All Forum Posts by: Bryan Noth

Firefly announces plan for an expansion that includes extensive hiring for the North Austin suburb.  

The article also mentioned another upcoming smaller tech company, 240 Tech LLC, bringing their HQ to Cedar Park as well.

Article link here:

https://www.bizjournals.com/au...

Welcome to BiggerPockets @Andrew Hecker!

Welcome to the BiggerPockets forums @Jacob Carothers!

Welcome to BiggerPockets @Henry Peñate!

@Account Closed this sounds and surely feels like a tough situation.  

@Victor Steffen is spot on, appraisers can opt for picking up more centrally located jobs which typically translates to more income for them (can't blame them really).  Also rural areas can be harder to find comps for.  At the end of the day, the appraiser is contracted by and works for the lender.  They are a 3rd party for a reason to remain distanced from any personal involvement and/or benefit with the RE transaction.  

Ask your lender what they are offering for the appraisal and specifically ask your lender to clarify with their AMC what they are offering the appraiser. If the compensation is fair, then I would ask if there is anyway to cover an additional bonus or rush fee. It can be difficult to get appraisers to take jobs far outside Austin with as hot as the market has been.

Welcome to the BiggerPockets forums @Johnny McDonald!  

@Ryan Kelly that is a great point to add here.  The level of demand and growth for the Austin area truly cannot be emphasized enough.  

April 2021 Housing Statistics for Austin, TX (ATX) and surrounding MSA

Homes prices continue to rise for the Austin, TX metropolitan area. The City of Austin numbers revealed a median sales price of $550,562. The Austin-Round Rock MSA was also up at $460,000 for median sales price for the month of April. For those following area trends this is another significant push from previous highs just one month prior.

This was an interesting marker for comparative data with respect to the impact of the pandemic that took hold early in the first quarter of 2020. No surprise here with rising prices persisting but worth noting how quickly these transactions are taking place. Average days on market is down to 17 for the MSA, and 18 days for the City of Austin. Almost a full month faster than averages from a year prior for the this Central Texas MSA.

The following infographics and data is courtesy of the Austin Board of Realtors.

April did see a rise in new listings which bodes well for buyers actively looking for a property in the market. However, pending sales are also up, and nearly at the same gross numerical value as the new listings. As a percentage comparison, pending sales continue to climb faster than new listings coming to market. In short, the inventory squeeze looks poised to continue.

Williamson County (Northern suburbs of Austin) continues to lead the pack with respect to median home sales price with a year over year climb of 45.4% in median sales price. But do not count out other areas, Hays County and Travis County both saw greater than a 30% rise in median home sales price. Bastrop and Caldwell counties also saw increases, but the sales volume is respectively low compared to other regions with only 156 sales for those counties combined. For comparison, Williamson County had 1,219 home sales during the same period.

Four of the five counties that comprise the Austin MSA have 0.6 months of housing inventory or less, Caldwell is the exception with 1.1 months of inventory which is still quite low given that experts agree 6 months of housing inventory is considered a balanced market between buyers and sellers.

Disclaimer: The information provided here is for educational purposes only, past performance is never a guarantee of future performance.

Love the self education and determination @Ethan Aurellano!  You are most certainly in the right place, dive in!

@Prash Manohar

I have no doubt that HEB, Costco, and Wholefoods, etc. all study demographic trends to determine if it a particular region would be a good fit based on their expansion criteria. I have also heard many locals requesting more of those amenities. With developing neighborhoods, rising home prices, and nearby opportunities for work it could be on the horizon. However, a formidable hurdle for that region has been the floodplains. From the ABoR MLS maps: