The median single-family home in the Austin metro sold for $315,780 in April 2018, up 3.5% year over year. The 30-year fixed averaged 4.47% that month, the highest monthly average in this series so far. Homes took a median of 21 days to sell. Active inventory stood at 6,489 listings, down 0.1% year over year. That made it a market tilted to sellers.
Austin market statistics, April 2018
| Metric | April 2018 |
|---|---|
| Median sale price | $315,780 (+3.5% YoY) |
| Median price per sq ft | $150 (+3.2% YoY) |
| Homes sold | 2,603 (+6.3% YoY) |
| New listings | 3,857 |
| Active inventory | 6,489 (-0.1% YoY) |
| Months of supply | 2.5 |
| Median days on market | 21 |
| Sale-to-list ratio | 98.8% |
| Sold above asking | 24.6% |
| Listings with a price cut | 28.5% |
| 30-year fixed rate (avg) | 4.47% |
Property Tax Math for People Moving From California
The number that surprises every California and New York transplant: Austin-area property tax rates run roughly 1.8% to 2.5% of assessed value, and higher inside a MUD. On a $400,000 house that is $7,000 to $10,000 a year. Texas has no state income tax, and this is where the state gets it back.
What changed since March 2018
The median rose $13,280 from March 2018, a 4.4% move. Time on market shortened by 12 days, to 21. Active inventory grew by 477 listings, to 6,489. The share of homes selling over asking gained 4.0 points, to 24.6%.
One month is noise. The reason to read it anyway is that direction shows up in inventory and days on market well before it shows up in price, so the months where those two disagree with the headline number are the interesting ones.
Where this month sits in the cycle
| April 2018 | March 2018 | April 2017 | Since Oct 2016 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Median sale price | $315,780 | $302,500 | $305,000 | highest since Oct 2016 |
| Median days on market | 21 | 33 | 18 | range 16–54 |
| Active inventory | 6,489 | 6,012 | 6,492 | range 4,660–7,915 |
| Months of supply | 2.5 | 2.3 | 2.7 | range 2.1–3.3 |
| Sold above asking | 25% | 21% | 27% | range 14%–30% |
| 30-year fixed rate | 4.47% | 4.44% | 4.04% | highest since Oct 2016 |
The right-hand column is the range this series has covered since October 2016. No forecast in it, just where April 2018 falls against every month that came before it.
If you are buying in Austin right now
At 2.5 months of supply, sellers still have the edge on the best listings and buyers have real leverage on everything else. The spread between those two groups is where the negotiation lives.
The average sale closed at 98.8% of list, essentially at asking. The negotiation in a month like this happens on price cuts before you arrive and on repairs after you are under contract, not on the headline number.
The payment math. At $315,780 with 20% down at 4.47%, principal and interest runs about $1,276 a month. Add roughly $526 for property taxes and $211 for insurance and you are near $2,012 a month all in. Texas has no state income tax and this is where the state collects instead, budget the tax line from day one, not as an afterthought.
If you are selling: 21 median days on market means your first two weeks decide the outcome. Price to the last ninety days of closed comps, not to what your neighbor listed at and did not sell. Condition and photography are doing more work now than they were two years ago.
Neighborhood in focus
Deep South Austin (78745). Cherry Creek, Garrison Park, Manchaca. Known for value, access, first-time buyers. It fits first-time buyers and young families.
The metro numbers above are an average of a very unequal city, Deep South Austin does not move in lockstep with Kyle or Leander, and the gap between ZIPs widens in exactly the months the metro looks calm. There is a longer, more honest write-up at /neighborhoods/deep-south-austin/, including what is wrong with it.
On in Austin, April 2018
| When | What | Why it matters to a listing |
|---|---|---|
| Late April | Austin Food + Wine Festival, Auditorium Shores | Auditorium Shores and the south shore of Lady Bird Lake close for the weekend. Downtown hotel demand rises but nothing like SXSW. |
| Late March into early April | Texas Relays, Mike A. Myers Stadium, UT campus | Campus-area traffic and hotels fill for the weekend. Localised to 78705 and the blocks around San Jacinto. |
What is coming next
A November bond package is taking shape, with affordable housing likely the largest single piece. Council also has to decide what to do about a soccer stadium at McKalla Place.
Common questions
I am moving to Austin from California. What actually surprises people?
Four things, in order of how much money they cost. Property taxes, which run roughly 1.8-2.5% and have no Proposition 13-style cap beyond the 10% homestead limit. Homeowners insurance, which is among the highest in the country because of hail. Summer utility bills in an underinsulated house. And foundations: much of the region sits on expansive clay that moves with drought and rain, so watering your foundation is a real practice here and a structural engineer's report is money well spent on any older slab home.
How much do I need to earn to buy a median-priced Austin home?
At $315,780 with 20% down at 4.47%, the all-in monthly payment is roughly $2,012 including estimated taxes and insurance. At a 30% housing-to-income ratio that implies household income around $80,000. Lenders will approve you well above that; whether you should go there is a different question. Property taxes are estimated at 2.0% of value, verify the actual rate for the specific address, because a MUD can push it past 3%.
When is the best time of year to buy a house in Austin?
October through January, consistently. Austin's listing calendar runs about six weeks ahead of the national one. The best selection appears in March and April, and so does the most competition. By late fall, spring listings are six months old, sellers have adjusted their expectations, and days on market runs 30 to 50 days longer than it did in April. You get less to choose from and far more leverage over what is left.
What is the average home price in Austin?
The median single-family sale across the Austin metro in April 2018 was $315,780. Median is the more useful number than average here. A handful of Westlake and Tarrytown sales pull an average upward in a way that tells you nothing about what you will pay. Note also that the metro figure covers Travis, Williamson, Hays, Bastrop and Caldwell counties; the City of Austin proper runs meaningfully higher, and the suburbs meaningfully lower.
Part of a retrospective series on the Austin market, one post per month since 2016, compiled from the historical record. This edition covers April 2018; every figure is as reported for that month, and nothing in it looks past it.
Source: Redfin Data Center metro market tracker: single-family, Austin-Round Rock-San Marcos metro, not seasonally adjusted. Mortgage rates are the monthly average of the Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey 30-year fixed rate. Payment, tax and insurance figures are estimates for illustration and are not a quote. Median sale price is not a guarantee of value for any specific property.
Written by Mike Vilece, a licensed Texas real estate agent with Compass in Austin. If you want the version of this that applies to your street and your budget, ask me directly.