Austin Market Report - October 2021

[David Ivy]

The October 2021 Austin market numbers are out from the Austin Board of Realtors. The Austin market continues to stabilize and return to its typical seasonal pattern. It still remains very much a seller's market, with just 1 month of available inventory in Austin and the greater metro.

Here are the October 2021 numbers:

The pandemic frenzy in the Austin area market began in fall 2020 and continued through summer 2021. However, prices began to stabilize around March/April 2021. So, the spring 2022 numbers will be very telling of what Austin's "new normal" will be.

If you're a buyer, then you can expect a more normal fall and winter market with comparatively better buying opportunities. Fewer buyers are in the market and sellers will usually have specific motivations to list now instead of waiting until the spring. The downside is that you'll have fewer properties to choose from.

If you're a seller, then selling might not be as easy as listing in spring and summer. However, we remain a seller's market year-round in the Austin metro. Homes sell and pricing remains strong regardless of the season. Multiple offers are still common, especially in the more "affordable" price points.

Finally, check out this chart of passenger traffic at the Austin airport. Activity appears currently around 2018 levels, but it will be interesting to see how it looks during the holiday travel season. As a proxy for overall activity in the Austin metro (economic or otherwise), this suggest that we're definitely not back to "normal." However, we're very far above where we were in 2020.