Roundup of Recent Real Estate News
Housing & Design Trends
For the past few decades, the home buying trend has been to downsize and simplify. But with COVID-19 still making an impact in our daily lives, and more people working from home and going out less often, homebuyers are taking a second look at their living spaces – and deciding to go bigger. Multi-million dollar country estates with acreage and homes with multiple offices, gyms, media centers and rooms that can serve as dedicated classrooms for children are selling quickly – sometimes as soon as the day they hit the market.
From their cities and homes around the globe, Architectural Digest’s top talents reflect on a changing world, their creative process, and the future of design.
New FICO Resilience Index
If, like many home buyers, you were enticed by the low pandemic induced APR but had your chances to score a loan marred by less than stellar credit ratings, some good news may be on the horizon: a new credit index released by Fair Isaac Corp. (FICO) potentially makes it easier for borrowers to get a mortgage loan.
Austin Soon to be the 10th Largest City
As population numbers continue to grow, Austin is approaching a major milestone sooner than expected, and will join Houston, San Antonio and Dallas in an elite club — the 10 largest cities in the U.S. Austin is currently trailing No. 10 San Jose, but a new projection from the City of Austin indicates that sometime next year Austin will make the leap into the top 10.
The First Tiny Home Agrihood in the Country
Forget a community pool or golf course: not only does Village Farm Tiny House Community in Austin embrace the trend of tiny homes and self sustainability, the planned community will feature Green Gate Farms – a communal farm – as its main amenity. This “agrihood” will be the first of its kind in central Austin, and quite possibly the first in the country.
Travis County is at the Top of Tesla’s “Gigafactory” List
Innovative auto manufacturer Tesla is considering Austin’s Southeast Travis County as the top contender for its next $1.1 billion dollar Gigafactory. Negotiations are underway for the megaplex, which would provide 5,000 jobs, but due to the high cost of its state of the art equipment, Tesla wants something in return: a 20 year property tax break.
Amazon’s Continued Growth
Not to be outdone, e-commerce giant, Amazon, continues to expand its Austin footprint with what sources say is one of the largest industrial leases ever in Austin. Interestingly, the area, which is roughly the size of 5 Walmart stores, may be used mainly for parking. Good news for job seekers—according to Amazon’s job board, Amazon currently has 336 open positions in Austin.
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