Austin Real Estate

Written by Henry Johnson

Austin Leading Nationwide Comeback The housing market may be down in other parts of the U.S., but under the stars of Texas, there's hope for a rapid turnaround in the city of Austin. Heading into the spring selling season, the Austin real estate market is poised to emerge from the frozen depths of the recession and start burning red hot again. Like nearly every other community in the United States, Austin's real estate market has been battered by the implosion of the housing bubble and the overall collapse of the national economy. Fortunately, Austin never really got caught up in the irrational exuberance that led to the bubble, and hence, had less farther to fall than other markets like Tampa and Riverside, Calif. With less ground to make up, Austin was able to expect a quicker turnaround and comeback than the rest of the country. That turnaround is happening now. Although home sales are still below 2008 levels, as the year goes on the gap between this year and last year's sales is getting tighter, and by the end of summer sales should be increasing again, according to experts. The volume in January was 1,421, a decrease of 36 percent from the previous year, in February volume had decreased by 28 percent of the prior year, and in March sales volume posted just a 22 percent decrease over March 2008. Clearly the gap is closing and a recovery of the housing market is imminent. There are a variety of factors why folks will want to move to Austin . For starters, there's a white-hot job market in the metro area, a definite draw in these recession-plagued times. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the Austin metro area is among the top 10 metropolitan areas with the highest job growth potential for this year. Folks looking for a job, whether it be a white collar profession or solid, good-paying, blue collar work would be well advised to give Austin a look. Austin, also, coincidentally, is a pretty nice place to live. The city has a lot of history, dating back from the days that Texas was a Mexican territory and later an independent republic. There's also a rich fusion of American and Mexican culture there, complete with delicious food served at long-standing local restaurants. Austin is also home to a vibrant, energetic art and music community. Go out any night and you'll be able to see live music at any number of local clubs and pubs, and there's also a wide variety of opportunities to immerse oneself in the local arts scene. Because Austin's real estate market is picking up more quickly than the rest of the nation, if you're a house flipper, now's the time to get in and buy for a quick return on your investment. This recession is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for real estate investors with guts to pick up property at rock bottom prices and earn a steep profit when the market snaps back. Another incentive to buying a home in Austin now is the new tax credit that's available to home owners who buy their first home between Jan. 1 and Dec. 1 of this year. The tax credit offers $8,000 to these first time homeowners as part of President Barack Obama's stimulus package. That's nearly a whole year's mortgage for some homeowners. The credit, and favorable loan terms being offered by the federal government, is a potent inducement to buy a home. Tired of participating in this dreary recession? Snap out of it, create your own economic stimulus plan by moving to Austin and buying a home. The job market's hot, opportunities abound and Austin's a community with a lot to offer.

 

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