How to Avoid Overpaying for a Home in Austin’s MarketIn a competitive market, it’s easy to feel pressure to move quickly when you find a home you like. However, making emotional
6-29-2020: Dear Chase, is now the right time to buy?
Dated: July 15 2020
Views: 77
Dear Chase,
We just moved to Austin from the Seattle area. This second wave of COVID cases in Texas has us concerned. We were wondering if this is the right time to buy a house or if it would be better to wait. We just want your opinion. We’re trying to gather as much information before we seriously consider buying.
6/29/2020
______________________________________________________________________
Thanks for the question!
The Austin market, just like every housing market around the US has been volatile with significantly fewer sellers than Spring/Summer traditionally have. Most sellers are holding off on the process due to minimal inventory to choose from for their next purchase, as well as fear of people walking through their home contagious. What this means is right now, the competition for homes is intense. I'd expect that next Spring we see a significant increase in inventory due to 50% of sellers waiting out the pandemic.
With that said, the Austin average sale price has continued to rise this year, primarily due to this being a very hot market with job/population growth. The more people that move to a city for well-paying jobs, the more housing demand rises. Just like we have seen in the last decade in Seattle and the decade previous in San Francisco
(I don't foresee Austin getting to their median sale price anytime soon though).
(This article does a great job of explaining how the limited supply of available homes has grown the average sale price)
My recommendation is that when you buy a home, you don't have to worry about what the value will be the following month. You're buying with expectations to live in it for at least 3-5 years.
(Zillow has a great calculator for this). With the growing industry and population in ATX, the home values will continue to rise year over year.
My other suggestion in regards to timing is whether it's the right time for your family.
Crucial things to consider before making the decision to become a homeowner:
How familiar are you with Austin? Are you sure you're planning on staying 5 years?
Do you know what areas you're most interested in? Will public schools be an important factor to you in the next 5 years?
How confident are you and your spouse in your careers -- or could you be looking at switching companies sooner?
Where will each of your offices be located when we go back to in-office work, and have you tried the commute during "normal" traffic conditions? (ATX's traffic is getting busier by the year)
I have no fears about values in the ATX market, and will be buying my own home within the next year, but I want to make sure I know what neighborhood I want to plant my roots in the community of. I usually tell new people to any city to rent until they are confident that they will be staying for 5+ more years (usually you'll know by the end of 1 lease term).
I help clients rent (as well as buy) so that I can give them 100% honesty rather than suggesting they buy before they are confident in the decision.
As always --- I'm glad to talk through some of the questions you may have not spent time considering yet.
Sincerely,
Chase Cangelosi
Licensed Agent with All City Real Estate
512-666-8121
Chase Cangelosi
Chase’s real estate interest sparked as a child, helping his dad repair his rental properties around Baton Rouge, LA. When Chase was 19, he began a marketing internship with a Baton Rouge commercial....
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