The 2018 HBA Housing Forecast provided US and global economic statistics and outlooks from UT Economist Dr. Greg Hallman, local economic factors and forecasts on housing from 360 Analytics’ Eldon Rude, and insight into the constantly evolving consumer from Kantar Future’s Lindsay Kunkle. Below are some takeaways from the conference, held at the AT&T Center on the UT campus on January 31, 2018.

Global and US Economy
Dr. Greg Hallman gave some statistics of what overall seems to be a healthy economy that is back to “full potential.” He predicts GDP growth of 2.5-3% in 2018 as we continue this long (101 month) period of expansion. That optimism is provided by the low unemployment rate across all levels of education, wage growth (although slow is outpacing…

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Using dollars per square feet ($/SF) may be the most misunderstood area of real estate. It’s not unusual for me to meet with a client and have them say something like “My neighbor’s home is 1,800 square feet and it sold for $310,000. My home is 3,600 square feet so it’s worth $620,000.”

But, that’s not how real estate works. In general a smaller home will sell for a higher $/SF. I’ve always had a hard time explaining that until I was meeting with a couple at the neighborhood coffee shop.



We each had a different size cup of coffee and each cup had a different price. You can see the smallest cup of coffee cost $.32 per ounce. The last 4 ounces for the largest cup only cost $.12 per ounce. The larger the cup of coffee the lower the cost per ounce.

The same…

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Austin has seen excellent price appreciation over the last few years. As a result many homeowners have decided to move up to a larger home and lease their current home. Before making that decision it’s good to have an understanding of what it costs to rent a home so you can make an informed decision about your property.

Renting a home is more than just multiplying the expected rent by 12 months. Here are some of the expenses you may incur if you decide to rent your home.

As always you should consult with your own tax and financial advisors. 

Opportunity Cost 

Perhaps the biggest expense of leasing your home isn’t something you have considered. Opportunity cost means by making one choice you can’t do something else. Not selling your home means…

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Single-family home sales declined across most of the Austin-Round Rock Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) in September, while inventory levels continued to increase, according to the September 2017 Central Texas Housing Market Report released today by the Austin Board of REALTORS®.

Brandy Guthrie, 2017 President of the Austin Board of REALTORS­® commented, “Despite last month’s dip in home sales activity, it’s important to remember that we’re comparing our current figures to the record-breaking housing market activity in 2016 and it’s not necessarily indicative of a downturn.”

Lawrence Yun, Chief Economist and Senior Vice President of Research at the National Association of REALTORS®, agreed: “Austin has had one of the fastest job growth…

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One of the neighborhood events I look forward to is the semi-annual Avery Ranch garage sale. This event happens in both the spring and the fall. The Late Summer 2019 Avery Ranch garage sale will take place on Saturdays, May 18th and September 28th, 2019 from 7AM-1PM.

With almost 4,000 homes in the neighborhood there will be plenty of homes selling items. This is a great opportunity to find clothes, toys, bikes and furniture.

If you are having a garage sale at your home feel free to leave your address and a list of items you are selling in the comment section below.

One piece of advice is to get started early. Cars will be lined up at 7AM and the great items will sell right away.

We are Avery Ranch homeowners and real estate experts. If you…

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In today’s highly competitive seller’s market where there are more buyers than there are homes for them to buy, some sellers may feel like the ball is in their court.

And they would be right when it comes to choosing which offer to accept, the closing date, or even which improvements they are willing to make to their house prior to selling.

One thing to remember though, is that there is always a line that shouldn’t be crossed.

Interest rates can change, financing might not go through, the appraisal might not come back at the price that you have agreed to. These are all opportunities to work with your buyer to make sure that the sale still happens.

You may think that, because buyer demand is so high right now, you can choose to make your…

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Single-family home sales volume experienced strong gains across the Austin-Round Rock Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) in May, while home sales dollar volume topped $1.2 billion and set an all-time high for sales dollar volume, according to the May 2017 Central Texas Housing Market Report released today by the Austin Board of REALTORS®

Brandy Guthrie, 2017 President of the Austin Board of REALTORS­®, commented, “Housing is the backbone of our region’s economy and the heart of our communities. Housing demand continues to be at an all-time high in and around Austin, indicated by steady growth in home sales and prices, listing activity and housing inventory. The concurrent gains in listing activity and inventory, in particular, are a positive sign…

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I’ve been in the mortgage or real estate business for 20 years and never knew this was possible. When buying a home if you have a 20% down payment you can pay your taxes and insurance yourself. However the mortgage company will usually charge you a one time upfront fee of .25%. For a $300,000 loan that is $750.

What I’ve recently learned is after making 12 payments you can request to have your escrow account refunded to you and pay your taxes and insurance yourself. So far I have not heard any mortgage companies charging to remove the escrow account but you should check with your own lender to be sure.

Paying your taxes and insurance isn’t for everyone but for people who can save the money instead of spending it there are advantages. Just make…

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One of the most difficult parts of my job is dealing with the advice from friends/family/co-workers. Occasionally I think it would be easier if I only worked with unemployed orphans with no friends.

Sometimes friends give advice because they genuinely want to help. Sometimes they give advice to make them feel important. Sometimes it's because they don't want you to do better than them. Like any Armchair Quarterback the advantage friends have is they are unencumbered with the need to be right.

I sold this house last week. 5 years ago I was working with a woman who has a young daughter and she was under contract for a home in the same neighborhood with the same floor plan. A great home within walking distance of a 10 rated elementary school for…

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When a home is inspected the inspector checks what’s called the differential. This is the difference in the temperature between the return and supply. 

Your AC can feel like it’s working perfectly but the differential can be outside of the inspector’s tolerance possibly indicating a problem. On the inspection report there will be a notation that “AC unit is not functioning properly. Recommend a licensed HVAC company inspect the system.”

If your home is over 5 years old and you’re selling your home to a first time homebuyer that can be enough to cause a panic. Worst case you may be opening yourself up to having an inspection done by a HVAC company that also sells systems and may be more likely to recommend a new HVAC unit.

Perhaps the differential…

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