The U.S. economy continues to expand, with cities like Austin leading the way. But while jobs reports show improvement, the U.S. housing market cooled slightly at the start of summer.
Some of that has to do with low inventory and rising prices. But, while the U.S. and Austin both logged slight slowdowns in June, the markets remain healthy after years of strong growth.
But, real estate isn’t just about the numbers. We’ve collected stories on the cities with the most million dollar homes, as well as news items about hot markets and even an island for sale.
Learn about that and more in our July real estate news roundup.
Finally, Your Own Island
Whether you’re retiring or just want a place to get away from it all, it’s hard to argue against buying an entire island for yourself. Now, you’ve got a chance. You just need roughly $85 million to pay for it. The home on an island in the Bahamas, called Little Pipe Cay, has five homes across 38 acres. It’s not too far from Johnny Depp’s island, Forbes reported. The home used to be owned by former Ford Motor Co leader Michael Dingman.
Austin’s Tallest?
Austin’s skyline seems to change each week. Now, Curbed reports one proposed building may stand taller than any other. A proposal for a building at 600 Guadalupe shows a 66-story building that stands 837 feet tall. That would tower over the 683-foot Austonian, currently the city’s tallest. Frost Bank Tower, meanwhile, is 515 feet tall.
2 Austin Communities Rank in Nation’s Top 50
Siena, a development in Williamson County, and Sunfield, a development in Hays County, ranked among the top 50 top-selling master-planned communities in the country. The rankings, by RCLCO Real Estate Advisors’, who Siena logged 182 sales this year, so far. Sunfield, meanwhile, had 174 sales, according the ABJ.
Austin Home Sales Cool Slightly
For the first time in five years, Austin home sales in June showed a year-over-year decrease in home sales. It was a small decrease that follows years of big gains. Still, the 2.7 percent year-over-year decline in sales in June made headlines mostly because they represent a change from the month-after-month increases the metro area has become accustomed to in recent years. The Austin Board of Realtors latest figures from June showed 3,299 homes sold. The median price of $326,250 marked a 4.9 percent increase over the median price a year ago in June. The decline was more pronounced within Austin city limits where home prices are higher. Sales decreased by 4.5 percent in June. Median prices in the city, meanwhile, fell by 0.4 percent year-over-year to $388,000.
Austin Tops Dallas for Million Dollar Homes
No secret, Austin home prices have been climbing fast. Now, a new report by LendingTree shows that Austin ranked No. 11 in the nation for percentage of homes priced at $1 million or more. That made it the top city in Texas, above No. 14 Houston and No. 18 Dallas. San Antonio, meanwhile, ranked No. 39. San Jose, Calif. Topped the list, with 54 percent of homes listed at more than $1 million.
New Home Sales Down Nationwide
Fewer people were buying new homes in June. In fact, new home purchases hit their slowest pace in eight months, according to a new report from Bloomberg. Sales fell about 5.3 percent. Meanwhile, median prices also came down slightly, decreasing by 4.2 percent year-over-year to $302,100.
Surprisingly Hot Home Markets
Realtor.com updated its list of hot real estate markets, and some of the high-ranking cities might surprise you. Coming in at No. 1 was Midland, Texas. Meanwhile, Columbus, Ohio; Boston; Fort Wayne, Indiana; and Boise City, Idaho rounded out the top of the list.