Austin Real Estate Guy Blog

Forbes came out with its list of best cities to buy a home in.  They took the 40 largest metro areas in the U.S. and looked at vacancy rates, home prices and other information from the National Association of REALTORS and the U.S. Census Bureau.  Forbes also looked at the difference between the average monthly mortgage payment and average monthly rent, with a smaller difference being a better indicator.  Austin was the second city on the list with only Houston rated as a better place in which to buy.  Part of the article: 

"Texas dominated our lineup of mortgage-worthy areas. Thanks to a business-friendly tax environment, many large corporations call the Lone Star State home, which creates jobs and tax revenue. The University of Texas campus provides young blood and research-related jobs to No. 2 city Austin. This state capitol is a hip area on the rise. The vacancy rate has fallen by 37.5% in the last 24 months to just 1.5%, despite a lot of building in recent years. And buying isn't much more expensive than renting. An average mortgage payment is $1,022.40, and average rent hits $767."

I've been telling people for the last year that Austin is a great place to buy and that now is the time to buy.  Our real estate market isn't in trouble like some other cities across the country.  Job growth is still strong and people are relocating to the Austin for other reasons as well.  People are buying second homes here and people are retiring to the area.  I feel like a broken record saying all of this over and over, but it needs to be said.

Home buyers need to understand that waiting for the market to bottom isn't a good thing to do.  Despite slower home sales than a year ago, both the median and average price homes sold in Austin continue to rise.  Interest rates are likely to go up next year as well.  Both of these are great reasons to buy now.  Finally, Forbes comes out with a great article that supports what I have been saying.  Read the article here.