Austin and its suburb rental homes

[Elva S.]

Hi BP family,

I am located in North Texas and am looking into rental properties in Austin and its suburb. I know I may have already missed the party since the pricing of the properties in these areas have been taking off. One interesting thing I have found recently through some rental and sales comps is that the home prices are getting higher and higher however the rents don't seem have the same level of increase. I haven't seen any 1 % rule properties at all. 

The areas I am looking at are Buda, Manor, Eglin etc where are relatively close to Tesla factory. 

Just wanted to know your thoughts who invests in Austin area - is it still worth to chase the price and waiting for appreciation with a buy and hold strategy or there are still chances to find good rental properties, I  just haven't found them yet. 

Thank you!!

[Rick Reeder]

@Elva S. You're right on that there aren't any 1% deals around Austin right now in MLS. If you can have negative cash flow or put more than 20% down (or move here and house hack), odds are very strong that you will have excellent appreciation and be very happy with your Austin investment. However, if you're looking for a cash-flowing rental with 20% in the near term, you will not find it on MLS (or Zillow, etc). Too many house hunters and investors chasing too few listings. We have about 12 days of supply in the Austin city limits right now.... a balanced market has about 6 months of inventory.

I do believe strongly that Austin will continue to thrive and appreciate- the fundamentals are all still there!