Homes sales up 16% from last year

Austin Business Journal - September 1, 2006

Yet another sign that the Austin residential market is going strong: Both house sales and apartment occupancy hit high notes in the first half of 2006, according to a report from J.B. Goodwin Realtors Residential Inc.

In the first six months of 2006, sales increased by 16 percent over last year. In 2005, more than 27,000 people bought homes, condos and town houses in Central Texas.

The median home price in 2005 hit $160,900 in 2005. That increased by another 5.4 percent in the first half of this year, according to J.B. Goodwin. Residential occupancy for 2006 stands at 94 percent, with an average rental rate of 92 cents per square foot.