# Austin Housing Market Report: February 2017, Why the Austin Spring Market Starts in February

> The Austin metro median sale price was $290,000 in February 2017, +7.4% year over year, with homes selling in 44 days and 2.8 months of supply. Why the Austin Spring Market Starts in February, what the numbers mean if you are buying or selling in Austin.

Mike Vilece · March 15, 2017
Canonical page: https://theaustinlocalgroup.com/blog/austin-housing-market-february-2017/

**1,809 homes changed hands** across the Austin metro in February 2017, up 2.8% from the same month a year earlier. The median sale was $290,000, up 7.4% year over year. Homes took a median of 44 days to sell. That made it a market tilted to sellers.

## Austin market statistics, February 2017

| Metric | February 2017 |
| --- | --- |
| Median sale price | $290,000 (+7.4% YoY) |
| Median price per sq ft | $142 (+7.5% YoY) |
| Homes sold | 1,809 (+2.8% YoY) |
| New listings | 2,632 |
| Active inventory | 5,127 (+6.1% YoY) |
| Months of supply | 2.8 |
| Median days on market | 44 |
| Sale-to-list ratio | 98.3% |
| Sold above asking | 20.0% |
| Listings with a price cut | 24.1% |
| 30-year fixed rate (avg) | 4.17% |

## Why the Austin Spring Market Starts in February

The spring market started early, as it usually does here. Austin's listing calendar runs roughly six weeks ahead of the national one: the good inventory shows up in late February and March, not April and May, because sellers want to be closed before the August heat and the school year.

## What changed since January 2017

The median rose $9,801 from January 2017, a 3.5% move. Time on market held flat, to 44. Active inventory grew by 280 listings, to 5,127. The share of homes selling over asking gained 0.7 points, to 20.0%.

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

| | February 2017 | January 2017 | February 2016 | Since Oct 2016 |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Median sale price | $290,000 | $280,199 | $270,000 | range $255,626–$295,250 |
| Median days on market | 44 | 44 | 39 | range 16–44 |
| Active inventory | 5,127 | 4,847 | 4,831 | range 4,660–6,891 |
| Months of supply | 2.8 | 3.3 | 2.7 | range 2.1–3.3 |
| Sold above asking | 20% | 19% | 22% | range 17%–30% |
| 30-year fixed rate | 4.17% | 4.15% | 3.66% | range 3.44%–4.2% |

The right-hand column is the range this series has covered since October 2016. No forecast in it, just where February 2017 falls against every month that came before it.

## If you are buying in Austin right now

At 2.8 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 home sold for 98.3% of asking, so roughly 1.7% under list was the normal outcome, not an insulting one.

**The payment math.** At $290,000 with 20% down at 4.17%, principal and interest runs about **$1,130 a month**. Add roughly $483 for property taxes and $193 for insurance and you are near **$1,807 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:** 44 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

**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, February 2017

| When | What | Why it matters to a listing |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Mid-February | **Austin Marathon**, Downtown / central | Road closures across downtown and central Austin from before dawn until early afternoon. The one Sunday of the year not to schedule a central open house. |

## What is coming next

SXSW in March, which reliably freezes downtown showings for two weeks. And a ride-hailing bill moving through the Legislature that would override Austin's local rules and bring Uber and Lyft back.

## Common questions

### 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 February 2017 was $290,000. 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.

### Is Austin a buyer's market or a seller's market?

In February 2017, a market tilted to sellers, 2.8 months of supply, with 20% of homes selling above asking. The rough convention: under about 3 months favors sellers, 4 to 6 is balanced, and above 6 favors buyers. Since October 2016 this metro has ranged from 2.1 months in December 2015 to 3.3 in January 2016.

### What is a MUD district and why does it matter?

A Municipal Utility District is a taxing entity that finances water, sewer and drainage infrastructure in developments outside city utility service: common in Leander, Kyle, Buda, Manor and parts of Pflugerville and Dripping Springs. It levies its own rate on top of city, county and school, and can add a full percentage point or more to your effective tax rate. MUD rates typically decline as the district's debt is paid down, but that takes decades. It is the most common surprise in a suburban Central Texas closing, and it is disclosed, read the MUD notice.

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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 February 2017; 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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