All Forum Posts by: David Ivy

@Ethan Anderson

The best way to get clean historical data on Austin's real estate market is though the Austin MLS. However, you need to be a member of the Austin Board of Realtors to access it. I'm happy to pull whatever stats you'd like. The stats available are just about as fine-grained as you could want. Let me know what you'd like to see in particular.

You asked about seasonality. As an example, here is a chart of SFR sales volume by month over the past 5 years in Austin:

Here's the raw data for the above chart:

Let me know what else you'd like to see.

@Ethan Anderson

Hello! I am an investor and Realtor in Austin. I have single family and residential multifamily property in Austin and elsewhere in Central Texas.

The Austin market is very tough right now for cash-flow seeking investors. Over the past 12 months, the median single family home in Austin sold for $181/sqft. at a price of $359,000 and rented for $1,850/mo. That's a paltry 0.52% rent-to-value. Don't expect to find a single family home on the MLS or from a wholesaler in Austin that cash flows, unless you're paying all cash or otherwise putting down a hefty down payment. If you do happen to find something initially attractive, it's guaranteed to have multiple offers or bidders. 

Most cash-flow seeking SFR investors in Austin are on the sidelines or working in other Texas markets for the time being. Of course, people still find unicorns, but those people are generally doing their own marketing and sourcing for properties. Even then, nearly all "distressed" homeowners are so above water with their equity that they can get out of any trouble by retailing their property on the MLS and getting it sold quickly with multiple offers.

The residential multi-family market in Austin is better with respect to cash flow. However, the tremendous appreciation here has affected the multi-family market as well. The median duplex in Austin sells for around $160/sqft. at a price of $304,500 and rents for $1,337/mo. per side ($2,674 gross). That's a 0.88% rent-to-value, which is great compared to the Austin SFR market. It's still far from exciting. Nevertheless, there is more opportunity here for a wholesaler to snag you something worthwhile or for you to find something decent on the MLS.

As an out-of-state investor, having family in Austin will be an advantage. However, it's important to have someone in the local market who can help you examine potential deals and represent you when it comes time to submit and negotiate offers. In particular, never take a wholesaler's word for it when it comes to whether a deal makes financial sense. You have to be able to perform your own due diligence, or have someone else on the ground to do the work.

Please reach out if there's anything I can do for you!

@Alok Jain

Welcome to BP! I'd be very interested to hear about your experience owning multifamily in Austin as an out-of-state investor. When did you begin investing in Austin?

@Jonathon Martineau

I second @Ben Biggs's suggestion to check out Keller Williams. As a new agent, you need a brokerage who will, first, teach you what it takes to be a successful agent in your market and, second, hold you accountable on a daily basis. KW is fantastic at both. As far as who you should reach out to, I'm happy to have one of the market center team leaders with KW in San Diego reach out to you. Just say the word!

@Jim Jennings

Welcome to the Austin investment community! At the moment, the Austin market is very challenging, even for experienced investors. You can learn a great deal here on BP, but nothing beats networking and learning face-to-face with investors here on the ground. I recommend you check out these meetups:

• http://www.meetup.com/Investor-Underground/
• http://www.meetup.com/REALESTATEinvestormasterminds/
• https://www.meetup.com/texas-real-estate-Investment-Education-Training-Networking/

Feel free to reach out with anything you need. I'm always happy to meet and talk investing in Austin!

I agree with you, Joseph. Wouldn't we all like a 70% ARV minus rehab cost flip in the Austin area? From what I've been seeing for some time now, this is just not happening. Of course, there are those unicorn properties/deals out there, but overall, it's simply not the market we're in right now. Almost all homeowners in the Austin area are so above water with their equity that they know they can get out of any troublesome situation by just selling the home retail on the MLS.

Hello @Shawn Nikah! I recommend getting in touch with @Jake Russell. He's an investor and Realtor in Waco and should be a great resource for you.

Let me know if I can do anything else!

This is spot on. Check out my recent posts here.

@Codi Tripp

Do you need major highway frontage or existing paved road access? What end use, if any, do you currently have in mind for the property?

@Michael Cavitolo

The Real Estate Council of Austin published a piece on the Austin real estate market, with a particular focus on our city's affordability problems. It's from 2015, but almost all of it rings true today. In fact, many of the problems and figures noted are now even worse. I recommend this document to anyone from outside our market looking to invest. You can check it out here.

Aside from making connections with other investors in Austin, you also need a good relationship with a local lender who understands Austin and works with investors.

Check out these and other meetups when you get to Austin:

• http://www.meetup.com/Investor-Underground/
• http://www.meetup.com/REALESTATEinvestormasterminds/
• https://www.meetup.com/texas-real-estate-Investment-Education-Training-Networking/

Also, join the Investor Underground - Austin group on Facebook. It's private, but all you have to do is ask to join.

Feel free to reach out when you get to town! I'm happy to help.