AUSTIN, Texas — After years of ranking among the nation’s fastest major metro areas for home sales, Austin now appears to be the slowest.
That’s according to a new analysis by real estate website Redfin, which found that homes in the Austin area that went under contract in December spent a record 106 days on the market. Nationwide, the average was 60 days.
Redfin also reported that Austin had about 128% more sellers than buyers in December — the largest imbalance among major U.S. metros.
“Homebuyers in Austin have the luxury of time and bargaining power,” Redfin Premier real estate agent Andrew Vallejo said in a statement. “I have a buyer who just offered $560,000 for a home listed at $599,000 that a few years ago would’ve been worth $700,000. There’s a good chance the seller will say yes given how slow the market is. Another buyer I’m working with made an offer below asking price and plans to bid on a different home if the seller doesn’t accept.”
Vallejo said Austin’s housing market has shifted as many would-be buyers wait for mortgage rates to drop. Some are choosing to rent until rates fall to around 5%.