January 2022 Housing Market Update for Austin, TX MSA

[Bryan Noth]

January 2022 Housing Market Update for Austin, TX MSA

January 2022 statistics have been released for the Central Texas Housing market. There was a narrow decline from the preceding month and a 30% increase from the preceding year for the entire Metropolitan Statistical Area.

The City of Austin saw a change in median home price from $544,000 to $55,000, a month to month decrease of $5,000 but a 20% increase from the previous year. The Austin-Round Rock MSA saw a change in median home price from $476,700 to $476,000, for a month to month decrease of $700 but a 30% increase from the previous year.

The following infographics and data are courtesy of the Austin Board of Realtors:

Housing inventory decreased from 0.6 months to 0.4 months for the entire MSA. The City of Austin saw a slightly stronger drop down to 0.3 months. That equates to only 9 days of housing inventory for the City of Austin and 12 days for the entire MSA. The five county region saw a 10% decrease in new listings compared to January of the preceding year and a 17% increase from the preceding month.

It may be prudent to note emerging trends when considering the critically low levels of housing inventory and the influx of job creation and population growth. With inventory unprecedentedly low in the City of Austin proper the outskirts may garner even more attention for prospective buyers. There have been several large scale housing projects announced in the suburbs of Austin.  South Austin, East Austin, San Marcos, New Braunfels, Elgin, Kyle and Buda have all announced large scale housing developments on the horizon. Many of these areas are also seeing other economic indicators of potential growth with new hospitals, new schools, and large mixed use commercial and retail sites.

The data is still quite preliminary at this point for February’s numbers but an initial review suggests we will see increases in home prices and I am curious to see rental growth rates as those are released.  Interest rate increases and the squeeze on housing inventory may force potential buyers into renting in an already high occupancy market.

Disclaimer: The information provided here is for educational purposes only, past performance is never a guarantee of future performance.