Local Austin Statistics: Current Housing & Employment, and What's to Come

Curious where Austin ended in 2008, and where we're headed? Well, keep these statistics in your back-pocket for the frequent economic conversations we are all experiencing.

Housing

December 2008 - Single Family Homes

1,299 was the number of homes sold, a 21 percent decrease as compared to December 2007
$182,000 was the median price, a 4 percent decrease from December 2008
$320,542,539 was the total dollar volume of properties sold, a 22 percent decrease from December 2007

2008 Year-End Totals

$5,004,647,938 was the total dollar volume of single-family properties sold, a 21 percent decrease from 2007
$189,500 was the median price, a 2 percent increase from 2007
20,199 single-family homes were sold, a 20 percent decrease from 2007

Vacancies and 2006 vs. 2008 Statistics

Overall vacancies at 18% (office & industrial hit the hardest)
November 2008 was the worse home sales month in 8 years
Austin has lost almost 40% of its Realtors in the last 2 years
Home listings increased 25% from 2 years ago
Home sales decreased 26% from 2 years ago
2008 housing starts down 50% from 2006 (8,000 in 2008, 16,504 in 2006)

Employment

2008 unemployment ended at 4.8%
Austin/Round Rock area expected to loose 2,800 jobs in 2009, taking unemployment to 6.1%
Expected 90% decrease in job growth in 2009 (29,100 jobs added in 2008, only 2,100 to be added in 2009)

When Will the Local Economy Turnaround?

Nobody really knows yet, but here are a few projections:

2010 will add 11,000 jobs to the local economy
2013 will see a 5.81% increase in housing permits over 2008, and a 3.35% population increase over 2008

What's Great About Austin?

If you live in Austin you already know this, but the area has a great personality and ability to perserve its culture. Experts agree these qualities will continue to make Austin an attractive area, and help us fare better during this economic downturn than other areas.