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Austin sees positive trend in home sales
February 2, 2012

By Cody Lyon, Austin Business Journal Staff Writer - Single-family home sales grew by 11 percentage points in December when compared to the same month in 2010, according to the Austin Board of Realtors. In December 2011, a total of 1,581 single-family homes were sold and the median price for those homes was $187,940, or one percentage point lower than the same month last year, based on data from the Multiple Listing Service report. Austin homes spent an average of 89 days on the market in December 2011, nine days less than the same month of the prior year. “With stable prices, stronger sales volume and more pending sales this month compared to December 2010, we’re encouraged to see the market showing strong demand leading into January,” said Leonard Guerrero, 2012 chairman of ABOR. The report includes figures for all of 2011, during which 19,220 Austin-area single-family homes were sold, which is 7 percent more than 2010. Over the course of the year, the median price of homes in Austin remained statistically unchanged from the prior year at $193,000 and homes spent an average of 84 days on the market, which is seven days longer than 2010. “We are pleased to see Austin’s real estate market end the year on a positive note. With a surge in sales volume over the second half of 2011 and strong demand evident in December, we’re optimistic about the health of our market for the coming year,” said Guerrero.

Central Texas home sales up 11 percent in November
January 2, 2012

By Shonda Novak, Austin American-Statesman Staff - Sales of existing homes in the Austin area rose about 11 percent in November and the area’s median home price was up 3 percent compared to the same month last year, the Austin Board of Realtors reported. Year to date, home sales are up 7 percent over the same period in 2010, and the median price for the year remained unchanged at $194,000, according to the Board of Realtors data. The board said 1,358 homes were sold in November, compared with 1,225 in November 2010. The median price for last month’s sales was $189,300. There were 7,173 homes on the market in November, 18 percent fewer than a year ago. Pending sales were up 15 percent, with 1,448 homes in the closings pipeline. Homes spent an average of 83 days on the market in November, seven days less than in November 2010. At the November sales pace, the Austin area market had a 4 1/2 months supply of homes, 1.4 months less than November 2010 and the lowest figure reported since the organization began tracking the statistic in January 2009.

Housing market still a stabilizing force for Austin's economy
December 5, 2011

By Shonda Novak, American-Statesman Staff - By sidestepping the national bubble, the Austin housing market served as a stabilizing force for the Central Texas economy. That, experts say, was key to helping the region outperform many other U.S. metro areas during the economic downturn. Unlike the wild roller-coaster ride that house prices took in states like California, Florida and Nevada, Central Texas registered steady prices — flat at worst — in a state that had the sixth-lowest foreclosure rate in the nation. Since 1996, the median home sale price here has only twice sustained an annual decline. Several factors contributed to the relative stability of the Central Texas housing market during the downturn. They include stricter home-equity lending laws in Texas than some other states, the diverse local economy, and continued job and population growth, housing experts and economists say. Other factors that have helped keep Central Texas housing prices from overinflating, experts say, are attitudes about homeownership and considerably higher property taxes, which have kept an artificial lid on rapid home-price appreciation. Also playing a steadying role in the region's housing market, experts say, was that the market wasn't overbuilt nearly to the degree as metro areas where builders had been churning out homes and raising prices — sometimes weekly — during the boom. When the housing downturn hit, local builders weren't left with an excessive glut of homes to sell off, as they were in other markets.

Condo Tower Sales Show Appetite Still Strong for Living in Downtown Austin
October 26, 2011

By Shonda Novak, Austin American Statesman: As Austin's skyline underwent a momentous change during the past decade, some Austinites wondered whether there would be enough people to fill all the new towers adding hundreds of residential units downtown. Judging by the latest condominium sales figures, the towers are filling surprisingly well, given their high price points, experts say, and demand for downtown living is continuing. From January through September, buyers purchased and moved into 251 units in the four newest downtown projects - the Four Seasons Residences, Spring, the Austonian and the W Residences - and the largest condo project just outside of downtown, Barton Place, according to Austin-based Capitol Market Research, which tracks the market. That compares with 198 closings at those projects during 2010, said Charles Heimsath, the Capitol Market Research's president. While experts say the sales numbers are relatively healthy, the downtown market wasn't immune to the economic downturn. To date, 548 of the 992 units in those five complexes - 55 percent - have been sold. From June through September, there were 51 condominium sales in the four downtown projects - excluding Barton Place - totaling $55 million, for an average price of just more than $1 million each, Heimsath said. To put the 51 sales in context, there were 85 single-family homes sold in the entire Austin area for the same four-month period, Heimsath said. Among the four newest projects, 301 units remain to be sold, Heimsath said. However, because of the time it takes to plan, finance and build a new condo tower, Larry Warshaw, a developer of the 42-story Spring high-rise, said, he doesn't expect there to be another chance to buy a unit in a newly completed tower for five more years.

Austin Home Sales Up 9 Percent in June
August 8, 2011

From the Austin Business Journal: A total 2,145 single-family homes sold in Austin in June, or about 9 percent more than last year, according to the Austin Board of Realtors. The median price for the sold properties was $205,000 last month, or about the same as in June 2010. The total value of the homes sold was $583,137,555. Austin homes spent an average 75 days on the market last month, which is 7 percent longer than June 2010. Also, new listings were down 4 percent this past June when compared with the same time last year. Currently, 9,687 active single-family home listings are on the market, or 18 percent less than in June 2010. The report said 2,114 sales were pending in June, a 31 percent increase from June 2010's figures.

Home Prices Still Falling, But Not in Austin
September 6, 2011

By Cody Lyon, Staff writer for Austin Business Journal. Austin-area home prices continued to hold steady but most markets in the U.S. are still waning. That's according to the latest Home Price Index report by CoreLogic Inc., which showed July 2011 Austin-area home prices rising by 0.1 percent over prices in July 2010. That's when distressed sales were included. When distressed sales aren't factored in, area home prices rose 0.7 percent during that period. The same didn't hold true for much of the country where the foreclosure crisis has had a deeper impact. Nationwide, when distressed properties are factored in, average home prices fell by 5.2 percent in July 2011 compared to July 2010. When distressed homes are taken out of the national equation, home prices fell by 0.6 percent. Speaking to the national numbers, Core Logic Chief Economist Mark Fleming said in a release that seasonal influences on the housing market are expected to fade in late summer. "At that point, the month-over-month growth will most likely turn negative. The slowdown in economic growth and increased uncertainty caused by recent stock market volatility will continue to exert downward pressure on prices," he said.

Texas adds 732,800 jobs in 10 years; no other state tops 100,000
June 3, 2011

By G. Scott Thomas, The Business Journals: Texas has enjoyed an unequaled economic boom the past 10 years. The inventory of private-sector jobs in Texas increased by 732,800 between April 2001 and the same month this year, according to an On Numbers analysis of new federal employment data. The analysis is by G. Scott Thomas for The Business Journals, the national online news affiliate of the Austin Business Journal. No other state registered an increase of more than 100,000 private-sector jobs during the decade. Only 19 states and the District of Columbia posted any gains at all. Texas avoided the real estate bust that decimated the economies of several large Sunbelt states, including California and Florida, during the 2008-2010 recession. It consequently was positioned for a faster takeoff once the national economy began improving, allowing it to create 251,700 new jobs in the past year alone. The runners-up to Texas in private-sector growth were Arizona and Utah, which added 90,200 and 90,000 jobs respectively, during the decade from 2001 to 2011. California suffered the biggest decline during the decade. It had 623,700 fewer private sector jobs last month than it did a decade ago. Michigan was next with a 10-year loss of 619,200 positions. Austin is among the top job generators in the state. The city added 4,100 positions just between March and April this year, bringing unemployment down to 6.5 percent.

Texas Joins 12 Nations with Trillion-Dollar Economies!
May 5, 2011

From the Austin Business Journal: Only 12 nations have economies that are valued at more than $1 trillion. But they are not alone at the summit of financial power. Three smaller political subdivisions (California, Texas and New York) also are worth more than $1 trillion. A report issued last month by the World Bank pegged the gross domestic product (GDP) of the United States at $14.12 trillion, making it the mightiest economic power in the world. The U.S. has financial strength to spare. It would remain in first place, comfortably ahead of Japan, which stands at No. 2 with $5.07 trillion, even if its three biggest states split off on their own. California, with a gross state product (GSP) of $1.89 trillion, would rank as the eighth strongest economy in the world. Texas ($1.14 trillion) would be 14th, and New York ($1.09 trillion) would be 15th. GDP and GSP measure the same thing, the total output of goods and services in a nation or state during a given year. These are the hypothetical worldwide standings, with the three major states subtracted from the U.S. total. All figures are for 2009: United States, $9.99 trillion - Japan, $5.07 trillion - China, $4.99 trillion - Germany, $3.33 trillion - France, $2.65 trillion - United Kingdom, $2.17 trillion - Italy, $2.11 trillion California, $1.89 trillion - Brazil, $1.59 trillion - Spain, $1.46 trillion - India, $1.38 trillion - Canada, $1.34 trillion - Russian Federation, $1.23 trillion - Texas, $1.14 trillion - New York, $1.09 trillion

Austin in Top 10 Best Cities To Find a Job
April 6, 2011

Melville, N.Y. (March 15, 2011) - For the second year, Ajilon Professional Staffing has identified the 10 best cities for finding employment in the U.S. Ajilon Professional Staffing, a leader in specialty recruiting and workforce solutions, compiled its list using Department of Labor statistics and insights from its regional market branches. Each of the cities on the list boast an unemployment rate of 8 percent or lower, below the current national average of 8.9 percent. In determining the list, Ajilon also considered a number of factors, including the diversity of industries in the city, cost of living, the range in size of companies offering employment, and level of higher education among its residents. Austin, Texas came in second place on the list as a result of the city's low cost of living and diverse talent pool. Austin's robust educational community also contributed to boosting job growth in the market. Home to several major universities, including the University of Texas, local businesses have a vast pool of well-educated recent graduates to choose from for local employment opportunities in Austin. The full list of this years Top 10 cities is: 1. Minneapolis-St. Paul, 2. Austin, Texas, 3. Salt Lake City, 4. Boston, 5. Milwaukee, 6. Richmond, Va., 7. Raleigh-Durham, N.C., 8. Baltimore, 9. Pittsburgh, 10. Dallas

Austin home sales up 14% in January
March 1, 2011

Austin Business Journal - Monday, February 21, 2011. A total 975 homes sold in the Austin area last month, or about 14 percent more than in than January 2010, according to Multiple Listing Service data released on Monday. The Austin Board of Realtors said single family homes also sold for a higher average price about $190,000, up 6 percent from last year. Properties spent an average 93 days on the market, 11 percent longer than January 2010. The report is in line with national trends. The National Association of Realtors reported last month its Pending Home Sales Index, which measures signed purchase contracts but not closed sales, rose 2 percent nationwide. In the South, the region that includes Texas, pending home sales jumped 11.5 percent in December.

Austin is a Top Draw for Young Adults!
February 9, 2011

By Juan Castillo, Austin American Statesman Staff. Thousands of young people move to Austin every year, drawn by the pull of jobs, higher education and, lest we forget, the city's reputation for being a hip destination, has long been apparent. Austin is filled with people who relocated here after saying the city swept them off their feet. But new census data show Austin solidifying its cachet among adults ages 25-34, generally considered among the most mobile of Americans. According to a report released this month, the Austin-Round Rock metro area had the highest annual average net migration of young adults for 2007-2009, with 14,318. The area leaped from ninth place in 2005-2007. Austin also ranked No. 1 for 2007-09 in migration rate of young adults with college degrees. College graduates and young adults tend to be the lifeblood of the labor force, quicker to respond to shifts in national job networks, said William Frey, a senior demographer with the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C., who thinks unemployment and the rise in home foreclosures led to the migration stalls. What does Austin have going for it that other major metro areas don't? "It's a state capital and a college town. Some people always say both are a little bit recession-proof. And it's a self-identified cool city," Frey said with a laugh. There are other factors, too the metro area's high-tech industry and the region's generally good economic health when compared with other parts of the country.

Texas Cities Rank High in Recession Recovery
January 7, 2011

Austin, Dallas, San Antonio and Houston were among the top 15 U.S. cities in a global study to determine the level of recovery from the recession. The report from the Brookings Institution Metropolitan Policy Program ranks 150 cities: 50 in the United States, 50 in Europe and 50 in the rest of the world. Austin was the highest-ranked U.S. city and No. 26 in the world. Dallas ranked fourth in the U.S. and 39th in the world. San Antonio ranked 11th in the United States and 51st in the world. Houston landed at 15th in the United States and 61st in the world. (RECON, 12/03/2010)