May 2018 Market Report

[David Ivy]

The May 2018 Central Texas Housing Market Report is out from the Austin Board of REALTORS® (ABoR). We're all familiar with the story by now: record prices, decreasing housing inventory, and continuing affordability issues. Strong demand with limited housing supply has driven Austin real estate prices to historic heights. The median price for a single-family home in Austin sold in May was $389,000, which was up 3.7% year-over-year. Recall last month that the median price was up 9% YOY to $399,000. Inventory in Austin is now down to 2 months (balanced market is 6.5 months).

Steve Crorey, 2018 ABoR president, said, “Our current market imbalance in Austin is made worse by an antiquated land development code that places unnecessary constraints on building the number and variety of homes our community needs. Austin’s lack of housing choices disadvantages first-time homebuyers, families with children, and middle and lower-income buyers. Coupled with rapid population growth, it’s driving an affordability crisis that leaves many residents looking for homes far from job centers and essential services."

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

According to the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), the median family in the Austin-Round Rock MSA will make around $86,000 in 2018. HUD data shows that this median income figure increased 17.5% from 2013-2018. However, over that very same time, ABoR data shows median home prices increasing 42.5%. That, in a nutshell, is Austin's affordability problem. To find quality housing they can afford, most Austin area residents have to look to the suburbs and beyond. In May 2018, seven out of every 10 homes sold in the greater Austin MSA were sold outside of Austin city limits. As Steve Crorey puts it, "We can't continue to export affordability beyond Austin city limits."