 percent from $296,000 in February 2018 to $295,000 in February 2019. “While demand remains strong due to population growth, this is no longer a market where homes sell significantly above listing price. Housing affordability challenges might be limiting what consumers are able to pay for a home,” Scanlan said.

Last month, sales dollar volume within the five-county MSA increased year over year by 4.8 percent to $773,977,296. During the same period, new listings rose 7.3 percent to 3,015 listings; active listings increased 18.9 percent to 5,858 listings; and pending sales increased 16.6 percent to 2,715 pending sales. Monthly housing inventory increased by 0.3 months to 2.3 months of inventory.

“Austin has 150,000 employees in the technology industry and that number is only going to increase as major employers expand their presence in Austin,” Angelos Angelou, founder and principal executive officer of Angelou Economics, said. “We have to be aggressive in how we address this growth and ensure Austin doesn’t become unaffordable for our workforce.”

City of Austin

In the city of Austin, single-family home sales increased by 7.3 percent to 649 sales in February. During the same period, sales dollar volume increased 8.6 percent to $295,517,930. The median price of single-family homes decreased slightly—1.6 percent to $360,000. New listings increased 1 percent to 832 listings, active listings increased 7.3 percent to 1,097 listings and pending sales increased 13.4 percent to 771 pending sales. Monthly housing inventory increased 0.1 months to 1.4 months of inventory.

Travis County

February single-family home sales increased in Travis County by 1.5 percent to 986 sales and sales dollar volume increased by 1.3 percent to $436,338,563. The median price for single-family homes rose 1.2 percent year over year to $344,000 in February 2019. During the same period, new listings increased 5.8 percent to 1,502 listings; active listings increased 10.8 percent to 2,518 listings; and pending sales rose 11.8 percent to 1,303 pending sales. Monthly housing inventory increased 0.2 months year over year to 2.0 months of inventory.

Williamson County

In Williamson County, February single-family home sales increased 7.7 percent to 760 sales and sales dollar volume increased by 8.1 percent to $231,764,531. During the same period, the median price for single-family homes increased 2.8 percent to $279,500. New listings increased 4.7 percent to 1,009 listings, active listings jumped 20.1 percent to 2,067 listings, and pending sales skyrocketed 19.2 percent to 945 pending sales. Housing inventory increased 0.4 months year over year to 2.3 months of inventory.

Hays County

Hays County single-family home sales increased 16.1 percent to 260 sales in February and sales dollar volume increased 9.8 percent to $83,008,017. The median price for a single-family home rose year over year by 4.5 percent to $262,000. During the same period, new listings increased 17.6 percent to 375 listings; active listings rose sharply by 32.8 percent to 882 listings; and pending sales experienced a double-digit increase of 23.1 percent to 346 pending sales. Housing inventory increased 0.7 months to 3.0 months of inventory.

Bastrop County

In February, Bastrop County single-family home sales increased 32.2 percent to 78 sales and sales dollar volume increased 41 percent to $18,842,816. The median price for a single-family home increased 8.8 percent to $233,989. During the same period, new listings rose 32.1 percent to 107 listings; active listings rose 49.5 percent to 302 listings; and pending sales rose 42.7 percent to 97 pending sales. Housing inventory increased 1.1 months to 3.5 months of inventory.

Caldwell County

In Caldwell County, February single-family home sales decreased 19.1 percent to 17 sales and sales dollar volume dropped 15 percent to $3,676,733. The median home price increased 16.1 percent year over year to $213,628. During the same period, new listings dropped 18.5 percent to 22 listings; active listings increased 29 percent to 89 listings; and pending sales increased 14.3 percent to 24 pending sales. Housing inventory increased 1.5 months to 3.8 months of inventory. (Source: ABOR Monthly Report)

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