Austin Real Estate Blog

Realty Austin's break-out year in 2011 was unimaginable even by our own team and it's not showing signs of slowing down.

"Our growth is exponential – partly to do with our efficient technology systems and effective lead generators (both online and print marketing), but mostly to do with our agents," said Brittanie Flegle, Realty Austin's Marketing Director. "There's no argument that we're starting to get noticed for recruiting the best agents in Austin, and we plan to continue that momentum into Lakeway."

Realty Austin's Lake Travis office opens June 21st with a highly visible location at 620 and Lohmans Crossing. With our new location we hope to establish a stronger presence in the Lake South market where we are currently the #2 real estate office.

“Our…

Looking for cool, Austin-y things to do this month? Check out these fun, family-friendly events in Austin this May. We have compiled a list of activities for you to easily jump into Summer.

Austin and its home state of Texas continue to see real estate market improvements. Both markets enjoy higher-than-average employment rates, stable economies, continued population growth and increasing housing starts, which when combined meet the conditions necessary for a successful home buying and home selling market.

Austin is the 14th largest metro, one of the highest employment rates, an attractive city to young professionals, and burgeoning tech town. Homes in Austin are selling 20% faster than this time last year, averaging 77 days on the market. Inventory levels are 19% lower than last February and list prices have jumped up 12% in response, making it the 2nd best real estate market for investors right now.

The Texas economy added 237,100…

Austin is the second fastest growing metro area in the nation, according to data from the US Census Bureau, with the 14th biggest population, according to an analysis by the Business Journals' On Numbers. With 790,390 residents and a staggering growth rate of 51% from 2000 to 2010, Austin's rapid growth sparked concern from the City of Austin which heightened the need for a strategic plan.

Local urban planning non-profit, Imagine Austin, introduced a new comprehensive urban plan to address the rapid growth and help capture the Austin of the future. Imagine Austin's blueprint is just one of the many proposals to manage Austin's growth and remain competitive among other cities which have already adopted strict plans by which to develop. City officials…

Out of 146 cities and suburbs in the US, Austin's real estate market ranked 2nd in a study by Realtor.com to find the best place to invest in real estate right now. While other cities become investment opportunities due to last recession's devastating effects, Austin is the only city in the top 10 that saw little drop in prices and ultimately maintained home prices during past years' economic turmoil. Austin's potential for price growth is one of the best in the nation, states Realtor.com.

The stability of the Austin economy plus a towering employment rate are the driving forces for Austin's successful real estate market. Since high employment drives demand for housing, Austin nutures the perfect environment for buying and selling homes. According to the…

Listed as the second largest state in the US in both land size and population, Texas is known to do everything in large measure, whether it’s the size of its value-added real estate, its attention to culture and sports, or its cuisine. Widely recognized as a cultural and artistic hub in Texas, Austin is also the capital city of the state and is rapidly attracting those seeking a more subdued lifestyle mixed with access to entertainment, sports, and outdoor activities.

Everyday more and more people are packing up and moving to Austin, and it is those people that have propelled this city into one of the fastest growing in the nation. If you are thinking about calling Austin your home, there are a few things to keep in mind in order to assure that your move…

Are your commutes to and from downtown Austin so dreadful that you're willing to move? Are you new to the area or have a new route to travel and not sure how much time to set aside for your travel? Here's a nifty map that shows about how long it will take you from anywhere in the local Austin area to downtown in rush hour.

Realty Austin developed the map based off of commute times from its agents and employees. We are always looking to find the best data, so please help us make it better! Do you live in an area in Austin that is misrepresented on the map? Let us know in the comments below.

Realty Austin's Communte Times Map Find where you should live if you want to avoid commute times and make your life a little easier.

Special thanks to…

Austin generated 12,600 new jobs in the 12 months ending in January according to reports by Texas Workforce Commission and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics making it's growth rate 3.5%, the second highest in the nation! TWC calculated each cities' growth rate by preliminary payroll jobs numbers. Austin was not the only city in Texas with one of the best growth rate. Houston ranked 1st with 3.7% job growth rate and Fort Worth ranked 5th with 2.9% job growth rate. Dallas was just shy of the Top 10 for best job growth in last 12 months with 2.2% job growth. Here's who made the list of cities with the best job growth rates in the US.

Best Performing Cities Among 50 Metros

Looking for cool, Austin-y things to do this month? Check out these fun, family-friendly events in Austin this April. We have compiled a list of activities for you to easily jump into Spring.

Many Realty Austin REALTORS® were nominated for the 2012 Austin Business Journal Residential Real Estate awards, but only one was awarded Top Producer. ABJ Residential Real Estate awards ranks Realtors by home sales during a 12-month period and unveils Austin’s top-selling REALTORS®. Ranking is based on the 2011 number of transactions and the 2011 dollar volume of closed sales.

Realty Austin's top producer, Todd Grossman, won 2nd place in the Individual Producer Award. Please help us congratulate him on all his hard work and dedication while selling $30 million in real estate in 2011!
 
Congratulations as well to the other Realty Austin nominees whose hard work is also recognized:

• Kat Brooks
• Keri Chmelik
• Mark Clausen
• Tom Thornton
• Cara…