2015 Sets All-Time High For Austin-Area Home Sales Volume, Prices

Austin Board of REALTORS® releases real estate statistics for December 2015 and 2015 Year-End Totals

Austin-area single-family home sales and prices set all-time records in 2015, as well as records for the month of December 2015, according to the December 2015 and Year-End 2015 Multiple Listing Service (MLS) report released today by the Austin Board of REALTORS®.

Aaron Farmer, 2016 President of the Austin Board of REALTORS®, explained, “Demand for Austin-area real estate was stronger than ever in 2015, primarily due to our region’s job and ongoing population growth. However, low housing inventory levels, rising home prices and high housing development costs have brought Austin’s housing affordability issues to critical levels. Median price for single-family homes in the Austin area increased nearly $30,000 in the last year alone.”

According to the report, 29,068 single-family homes were sold in the Austin area in 2015, a five percent increase from 2014 and an all-time high for Austin-area home sales. Single-family home sales for the Austin area also set a monthly record in December 2015, increasing five percent year-over-year to 2,390 home sales.

Over the course of 2015, median price for Austin-area single-family homes increased nine percent from 2014 to $263,900. In December 2015, the median price for Austin-area homes was $270,000, 10 percent higher than December 2014. As a result, the total sales dollar volume for single-family homes in 2015 topped $9.6 billion, an increase of more than $1 billion from 2014.

Farmer continued, “The Austin Board of REALTORS® plans to build upon the past year’s efforts to advocate for a more affordable Austin, which included supporting Mayor Adler’s Housing Our Heroes initiative and advocating for permanent tax relief for Austin homeowners at the polls last November. It’s crucial that Austin continues to make strides with pivotal policy issues in 2016 to improve the land development code through CodeNEXT and take next steps to achieve more stringent code enforcement.”

The Austin area’s housing affordability challenges were intensified by a continued shortage of housing inventory in 2015. Monthly housing inventory in December 2015 remained unchanged from 2014 at 2.2 months, less than half of what the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University considers a balanced housing inventory level of approximately 6.5 months.

Austin-area homes spent two more days on the market in 2015 as the year prior, or an average of 49 days. In December 2015, the average amount of time homes spent on the market was 57 days, one day more than December 2014. Pending sales for single-family homes decreased one percent year-over-year to 1,601 pending sales, but pending sales for all of 2015 rose five percent from 2014 to 29,839 pending sales.

Active listings in December 2015 rose three percent year-over-year to 5,214 listings, while new listings increased six percent to 1,646 new listings from December 2014. Throughout the year, active listings rose five percent in 2015 to 6,044 listings and new listings increased four percent to 36,810 listings.

“There are many opportunities, as well as many challenges, ahead in 2016,” Farmer concluded. “Austin residents can count on the Austin Board of REALTORS® to continue to work with the community and city leaders to advocate for policies that ensure everyone in Austin’s communities have a safe, affordable place to live.”

December 2015 Statistics                                                                                                                           

• 2,390 – Single-family homes sold, five percent more than December 2014.
• $270,000 – Median price for single-family homes, 10 percent more than December 2014.
• $348,904 – Average price for single-family homes, 13 percent more than December 2014.
• 57 – Average number of days single-family homes spent on the market, one day more than December 2014.
• 1,646 – New single-family home listings on the market, six percent more than December 2014.
• 5,214 – Active single-family home listings on the market, three percent more than December 2014.
• 1,601 – Pending sales for single-family homes, one percent less than December 2014.
• 2.2 – Months of inventory* of single-family homes, unchanged compared to December 2014.
• $833,880,560 – Total dollar volume of single-family properties sold, 19 percent more than December 2014.

2015 Year-End Totals

• 29,068 – Single-family homes sold, five percent more than 2014.
• $263,900 – Median price for single-family homes, nine percent more than 2014.
• $333,558 – Average price for single-family homes, eight percent more than 2014.
• 49 – Average number of days that single-family homes spent on the market, two days more than 2014.
• 36,810 – New single-family home listings on the market, four percent more than 2014.
• 6,044 – Active single-family home listings on the market, five percent more than 2014.
• 29,839 – Pending sales for single-family homes, five percent more than 2014.
• $9,695,852,178 – Total dollar volume of single-family properties sold, 13 percent more than 2014.

The following sections describe trends in other sectors of the Austin-area real estate market.

Townhouses & Condominiums

The number of townhouses and condominiums (condos) sold in the Austin area in December 2015 was 230 properties, unchanged from December 2014. The median price for condos was $250,000, which is eight percent more than the same month of the prior year. These properties spent an average of 46 days on market, 10 days fewer than in December 2014.

In 2015, Austin-area condo sales dipped three percent from the year prior to 3,057 condo sales. Median price for Austin-area condos was $227,700, a six percent increase from 2014. Condos spent the same amount of time on the market in 2015 as 2014, or an average of 43 days.

Leasing

In December 2015, a total of 1,153 properties were leased in Austin, which is three percent less than December 2014. Properties spent an average of 47 days available for lease, or two fewer days than December 2014. The median rent for property leases was $1,500 per month, a three percent increase from December 2014. Active property listings increased three percent from December 2014 to 1,630 properties. In all of 2015, a total of 17,875 properties were leased in Austin, which is five percent more than 2014, and the median rent was $1,540 per month, or four percent more than 2014.