Red Home Realty

Welcome to the June 2010 edition of our Austin monthly market statistics analysis for home and condo sales in Austin, TX.

June was the kind of month that keeps the optimists happy in Austin, TX – there was absolutely no bad news for June when it comes to Austin homes and Austin condos. The numbers all bear it out – Austin is still a vibrant and healthy real estate market, and the positive changes of June fit with a larger year-over-year trend as opposed to just a blip on the radar screen. The biggest positive changes were in the average list and sold prices and another substantial drop in the average number of days that a home spent on the market.

What’s remarkable and these positive signs in june is that the numbers aren’t small increases – there were some MAJOR bumps particularly in the average listing and sales prices for Austin homes. And as far as the year over year numbers, they continue the trend of solid improvement from what can fairly be called a soft point in our market immediately following the economic downturn in late 2008. Read on to get the full scoop on the June 2010 numbers for the Austin, TX real estate market!

The Big Picture

WOW was June a solid month for the ATX! The biggest changes to report as far as the June 2010 vs June 2009 numbers are as follows:

• The average listing price of Austin homes jumped from about $255K to more than $338K over June 2009 – a remarkable improvement of more than 32%!

• The average SOLD price of Austin homes jumped from about $244 to more than $327 over June 2009 – an improvement of more than 34%! This stat is all the more impressive in light of the recent economic news concerning real estate such as the rising number of foreclosures nationwide and the tightening of the credit market.

• The listing and sold price when calculated on a per-square-foot basis jumped an incredible 45+% over June 2009!

• The average number of days on the market dropped 13% from an average of 76 to just 67 days for Austin homes, condos, and town homes.

Overall these numbers reveal some irrefutable data in support of the claim that Austin is A) still on the upswing and B) probably bottomed out (to the extent that it actually happened in Austin) at some point last year and home prices show no sign of falling, at least by any significant margin, in the near future. Having weathered what can be fairly described as among the worst financial disruptions of the past half century, Austin home prices aren’t just holding – they’re improving.

The year-over-year figures also contribute some extremely positive information in terms of the overall Austin real estate market picture. The 2009 total number of sold listings as of June was 9460, whereas we’re already at 10883 for 2010. That’s a solid improvement of more than 15% over last year. The total volume shows and even bigger improvement – the June to June as wel as the year-over-year totals for the sold volume in Austin are both up more than 22%. This confirms that the June numbers are hardly an aberration!

With prices on the upswing and days on the market dropping, there’s still time to get in on your Austin purchase before we come all the way out of this (relatively soft) low point. Now is unquestionably the right time to invest in Austin – call you Red Home Realty agent today!

About Red Home Realty
Red Home Realty is a forward-thinking group of ambitious real estate professionals that look at real estate differently because the old way is broken. Traditional real estate brokers have had their fun, and now it’s our turn – We’re changing the game in Austin real estate.

We’re Tech Nerds - While some Austin Realtors are struggling to sync their Blackberry, we live and breathe technology. From our powerful Austin Home Search tool for buyers to our online and social media marketing for sellers, we use technology and common sense to connect with the market.

20% Cash Back Rebate – We make it easy for savvy consumers to find their new home online so when you buy with us, you get 20% cash back. It’s like one of those big bailouts you’ve heard about, except the money goes in your pocket, not to Wall Street.

It’s all about YOU – You’re not just a lead, you’re a guest in our home where you can expect Ritz-Carlton level service. We are ladies and gentleman empowering ladies and gentleman with new tools on new platforms backed by market data and facts – good, bad, or ugly.

Connect with us at redhomerealty.com, or learn about the Austin market on our company blog. You’ve got questions – now you have help.

We’ve done so much writing lately about the list of accolades that have been bestowed upon Austin, TX that we had a thought: why not create a comprehensive list of all the rankings lists we’ve topped over the past 18 months?

In addition to our list below, Austin holds a handful of other top rankings in innovation, intelligence, friendliness, fitness and environmentalism. Ranked 5th safest and ironically 5th drunkest, Austin has the 5th most attractive population (something the safe, drunk people must appreciate).

The self-proclaimed “Live Music Capital of the World,” Austin boasts over 1700 live music venues and is home to the musical festivals Austin City Limits and South By Southwest (SXSW) as well as the Austin Film Festival.  In 2009, SXSW generated $99 million for the city. “Keep Austin Weird,” has become the city’s unofficial slogan and attempt to maintain this creative economy by supporting “Austinite’s” creative flare and local businesses.

Large corporations like Dell and Whole Foods, both headquartered in the metro area, also boost the city’s economy. Additionally, Apple, Inc., IBM, Intel, Google and Facebook have operations in Austin. Austin’s businesses are supported by fresh minds, cutting edge technology and innovation, which the city’s institutes of higher education, most notably the University of Texas at Austin.

In 2008 the city began redeveloping its Comprehensive Plan, which by late 2010 will outline goals for future development, environment, business and social services. Other major planning departments are focusing on transit oriented, downtown and mixed-use development.

Bottom line: Austin, once defined as an eccentric, offbeat community,  is the the combination of lifestyle offerings, a diverse and well-educated workforce, and a vibrant local economy mean Austin is, and will continue to be, one of the best cities in America.

• #1 best city for the NEXT DECADE - Kiplinger’s Personal Finance Magazine, July 2010
• #1 Market for Young adults - Austin Business Journal, March 2010
• #1 Best Retail City in the US - Pitney Bowes Business Insight, Dec 2009
• #1 Best Bargain City in the US - Forbes, May 2009
• #1 City in US for Job Growth Potential - NewGeography, April 2009
• #1 City in the US for Economic Recovery - Forbes, March 2010
• #1 City for Job Growth - US Bureau of Labor Statistics, June 2009
• #1 City for a Career - WomenCo May 2009
• #5 safest city with a population of 500,000 or more – CQ Press of Washington, January 2009
• #7 on the list of America’s Tech Centers - American Cities Business Journal, May 2009
• #10 on the American Fitness Index “fit” Cities List - The American College of Sports Medicine, May 2009
• #2 Healthiest Housing Market - Builder Magazine, October 2009
• #2 of the Top 40 Economies in the US – Businessweek, September 2009
• #2 Fastest Growing Metro Area 2007-2008 – US Census Bureau, March 2009
• Best Cities for the Outdoors – Forbes, February 2009
• Top 15 Art Destination in America – American Style Magazine, April 2009
• Top 10 Greenest Cities in America – The Mother Nature Network, May 2010

PS. Whether it’s Austin homes, Austin condos, campus-area investment property, or larger-scale development, the people who stay in-the-know realize that there’s never been a better time to buy real estate in Austin, Texas.

About Red Home Realty

Red Home Realty is a forward-thinking group of ambitious real estate professionals that look at real estate differently because the old way is broken. Traditional real estate brokers have had their fun, and now it’s our turn – We’re changing the game in Austin real estate.

We’re Tech Nerds - While some Austin Realtors are struggling to sync their Blackberry, we live and breathe technology. From our powerful Austin Home Search tool for buyers to our online and social media marketing for sellers, we use technology and common sense to connect with the market.

20% Cash Back Rebate – We make it easy for savvy consumers to find their new home online so when you buy with us, you get 20% cash back. It’s like one of those big bailouts you’ve heard about, except the money goes in your pocket, not to Wall Street.

It’s all about YOU – You’re not just a lead, you’re a guest in our home where you can expect Ritz-Carlton level service. We are ladies and gentleman empowering ladies and gentleman with new tools on new platforms backed by market data and facts – good, bad, or ugly.

Connect with us at redhomerealty.com, or learn about the Austin market on our company blog. You’ve got questions – now you have help.

More big news about the Austin economy and it’s incredible performance relative to other major metro areas despite the recession: last Friday’s report on May 2010 payroll jobs numbers by the Texas Workforce Commission and U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics show that Austin continued to build on the year-over-year job growth that started two months back in April!

There were only three other large metros that showed positive growth last month (chart below), but Austin’s was (of course) the greatest rate of increase in the nation. Yet another way in which Austin is outperforming other cities during this recession! Read on to learn more about the recently released report and find out why Austin is recovering so strongly!

We all remember when the height of the recession was upon us, and though Austin fared better than most, job losses peaked at 24,400 (-3.1%) last September. However, they’ve steadily narrowed, falling to a just -0.1% in March, reverting back to positive (job growth) in April (about half a percent), and now adding 4,000 or 0.5% in May over the number for 2009. With Austin’s nonfarm payroll jobs totaling 767,700 in May, the metro is now just 2.0 below the November 2008 peak of 783,400 jobs.

To put that number in perspective, Austin’s aggregate job gains for the month of May  (4,000 jobs) are higher than Dallas (0.3%), Fort Worth (-0.3%), Houston (-0.9%), and San Antonio (-0.9%). Austin also has an adjusted unemployment rate of just 6.9%, which may seem high but is remarkable when considering the national rate is still around 9.4%!

When looking at Texas as a whole, May is the first month since the recession began with year-over-year growth. The lone star state added  more than 24,000 jobs (an increase of about .2%) while the national jobs figures continued to decline – 491,000 jobs have been lost of the last year and May 2010 marks the 25th month of year-over-year job losses. But even nationally the deficit has been narrowing somewhat since last September (the point at which many analysts say we hit bottom and started reversing).

So what industries are adding jobs despite the economy? In Austin fields such as financial services, education and health services, leisure and hospitality, and government were among those that performed the best, with the biggest gains coming in th leisure and hospitality field –  7,500 new jobs, or 8.9% just in May 2010! Education and health services were a distant second place having added 2,200 jobs (about 2.5%) in May. State-wide, the industries growing over the last 12 months are largely aligned with our local gains: education and health services, leisure and hospitality, and government were the strongest performing sectors, whereas the national gains have been huge in professional and business services as well.

About Red Home Realty

Red Home Realty is a forward-thinking group of ambitious real estate professionals that look at real estate differently because the old way is broken. Traditional real estate brokers have had their fun, and now it’s our turn – We’re changing the game in Austin real estate.

We’re Tech Nerds - While some Austin Realtors are struggling to sync their Blackberry, we live and breathe technology. From our powerful Austin Home Search tool for buyers to our online and social media marketing for sellers, we use technology and common sense to connect with the market.

20% Cash Back Rebate – We make it easy for savvy consumers to find their new home online so when you buy with us, you get 20% cash back. It’s like one of those big bailouts you’ve heard about, except the money goes in your pocket, not to Wall Street.

It’s all about YOU – You’re not just a lead, you’re a guest in our home where you can expect Ritz-Carlton level service. We are ladies and gentleman empowering ladies and gentleman with new tools on new platforms backed by market data and facts – good, bad, or ugly.

Connect with us at redhomerealty.com, or learn about the Austin market on our company blog. You’ve got questions – now you have help.

Despite the fact that Austin’s downtown is solidly weathering the financial storm and has avoided the kind of collapses familiar to those who followed the condo booms in places such as Miami, FL, there’s still the occasional piece of bad news.

In a time when new projects in the heart of Downtown Austin are still being announced and there’s another boom on the horizon, the developers of the 1155 Barton Springs project have just filed for Chapter 11 protection.

The project, which has been plagued with financial and approval issues since the beginning, is located just across the street from the Palmer Events Center, and was forced to make this move after the lender decided not to renew their loan this month. But even this bad news for the developers comes with a silver lining: the project isn’t doomed, and the developers view this as nothing more than a temporary setback.

The 1155 Barton Springs project has been in the works since all the way back in 2005, and has operated under various names including “The Milan.” Financial issues are just one of the problems that they developers have faced in trying to bring the project to fruition. The first attempt to break ground was announced and scheduled for 2007, with tenants supposedly set to move in by Mid-2009, but that fell through.

The Bouldin Creek Neighborhood Association filed complaints in 2004 and the project was in three-year legal limbo due to zoning and compatibility disputes. And in the first quarter of 2008, the leaders of the company decided to simply shelve the project until such time as the downturn in the economy and the lending drought could be mitigated.

The project is now back on target (sort-of) and the developers are actively trying to resolve the current issues with their lenders so that they can move forward. Though no target date is set, the parties have now negotiated a final judgment in terms of the height of the building and the compatibility concerns, and the developers have stated that it’s only a matter of time before the project is back online.

The building (not yet named) will include 24 residential units ranging from 1,600 to an astounding 6,200 square feet, priced from about $1M to in upwards of $6M each.

About Red Home Realty

Red Home Realty is a forward-thinking group of ambitious real estate professionals that look at real estate differently because the old way is broken. Traditional real estate brokers have had their fun, and now it’s our turn – We’re changing the game in Austin real estate.

We’re Tech Nerds - While some Austin Realtors are struggling to sync their Blackberry, we live and breathe technology. From our powerful Austin Home Search tool for buyers to our online and social media marketing for sellers, we use technology and common sense to connect with the market.

20% Cash Back Rebate – We make it easy for savvy consumers to find their new home online so when you buy with us, you get 20% cash back. It’s like one of those big bailouts you’ve heard about, except the money goes in your pocket, not to Wall Street.

It’s all about YOU – You’re not just a lead, you’re a guest in our home where you can expect Ritz-Carlton level service. We are ladies and gentleman empowering ladies and gentleman with new tools on new platforms backed by market data and facts – good, bad, or ugly.

Connect with us at redhomerealty.com, or learn about the Austin market on our company blog. You’ve got questions – now you have help.

The high-end condo market in Downtown Austin is, put simply, a relatively new phenomenon. The type of development that’s taken place in the 78701 since 1999 has drawn lots of national attention, and the projects currently coming on line in Downtown Austin are among the most luxurious projects ever to come to fruition in Texas. We’ve recently talked about some of the robust sales predictions for the coming year for the luxury projects downtown, another new high-rise project just announced by Constructive Ventures, and the fact that the downtown condo boom version 2.0 will soon be upon us.

But this month the big news is the opening of two of the most high-profile – and truly luxurious – of the downtown Austin condo projects: The Four Seasons Residences and the Austonian Condos.

Incredible Finishes at the Luxurious Four Seasons Residences

The anticipation and excitement surrounding these two projects has been intense since construction first began two years ago, particularly because the Austonian has so dramatically altered the Austin skyline (it’s now the tallest residential development west of the Mississippi river!). Residents will begin moving in to the Four Seasons (a 32-story building offering 148 luxury condo and incredible hotel amenities including the famous Four Seasons spa service) and the Austonian (the 56-story behemoth just north of the river offering 188 luxury condos). There’s also another major opening scheduled for December of this year at the W Hotel and Residences, a 26-story project offering 252 hotel rooms, 165 condos, and the high-profile new theater that hosts the infamous Austin City Limits live music program.

Together these buildings represent not just a subtle shift in the luxury offerings downtown, but a wholesale reconfiguration of downtown Austin’s residential market. The combined 501 luxury condos (the majority of which are over $1M) featuring amenities such as anywhere-anything concierge service, hotel services such as in-room dining, and world-class interior finishes have dramatically changed the conversation in terms of what our market can support. And with Austin as the #1 city in the United States in terms of recovery from the recession, there’s lots of reasons to be optimistic about the future development of our central business district.

Check out the interesting graphic below showing the progress of the “first wave” of Downtown Austin condo sales – it’s incredible to think that despite their relatively high prices these condos are 98% sold as of March 2010! And for a very interesting read about the possibilities (and the realities) of Austin’s booming downtown, check out the article “Up in the Air” by Harold Hunt.

About Red Home Realty

Red Home Realty is a forward-thinking group of ambitious real estate professionals that look at real estate differently because the old way is broken. Traditional real estate brokers have had their fun, and now it’s our turn – We’re changing the game in Austin real estate.

We’re Tech Nerds - While some Austin Realtors are struggling to sync their Blackberry, we live and breathe technology. From our powerful Austin Home Search tool for buyers to our online and social media marketing for sellers, we use technology and common sense to connect with the market.

20% Cash Back Rebate – We make it easy for savvy consumers to find their new home online so when you buy with us, you get 20% cash back. It’s like one of those big bailouts you’ve heard about, except the money goes in your pocket, not to Wall Street.

It’s all about YOU – You’re not just a lead, you’re a guest in our home where you can expect Ritz-Carlton level service. We are ladies and gentleman empowering ladies and gentleman with new tools on new platforms backed by market data and facts – good, bad, or ugly.

Connect with us at redhomerealty.com, or learn about the Austin market on our company blog. You’ve got questions – now you have help.

Welcome to the May 2010 edition of our Austin monthly market statistics analysis for home and condo sales in Austin, TX.

May wasn’t really a windfall month in any direction, nor were there any huge market disruptions to report. The data reflects modest changes in either direction in terms of the list and sold prices, prices per square foot, etc. The real news for May 2010 in the Austin, TX real estate market is in two critical stats: days on the market until sale and the total number of closed sales.

Especially when it comes to the YTD totals, 2010 is shaping up to be a much bigger yeah than 2009 both by volume and number of sales, despite the fact that markets remain somewhat soft. Read on to learn more about the May market data and about how things are looking in the Austin, TX real estate market!

The Big Picture

The biggest change in the “major” stats from april was in the amount of time homes were on the market prior to sale, and we’re happy to report that the trend not only continued in May, it grew. The drop of 18% is among the largest we’ve had so far in 2010 and is a HUGE stat when considering the fact that inventory is rapidly adjusting back to more normal levels. With an area average of 2 months for homes to be on the market, Austin sellers should consider themselves extremely lucky given that inventory through much of the rest of the country has exploded far beyond demand and has left nowhere for home prices to go but down.

The total number of homes sold also increased substantially over 2009 to 2165 - an increase of 15% – and the year to date increase was an even larger 19.6%! Overall this suggest that inventory is being kept at reasonable levels and that we should continue to expect solid sales throughout 2010.

There’s another big story that ties in to what we’ve written about the resiliency of Austin’s downtown market. Not only are there reports that we may have another downtown condo boom upon us shortly, but the sales data shows that despite somewhat softer prices in the luxury market there is still a MAJOR demand for property in downtown Austin. The graphic below shows the sales data for area DT (downtown Austin) for May, and the change in the number of sold listings and in the volume is truly enormous: sales volume has risen by 115% year to date in the Downtown area, and just in comparison to May of 2009 the number of sold listings nearly doubled.

These numbers speak to the HUGE demand for downtown properties despite the economy’s woes. We look to see this trend continue throughout 2010 and for much of the downtown inventory (both resale and new inventory as it becomes available) to continue selling strongly.

Downtown Austin Stats for May 2010

About Red Home Realty
Red Home Realty is a forward-thinking group of ambitious real estate professionals that look at real estate differently because the old way is broken. Traditional real estate brokers have had their fun, and now it’s our turn – We’re changing the game in Austin real estate.

We’re Tech Nerds - While some Austin Realtors are struggling to sync their Blackberry, we live and breathe technology. From our powerful Austin Home Search tool for buyers to our online and social media marketing for sellers, we use technology and common sense to connect with the market.

20% Cash Back Rebate – We make it easy for savvy consumers to find their new home online so when you buy with us, you get 20% cash back. It’s like one of those big bailouts you’ve heard about, except the money goes in your pocket, not to Wall Street.

It’s all about YOU – You’re not just a lead, you’re a guest in our home where you can expect Ritz-Carlton level service. We are ladies and gentleman empowering ladies and gentleman with new tools on new platforms backed by market data and facts – good, bad, or ugly.

Connect with us at redhomerealty.com, or learn about the Austin market on our company blog. You’ve got questions – now you have help.

I know, I know. Here we are doing everything we can to shine on the ATX. We love this town – it’s true. And yes, we happen to be in the real estate business. But no matter how you stack it we have to report the facts: Austin is reigning supreme in many a category these days. We’ve written about the state of the market, about Austin’s spending in the face of recession, the future developments in our thriving downtown, and about how we’re just the best. But now we’ve got another impressive stat for the list: Austin was recently name the #1 city in American in terms of beating the recession. Read on to learn more about the recent report and about why Austin is saying no thanks to the recession!

The news comes in the most recent MetroMonitor report from the Brookings Institute (covered here by the Huffington Post)- a quarterly publication about the state of the economy in the top 100 American metro areas. What conclusions did they draw about Austin? The highlights are as follows:

• The percentage change in the gross metropolitan product (GMP) was a remarkable 5.3% since the peak!
• Austin has made a complete recovery of any output dips and enjoyed positive job growth over the last two quarters.
• The change in the Austin unemployment figures in 2010 was only 2.3%  since the peak – among the lowest increases in any US metro area.
• From the first quarter of 2007 to the 2nd quarter of 2010 the Austin real housing price index actually rose about 1%!

So what does this all mean? As the full report (PDF here) shows, Austin is atop all the metro areas in virtually every economic indicator tied to our recovery from the recession. And while the national picture isn’t rosy (in same categories the smallest loss was the biggest gain…) Austin has proved that the foundations of a vibrant local economy are an educated and creative workforce, strong but below-the-bubble housing prices, and continued investment in economic development.

About Red Home Realty
Red Home Realty is a forward-thinking group of ambitious real estate professionals that look at real estate differently because the old way is broken. Traditional real estate brokers have had their fun, and now it’s our turn – We’re changing the game in Austin real estate.

We’re Tech Nerds - While some Austin Realtors are struggling to sync their Blackberry, we live and breathe technology. From our powerful Austin Home Search tool for buyers to our online and social media marketing for sellers, we use technology and common sense to connect with the market.

20% Cash Back Rebate – We make it easy for savvy consumers to find their new home online so when you buy with us, you get 20% cash back. It’s like one of those big bailouts you’ve heard about, except the money goes in your pocket, not to Wall Street.

It’s all about YOU – You’re not just a lead, you’re a guest in our home where you can expect Ritz-Carlton level service. We are ladies and gentleman empowering ladies and gentleman with new tools on new platforms backed by market data and facts – good, bad, or ugly.

Connect with us at redhomerealty.com, or learn about the Austin market on our company blog. You’ve got questions – now you have help.

New EPA Regulations and Their Effects on Buyers and Sellers
If you’re a buyer on the market for a beautiful vintage home in one of Austin’s prestigious neighborhoods such as Hyde Park or Tarrytown, or if you’re preparing to list an older home, you won’t want to miss this news. As of April 22nd, 2010 the Environmental Protection Agency or EPA has instituted new rules relating to how contractors and renovation professionals must approach issues about lead paint in existing structures.  Officially named the Renovation, Repair and Painting rules, or RRP, these new rules come out of recent amendments to the Toxic Substance Control Act. Specifically, the new regulations place more stringent requirements on contractors making changes to a residence built prior to 1978, where lead paint may be present. Read on to learn more about the new rules and how they affect homeowners, Realtors, and contractors.

The new changes essentially boil down to more rigorous enforcement of existing regulations governing lead based paint as well as new requirements in terms of safety and liability on the part of contractors. The most substantive changes include:

• Contractors must become EPA certified and employ lead-safe work practices (LSWP) before beginning work
• Contractors must register with the EPA and pay for additional equipment such as HEPA-filter vacuums.
• New disclosures are required before work begins.
• Homeowners can no longer sign a waiver allowing a contractor to proceed on a job without implementing LSWP.
• EPA fines are now up to $32,500 per violation, per day for violating the policies.

While these new requirements are mainly the responsibility of the contractors hired to do the work, understanding these changes is critically important for real estate professionals and for homeowners and buyers.

When a Realtor or other professional recommends a contractor they will now need to be sure that they are recommending certified professionals (not doing so could open them up to liability), and the changes also impact purchasing decisions and recommendations for properties that will involve renovation. It’s likely that certain types of remodels or renovation projects will come with a higher cost as contractors attempt to offset the costs of the new training, equipment, and certification to be compliant with the changes.

The only exemptions for this rule are properties built after 1978, repairs that are minor (interior work disturbing less than six square feet or exterior work less than 20 square feet), if the owner is doing the work themselves, or if the house or components are tested lead free by a certified inspector or renovator.

You can check out the details with this Lead Paint Renovation Rules Video – it’s useful for just about anyone who’s involved in remodeling work or who is thinking of buying or selling an older property that needs substantial renovation. You can also contact us today to get connected with a compliant contractor to ensure that your work is being done safely and in compliance with the new regulations.

About Red Home Realty

Red Home Realty is a forward-thinking group of ambitious real estate professionals that look at real estate differently because the old way is broken. Traditional real estate brokers have had their fun, and now it’s our turn – We’re changing the game in Austin real estate.

We’re Tech Nerds - While some Austin Realtors are struggling to sync their Blackberry, we live and breathe technology. From our powerful Austin Home Search tool for buyers to our online and social media marketing for sellers, we use technology and common sense to connect with the market.

20% Cash Back Rebate – We make it easy for savvy consumers to find their new home online so when you buy with us, you get 20% cash back. It’s like one of those big bailouts you’ve heard about, except the money goes in your pocket, not to Wall Street.

It’s all about YOU – You’re not just a lead, you’re a guest in our home where you can expect Ritz-Carlton level service. We are ladies and gentleman empowering ladies and gentleman with new tools on new platforms backed by market data and facts – good, bad, or ugly.

Connect with us at redhomerealty.com, or learn about the Austin market on our company blog. You’ve got questions – now you have help.

Some SERIOUS Cash Now Available for Qualified Texas Buyers
The Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) has recently announced the largest ever financing initiative for Texas homeowners in the history of the agency – TDCHA Bond 77.

It secures $500,000,000 dollars to be released in monthly $50,000,000 phases that is being made available for mortgage loans to help low and moderate income Texans who are attempting to purchase a home. The program’s huge dollar amount and relatively high purchase price limits means it’s going to be a huge boon for assistance for first time (and in some cases, move-up) homebuyers and is forecasted to help in excess of 4000 Texas families purchase homes.

Most particularly, it will have an enormous impact on low and moderate income homebuyers who are relatively stable financially but may be having a difficult time coming up with the money for a downpayment. Below is a summary with Q + A style information about the program that highlights the most important aspects of the proposal, and there are links as well as additional criteria information at the bottom of the post.

How does the program work? The TDHCA Bond 77 program will release money every 30 days in $50,000,000 increments which will be made available on a first come, first serve basis to qualified home buyers (primarily, but not exclusively limited to first time home buyers).  The initial amount (“Lot 1″) of $50,000,000 was released just last week.

What does it offer? The primary objective of the program is to make available 30-year fixed mortgages that are below market rate as well as provide assistance with down payments. The interest rates for the loans will be around 4.99% if they are being provided without down payment and closing cost assistance, or 5.74% on loans with down payment and closing costs assistance.  While the rates will changes monthly with each new release of funds, the rates are guaranteed to be below-market.

Who Qualifies? The major goal is to help first time home buyers so they will constitute the majority of those benefiting from he program, but some some existing homeowners (if they are purchasing in Targeted Census Tracts) will be eligible as well. Only those classified as low to middle income borrowers (more about this in the slide below) are eligible to be a part of the program.

What kinds of loans are available? The bond program provides funds for multiple types of loans, including FHA (with low down payment programs for first time home buyers), Conventional, USDA, and VA (veterans) loans.

What kinds of properties qualify? Single Family, Approved Condos, and Planned unit developments (PUDS) are all eligible for the program.  The limit on the home prices is $316,177 in the “Targeted Census Areas” (There are 6 qualified Census Tracts in Travis County – more info on the TDHCA website), and $258,690 in “non-Targeted areas”. These limits are a good deal higher than those previously set in similar programs, which is a big benefit to moderate-income buyers.

What makes this program unique? The generous limits for income amount and home cost are the biggest factors setting the Bond 77 program apartment from others like it, and it’s also not exclusive to “Targeted” areas.  The program offers below market rates, and down payment assistance specifically for borrowers with little or no money down.  They also have a first-come first-serve system that requires a one-time payment of only $350 to reserve a spot, and it’s hands down the  largest single financing initiative ever offered by TDCHA.

Want more details on this program to determine if you and your family qualify? Confused about how the mortgage bond programs works and what it can do for you? Don’t hesitate to contact us so we can connect you with the right lenders.

Feel free to check out the TDCHA website’s page on the program here and a detailed page on Lot 1 (the first release) of the program here. There’s also a super helpful set of images below with a summary of the income limits and the targeted areas for the program.

About Red Home Realty

Red Home Realty is a forward-thinking group of ambitious real estate professionals that look at real estate differently because the old way is broken. Traditional real estate brokers have had their fun, and now it’s our turn – We’re changing the game in Austin real estate.

We’re Tech Nerds - While some Austin Realtors are struggling to sync their Blackberry, we live and breathe technology. From our powerful Austin Home Search tool for buyers to our online and social media marketing for sellers, we use technology and common sense to connect with the market.

20% Cash Back Rebate – We make it easy for savvy consumers to find their new home online so when you buy with us, you get 20% cash back. It’s like one of those big bailouts you’ve heard about, except the money goes in your pocket, not to Wall Street.

It’s all about YOU – You’re not just a lead, you’re a guest in our home where you can expect Ritz-Carlton level service. We are ladies and gentleman empowering ladies and gentleman with new tools on new platforms backed by market data and facts – good, bad, or ugly.

Connect with us at redhomerealty.com, or learn about the Austin market on our company blog. You’ve got questions – now you have help.

The Future’s So Bright We Have to Wear Shades
If you regularly check out our blog, it’s no secret: we think Austin is a heck of a place to call home. We’ve written about the consistency and integrity of our real estate market, about the vibrant local economy and the spend-happy residents, the strong and soon-to-be-booming again downtown condo market, and about the resiliency of the Texas economy overall. Well recently Kiplinger Magazine bestowed another impressive accolade on Austin,TX – we were recently named the #1 best city for the coming decade. WOW. What a statement. And from Kiplinger’s – the pros in personal finance, investing, and forecasting – that’s nothing to sneeze at.

What Makes Austin #1?
It’s only natural to ask: how do they decide who’s number 1?

According to the article, the focused on places that specialize in outside-the-box thinking, because we all know new ideas generate new business. The “numbers guru” who decided on Austin as the #1 pick, Kevin Stolarick, knows that innovation is the name of the game: “In the places where innovation works, it really works.” The three elements most important to this determination are smart people, great ideas, and collaboration, and the combination of a winning university, strong local government, plethora of business organizations and community programs, and creative workforce just can’t be beat in the ATX.

Austin is also home to a dozen VC (venture capital) firms as well as 20 business associations. And as we all know, it’s also among the most tech-savvy US cities, having recently landed Google and Facebook as local employers to add to our already impressive array of tech companies including 3M, Motorala, AMD, Intel, Texas Instruments, and more.

Austin also topped the Portfolio.com small-business-vitality chart in 2010, and between 2004 and 2009 (a time when national employment fell), Austin’s employment increased more than 15%

Check out the following story of a successful entrepreneur from the article:

Everything may be bigger in Texas, but Austin’s genius is nurturing the power of small. Just ask Rob Neville, who wants to develop his biotech firm, Savara Pharmaceuticals, into a major player in the field of inhaled-drug therapy. The firm started in Kansas, but Neville transplanted it to Austin because the city is arguably the country’s best crucible for small business.

Neville, a native of South Africa, has rooted his company in a city with, he says, “a huge angel-financing network, billionaires who will freely offer you advice,” plus a culture that “attracts the best and brightest, who will work for less just to be in Austin.” Savara is based in the city’s renowned Austin Technology Incubator. Austin Technology is a joint project of the University of Texas, which is a research powerhouse, the city of Austin and the business community — just one example of the collaboration that characterizes the city.

Neville isn’t himself a scientist. “Many people could have done a life-sciences company better than me,” he admits. But he has faith in Austin. His first company, software firm Evity, blossomed in Austin; Neville sold it to BMC Software for $100 million in 2000.

About Red Home Realty

Red Home Realty is a forward-thinking group of ambitious real estate professionals that look at real estate differently because the old way is broken. Traditional real estate brokers have had their fun, and now it’s our turn – We’re changing the game in Austin real estate.

We’re Tech Nerds - While some Austin Realtors are struggling to sync their Blackberry, we live and breathe technology. From our powerful Austin Home Search tool for buyers to our online and social media marketing for sellers, we use technology and common sense to connect with the market.

20% Cash Back Rebate – We make it easy for savvy consumers to find their new home online so when you buy with us, you get 20% cash back. It’s like one of those big bailouts you’ve heard about, except the money goes in your pocket, not to Wall Street.

It’s all about YOU – You’re not just a lead, you’re a guest in our home where you can expect Ritz-Carlton level service. We are ladies and gentleman empowering ladies and gentleman with new tools on new platforms backed by market data and facts – good, bad, or ugly.

Connect with us at redhomerealty.com, or learn about the Austin market on our company blog. You’ve got questions – now you have help.