Real EstateNorthwest Austin

DATA: Fewer homes sold in Northwest Austin in January despite rising demand

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Claire Shoop

2 min read

Published February 17, 2022 at 2:31 p.m. CT

DATA: Fewer homes sold in Northwest Austin in January despite rising demand — Year over year, the number of homes sold in Northwest Austin decreased in January while median prices rose, according to the Austin Board of Relators. (Courtesy Adobe Stock)

Mirroring much of Central Texas, the Northwest Austin area saw a decline in the number of home sales closed in January 2022 compared to January 2021, according to the Austin Board of Realtors monthly report.

In January, 106 sales of residential properties closed, including 75 single-family homes, six townhouses and 25 condominiums. This represented a 25.9% decrease from the 143 sales closed in January 2021 and a 36.1% decrease from the 166 sales closed in December 2021.

The ABoR data shows demand for housing is still on the rise in the area. Northwest Austin has an additional 113 pending sales and 0.2 months of housing inventory, according to the latest report. Experts are attributing the decline in available housing stock to delays in development due to supply chain shortages.

“While demand is higher than ever, supply chain issues are contributing to the slowing rate of construction,” said Scott Turner, president of the Home Builders Association of Greater Austin, in the report. “It is harder than ever for builders to complete homes on time due to a lack of both materials and labor. It takes almost twice as long to build than it did prepandemic, so we are building less housing per year, despite our best efforts.”

While the median sales price of a residential property in Northwest Austin decreased slightly from $540,000 in December to $531,250 in January, this represents a 14.2% year-over-year increase since January 2021.

Additionally, the total sales dollar volume in January topped $61.7 million, a 11.9% decrease over the same month the previous year.

On a regional level, both Travis and Williamson counties saw the median price of homes sold increase by more than $100,000 year-over-year. Median sales prices in Travis County rose 23.9% to $530,000 in January 2022, while median sales prices in Williamson County increased by 42.5% to $460,000.

“Austin’s unprecedented economic growth shows no signs of stopping, with announcements of new projects almost daily,” Turner said in the release. “While this is great for Austin long term, our capacity to house people cannot keep up, with people having to drive further outside city limits to find a home they can afford.”