I was reading in the Austin Business Journal about the population growth for Austin over the 15 years making it the highest growth city in Texas.  With that growth, it is likely that the demand for homes will outpace the number homes available. Builders will have to also have to increase their building substantially as the demand new housing units goes up. This will also cause real estate  prices to increase across the Austin area due the excess demand.

if you are thinking about buying a home right now in this market, it is to your advantage to do it before that high growth kicks in otherwise you will be spending more money for a home. (see the complete article below)

AUSTIN (Austin Business Journal) – The population of the Austin metro area is projected to grow by more than 2.7 million by 2025, according to an analysis by bizjournals.

Austin’s projected growth rate ranks fifth among 250 U.S. metros studied.

Bizjournals forecasts an 87 percent growth rate from the area’s 2005 estimated population of 1.5 million to a 2025 projected population of 2.7 million, giving it the highest growth rate of any Texas city.

The McAllen-Edinburg area is projected to be the second-fastest growing area in Texas with an estimated 56 percent growth in population.

Among other Texas cities:

Dallas-Fort Worth – 50 percent increase to 8.8 million

Houston – 48 percent increase to 7.9 million

San Antonio – 41 percent increase to 2.7 million

I often get questions from clients about remodeling. Some are just curious and others want to enhance the value of their home. The site below offers 8 good reasons to remodel. I liked because it covers all the bases for remodeling. I still advocate planning on having twice as much money as it’s going to cost for the remodel because of unforseen issues & overruns in the project. Remodeling without enough money is hell.

http://www.remodelormove.com/content/article/article.cfm/decide/eight_reasons_to_remodel

Units for Sale: (compared to March 2008)

New listings were down 12.40%. Pendings were down 12.15%. Solds decreased by 27.30%.

As for Average Prices:

The “New Listings” average list price is up 6.89% to 348,183. In March 2008 the average list price was $325,734. Sold average sales prices decreased 2.66% to $228,938. For March 2008 it was $235,198.

All you first time home buyers out there read this post about the Tax Credit you can get on your first home purchase. This explains the tax form you have to claim. It is – Everything you need to know about IRS form 5405. I think it is a must read. http://tinyurl.com/1stTimehomebuyers

Congress has enacted legislation providing a tax credit of up to $8,000 for first-time home buyers.

The tax credit is for first-time home buyers only.

The tax credit does not have to be repaid.

The tax credit is equal to 10 percent of the home’s purchase price up to a maximum of $8,000.

The credit is available for homes purchased on or after January 1, 2009 and before December 1, 2009.

Single taxpayers with incomes up to $75,000 and married couples with incomes up to $150,000 qualify for the full tax credit.