DATA As Austin’s housing stock keeps increasing, home prices level o
Real estate agents measure how long the current availability of homes could sustain buyers.
AVAILABLE HOMES
Southwest Austin
Austin
2.5
BY DARCY SPRAGUE
at 5.3% as of July 7. While Freddie Mac data shows that the average interest rate was higher for every decade from 1970s to 2000s, the record high home prices mean a jump in the mortgage rate can amount to hundreds added to buyers’ monthly bills. However, Contaldi said prices are not dramatically decreasing. “There are still more buyers than available homes,” she said. Contaldi predicts the market will continue to grow as more homebuy- ers enter the market. She points to data showing home prices only dipped during two of the last six recessions—1991 and 2008. She also said it will take time for interest rates to move back down. “The old saying [goes] when rates rise they take the elevator and when they come down they take the steps,” Contaldi said.
As mortgage interest rates rise, experts are starting to see a slight slowdown in the Austin housing market. In May, Southwest Austin had 0.9 months of inventory—the measure used to determine how long the current housing stock would sustain demand—slightly up from the area’s two-year average. The median home sale price was $710,000, according to Austin Board of Realtors data. Austin real estate agent Lisa-Marie Contaldi, founder of Intero Real Estate, said Austin is starting to see a “little shift” in the market. “The rst six months of 2022 has been all about a quick, unforeseen rise in mortgage rates,” Contaldi said. On Jan. 30, the national average mortgage rate was 3.11%, according to data from Freddie Mac. That number peaked at 5.81% on June 23, and was
2.0
1.5
1.0
0.5
0
Mar. 2022
2021
Jan.
Mar.
May
July Sept.
Nov.
Jan.
May July
MEDIAN HOME PRICES IN SOUTHWEST AUSTIN
$416,500
May 2020 May 2021 May 2022
+45%
$602,000
+18%
$710,000
SOURCE: AUSTIN BOARD OF REALTORS COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
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