Austin-area buyers had 7,007 active listings to work with in May 2017, up 18.6% from a year earlier. The 30-year fixed averaged 4.01% that month. The median sale was $310,250, up 7.7% year over year. That made it a seller's market.
Austin market statistics, May 2017
| Metric | May 2017 |
|---|---|
| Median sale price | $310,250 (+7.7% YoY) |
| Median price per sq ft | $147 (+7.0% YoY) |
| Homes sold | 3,008 (+5.5% YoY) |
| New listings | 4,025 |
| Active inventory | 7,007 (+18.6% YoY) |
| Months of supply | 2.3 |
| Median days on market | 19 |
| Sale-to-list ratio | 98.8% |
| Sold above asking | 25.4% |
| Listings with a price cut | 34.3% |
| 30-year fixed rate (avg) | 4.01% |
Uber Comes Back, and Other Neighborhood Math
Uber and Lyft returned to Austin on May 29 after Governor Abbott signed HB 100, which overrode the city's fingerprint rules. A year-long local experiment ended in an afternoon. For buyers, the practical effect is that the "can I get home from downtown" question stops being a neighborhood filter.
What changed since April 2017
The median rose $5,250 from April 2017, a 1.7% move. Time on market lengthened by 1 days, to 19. Active inventory grew by 515 listings, to 7,007. The share of homes selling over asking gave up 1.6 points, to 25.4%.
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
| May 2017 | April 2017 | May 2016 | Since Oct 2016 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Median sale price | $310,250 | $305,000 | $288,085 | highest since Oct 2016 |
| Median days on market | 19 | 18 | 16 | range 16–44 |
| Active inventory | 7,007 | 6,492 | 5,907 | highest since Oct 2016 |
| Months of supply | 2.3 | 2.7 | 2.1 | range 2.1–3.3 |
| Sold above asking | 25% | 27% | 30% | range 17%–30% |
| 30-year fixed rate | 4.01% | 4.04% | 3.6% | 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 May 2017 falls against every month that came before it.
If you are buying in Austin right now
2.3 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 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 $310,250 with 20% down at 4.01%, principal and interest runs about $1,186 a month. Add roughly $517 for property taxes and $207 for insurance and you are near $1,910 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 19 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
East Austin (78702). Holly, Rosewood. Known for creative, eclectic, strong appreciation. It fits buyers who want character and culture.
The metro numbers above are an average of a very unequal city, East 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/east-austin/, including what is wrong with it.
On in Austin, May 2017
| When | What | Why it matters to a listing |
|---|---|---|
| May 6–7 | Pecan Street Festival (Spring), Sixth Street Historic District | Sixth Street closes to traffic for the weekend. Downtown and the eastern edge of 78701 are slow; everywhere else is unaffected. |
What is coming next
A second CodeNEXT draft is expected in September. Summer inventory typically peaks in July and August, which is when patient buyers get their best selection of the year.
Common questions
How much are property taxes in Austin?
Combined city, county, school district and community college rates in the Austin area generally land between about 1.8% and 2.5% of assessed value, and higher inside a Municipal Utility District, where 3%+ is possible. There is no state income tax in Texas, and property tax is the trade. Two things every buyer should do: file a homestead exemption by April 30 of the year after you close, which caps annual taxable value increases at 10%, and check whether your target address sits in a MUD or PID before you finalize your budget.
What should I know about flooding before buying in Austin?
Central Texas is Flash Flood Alley: thin soil over limestone, steep terrain, and storms that stall. Austin models its own floodplain, which is often stricter than FEMA's, so a house can sit outside the FEMA 100-year map and inside the city's. Standard homeowners insurance does not cover flood, NFIP policies take 30 days to take effect, and plenty of local flooding happens outside mapped floodplains. Pull both maps and get a flood quote during your option period.
Are Austin home prices going up or down?
Up 7.7% year over year as of May 2017. 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.
Part of a retrospective series on the Austin market, one post per month since 2016, compiled from the historical record. This edition covers May 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.