Existing Home Sales December 2011

This data has just been published by the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M.  This data is current as of January 30, 2012.  Note that Austins inventory of homes is up 11% but average sales price has dropped 2%.

TEXAS' EXISTING HOME SALES UP 4 PERCENT COLLEGE STATION (Real Estate Center) – Sales of existing single-family Texas homes in December were up 4 percent from a year ago, according to the most recent Multiple Listing Services (MLS) data compiled by the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University. More than 16,500 homes were sold, data showed. The median home price was $150,700, about the same as a year ago, and the state's overall inventory was at six months. December 2011 MLS data for many Texas cities are available on the Center's website. Here is a sampling (data current as of Jan. 30, 2012): Sales Change from Last Year Median Price Change from Last Year Months' Inventory Austin 1,738 up 11% $188,200 down 2% 4.2 Beaumont 151 up 2% $114,000 down 14% 11.1 Brownsville 39 down 33% $86,800 down 22% 12.4 Dallas 3,315 up 3% $162,800 up 1% 4.7 El Paso 420 down 9% $97,900 down 27% 7 Fort Worth 645 up 5% $112,500 down 6% 5.2 Houston 5,048 up 7% $160,400 up 2% 5.9 Midland 134 up 17% $184,000 down 1% 3.3 San Antonio 1,393 up 3% $148,400 down 6% 6.6 Sherman- Denison 84 up 22% $96,700 up 3% 8.8 Temple- Belton 115 up 4% $120,700 down 13% 7.9 Tyler 198 down 5% $130,800 up 1% 11.4 Victoria 74 up 37% $131,100 down 2% 3.8 Waco 153 up 2% $116,200 down 1% 9 Wichita Falls 81 down 31% $102,300 down 9% 7.6 Texas 16,505 up 4% $150,700 no change 6

Austin Positive Housing Trend Forecast for 2012

Below is a summary of a very informative meeting we attended.  This positive forecast is what many of us have been feeling recently.  We would welcome any discussion or answer any questions you might have.  Just give us a call. 

Austin Business Journal by Cody Lyon, Staff writer

Date: Thursday, January 12, 2012, 1:14pm CST

The housing market in Austin will continue to see improvement in 2012, according to the Fourth Annual Housing Forecast.

Cody Lyon Staff writer - Austin Business Journal

Austin’s housing market saw improvement in 2011 and that trend is expected to continue in 2012, according to the Fourth Annual Housing Forecast event on Thursday.

Job growth, increasing population and a tightening rental market this year will result in higher demand for housing in the Austin region though the forecast suggested strict mortgage underwriting criteria and subdued consumer confidence will likely limit new home sales in our market in the coming year, a release from the meeting said.

The event was co-hosted by the Home Builders Association of Greater Austin and the Austin Board of Realtors at the Renaissance Austin Hotel.

“For 2012, Metrostudy expects new home production in the Austin region will increase for the second straight year,” said Eldon Rude, director of the Austin market for Houston-based Metrostudy who moderated the event.

The most recent residential survey from Metrostudy indicates there were 6,115 new home starts in the Austin region in 2011. This represents a nearly five percent increase in starts from 2010.

“Home starts were up over 2010 levels in every price range except under $150,000, with the strongest increases in the move-up price points between $200,000 and $300,000. While buyer demand is increasing in the first-time market below $150,000, strict mortgage underwriting criteria are making it increasingly difficult for potential buyers to qualify for a loan,” Rude said.

Another factor that might limit new home starts in 2012, especially in more high demand areas, is a lack of developed lots to accommodate new home construction, Rude said.

“We started nearly 12,000 homes in Austin over the last two years while delivering only 8,000 new lots, resulting in a shrinking supply of lots in the most desirable areas. This might not only result in fewer home starts in some areas, but it could also lead to increased home pricing in certain locations due to an imbalance in lot supply”, said Rude.

Financial market volatility was also on the mind of panelist Dr. Greg Hallman, senior lecturer in finance and real estate finance at the University of Texas’ McCombs School of Business.

Certain parts of the U.S. economy are growing — such as technology and some business capital spending — but overall growth is not strong or widespread, Hallman said.

“Volatility measures from the financial markets indicate that investors are still worried, and likely with good reason,” said Hallman.

The biggest worry is a financial-banking crisis in Europe, triggered by government defaults, Hallman said.

Weather and water resources are major concerns for homebuilders.

Noting the past year’s heat and drought records, KXAN Chief Weathercaster Jim Spencer said the outlook for 2012 is not promising.

“If this spring proves to be as dry, Central Texas may be looking at another excessively hot summer. Worsening drought conditions could result in severe water restrictions for cities in our area and across the state,” Spencer said in the release.

Eldon Rude ended the meeting with stating we are all survivors…we have made it this far.  Here is to not just surviving in 2012, but thriving and prospering!!!!

Make it a great year! 

Austin Poised for Greatness

 Another great recognition for our city!  This has just been posted on the Austin Business Journal.

 "Austin is a great place to be this year, according to The Street, which named the Capital City among the top 10 cities “poised for greatness” in 2012.

The Street, a financial news website, named its top 10 cities for 2012 based on financial forecasts, large-scale events and new initiatives.

Austin was cited on the list for its low unemployment rate, its many music and film festivals, and its low home prices. Austin's blend of state jobs, help from the University of Texas at Austin    and private-sector employment also contributed to Austin’s place on the list.

Other cities on the list include Indianapolis, which is hosting the 2012 Super Bowl, Chicago and Houston."

TEXAS' PRIVATE SECTOR JOB GROWTH OUTPACES NATION'S

 this just published  from real estate center

"TEXAS' PRIVATE SECTOR JOB GROWTH OUTPACES NATION'S

COLLEGE STATION (Real Estate Center) – Texas gained 227,800 nonfarm jobs from November 2010 to November 2011 according to the Center’s latest Monthly Review of the Texas Economy. That represents an annual growth rate of 2.2 percent compared with 1.2 percent for the United States.

The state’s nongovernment sector grew at an even faster rate, adding 292,700 jobs (3.4 percent) compared with 1.7 percent for the nation’s private sector.

Texas’ seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell to 8.1 percent in November 2011 from 8.3 percent the year before. The nation’s rate decreased from 9.8 to 8.6 percent.

All Texas industries except the information industry and the state’s government sector had more jobs than the same time a year ago. The state’s mining and logging industry ranked first in job creation, followed by the professional and business services industry and the leisure and hospitality industry.

Abilene, Wichita Falls, Killeen-Temple-Fort Hood and College Station-Bryan were the only metro areas that had fewer jobs in November 2011 than in November 2010. Victoria ranked first in job creation followed by Corpus Christi, McAllen-Edinburg-Mission, Lubbock and Laredo.

The state’s actual unemployment rate in November 2011 was 7.5 percent. Midland had the lowest unemployment rate followed by Amarillo, Odessa, Lubbock and San Angelo."

This report gives encouragement for the state as a whole. 

 Rosie

Christmas Camping Adventure

Ruby's Maiden Voyage

     Well as you can imagine I wanted to drive Ruby everywhere and all the time. But she did already have 82,000 miles on her and has Paco gently reminded me she was an investment. Even though we took her to the best Volkwagen repair ship in Austin, Vee-Dub, and she got a clean bill of health. In fact they said that she was one of the best, BEST and CLEANEST Eurovans they had ever seen! So I drove her a few times to school and that was it.
     Fast forward a month and it was full on Christmas Season! Our original plans fell thru and so we were luckily in Austin. But I had a bad itch to go somewhere and asked Paco to plan our first camping getaway in Mi Rubi (her Spanish name.) We couldn't got too far because we only had two days. I manically began sorting our camping gear and making lists (which I need to write about because everyone should have an essential camping list!) Without a list I did a pretty good job, even Paco was impressed. Then we headed to our neighborhood Wally World to pick up some grub; it's just not a camping trip without Nathan's Dogs. I also had to get the boy some new long underwear for his ever growing limbs. It did feel weird buying our camping staples in the winter.
     The next day early afternoon we were off. We decided that the maiden voyage would be sans girls, Juno and Sassy (our dogs) so we could work out all of the kinks (this was a very good decision as you'll soon read about.)  So with me at the wheel in my giant shades and birkenstocks we took off listening to James Taylor on our cassette player. How cool is that a cassette player! I had to order cassettes off of ebay and got some random tapes. Need to add that to the list..
     She rode like a dream. If you have never driven a Eurovan or been a passenger in the front "co-captain" chair then you are missing out. I feel like I am king, well queen of the road. The boy was spread out in the back with a book and Paco was able unwind from his last minute work projects.
     The drive was about 2 hours. Once we got onto the back roads the scenery was refreshing. Recent rains had made the fields lush with winter grasses and lots of cows basking in the sunshine. We could not have had more perfect weather. One of the roads (if Paco was typing this he would be inclined to specifically name all the roads) had an old railroad track bridge/tunnel thing that I might have gone a little too fast thru but it was all good.
     The park was called Lake Somerville, the Birch Creek Unit. As we rolled to the park headquarters we noticed it looked rather empty. We pretty much had our pick of sites. Our Texas State Parks are facing major budget cuts-really sad..We did our part by purchasing a state park pass. The park manager, John was super kind and helped us on our way.
     Maybe 30 minutes!! It took us maybe 30 minutes to set up our Ruby for camping and mind you that was our very first time to set her all up so really it will probably take us max 15 minutes. We popped her up, pulled out the camping chairs and laid out the bed and PRESTO! We were DONE. Now usually when we camp with the tent it takes us about an hour to get everything set up.
     After arranging our chairs around the fire ring and buying some wood we walked down to the lake, well what was left of the lake. Surprisingly it was quite beautiful in a rustic, wintery way. There were these sections along the beach of tall reeds where we observed hundreds of red-wing blackbirds diving in for the night. We then caught a beautiful sunset and headed back to make a huge fire. (Paco and the boys favorite part of the night!)
     The dogs were yummy but not burnt the way I like them (remember to add tongs to the master list). We were just chilling around the fire watching the night sky slowly fill up with stars when we heard a crunchy sound. We turned to look and low and behold there was a fat (really obese) raccoon stealing our Cheetos. He or she didn't even care that we were staring they just kept stuffing their face. Finally Paco yelled and it slowly sauntered off (mind you that pig came back three more times thru the night!) 
     Two dogs and countless other "crap" food later the boy was ready to retire. We sent him up to his perch and he was out. I managed to hang a little longer with Paco where we drank and reflected on the past year. Then I went to bed-downstairs. So much more comfortable then a tent even a tent with an air mattress. Paco tucked and kissed and watched Fatty come back fo rme before he finally retired.
     Ruby has curtains-isn't that cute! We closed them but one side was missing a panel so the morning sun slowly woke us up. Usually when we are camping we are far from home and always on some kind of plan or agenda. This trip there was no plan or agenda and it was heaven! We slowly woke up. I had coffee and made the boy hot cocoa. Later I burned some oatmeal~just made it more campy tasting :)..Then we hung around the reclaimed fire and I crocheted, the boy explored and Paco pondered. It was divine! 
*A little gripe* These massive rv's spend hours setting up including their satellites and then they stay inside the RV almost the whole time! What is the point of camping?? Ok I am done..
     Once it warmed up we decided to go for a hike. Nowhere in particular just hike along stop and see the birds (ok so Paco is a HUGE birder and quite the expert) he will see this and make me go back and write each species we saw like the tit mouse, cardinal, more to come I'm sure..We hiked past the park office and then into another area of the park that was deserted. We were in one part where there was tall dried grasses and I heard a shuffling. I looked and saw what I thought were deer at first but then I thought they seemed rather short for deer and realized they were hogs; feral hogs about 10 yards ahead of us! Paco told us to quietly start walking back when one of the hogs at the end of the procession stopped and stared directly at us. This is where I thought I was so thankful that we did not have Juno or Sassy with us. Kind of cool and scary at the same time. Later when we told John about the hogs he informed us that the park would be having a public hunt next weekend.
     On the return hike we decided to walk along the shore. It was full of empty clam shells and other treasures for 10 year old boys. The boy stripped down to his boxers as it got surprisingly warm. I found a beautiful piece of driftwood and got my arm workout carrying it for a while. We went to the corner store by the park entrance to get more wood and matches (ahem..opps I forgot that in my packing) and settled in for our last huge fire.

     The best part of camping to me besides the beautiful scenery is the time I get to spend with my family with no distractions. Just talking, sharing and laughing. We even had a very important talk with the boy about important life stuff.  Our last night we also made a pact to try to hit every Texas State Park within the next two years! And so begins our Journey..Hope you will follow us and be inspired to get out there yourselves..

Amy for Charles (Paco) Stephens 

Ruby's Maiden Voyage

Ruby's Maiden Voyage

     Well as you can imagine I wanted to drive Ruby everywhere and all the time. But she did already have 82,000 miles on her and has Paco gently reminded me she was an investment. Even though we took her to the best Volkwagen repair ship in Austin, Vee-Dub, and she got a clean bill of health. In fact they said that she was one of the best, BEST and CLEANEST Eurovans they had ever seen! So I drove her a few times to school and that was it.
     Fast forward a month and it was full on Christmas Season! Our original plans fell thru and so we were luckily in Austin. But I had a bad itch to go somewhere and asked Paco to plan our first camping getaway in Mi Rubi (her Spanish name.) We couldn't got too far because we only had two days. I manically began sorting our camping gear and making lists (which I need to write about because everyone should have an essential camping list!) Without a list I did a pretty good job, even Paco was impressed. Then we headed to our neighborhood Wally World to pick up some grub; it's just not a camping trip without Nathan's Dogs. I also had to get the boy some new long underwear for his ever growing limbs. It did feel weird buying our camping staples in the winter.
     The next day early afternoon we were off. We decided that the maiden voyage would be sans girls, Juno and Sassy (our dogs) so we could work out all of the kinks (this was a very good decision as you'll soon read about.)  So with me at the wheel in my giant shades and birkenstocks we took off listening to James Taylor on our cassette player. How cool is that a cassette player! I had to order cassettes off of ebay and got some random tapes. Need to add that to the list..
     She rode like a dream. If you have never driven a Eurovan or been a passenger in the front "co-captain" chair then you are missing out. I feel like I am king, well queen of the road. The boy was spread out in the back with a book and Paco was able unwind from his last minute work projects.
     The drive was about 2 hours. Once we got onto the back roads the scenery was refreshing. Recent rains had made the fields lush with winter grasses and lots of cows basking in the sunshine. We could not have had more perfect weather. One of the roads (if Paco was typing this he would be inclined to specifically name all the roads) had an old railroad track bridge/tunnel thing that I might have gone a little too fast thru but it was all good.
     The park was called Lake Somerville, the Birch Creek Unit. As we rolled to the park headquarters we noticed it looked rather empty. We pretty much had our pick of sites. Our Texas State Parks are facing major budget cuts-really sad..We did our part by purchasing a state park pass. The park manager, John was super kind and helped us on our way.
     Maybe 30 minutes!! It took us maybe 30 minutes to set up our Ruby for camping and mind you that was our very first time to set her all up so really it will probably take us max 15 minutes. We popped her up, pulled out the camping chairs and laid out the bed and PRESTO! We were DONE. Now usually when we camp with the tent it takes us about an hour to get everything set up.
     After arranging our chairs around the fire ring and buying some wood we walked down to the lake, well what was left of the lake. Surprisingly it was quite beautiful in a rustic, wintery way. There were these sections along the beach of tall reeds where we observed hundreds of red-wing blackbirds diving in for the night. We then caught a beautiful sunset and headed back to make a huge fire. (Paco and the boys favorite part of the night!)
     The dogs were yummy but not burnt the way I like them (remember to add tongs to the master list). We were just chilling around the fire watching the night sky slowly fill up with stars when we heard a crunchy sound. We turned to look and low and behold there was a fat (really obese) raccoon stealing our Cheetos. He or she didn't even care that we were staring they just kept stuffing their face. Finally Paco yelled and it slowly sauntered off (mind you that pig came back three more times thru the night!) 
     Two dogs and countless other "crap" food later the boy was ready to retire. We sent him up to his perch and he was out. I managed to hang a little longer with Paco where we drank and reflected on the past year. Then I went to bed-downstairs. So much more comfortable then a tent even a tent with an air mattress. Paco tucked and kissed and watched Fatty come back fo rme before he finally retired.
     Ruby has curtains-isn't that cute! We closed them but one side was missing a panel so the morning sun slowly woke us up. Usually when we are camping we are far from home and always on some kind of plan or agenda. This trip there was no plan or agenda and it was heaven! We slowly woke up. I had coffee and made the boy hot cocoa. Later I burned some oatmeal~just made it more campy tasting :)..Then we hung around the reclaimed fire and I crocheted, the boy explored and Paco pondered. It was divine! 
*A little gripe* These massive rv's spend hours setting up including their satellites and then they stay inside the RV almost the whole time! What is the point of camping?? Ok I am done..
     Once it warmed up we decided to go for a hike. Nowhere in particular just hike along stop and see the birds (ok so Paco is a HUGE birder and quite the expert) he will see this and make me go back and write each species we saw like the tit mouse, cardinal, more to come I'm sure..We hiked past the park office and then into another area of the park that was deserted. We were in one part where there was tall dried grasses and I heard a shuffling. I looked and saw what I thought were deer at first but then I thought they seemed rather short for deer and realized they were hogs; feral hogs about 10 yards ahead of us! Paco told us to quietly start walking back when one of the hogs at the end of the procession stopped and stared directly at us. This is where I thought I was so thankful that we did not have Juno or Sassy with us. Kind of cool and scary at the same time. Later when we told John about the hogs he informed us that the park would be having a public hunt next weekend.
     On the return hike we decided to walk along the shore. It was full of empty clam shells and other treasures for 10 year old boys. The boy stripped down to his boxers as it got surprisingly warm. I found a beautiful piece of driftwood and got my arm workout carrying it for a while. We went to the corner store by the park entrance to get more wood and matches (ahem..opps I forgot that in my packing) and settled in for our last huge fire.

     The best part of camping to me besides the beautiful scenery is the time I get to spend with my family with no distractions. Just talking, sharing and laughing. We even had a very important talk with the boy about important life stuff.  Our last night we also made a pact to try to hit every Texas State Park within the next two years! And so begins our Journey..Hope you will follow us and be inspired to get out there yourselves..

Amy for Charles (Paco) Stephens 

Austin Area Home Sales

This recent release from the Austin Board of Realtors is welcome news.

Happy Holidays

All of us on the Stephens Team extend best wishes and happy holidays.  It is a time to be thankful.  If you travel please be careful.  We appreciate all our friends and clients.

Rosie & Charles

Austin-Bergstrom International Airport Rated Among Best In The World

Austin Job Market

This article just appearing in the Austin Business Journal is encouraging. 

"Employers in the Austin-Round Rock area expect slightly stronger hiring levels this fall, according to a Manpower Employment Outlook Survey.

Austin was ranked fifth on a list of U.S. cities with the most healthy employment outlooks.

Among the companies surveyed, 71 percent will maintain headcount, 19 percent plan to increase staff levels, while eight percent will reduce workforce.

According to the survey, job prospects appear to be the strongest in financial activities, manufacturing, wholesale and retail trade, government, and professional and business services. Transportation and utilities employers plan to reduce staffing levels.

The Texas job market also ranks high on the survey, coming in as third-best in the country."

Steiner Ranch Community of Wonderful Neighbors

It has been one week since we were displaced from our home due to the awful wild fire in Steiner Ranch.  It was a terrible happening and many friends and neighbors lost their homes.  Things could have been so much worse if it had not been for the fast response of firefighters, law enforcement members, and hundres if thousands of volunteers.  The organization and efficiency was outstanding.  An estimated 5,500 residents were evacuated in a timely way.  Immediately volunteers came to set up assistance centers for the fighters and displaced persons.  I was particularly impressed with St. Lukes on the Lake Episcopal Church setting up to furnish shelter, food, and comfort for so many.  They were in place and functioning within two hours of the onset.

Yes it was a tragedy.  Yes it seemed to be devine intervention that turned the wind to protect so many homes.  Yes it is wonderful to live here among beautiful neighbors.

 Rosie

Rosie Stephens Testimonial

Austin Real Estate Market

Sales Volume Up, Price Steady for Austin-area Real Estate

Sales of single-family Austin homes were up nine percent in June 2011 compared to June 2010 with 2,145 single-family homes sold, according to the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) report released by the Austin Board of REALTORS®. 

This bodes well for our Austin market in view of what is happening around the nation.

Yesterdays announcement by the Fed with interest rates remaining low for the next two years sets up a wonderful opportunity for buyers and will also present opportunities for those selling.  Isn't it great to live in such a vibrant stable community as Austin?

Austin Homeowners Property Values

This reprint from the NYT is a problem that most sellers are facing today.  It is very difficult to understand why they cannot get what they paid for property just a couple of years ago.  The market value in Austin is not as severe as many areas, it still is down.  A general rule we have found is that it takes about 5 years after the purchase of a home to get all that you paid for it new.  We have been through a housing boom period in which it was not uncommon to make a profit on selling.  It is not true today except in certain instances.  Those who are sticking by the old concept of pricing high and someone will come by and pay the price, just does not bear out what is actually happening.  The most important time for a realistic list price is at the initial offering.  If days on the market add up it becomes more difficult to create interest in prospective buyers and invites “low ball” offers.  Read this article and think about it if you are contemplating putting your home on the market.

  Homeowners in Denial About Value of Properties

Austin Is Destination For Recent Graduates

"The Daily Beast" just listed Austin #4 in recent survey for recent Graduates nation wide.  

  4, Austin, Texas

Population: 1,705,075
Percent of population between age 22-24: 4.5%
Cost of Living Index: 95.0
Percent of housing units for rental: 41%
Unemployment rate: 6.8
Average per-capita personal income: $37,544

These statistics are reassuring compared to the nation as a whole.  We all know that Austin is the place to live and work but the word is spreading.