Austin Market News: Home sales dip 10 percent
Wednesday, September 26th, 2007 at 9:41 pm 
By Ryan BrownThe Austin Business Journal reported Monday on the latest market data released by the Austin Board of Realtors:
Report: Home sales dip 10 percent
Monday, September 24, 2007 - 3:01 PM CDT
Austin Business Journal
Home sales in Austin continue to fall.
A total of 2,501 single-family homes were sold in August, down 10 percent from a year ago, according to the latest Multiple Listing Service report released Monday by the Austin Board of Realtors. The August sales figure is also down 5 percent from July, further proof of a market in decline.
Still, other factors are tempering the sales downturn. The median price for single-family homes rose 6 percent year-over-year to $192,000 as the number of days homes sit on the market fell 3 percent to 58 days.
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The article goes on to interview a few Realtors for their personal data and views on the current market conditions. It’s good anecdotal evidence to go along with the hard numbers.
My opinion - I think the widely publicized real estate declines in other areas along with tighter lending restrictions nationwide are finally impacting the Austin Market. A closer look at the MLS data reveals that Multifamily sales (primarily investors) are down more than single family residences (while prices increased 19% over last year).
Of course the month-to-month decline can partially be attributed to the usual seasonal market slowdown. Here’s a quick graph of the past few years to give you the full picture of seasonal single family sales data:
The increase in active listings and decrease in pending listings means there is more inventory for buyers to choose from, a change for those searching for homes in Austin recently. Prices are still appreciating, and days-on-market remain low. Here’s a plot of average and median single family sales prices over time:
Another interesting tidbit - Sales of homes priced below $150k are down vs. last year, likely a result of the decline in sub-prime 1st time home buyers. However sales of homes priced above $150k are up, especially those priced between $400k and $700k.
Bottom line: The Austin market is still very healthy, however sales are slowing from their recent pace, especially at the lower end of the market.
Do you have another angle on this data? Share it in the comments.
Also check out another Austin Real Estate blog I frequent: Steve Crossland - Report: Austin Home sales dip 10 percent. Steve is a fellow Realtor who has a great writing style and good insights into the market.
