Austin Real Estate Market Update – Oct 2007

Home sales in Austin are getting better or worse, depending on which side of the equation you’re on – Buyer or Seller – and some other factors. If you’re a Buyer, you currently have more homes to choose from and are more likely to find a seller willing to negotiate compared to 2006 and the first half of 2007, though you probably won’t obtain a lower purchase price than you would have a year ago if you remain in Austin proper.

If you’re a Seller, you’re going to have to work harder to prepare your home for sale and you don’t have much room for error on the pricing. Buyers are simply bypassing overpriced listings as they have plenty of other homes to pick from. You will, however, probably sell your properly priced home for more than you could have a year ago, though it might take slightly longer. There is also a greater chance that, if your home isn’t priced right for the condition, it won’t sell at all. We are seeing a lot of homes in Austin be withdrawn from the market or expire unsold compared to a year ago. See the Sold vs. Not Sold chart I posted last month.

For October, the number of single family homes sold through the Austin MLS was down 5.9% from a year ago, which was expected. The average sold price is up about 5% over last year from $235,487 Oct 2006 to $246,796 for Oct 2007. The Median sold price is up 3.3% to $183,961 and the average price per square foot is up 4.5% to $117. The days on market inched up slightly from 66 to 69 and the Median days on market is up one day to 47. See the October chart below and the Year to Date stats further down.

For Year-to-Date in Austin and surrounding areas, the number of single family homes sold through the Austin MLS was also down 5.9% YTD 2006. The average sold price YTD is up about 7% over last year from $238,703 Oct 2006 to $254,959. The Median sold price is up 6.3% to $187,000 and the average price per square foot is up 5.4% to $118. The average days on market is down 62 YTD last year to 60 this year, and the Median days on market is down 7.9% to to 35, which means the half of all homes sold through the Austin MLS so far in 2007 have sold in 35 daye or less. Not bad. Especially not bad when compared to other parts of the country.

Below are YTD stats filtering out new homes that sell through the MLS. As you can see, compared to the YTD stats above that include new home sales, the resale market is enjoying even better days on market stats, though prices are slightly lower.

Questions and comments are welcome.