Oct
13
Robert’s Real Estate Update - Austin/Round Rock
Posted by Robert Fischer under For Buyers, For Sellers, For Realty Professionals, General Information
Hey Everyone, below are 6 real estate articles I thought you might find interesting plus 13 virtual open house tours
· Robert’s Insight on the Market
· Austin has best housing market in U.S. (Austin)
· Pending sales rise for 7th straight month (National)
· Austin cited as one of the next “youth-magnet” cities (Austin/National)
· Cap Metro’s commuter rail won’t open this year (Austin)
· Positive Predictions for Texas Economy (Texas)
· 13 Virtual Open House Tours (Austin, Round Rock, Spicewood, Georgetown, Pflugerville)
Robert’s Insight on the Market - Opinion
Well, more great articles on the surrounding Austin area. There are some other negative blurbs that I have read like foreclosures up and sales down/longer days on the market, but most everything shows how strong our Texas economy is as well as our real estate market. As shown below, the best real estate market in the Nation. How lucky are we to be here?
I’m not sure if I believe it or not, but I heard one investment group compare where we are currently at now is compared to where we were in the 80’s except this time we have unheard of interest rates and believe it or not, more stability. And if you recall, there were a lot of millionaires made in real estate during the 80’s down fall and then up tick. And the best part of it all is we have not fallen as far so I feel we have been really blessed to be where we are at. Homes are selling and buyers are buying. The luxury market has taken a hit of course as we normally see during these times and even homes between $300K and $500K depending what part of the city you are in.
Our total inventory for the Austin area is about 6.7 months which is just on the edge of a buyer’s and seller’s market, but .7 towards the buyers. But again, this depends on the price range which makes more sense to break down in my opinion.
One thing I “feel” is that investors and luxury buyers are starting to see the true value of what is out there in our area and how strong we are so we seem to be getting more lookers then normal which should lead to more sales in the different mid to luxury categories. Heck, some outer cities like Georgetown have 2 – 3 years of inventory in the luxury home segment but not near that the closer you move into Austin.
I like watching the “pending” homes to see where this is going and feel that number is on the rise and more interest in properties as people are getting ready to make a move.
So, with all the great press and job growth in our area hopefully we are getting primed to be back on the increase in all segments. I posted an interest rate chart on my blog if you want to see (http://robertfischer.featuredblog.com/) that shows to me how amazing a time we are really in rate now. There may or may not still be some downward action, but one thing is for sure, we may never see opportunity like this again in our life time with interest rates down at historical lows while properties are down too. “God blessed Texas” as the song goes and there are many that are going to take advantage of that J
Robert J Fischer – REALTOR – Keller Williams Realty – 512-791-0229
Austin has best housing market in U.S.
Ranked the healthiest by online industry magazine
Updated: Thursday, 08 Oct 2009, 9:23 AM CDT Published : Wednesday, 07 Oct 2009, 8:11 PM CDT Shannon Wolfson
AUSTIN (KXAN) - A homebuilding industry online magazine has ranked Austin the nation’s healthiest housing market. Builder Online cites low unemployment and high demand as reasons why the Austin market is making a comeback.
Home prices in Austin were still going up last year, unlike most of the country, but they have finally started to fall. The latest numbers show home prices down 4.6% in 2009.
“Clearly we’re not as good as we’d like, obviously we’d like for things to be better but still it gives you some feeling of assurance that things aren’t as bad as some people are having,” said Harry Savio with the Greater Austin Homebuilders Association.
Builder Online notes that Austin’s population grew by more than 4% during the first half of this year which created demand and will help to firm up home prices.
“The fundamentals are there for housing to continue to grow,” said Savio. “We don’t have a lot of inventory, we don’t have a lot of excess houses on the ground.”
Savio said builders are also seeing a boom in large part due to the federal government’s $9,000 tax credit for first time homebuyers.
“A lot of first time homebuyers are going out and looking at houses and realizing, if I’m going to buy a house this is probably a good time to do it,” said Savio.
The credit expires November 30th, but housing industry experts in Austin don’t expect a cash-for-clunkers style decline in home sales.
“You worry about that but the good news in the article is that there are some fundamental things about the economy- the Austin economy that is sound,” said Savio.
Two other Texas cities ranked in the top ten. San Antonio finished just behind Austin at number two. And the Houston-Sugar Land area ranked number four.
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Pending sales rise for 7th straight month
NAR notes some double counting
Pending home sales rose 6.4 percent from July to August, to the highest level in more than two years, the National Association of Realtors said.August marked the seventh straight month of increases in NAR’s pending home sales index. But there has likely been some double counting in recent months because some buyers who were under contract but failed to close have signed new contracts to buy, said Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist.”The rise in pending home sales shows buyers are returning to the market and signing contracts, but deals are not necessarily closing because of long delays related to short sales and issues regarding complex new appraisal rules,” Yun said in a statement. “No doubt many first-time buyers are rushing to beat the deadline for the $8,000 (first-time homebuyers) tax credit, which expires at the end of next month.”NAR’s Pending Home Sales Index rose 6.4 percent to 103.8, up from a reading of 97.6 in July. The index is up 12.4 percent from a year ago and at the highest level since a reading of 104.5 reading in March 2007.A reading of 100 is equal to the average level of contract activity during 2001, the year the index was launched and the first of five consecutive record years for sales of previously owned homes.At the regional level, pending home sales were up in all four areas of the country, in both monthly and annual comparisons.In a separate announcement, the U.S. Census Bureau said construction spending grew by 0.8 percent from July to August, to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $941.9 billion — an 11.6 percent decrease from a year ago.Spending on private construction grew by 1.8 percent from July to August, to an annual rate of $622.1 billion, while public construction shrank by 1.1 percent to $319.8 billion. Looking back a year, however, spending on private construction was down 17.8 percent while public construction grew by 3.3 percent.Residential construction was the main driver in the month-over-month increase in private construction, growing 4.7 percent from July to August to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $249.5 billion, down 26.7 percent from a year ago.++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Austin cited as one of the next “youth-magnet” cities
Austin Business Journal
What do Washington D.C., Seattle, New York, Portland and Austin all have in common? They are the five cities that top a new Wall Street Journal poll on where young people are likely to flock once economic recovery takes hold.
The Journal polled a panel of experts, from demographers to economists, on where young college graduates are likely to congregate in coming years. Austin ranked fifth on the list with the lowest unemployment rate of the five cities and a relatively high median household income. The Capital of Texas didn’t fare quite so well as the others on the education front, with 41.8 percent of 25-35 year olds holding a bachelors degree or higher compared with 61.3 percent in Washington and 64.2 percent in Seattle.
According to the Journal, “Austin has become a gathering place for tech- and arts-conscious young adults.” The paper also lauded Austin for its cultural attractions like the Austin City Limits Music Festival and South by Southwest. But some of those polled by the Journal expressed concern over how strongly Austin will bounce back from the recession.
The top 10 post-recession boom towns for the young and ambitious:
1. (tie) Washington D.C.
1. Seattle
3. New York
4. Portland
5. Austin
6. San Jose, Calif.
7. Denver
8. Raleigh-Durham, N.C.
9. Dallas
10. Chicago
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Cap Metro’s commuter rail won’t open this year
32-mile line from Leander to downtown will launch in 2010 at the earliest - two years after original projections - agency officials say.
By Ben Wear
AMERICAN-STATESMAN STAFF
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
Capital Metro’s commuter rail line will not open until sometime in the first quarter next year, at the earliest — two years after original projections — agency officials said Monday.
Malfunctioning crossing gates and problems with 30 control devices, among other glitches, still plague the 32-mile line from Leander to downtown Austin.
Additional work, according to Doug Allen, agency executive vice president and chief development officer, will add $750,000 to $1 million to the project’s cost. Agency officials have said the project, originally budgeted at $90 million, has cost $105 million so far. That number, however, does not include some costs directly related to the passenger line, such as a $7 million park-and-ride lot at the Leander station.
“I know the criticism we’re receiving,” said Fred Gilliam, Capital Metro’s president and chief executive officer. “But I assure you we’re doing everything possible to where we won’t cost a life. But safety is more important than a schedule. I regret we ever established the schedule.”
Before a November 2004 referendum authorizing the building of Central Texas’ first urban rail since the World War II era, voters were told the line could be open early in 2008. That was later delayed to fall 2008, then March of this year, then put off indefinitely.
The agency had been issuing monthly updates on progress since then, and in August, it appeared that perhaps an opening might be approaching.
But then the Federal Railroad Administration, in a test on the line, found a flaw in the line’s “vital logic” meant to compensate for human error.
The rail line announcement Monday came shortly after the Capital Metro board, with sales tax revenue continuing to fall, approved a $164.7 million operating budget for 2009-10.
That budget assumes that there will be 5.4 percent fewer hours of regular bus service and almost 15 percent fewer miles of bus service than the current year’s approved budget.
In passing the budget 4-1, the board reopened the issue of whether to move to January a fare increase planned for next August.
The agency staff had recommended this summer that increases be moved to January and that some of them be larger than previously approved. But after public criticism, Capital Metro staff recommended instead that the agency supplement the operating budget with $2.6 million of federal stimulus funds that had been targeted for further improvements to the commuter rail line.
That in turn drew criticism from the Downtown Austin Alliance and the Alliance for Public Transportation.
Board Chairwoman Margaret Gómez, saying she doesn’t like using “one-time money for continuing expenses,” proposed that the budget vote include instruction to agency staff to bring the January fare increase back before the board.
For now, the stimulus money remains in the operating budget, and the possibility of a January fare increase remains unresolved.
Austin City Council Member Chris Riley, who is also a member of the Capital Metro board, voted against the budget.
The service cuts in the budget are not limited to the agency’s primary “fixed route” bus services. Overall, the agency would have 7.3 percent fewer hours of service and 14.5 percent fewer miles than in the budget approved last September.
However, the agency cut bus services as it went along this year, primarily by running fewer buses per day on some routes, and in other cases never starting some suburban express runs that the heavy ridership in the summer of 2008 had indicated might be necessary. Falling gasoline prices last fall reversed that brief surge in ridership, which fell to 32.5 million this year.
Eliminating the downtown Dillo service, which will occur at the end of this week, by itself cuts fixed route service hours by 2.7 percent, Capital Metro planning director Todd Hemingson said.
The $164.7 million operating budget includes $6.6 million for the MetroRail line. That amounts to about 4 percent of the 2009-10 budget. The agency is also making annual $4.4 million payments on money borrowed for the six rail cars.
Capital Metro has been hit hard by the recession’s effect on its 1 percent sales tax revenue.
The agency estimates it will take in $134.1 million in sales tax this coming fiscal year (which begins Thursday), down 17 percent from the $161.7 million it estimated would come in the current year when the 2008-09 budget was approved last September.
Instead, the agency will receive about $140.4 million in sales tax revenue this year, it estimates. So $134.1 million in 2009-10 would amount to another 4.5 percent drop.
And the agency’s investment revenue, which was $3.4 million annually just two years ago, will drop off to $280,000 next year, the agency estimates, because it has depleted its reserves on rail and other capital expenses and has less than $10 million to invest.
The agency, in the proposed budget, would allocate about $6.8 million in an effort to begin restoring the reserves to an acceptable level for normal operations. bwear@statesman.com
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++POSITIVE PREDICTIONS FOR TEXAS ECONOMYAUSTIN (Austin Business Journal) – The Texas economy is predicted to begin a slow, steady recovery in 2010, according to BBVA Compass’ U.S. Regional Watch third-quarter report.The report predicts a 1.7 percent increase in the state’s gross domestic product (GDP) in 2010, following a small contraction in 2009. This will be aided in part by a surge in home sales, according to the bank’s economists.Home sales across Texas are predicted to increase by 4.5 percent in 2010 after declining by 12 percent by the end of 2009.Though Texas projected a 9.5 percent deficit at the beginning of the year, it is the only state among the seven Sun Belt states covered by BBVA Compass to forecast a balanced budget in 2010.The report also said that Texas will benefit the most from funding through the federal government stimulus program, considering the amount of money to be received by the state equates to its entire 2009 budget shortfall.For more on the Texas economy, check out the Real Estate Center’s monthly economic reviews.+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++13 Virtual Open House Tours Let me know if you have any additional questions on the properties shown below. We are here to answer all questions and/or send the MLS listing with more information on each!
- Henry Rifle – NEW-AVAILABLE – Cedar Park – $279,900 - Almost 4000 sq ft home, 3 car garage with 5 bedrooms, study and gigantic game room in Silverado West. Ready for move in.
Click to view virtual tour now: http://vt.realbiz360.com/Listing-230592.html-Investment Opportunity for Immediate Sale Five Undeveloped Lots - 45% below Market Value A buy now price of $65K for all 5 lots (sold together) with a market value of over $120K Click to view virtual tour now: http://vt.realbiz360.com/Listing-229940.html- 3680 Fossilwood –AVAILABLE – Round Rock - $229,900 - Great 3 bedroom + game room + study option at end of quiet street in Mayfield Ranch. Beautiful wood Pergo type floors-large kitchen w/ center island, desk area, 42″ cabinets, overlooking family room, & tons of counter space
Click to view virtual tour now: http://vt.realbiz360.com/Listing-215934.html - 1003 Woodhollow – PENDING – Cedar Park - $169,900 - Popular 1 story 3 bedroom home w/ an amazing treed back yard & walking distance to the school-Great side of the neighborhood & great street- updated roof, a/c, furnace, & water heater
Click to view virtual tour now: http://vt.realbiz360.com/Listing-216099.html -1905 Patton Lane-AVAILABLE-Austin-$329,000-$4100 a month in rental income for the last 3 years & has potential for doubling that amount w/conversion-Amazing investment opportunity for investors w/ about $1000 a month in cash flow after PITI-Current owners replaced two A/C units, duct work, insulation, 80 gal water heater, blinds, etc.-This 10 bedroom home w/4 full baths & private back yard which is rented out by the room is proven to cash flow w/tons of potential for even more-Could possibly rezone commercial- potential development across street.
Click to view virtual tour now: http://vt.realbiz360.com/Listing-206703.html -16212 Copper Leaf -PENDING-Leander-$143,000 (new roof is on the way) -Amazing 1 story 3 bed/2 bath home with real cherry wood floors, double doors leading to spacious master suite with big walk in closet. Click to view virtual tour now:
Click to view virtual tour now: http://vt.realbiz360.com/Listing-194773.html - 15512 Miss Adriennes Path-LEASE AVAILABLE-Pflugerville-$1095/month –New 18” ceramic tile, Popular 1 story, 3 bedroom home with great back porch and back yard - kitchen open to the family room, great counter and cabinet space - 2 full baths - front porch - refrigerator included.
Click to view virtual tour now: http://vt.realbiz360.com/Listing-206812.html
-16824 Luckenwald-AVAILABLE-Lower Price-$172,500- Round Rock - Rare 4 bedroom, 2.5 bath plus a game room in a great neighborhood at this price. Big kitchen with lots of cabinet and counter space. Large backyard.
Click to view virtual tour now: http://vt.realbiz360.com/Listing-193087.html -310 Courtnees Way-AVAILABLE-Georgetown-$910,000-Gorgeous 5 bed/5 bath home on 4.73+ acres or could purchase the additional 3+ acres, Onyx counters throughout, fantastic outdoor kitchen, his and her walk in closets (hers is 120 SF) & much more! www.310CourtneesWay.com
Click to view virtual tour now: http://vt.realbiz360.com/Listing-180295.html -1 Valley Trail-AVAILABLE-Round Rock-$435,000-Rare residential/commercial property – No restrictions! 1 sty home on 4.28 acres w/approx 950 SF guest home/office, 4000 SF workshop, granite counters in kitchen, wood floors, and huge back patio.
Click to view virtual tour now: http://vt.realbiz360.com/Listing-169153.html
-1918 Mulligan- AVAILABLE-Round Rock-$55,000Great steal & best lot in established golf course community! Nice flat lot at great price! Choose your own builder!
Click to view virtual tour now: http://vt.realbiz360.com/Listing-118339.html
-387 CR 495- AVAILABLE-Coupland-$232,650-Has other property across the street than can be subdivided. Current share crop and hay crop-fronts to Brushy Creek for about .25 to .5 miles-Build your own home to overlook property.
Click to view virtual tour now: http://vt.realbiz360.com/Listing-117374.html
-4000 Harvey Penick-AVAILABLE-Round Rock- $98,000-Nice level lot in Forest Creek that backs to the golf course – one of the last ones remaining! No builder restrictions!
-IH-35 Frontage – AVAILABLE – Round Rock- $7,000,000 ~34 acres of last remaining commercial frontage land - fronts to 35, backs to railroad, has future 3-way road frontage, and probable highway flyover-Great investment potential!
Click to view virtual tour now: www.RoundRock35Frontage.com
Hope this was helpful,
Robert
Robert J Fischer - REALTOR
REALTOR® - Keller Williams Realty
Cell: 512-791-0229
Fax: 512-623-6068
“Real Estate with a Servant’s Heart”
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