Reading this week’s Austin Business Journal (Aug 5-11, 2005, Vol 25, Num 20), there was an article “Colonial investing $87M in Austin”.
Often, when talking to investors as well as regular buyers and sellers in Austin, I am asked questions about the Austin economy and the Austin real estate market. My response will usually start with something like “well, based on everything I’ve been reading, hearing and seeing…” This ABJ story is an example of the “everything I’ve been reading” category.
No single story or piece of information by itself can paint a picture worth trusting, but over time as the number of positive indicators continue to mount, a trend becomes evident. That trend currently is that Austin is viewed positively by a lot of different investors from different segments of the market. From the new investor purchasing her first duplex or rental home, to the multi-family developers and investors like Colonial, and also commercial investors as Austin is seeing strong office rental rates return as well.
Check out this quote from the article:
“Austin fits the company’s criteria for investment, with its top quartile placement in terms of job growth, population growth and household income growth.” says Paul Earl, executive vice president of the company’s multi-family division. “By our estimates, Austin ranks in the top 5 places to consider for investment opportunities.”
So, whether you are a home owner, renter, potential investor, or causal observer of real estate news, you want to be paying attention to news like this as it all ties together and starts to make a strong case for the notion that Austin’s real estate market is tightening up, which in turn will lead to value appreciation.
If you haven’t done so already, check out my Austin Rental Market Update to see what is happening in the single family rental home segment of Austin’s real estate rental market.