Monday, April 27 – Austin Metro Area Real Estate Update
396 new homes emerged on the market in the past 7 days. A 4.6% increase from last week.
442 homes went under contract in the past 7 days. A 18.5% increase from last week. THE LARGEST # OF PENDING HOMES SINCE THE PANDEMIC STARTED AND THE LARGEST ONE WEEK NUMBER IN 2020!
183 homes sold and closed in the past 7 days. A 37.7% decrease from last week.
53 homes withdrawn or temporarily taken off the market. This is a 48.7 decrease in homes withdrawn from the market since last week. THIS IS ALSO A GOOD SIGN THAT LESS HOMES ARE BEING TAKEN OFF THE MARKET DURING THIS TIME.
Week Five “Shelter-In-Place”
Look at how far we’ve come! We’ve managed five weeks of shelter-in-place and learned new skills to keep ourselves, our family, and our community safer. I know we still have a distance to go and more things to learn in terms of this virus but I am feeling encouraged.
The stats above also show us that Austin area homeowners and buyers are feeling positive as well. We had the largest number of pending contracts since the pandemic start and, in-fact, the largest number of one week pending contracts for all of 2020. This is a number we typically see in March.
As I shared last week our Spring market has simply been pushed back a month and these numbers show us that trend. What will be crucial during this transition is continued attention to safety so that there is not another interruption. I can assure you that the Agent Jill Team and our Austin Real Estate Association is committed to continued precautions and community safety so we can get back to normal as quickly as possible.
Interest Rates & Loan Qualification Updates
As of 1pm on Monday rates are still resting at 3.25% for a 30 year Conventional loan and 2.875% for a 15 year conventional Loan. Refinance rates are between 3.5 & 3.75%. Mortgage guidelines seem to have stabilized this week and lenders are seeing the same increased activity that the Realtor community is seeing. This is a good sign for the market and buyers looking to purchase.
To discuss changes in the mortgage scene with one of our preferred lenders connect with them at the link below.
HOMESTEAD EXEMPTION DEADLINE TO FILE THIS WEEK!
Don’t forget the deadline to file your homestead is this Thursday April 30th. For buyers who purchased in 2019 this is your last chance to file your primary property for your homestead exemption. To learn more about the benefits of having a homestead exemption and other exemptions registered for your home click the link below.
https://www.agentjill.com/homestead-exemptions/
Austin Metro Market Overview
For the Agent Jill Team this past week was again a microcosm of the weekly stats story that start off every Monday blog with new and continued real estate activity. Personally this COVID-19 story is being called the “Great Reset” with opportunities ever day to rediscover life’s priorities. For real estate the COVID-19 story has been titled “The Play Goes On” and new characters and scenes are introduced each week that shape and twist its plot. But one thing we are learning on both sides of the person and professional story is that we can and will adapt with creativity, care, and re-imagined purpose.
And to continue the big picture examination of the local economy I attended another local industry webinar that provided outstanding perspective on where the economy is and where it might be headed. This past week I had the opportunity to listen to Angelos Angelou. Mr Angelou spent nearly 12 years with the Austin Chamber of Commerce as Vice President of Economic Development and Chief Economist. He has analyzed and forecast the Austin and central Texas economies for 36 years, as well as presented 200+ economic impact studies to cities around the US.
Key takeaways from his presentation are that Texas and all Texas metro areas will be significantly impacted by COVID-19 including bankruptcies in the oil and gas industry. He believes economic recovery will begin in June and July but for a full recovery to occur we will need three things; 1. the ability to identify who is sick and improved testing 2. medicine to cure covid-19 and 3. a vaccine to prevent it. Like many local economics Mr Angelou communicates the strength of Austin job’s scene in leading us out of this but warns that there are way too many alarms and not enough data to forecast the rest of the year.
Below is the full video presentation by Mr Angelou. For anyone looking for a high level overview of the US versus Austin and Texas economy this is a must view video.
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