# Austin Housing Market Report: August 2021, Waterloo Park Opens as the Market Cools

> The Austin metro median sale price was $479,600 in August 2021, +35.1% year over year, with homes selling in 32 days and 1.7 months of supply. Waterloo Park Opens as the Market Cools, what the numbers mean if you are buying or selling in Austin.

Mike Vilece · September 15, 2021
Canonical page: https://theaustinlocalgroup.com/blog/austin-housing-market-august-2021/

In August 2021, **62% of Austin-area homes sold for more than the asking price**. Active inventory stood at 5,558 listings, up 11.0% year over year. The 30-year fixed averaged 2.84% that month. That made it a seller's market.

## Austin market statistics, August 2021

| Metric | August 2021 |
| --- | --- |
| Median sale price | $479,600 (+35.1% YoY) |
| Median price per sq ft | $236 (+40.6% YoY) |
| Homes sold | 3,295 (-8.2% YoY) |
| New listings | 3,772 |
| Active inventory | 5,558 (+11.0% YoY) |
| Months of supply | 1.7 |
| Median days on market | 32 |
| Sale-to-list ratio | 104.2% |
| Sold above asking | 62.3% |
| Listings with a price cut | 23.6% |
| 30-year fixed rate (avg) | 2.84% |

## Waterloo Park Opens as the Market Cools

Waterloo Park and the Moody Amphitheater opened in August after roughly ten years of work, adding real green space to the east side of downtown. The above-list share fell from 72% to 62% in one month. The fastest single-month cooling of the cycle so far.

## What changed since July 2021

The median fell $15,400 from July 2021, a 3.1% move. Time on market lengthened by 4 days, to 32. Active inventory grew by 51 listings, to 5,558. The share of homes selling over asking gave up 10.1 points, to 62.3%.

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

| | August 2021 | July 2021 | August 2020 | Since Oct 2016 |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Median sale price | $479,600 | $495,000 | $355,000 | range $255,626–$495,000 |
| Median days on market | 32 | 28 | 17 | range 16–58 |
| Active inventory | 5,558 | 5,507 | 5,009 | range 2,660–7,969 |
| Months of supply | 1.7 | 1.6 | 1.4 | range 0.9–3.8 |
| Sold above asking | 62% | 72% | 32% | range 14%–75% |
| 30-year fixed rate | 2.84% | 2.87% | 2.94% | range 2.68%–4.87% |

The right-hand column is the range this series has covered since October 2016. No forecast in it, just where August 2021 falls against every month that came before it.

## If you are buying in Austin right now

1.7 months of supply is a seller's market, but not a chaotic one. Good homes priced correctly move in the first weekend; anything still sitting after three weeks has a reason, and finding out what it is before you offer is the whole job.

The average sale closed **above** asking, at 104.2% of list. Offering under list was, statistically, not a strategy that month.

**The payment math.** At $479,600 with 20% down at 2.84%, principal and interest runs about **$1,585 a month**. Add roughly $799 for property taxes and $320 for insurance and you are near **$2,704 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:** you have the leverage, and the mistake available to you is overpricing into it anyway. Homes were selling in 32 days. A listing that sits three weeks in this market has told every agent in town that something is wrong, and you will end up taking less than if you had priced it right on day one.

## Neighborhood in focus

**Northwest Hills (78731).** Highland Park, Mesa Park. Known for quiet, large lots, family neighborhoods. It fits families who want space and a central location.

The metro numbers above are an average of a very unequal city, Northwest Hills 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/northwest-hills/](/neighborhoods/northwest-hills/), including what is wrong with it.

## On in Austin, August 2021

| When | What | Why it matters to a listing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Late August | **Bat Fest**, Congress Avenue Bridge | The Congress Avenue Bridge closes for the evening. A reminder that August in Austin is the month buyers stop touring and start waiting for October. |

## What is coming next

Samsung's site decision for its next chip fab. Tesla's Austin factory opening.

## Common questions

### Are Austin home prices going up or down?

Up 35.1% year over year as of August 2021. Austin's price growth in this period is running well ahead of national averages, which is a function of job growth, not of anything unusual about the houses.

### Should I buy in Austin or in the suburbs?

The honest trade: Round Rock, Cedar Park, Leander, Pflugerville, Georgetown, Kyle and Buda will get you meaningfully more square footage and, in Round Rock ISD, Leander ISD and Lake Travis ISD, schools that rate as well or better than most Austin ISD zones. What you give up is proximity, and in Austin proximity is the scarce good. The drive from Leander to downtown at 8am is not the drive you tested on a Sunday. Check the MUD rate before you compare prices; a suburban house can carry a higher monthly cost than a more expensive central one.

### 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 $479,600 with 20% down at 2.84%, the all-in monthly payment is roughly $2,704 including estimated taxes and insurance. At a 30% housing-to-income ratio that implies household income around **$108,000**. 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%.

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*Part of a retrospective series on the Austin market, one post per month since 2016, compiled from the historical record. This edition covers August 2021; 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](/#contact).*

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