Phil Hutson

Although not entirely immune to a economic/real estate downturn, Austin, Texas, is at least not languishing in an economic slump like most of the rest of the nation. Austin's foreclosure percentage is relatively low, home sales are down but stable, MLS listings are still selling but at a slower rate, and buyers are fewer than a year ago, but the economy is still vibrant and sustained growth is gaining momentum!

Austin continues to benefit from recent changes in the real estate market creating more attainable housing than ever before. Here are 7 reasons why "the time is right" to own Austin real estate:

1) Austin is expected to lead the nation in real estate appreciation in 2009 with an estimated 4.8% rate.

2) Fewer families are selling their homes and Builder inventory is decreasing, so rises in new home prices are anticipated.

3) Interest rates are at historic lows, with the average rate for a 30-year fixed loan at about 5.5%.

4) The Austin MLS consistently has one of the lowest months supply of homes for sale, making this one of the healthiest markets in the country.

5) Compared to several major metro areas, Austin's cost of living index is lower, making home ownership not only attractive but attainable at all levels of the housing spectrum.

6) Texas has led the nation in growth, with Austin having the highest rate of growth at 3.2%, and the lowest unemployment rate in Texas at the end of last year.

7) Consistently ranked as "One Of The Best Cities To Live In" - diverse and vigorous economy, highly trained and dedicated workforce, healthy mix of sustainable industries such as technology, business services, education and government jobs, and some of the largest employers in the nation - Dell, AMD, IBM, Samsung, Whole Foods, and Freescale - are but a few of the reasons why.

Combine all this with the beautiful lakes, the Texas Hill Country, and some of the nation's top New home and Custom home builders and you'll see why "THE TIME IS RIGHT!"

Phil Hutson is President of Showcase of Homes, one of Austin's top real estate firms.

Although not immune to the "real estate slow-down" epidemic sweeping the U.S., Austin, Tx., continues to trudge along with only a slight headache. It continues to be the bright spot in the state, and is currently ranked as the 6^th brightest real estate location in the nation. A relatively-speaking strong economy, the University of Texas, good schools, and simply a great place to live are only a few of the reasons why.

* Forbes magazine named Austin the 3rd city on a list of "recession-proof" cities due to its strong housing market, low unemployment rates, and growth in agriculture, energy and manufacturing, May ‘08
* Austin ranks 3rd Best City for Jobs in 2008 by Forbes.com, Jan. ‘08
* Popular Science names Austin as one of the top 10 green cities in the US, Feb. ‘08
* Austin ranks 1st in Fastest Growing Metros in 2008 by Forbes.com, March ‘08
* Round Rock ranked the 7th Best Places to Live in America by Money Magazine, July ‘08
* Orbitz.com lists Austin as one of the Country's top 6 movie landmark destinations, March ‘08
* Austin ranks as the 4th Best City in Overall Standard of Living by Expansion Management
* Austin ranks 2nd among the 50 Best Places to Live comparing the combinations of adventure, attractiveness, and affordability by Men's Journal

Contact me, Phil Hutson, Austin REALTOR, for a free 350-page Relocation Guide - a comprehensive resource for everything in Austin! Table of contents include: Business and Economy (cost of living, top 25 employers, etc.), Education (schools), Healthcare Resources (hospitals/healthcare facilities), Housing (area map, communities), Leisure (museums, theatres, wine tasting, etc.), Lake Living (all about the lakes), Shopping and Dining, and Getting Settled (moving resources, religion, etc.)

If you like it, and want it , and can afford it, it has never been more affordably priced!

The "it" I am referring to is not a new diamond ring or a new car, it's a luxury custom home with a price tag at or exceeding $1,000,000 in Austin, Texas. There are a lot of them for sale, and not too many selling. As of today, 11/06/2008, there are 526 of them on the market in the metro area, and sales are down from last year almost 40% - 216 have sold so far this year, compared with 354 total last year.

If you factor in the custom homes in the next bracket down, the $750,000 - $999,999 price range, the picture gets even bleaker. There are 413 of these homes on the market, some of them just moving into this category after being reduced by the listing Realtors. Another indicator that times are not good for luxury home sellers - since January 1, 568 of these homes, including both price brackets, have been listed for sale, and subsequently withdrawn from the MLS because they had not sold. Granted, some of these may have been withdrawn and later put back on the market, but this is still a staggering number!

There are several reasons for this scenario. Most obvious is the "economic epidemic" that is gripping the nation and certainly impacting real estate prices. Although Austin hasn't experienced the "flu-like" home symptoms most metro areas have, we do seem to have "caught a bad cold", especially in the upper price tier. Savings accounts and stock portfolios are being hammered, and a lot of these buyers were paying cash for these homes as little as last summer - cash that has suddenly vanished.

Second, with $1,000,000+ home sales going from 125 in 2003 to 354 in 2007, it was only natural that custom home builders from across the planet flocked to Austin to cash in! There are over 150 (this number is being reduced almost daily) custom builders in the Austin area, compared to about 40 production builders ($100,000 - $600,000). With a large custom home taking from 8-14 months to build, a number of these homes were started before the market starting going south earlier this year, and are now gathering dust.

Third, from a resale perspective, a number of sellers are simply looking to downsize their house payment, and/or moving out of state. This is , of course, natural attrition in a normal market, but this isn't a normal market, and the "downsizers" are abundant this year, and the "upsizers" aren't to be found!

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These $1,000,000+ homes are found throughout some of the most sought after areas - from central Austin to the lakes. A breakdown of these areas follows:

Area 1B: 50 homes for sale- (zip code 78703) includes Tarrytown, Hyde Park, and Pemberton Heights

Areas 8E & 8W: 118 homes for sale- (zip codes 78746, 78733, 78738) includes Westlake, Seven Oaks, Davenport, Lake Pointe, and Rob Roy

Area LN & LS: (Lake Travis) - 127 homes for sale- (zip codes 78732, 78734, 78738, 78669, 78641) includes Lakeway, Hughes Park, Spanish Oaks, Bella Montagna, Belvedre, Bella Strada, Flintrock, and Falconhead

Area RN: 53 homes for sale- (zip codes 78730, 78732) includes Steiner Ranch, Greenshores, Riverplace, Long Canyon, and Westminster

Area W: 48 homes for sale - (zip code78735) includes Barton Creek and Gaines Ranch

So, back to my original theme - IF YOU CAN AFFORD IT, COME AND GET IT - CHEAP (or at least, cheaper)! I have seen some of these homes discounted as much as $300,000. For the best prices, locations, complete market analysis and more on these homes, contact Phil Hutson toll free @ (888) 410-5858.

Accolades continue from a variety of sources for the Austin, Texas metro area, as to the potential for job-seekers, opportunists, and those simply seeking a better way of life/standard of living.

* Forbes magazine named Austin the 3rd city on a list of "recession-proof" cities due to its strong housing market, low unemployment rates, and growth in agriculture, energy and manufacturing, May '08

* Austin ranks 3rd Best City for Jobs in 2008 by forbes.com, Jan. '08

* Popular Science names Austin as one of the top 10 green cities in the US, Feb. '08

* Austin ranks 1st in Fastest Growing Metros in 2008 by Forbes.com, March '08

* Round Rock ranked the 7th Best Places to Live in America by Money Magazine, July '08

* Orbitz.com lists Austin as one of the Country's top 6 movie landmark destinations, March '08

* Austin ranks as the 4th Best City in Overall Standard of Living by Expansion Management

* Austin ranks 2nd among the 50 Best Places to Live comparing the combinations of adventure, attractiveness, and affordability by Men's Journal

Contact me for a free 350-page Relocation Guide - a comprehensive resource for everything in Austin! Table of contents include: Business and Economy (cost of living, top 25 employers, etc.), Education (schools), Healthcare Resources (hospitals/healthcare facilities), Housing (area map, communities), Leisure (museums, theatres, wine tasting, etc.), Lake Living (all about the lakes), Shopping and Dining, and Getting Settled (moving resources, religion, etc.)

Eldon Rude of Austin MetroStudy gave his third quarter report, "Housing Update and Economic Outlook," last week, and I thought I would share some notes. In general, we have some ongoing challenges in our local market, but there are a number of factors that set us apart from more troubled parts of the country. We're not entirely out of the woods because of several possible national economic threats looming ahead, including - scarce availability of financing, selective corporate bailouts, scarce down-payment assistance, slowing job growth, and increase in foreclosures - but there are a number of positive signs, and as I've said in numerous articles, if you are looking for a place to relocate, Austin, Texas, should be high on your list!

Reasons include:

• Texas continues to be number one in job growth, with Austin high on all national lists for jobs, property appreciation and low inventory of homes for sale.
• Locally, Texas leads the nation in job growth, with 4 Texas metro markets in the top 10 for job creation, including Austin at #6.
• Single Family new home starts are down 42% nationally. SF starts are down 41% in Texas, although Texas is still #1 on the list for new starts.
• In the apartment market, occupancy is beginning to decline (at 91.4% city-wide), with rates flattening at $.98 per square foot on average.
• In the resale market, inventory is holding at 6 months, although we should anticipate an increase in the spring when more homes come on the market.
• Among sub-markets in the Austin area, Southern Travis County is still the most active in new home starts.
• The highest months of supply of finished vacant homes is in Lake South, where sales have slowed around high price points. Other areas with over a 7 months supply are Hays West, Central South Austin, Central North Austin, and Round Rock/183.
• Austin has the second lowest months of supply of new homes in all Metro Study markets nationally, second only to San Antonio. Austin is 4^th lowest in resale inventory of all Metro Study markets nationally, after Houston, Denver and Sacramento. This makes our market well positioned to experience an early recovery.
• Economic boosters include: Austin has never experienced a "bubble" in home prices and prices are holding; inventories are manageable; foreclosures in Austin have remained moderate; Central Texas is poised for significant growth in population over the next 5-10 years; tight financing has created pent-up demand for homes that will give our market a boost when more financing options become available; businesses continue to locate in Austin
• Forbes magazine calls Austin "Recession Proof" back in May - a bold statement that has a lot of merit, even in these tough "recession-like" times

Phil Hutson has over 20 years real estate experience selling Austin real estate, and is the Broker/Owner of Showcase of Homes.