January 2018 Market Report

[David Ivy]

The January 2018 Central Texas Housing Market Report is out from the Austin Board of REALTORS®. Initial signs point to a strong housing market for 2018. Single-family home sales were up in January compared to this time last year, despite extremely tight housing inventory across the entire Austin-Round Rock MSA. The report highlights CodeNEXT, which just entered its third draft, and the fact that Austin's affordability and inventory challenges will continue to spur growth in Williamson and Hays counties through the suburban new home market.

According to Jim Gaines, the chief economist at the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M, “In 2018, Central Texas’ housing market will continue to see an increase in both sales and price, despite inventory levels remaining low. The housing demand and lack of inventory is so great, that if supply does not increase, we could see a upwards of 5 percent growth in median home prices within the Austin-Round Rock MSA. Inventory will be a determining factor in the direction of this year’s market [emphasis added].”

Here are the basic stats on single-family home sales for January 2018 for the City of Austin and the greater Austin area:

ABoR president, Steve Crorey, commented that, "More housing capacity is necessary to offset the aggressive price increases we’re seeing in and around the city of Austin. Getting CodeNEXT right gives Austin the opportunity to manage our growth responsibly by providing more diverse housing choices and more housing overall without sacrificing the unique character of our neighborhoods.”