2021 Abilene Texas Market

[Kevin Cornelius]

What does the current flip and rental market look like in Abilene? Any and all information would be appreciated.

[Lydia Bundy]

Hi, @Kevin Cornelius! Abilene's prices for flipping aren't generally great right now. You can definitely find good deals here and there, but they aren't as prevalent as they were, and the higher prices for materials and labor have made margins shrink considerably over the past little while. However, compared to some other markets across the US, you may think we still have fantastic flipping opportunities! There is a lot of new money and new investors coming into Abilene right now after having been priced out of other markets, so they're scooping up properties left and right within minutes of them hitting the market. That just means you have to be fast and be able to make an extremely strong offer.

The rental market is pretty solid, and we have a better landlord-friendly than many places I've seen. You can find interesting data about rentals (currently only through 2019) here. One interesting fact I learned not too long ago is that most Abilene renters can technically afford to buy themselves a home (search data available here), but generally, their credit scores are so low that they can't qualify for a mortgage. According to Experian, we ranked #4 in the country for most late payments.

One thing that drew me to Abilene in the first place was the relatively high rent vs. the relatively low housing prices, which is great for investors. However, with house prices going way up recently (see graphic below), that is now not often the case anymore, as rent prices have not kept apace with home purchasing prices. Finding deals in various categories just takes a lot of "hurry up and wait" and a lot of patience and preparedness, but it is still possible!