Austin Luxury Group

Owner's Zeal for Curb Appeal May Pay Off

Demand for outdoor features continues to boom, but which projects stand to earn the most at resale? A report conducted by The National Association of Realtors takes a deep dive into why homeowners complete outdoor remodeling projects, the value of t…

Austin Tops List of Cities Least At-Risk for Housing Market Decline

ATTOM, a curator real estate data, released a Special Housing Risk Report spotlighting county-level housing markets around the United States that are more or less vulnerable to declines based on home affordability, foreclosures, and other measures i…

Why experts say April will be the best time to sell in 2023

According to realtor.com, the best time to sell this year will be April 16-22. Sellers who list their homes during this window could boost their sale price by as much as $48K, if they come prepared with quality repairs, high-ROI updates, and st…

COMPASS named #1 Brokerage- Again!

Compass is #1! I am pleased to share that – for the second year in a row Compass remains the LARGEST brokerage in the United States in terms of closed sales volume (RealTrends 3/9/23).   In a little over 10 years, Compass went from n…

The State of The Luxury Real Estate Market

    In summary: We believe that there is a strong argument that buyers are now in their best position to buy- rates are lower than they will be this summer and inventory levels might be as good as they get, while sellers are still concern…

Why Austin is Still Among Top U.S. Markets for 'Ultra-Luxury' Homes

Austin tends to show up on a lot of "top 10" lists. Now it's adding one more notch to its belt. Austin ranked No. 7 in the nation for sales of "ultra-luxury" homes, or houses priced at $10 million or more, according to a report by residential real e…

4 Predictions From Leading Real Estate Economists On What To Expect From The Housing Market

Some aspiring homebuyers are in for some much-needed relief. “Right now might appear more appealing to some buyers because, recently, the housing market has been cooling. Prices are dropping in many areas, housing supply is rising, sellers are…

Mortgage Rates May Ease as Modest Fed Rate Hike Could Be Its Last

Mortgage rates have room to ease after Federal Reserve policymakers stuck to the script Wednesday, approving the smallest interest rate hike in nearly a year and signaling that the central bank is close to wrapping up its year-long rate-hike campaig…

COMPASS Ultra Luxury Report feat. Gary & Michelle Dolch / Austin Luxury Group

6 Reasons Why Compass CEO Believes Q4 Was The Bottom of The Market

      "For the first time in 10 months, all the statistics I look at are trending positively."   - Compass CEO, Robert Reffkin                   Robert Reffkin recently appeared on…

Household Real Estate Value Continues to Climb in Q3

At the end of 2022, data from the Federal Reserve showed that home equity and value hit a new high despite slowed home price growth. The total value of owner-occupied homes reached a massive $41.9 trillion, and over the past year, home val…

7 Kitchen Improvement Projects That Offer the Best and Worst Return on Investment

When taking on a kitchen renovation, wouldn’t it be nice to decorate to your heart’s content without any regard for what will appeal to future buyers? You might be in love with the idea of a built-in rotisserie oven or a tile backsplash …

2022's Top Relocation Destinations

U-Haul's transaction data for 2022 shows that the majority of its one-way rentals headed to popular southern and southeast regions, with Texas, Florida, and the Carolinas topping the list. Demand for equipment out of California, Illinois, and New Yo…

Celebrating 10 Years of COMPASS

A letter from our Founder and CEO, Robert Reffkin:   As we celebrated the first decade of Compass, I couldn't be more excited, focused and confident about building for the next decade — continuing this incredible journey that has already …

Top 10 Things To Do When Buying or Selling A Home

2022 Homebuyers: Don't Forget to File Homestead Exemption!

Homestead exemptions remove part of your home's value from taxation, so they lower your taxes. All residence homestead owners are allowed a $40,000 exemption from their home's value for school taxes. Individuals age 65 or older or dis…

16 Design Moves That Could Hurt Your Home’s Value

One advantage in buying—or building—a home is the ability to customize it. Whether you’re building the home from scratch, or renovating it to be more modern and functional, designing a home to your specifications can definitely mak…

Rising Stars: Meet Jeannie Garr Roddy

Today we’d like to introduce you to Jeannie Garr Roddy. Hi Jeannie, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story? I was born in Pasadena, California, and fell in love with Austin upon a visit to UT with my son te…

14 Ways to Winterize Your Home

Whether you've winterized your home before or this is your first year in your new home, use this checklist to prepare for the cold weather. Protect Your Pipes Depending on the region of the United States you’re in, you’ll need to prot…

Top 5 Markets For Buyers And Sellers

The housing market is cooling, creating a more balanced market for buyers and sellers, according to a new Knock report. The housing market became more neutral in October, the first time since July 2020 that neither buyers nor sellers had an upp…

2022 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers

Picking up the 2022 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers can be a daunting task. There are 142 pages of content, and many charts span the 41-year history of the data set. This post helps you wade through some of the more striking changes. Here are a c…

'No housing bubble': An economist's top 10 predictions for 2023

'No housing bubble': An economist's top 10 predictions for 2023   1. There is no housing bubble Mortgage rates rose steeply in 2022 which, when coupled with the massive run-up in home prices, has some suggesting that we are recreating the …

Market Rebound Forecasted for 2024

NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun released his predictions for the housing market in 2023 and 2024.    Here are key takeaways from Yun's report:   He does not expect a significant decline in home prices for most of 2023, due…

10 Reasons Why Austin, Texas Is The Hottest Real Estate Market In The United States Right Now

Austin, Texas is one of the fastest growing cities in the United States. With more people flocking to Texas from many parts of the country, the city’s real estate market is amongst the hottest in the country right now. We’ll take a look …

Must-know Real Estate Trends Driving The Market in 2023

The Emerging Trends in Real Estate report, produced by PWC and The Urban Land Institute (ULI), has been the dominant voice in reporting the future of the industry for more than 40 years.  Given the market upheavals in the years since the COVID-…

November and December are Historically Best Months to Buy If You Want a Deal

NOVEMBER AND DECEMBER ARE HISTORICALLY 2 OF THE 3 BEST MONTHS TO BUY A HOME IF YOU WANT A DEAL: 6 ECONOMISTS AND REAL ESTATE PROS WEIGH IN ON WHETHER THAT TREND WILL HOLD IN 2022   Winter is coming. And in the case of real estate, that may be a…

Mortgage Rates Dip Below 7%

Mortgage rates slipped below 7% this week, but it wasn’t enough to boost housing activity as mortgage applications continued to decline amid the Federal Reserve hiking its benchmark interest rate for the sixth time this year.   …

Marry the House, Date the Mortgage Rate – Does It Work?

The average U.S. rate for a 30-year fixed mortgage reached a 20-year high of 7.08% in the final week of October, more than doubling from a year earlier, according to Freddie Mac (FMCC). Homebuyers aren’t happy. On a $350,000 home loan, a …

Report: Austin is now the 2nd fastest-growing city in the US

AUSTIN, Texas — A new report ranks Austin as the No. 2 fastest-growing U.S. city in 2022. The report, released Tuesday, is part of the launch of the "American Growth Project." The new initiative from the University of North C…

Interest Rates Increased 75 Basis Points, Still Below Historical Average

The Federal Reserve raised its short-term interest rate target by 75 basis points on Wednesday, November 2. That’s the fourth consecutive FOMC meeting that resulted in that large an increase. The fed funds target range is now 3.75% to 4.00%. W…

Inflation Driving Interests Rates

Fannie Mae & MBA Forecasts October 2022

Home prices in Austin Texas are slowly falling, but the long-term prospects for this central Texas city continue to rise

  Austin, Texas, fell from the No. 1 spot in 2021 to a predicted No. 10 in 2022 on Zillow's list of hottest housing markets in America. Tampa, Florida, has assumed the top spot, but Austin is still a very robust market. The capital c…

‘Unhealthy and unsustainable’: Homebuyers aren’t buying and homebuilders aren’t building in the face of untamed mortgage rates

U.S. mortgage rates crept up once again this week as demand for home loans tumbled, according to a pair of widely followed reports. Buyers and sellers are increasingly on edge as the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate — now more than double w…

The Fed addresses the “housing correction”

Until recently, the Federal Reserve has been reluctant to admit that a housing correction was coming. However, in a speech last week, Fed Governor Christopher Waller acknowledged that there may be a “material correction.” However, he all…

The Best Real Estate Returns Come After Recessions

Amid a slow down in the economy, higher financing costs, and mounting fears of a recession, real estate values are fast declining. But the downturn is an opportunity for investors who stick with their real estate holdings — or invest more &mda…

New Lawsuit Accuses Zillow of Wiretapping

A new class action lawsuit—one of several filed this month—accuses Zillow of violating consumer privacy. According to the complaint, Zillow uses Session Replay code to record every user interaction with the website. These actions also …

3 Steps to Stress-Free Home Buying

Key points   Buying a home can be a great financial move if you're ready for it. It can be stressful to make such a big financial commitment and to find the right property. Taking some smart steps, like doing your research and getting a pre-ap…

Why The Housing Market Is Not In Recession

Wharton real estate professor Fernando Ferreira doesn’t believe the U.S. housing market has entered a recession. Home sales are falling in response to rising interest rates, but there’s still a mismatch of supply and …

Buyers: You May Face Less Competition as Bidding Wars Ease

One of the top stories in recent real estate headlines was the intensity and frequency of bidding wars. With so many buyers looking to purchase a home and so few of them available for sale, fiercely competitive bidding wars became the norm during th…

Goldman Sachs Forecasts The U.S. Housing Market Downturn Will Be worse in 2023

The Fed’s fight against inflation, coupled with changing household formation habits, will have long-term consequences for the housing market. At least, according to Goldman Sachs’ latest market prediction for 2022 through 2023. Here…

Will the Real Estate Housing Market Continue to Grow in the Next Year?

In July, the Federal government announced another 0.75% interest rate hike. So, if you’re considering applying for a new home loan in 2022, you can expect to pay a lot more for your mortgage. This is sure to impact the real…

The Top 10 Cities Where Housing Supply Is Climbing the Most

Today’s housing market is one of the strangest that many real estate experts have ever seen. After years of bone-dry inventory and sky-high demand that led to soaring prices, bidding wars, and a breakneck sales pace, the market is correcting&m…

72% of recent homebuyers have regrets about their purchases. As the market cools, these steps can help you avoid disappointment

KEY POINTS: The hot seller’s market in recent years prompted buyers to go above and beyond to seal the deals on their prospective homes, a recent survey finds. As the housing market shows signs of cooling, buyers would be wise to abandon short…

We’re in a ‘housing recession,’ experts say. Here’s what that means for homeowners, sellers and buyers

We’re in a ‘housing recession,’ experts say. Here’s what that means for homeowners, sellers and buyers.   KEY POINTS: Sales of existing homes were down last month by 20.2% to 4.8 million properties from 6 million a year …

Why the housing market is in recession in terms of sales — but not prices

July was an even more sluggish month for the U.S. housing market as sales of previously owned homes slipped by 6% from June and a whopping 20.2% year over year. Home prices are still high, though, with the median existing home sales price up 10.8% f…

Developers approved to start building 'legacy' $750 million mixed-use project in Hill Country

Green light given for 1,000+ homes, lots of commercial space in quaint town

Mortgage rates drop amid signs that inflation may have finally peaked

Mortgage rates ticked lower last week, falling back toward the 5% mark following economic reports that indicated inflation might have finally peaked. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged 5.13% in the week ending August 18, down from 5.22% the …

6 Reasons to Hire a Real Estate Agent When Selling a Home

Are you thinking of selling your home? If so, you may be wondering if you should hire a real estate agent. There are several benefits to using a real estate agent when selling your home, including getting the best price for your home and finding the…

How These 5 Billionaires Used Real Estate To Build Their Empires

      In April, Forbes produced an article outlining the industries that produced the most billionaires. The list included some of the biggest names in the world: Warren Buffett (finance and investing), Je…

Is Real Estate a Good Investment?

Investing in real estate has plenty of benefits. A steady flow of extra income, relatively low volatility and the appreciation in the value of properties are factors that make real estate a good investment. But, there are also some downsides. Real e…