Austin Texas Realtor Reviews Real Estate in Austin for 2010 

Austin Board of REALTORS® releases December 2010 and year-end real estate statistics

The Austin Board of Realtors released its year end statistics January 20, 2011.  In 2010, homes took 13 percent longer to sell (98 days on the market average) than in 2009.  Part of the reason for this is Austin area sellers were pricing their homes reasonably, but not exceptionally well and numerous owners had to lower the list price to stand out as a "best buy" before attracting a buyer.

In 2010, 17,905 homes were sold in the Austin area, which includes surrounding communities such as Cedar Park, Leander, Round Rock, etc.  This number is five percent less than in 2009.  Right now, there are buyers who would love to buy an Austin home, but find it difficult to qualify, even with decent credit and that is causing our sales volume to be more sluggish than the previous year.  A little loosening of our current lending standards could go a long way toward boosting our home sales.  Our lending standards needed to be tightened, but lenders appear to have overcorrected their standards and have now left responsible buyers without financing.  This action is hurting the ability of our sellers to get their homes sold.  A plus for buyers is today's Austin seller typically has gone to great lengths to create an inviting home by cleaning, painting, and landscaping their home so its shows well.  There is a great selection of beautiful homes in good condition to choose from.

The median price for single-family homes sold in the Austin area for 2010 was $193,520, according to an Austin Association of Realtors report.  Prices in the Austin area are considered relatively stable.  The median price was up two percent over 2009.  Sellers often wonder if the median price in the Greater Austin TX area rose two percent, does that mean their house value rose two percent.  The answer is maybe, but real estate price increases and decreases vary considerably by area. Right now, for example, the west side of Round Rock seems to be doing better than the east side.  Values in South Austin, just south of Ben White are holding up well.  There is a form on the front page of my web site where you can identify an address of interest and a report will be generated to your email showing sold prices around that area.  If you would like something more specific, please contact me for a free home valuation.