Area housing market still sizzling

Increases in October home sales and prices put Central

Texas on pace for another record year.

By Claudia Grisales
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Thursday, November 23, 2006

This, combined with a higher median price, relatively quick sales and a higher number of pending sales, is good news, says Charles Heimsath, president of Austin-based real estate consulting firm Capitol Market Research.

"All those taken together says to me it's a very strong market that shows little signs of weakening," Heimsath said.

The Central Texas region has posted a strong pace of home sales this year, signaling that the region continues to buck national trends of a cooling housing market.

It also bodes well for 2007, as economists expect the region to hold on to its strong sales and growth.

Last month, the area's median home price was up almost 9 percent to $175,000. And homes are staying on the market for 66 days on average, which makes it a seller's market.

Pending sales were up 19 percent to 2,417.

And sales of condominiums and townhomes are also posting gains, up 25 percent from October 2005.

"That's a trend we want to watch going forward," Heimsath said.

The median price of these properties is up 28 percent to $168,250, inching closer to home prices.

And that could signal a shift in more baby boomers downsizing to condos or townhomes, combined with younger, first-time buyers, Heimsath said.

The strong trends are expected to continue if favorable mortgage rates and the region's healthy job growth remain intact, said John Rosshirt, chairman of the Austin Board of Realtors.

By contrast, national home sales fell in 38 states, including Nevada and California, during the summer months.

"Most parts of the country would love to have our stats," Rosshirt said. The mortgage and job growth rates "will lead to a strong real estate market. So it looks like an excellent year on all regards and an optimistic 2007."

So far this year, the Central Texas region is posting a 10 percent increase in sales compared with the same period a year earlier. The median price during this same period is up 7 percent to $174,000.

There are fewer homes selling for under $120,000 so far this year, which is down 6 percent or more compared with the same period a year earlier.

Home sales in the $200,000 to $249,000 price range, however, are up 18 percent.

Among the Central Texas submarkets, the South Austin area known as area 10 posted the highest "hotness" factor, which is calculated by the number of pending sales versus active listings, Rosshirt said.

In that area, which includes neighborhoods such as Cherry Creek and Tanglewood Forest, active listings took about 18 days to sell, the report found.

Real estate agent Corey Yañez, whose specializes in area 10, says activity was fueled in part by many first-time buyers.

And that means quicker sales as well, Yañez said.

"People need to move quickly; area 10 is more affordable than other areas in Austin, but it's very close to downtown," said Yañez, who is with Ultima Real Estate Services.

So "for me, it was a very busy month and one of the best months I've had all year," she said.