Forbe’s has just announced the top-10 most recession-proof cities and two central Texas cities made the top 3!  #2 was San Antonio and #3 was Austin.

1. Oklahoma City, OK - Falling unemployment rates, strong housing market, and growing agriculture make OKC a great buy.
2. San Antonio, TX - Growing industry, undervalued but climbing prices on homes, and new businesses keep San Antonio on the rise.
3. Austin, Texas - The median home price is up 6.4%, unemployment is down to 3.6% from 3.8%, and out economic growth continues.  We no longer depend on one or two main companies ( like Dell) to survive.  We have a bustling business sector.

I still don’t recommend playing the housing market like the stock market unless you are dedicated to being an investor, but I would like to show you yet another bit of proof that the housing bubble is absent in Austin.  Don’t stress over your home’s value!  You can make a great deal of wealth in real estate if you can learn to take everything you hear with a grain of salt.  Investing and moving every few years can build a great deal of wealth, but is not for everyone.

Just rest assured that Austin is an amazing city that is keeping your home’s value in a steady state of growth.  Think of it as a Blue-chip stock rather than a Tech Stock!

Tags: austin, austin real estate, economy, financial planing, hot market, housing by Aria
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Don’t forget that there is more to vote for this year than a president! Politics aside, Texans over 65 years of age could use your support.

In the May election, there will be an amendment for your ballot to correct an error made previously in 2005 when property taxes were reduced by 1/3 for the 2006 and 2007 tax years (don’t forget, property values went up city-wide, so net taxes often went up). Don’t blame this on the elderly, who are the victims of the error attached to this bill.

The State caps property taxes for those who are age 65 or older, or who are disabled. They did not receive the same reduction that the rest of us received when the tax cut for schools passed in 2005.

Early voting will take place April 30 - May 5 from 7 am to 7 pm;
May 6 from noon to 6 pm and May 7 - May 8 from 7 am to 7 pm.

Tags: austin, austin real estate, estates, financial planing, homestead exemption, housing, info, money, planning, responsibility, retirement, savings, tax, voting by Aria
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 So what was the real story with Austin’s Real Estate Market?  Is the bottom really going to fall out?  And why hasn’t it yet?  I feel like a broken record sometimes, but the falling prices we keep hearing about on the news are in totally different markets in the east and west coasts.  In these areas, prices flew up by 200, 400, and even 600%.  So it’s really no surprise that home prices have fallen in these markets.  Here in Austin, we’ve stayed smart as always.  Prices consistently rise, on average, 4-6% each year.  What we’re seeing in Austin right now is a slow-down, and after the huge boom we saw that peaked in 2006, it really shouldn’t be a surprise.  Prices were still climbing steadily in this period, but there were many, many more new homes built to meet a rising demand, and do-it-yourself HDTV fans flocked to invest in their own “flip” projects.  At some point in early 2007, supply met demand, but some were still creating supply.  And projects begun late in 2006 still had to be finished before being placed on the market.  Some areas of Austin saw this more than others, and in particular, Central Austin, East Austin, and South Austin saw the biggest booms.  Suburbs saw more production, but not on the scale of these urban areas of Austin.  Now, we’re waiting for demand to catch up with supply.  We are currently in a buyer’s market, but not on the gloom and doom scale of other parts of the country (or even Austin in previous recessions).  If I was thinking of buying a home, I would buy now while deals are good, sellers are willing to negotiate, and the market has some catching up to do.  If I were a seller in this market, I would be ready to be patient, and prep my house to it’s absolute peak, hiring professionals to make sure that everything is at it’s absolute best — the best way to ensure that when a house does sell in your neighborhood, it’s yours.

 I am still confident that there is no reason to panic.  Austin has grown to the point that it can withstand most anything you can throw at it.  We have many, many different industries to sustain us.  There are advantages to out-growing the medium-city way of life and I believe we are seeing it now.  New construction has slowed but is still strong.  The best builders out there will survive and others will move to a different industry.  This is a strong city now!

Keeping you up-to-date,

Aria Schoenfelt McIntosh
http://liveaustinrealestate.com
(512) 771-1776

Tags: austin, austin real estate, building, development, facts, financial planing, hot market, housing, living, market, money, planning, real estate, realtor, sales, savings, statistics by Aria
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Tags: austin real estate, credit, estates, financial planing, loans, money, savings by Aria
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