Austin-area real estate market slows from summer buying months

Austin Board of REALTORS® releases August 2009 real estate statistics

September 18, 2009 - According to the August 2009 Multiple Listing Service report by the Austin Board of REALTORS®, the Austin-area real estate market has slowed slightly during the first month of fall.

In August 2009, 1,793 homes were sold, a 10 percent decrease from 1,994 homes sold in August 2008. The median home price for Austin in August 2009 was $189,000, a four percent decrease from the same month the prior year.

“It’s fairly normal for our market to slow down in autumn. Although we’ve been encouraged by stable home prices and volume in recent months, we are clearly not out of the woods completely,” said Jay Gohil, chairman of the Austin Board of REALTORS®. “Looking ahead, it will be interesting to see what impact the November 30 deadline for the first-time homebuyer tax credit has on demand this fall.”

On November 30, the tax credit for first-time homebuyers of up to $8,000 expires.  Despite speculation to the contrary, no definitive steps have been taken to extend it. To qualify, first-time homebuyers must close their real estate transaction by that date, a process that requires anywhere from 14 to 60 days or more.  

August 2009 Statistics

• $437,228,429 was the dollar volume of single-family properties sold  
• $189,000 was the median price, a four percent decrease from July 2008 
  
• 1,793 was the number of homes sold, a 10 percent decrease from one year ago