A Personal Approach To Relocation

The Relocation Professionals at The Boutique are ultimately in the people business.  Yes, it’s business, but it’s also very personal.

Relocation is much more than boxes and moving vans.  People are uprooting their families and often leaving the city where they grew up and all the things that are familiar

to them.

Whether relocation is employment based or for other reasons entirely, Personal

Consultations are an invaluable part of our service.  Being able to open a dialogue with

our relocating clients and gain personal insight to their needs, requirements, and

concerns, enables us to remove some degree of stress from the process. 

Our role is to answer questions about Austin and its real estate market, neighborhoods,

infrastructure and schools.  As local experts, we are able to provide access to local

resources in order to provide as much assistance as possible for long or even short

distance moves.

Your business depends on having the right people in the right places and our business

is getting them there.  The Boutique Relocation Consultants are ready to assist with a

professional staff that provides customized relocation and real estate services for both

individuals and corporations.


For more details, contact Laura Macias at 512.659.5590 or laura@theboutiquerealestate.com.

Austin Area Home Sales Up by More Than 30 Percent For Second Consecutive Month

September 20, 2011 – According to the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) report released today by the Austin Board of REALTORS®, 1,978 single-family homes were sold in the Austin area in August 2011, totaling a 33 percent increase from August 2010. During the same time period, the median price for Austin-area homes was $200,000, a figure that was unchanged compared to the same month of the prior year.

Judith Bundschuh, Chairman of the Austin Board of REALTORS® commented, “With the impact of the homebuyer tax credits fully behind us, it’s encouraging to see three consecutive months of year-over-year growth in sales volume for Austin-area homes, particularly the strong growth seen late this summer.”

As reported previously, a total of 1,973 Austin-area homes sold in July 2011, which is 32 percent more than July 2010. Additionally, 2,145 single-family homes were sold in June 2011, nine percent more than June 2010.

Austin-area homes spent an average of 79 days on the market in August 2011, which is two days longer than August 2010. The Austin market also featured nine percent fewer new listings, 22 percent fewer active listings and 19 percent more pending sales than August 2010.

“The trend of decreasing inventory of single-family homes that we’ve seen in recent months accelerated in August 2011, dropping below six months of inventory for the first time since February 2011,” said Bundschuh.

The inventory of homes for a market can be measured in months, which is defined as the number of active listings divided by the average sales per month of the past 12 months. In August 2011, the Austin market had 5.7 months of inventory, compared to 6.9 months of inventory in August 2010. The Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University cites that 6.5 months of inventory represents a market in which supply and demand for homes is balanced.

The following sections describe trends in other sectors of the Austin real estate market.

Townhouses & Condominiums

The volume of townhouses and condominiums (condos) purchased in the Austin area in August 2011 was 215, which is 16 percent more than August 2010. In the same time period, the median price for condos was $162,000, one percent less than August 2010. When compared to the same month of the prior year, these properties spent 30 percent longer on the market, or an average of 107 days.

Leasing

In August 2011, 1,949 properties were leased in Austin, three percent more than August 2010. The median price for Austin-area leases was $1,300, seven percent higher than the same month of the prior year.

August 2011 Statistics

• 1,978 – Single-family homes sold, 33 percent more than August 2010.


• $200,000 – Median price for single-family homes, unchanged from August 2010.


• 79 – Average number of days single-family homes spent on the market, two days longer than August 2010.


• 2,386 – New single-family home listings on the market, nine percent less than August 2010.


• 8,705 – Active single-family home listings on the market, 22 percent less than August 2010.


• 1,789 – Pending sales for single-family homes, 19 percent more than August 2010.


• 5.7 – Months of inventory of single-family homes, 1.2 months less than August 2010.


• $516,797,994 – Total dollar volume of single-family properties sold, 31 percent more than August 2010.

2011 2nd Quarter Review - Austin Real Estate Market

Home prices in Austin remained stable during the second quarter of 2011. Compared to the previous year, the median price of Austin homes rose three percent in April and four percent in May, finishing with a median price of $205,000 by the end of June. In addition, June saw an increase of Austin home sales, nine percent more than June of 2010.

During the first half of the year, a total of 9,299 homes were sold in Austin, five percent fewer than the same period in 2010. However, pending sales, which indicate the number of sales likely to close in the next month, were higher in the second quarter when compared to 2010, with a 53 percent increase in May and a 31 percent increase in June.

Austin homes spent an average of 88 days on market (DOM) in April, 81 days in May and 75 days in June, marking the shortest DOM figures since the Fall of 2010. While these numbers indicate that Austin real estate spent more time on market than during the same period one year ago, they were the lowest DOM figures seen in Austin since September 2010.

"Looking at the results, it's encouraging to see that the demand for homes is strong and that Austin-area homes continue to hold their value," said Judith Bundschuh, Chairman of the Austin Board of REALTORS®. "The increase in pending sales…coupled with stable prices and stronger sales [in June], are encouraging signs that the market is returning to a pre-recession seasonal cycle."

Operation "Big Dawg"

The City of Pflugerville has hired a prominent consultant to be its confidential go-between in pursuing a huge employer that officials can’t speak of. The project's code name is "Big Dawg"

“What project Big Dawg is, no one knows, but we do know it’s a major employer, a big company that wants to establish a big Austin-area location,” editor of Austin Business Journal, Colin Pope, said.

I love the mystery of it all. Will keep you posted if any new clues arise.

We got jobs....

Tech Sector Still Growing in Austin

TEXAS' ECONOMIC RECOVERY CONTINUES, FIGURES SHOW

AUSTIN (Texas Association of Realtors) – According to the Texas Quarterly Housing Report released yesterday by the Texas Association of Realtors (TAR), Texas homes maintained their value in first quarter 2011. This despite a decrease in sales volume, indicating that economic recovery continues in Texas.

"While Texas has not been untouched by the recent economic downturn as indicated by the decrease in sales, it is encouraging to see home prices hold their value in the first quarter," said TAR Chairman Dwight Hale.

In the first quarter, the median price of existing single-family homes increased 1.3 percent to $143,300 compared with first quarter 2010. During the same period, the volume of home sales was 40,192, 7.3 percent less than the previous year.

"In evaluating the first quarter of 2011, we must remember we're comparing it to the first quarter of 2010," said Dr. Jim Gaines, research economist with the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University. "That time period included March, which was one of the most heavily government-stimulated months of the year by the homebuyer tax credit. While we expected sales to be down given this anomaly, we expected the decrease in the sales volume to be much greater, suggesting that the market is performing well despite the absence of tax credits."

Texas had 7.5 months of inventory in the first quarter, compared with 6.8 months a year ago.

"Texas is still performing considerably better than other states in terms of maintaining balance between home inventory and demand," Gaines said. "Combined with the fact that Texas has maintained strong property values, this indicates that the market is absorbing foreclosed and other distressed properties without experiencing harmful excess supply."