Austin has weathered the housing downturn much better than most of the
United States, but not all market segments are rosy. All real
estate is hyper-local, with market conditions varying widely from one
neighborhood to another, even within a very strong local and regional
market. One market segment that has suffered in the
Austin/Central Texas market over the past few years is multifamily
housing -- i.e., duplexes, triplexes, and fourplexes. This chart
highlights the difference between our single family housing market and
the multifamily market:
The peak in multifamily sale prices in 3rd Quarter 2006 is obvious, and
with the exception of a failed resurgence one year later the trend has
been clear for more than three years. At the same time, median
pricing in the single family market, while erratic, has continued to
trend upward. (See www.AustinMarketDashboard.com for more details,
updated monthly.)
Averages always conceal the extremes, and in this case the extremes can
be dramatic. I have clients who own duplexes that have lost 35%
or more of their value during the timeframe covered by the chart above,
even though the purchase prices at the time were well-supported by
gross rents and comparable sales, and even though gross rental incomes
today would still justify those higher values. Without any doubt,
very weak demand for these properties is the reason for the decline in
values, but demand for single family homes has also been down, although
not nearly as significantly as in the multifamily market:
Sales of multifamily properties have declined almost twice as fast as
sales of single family homes, and time on market has quadrupled!
However, notice that sales volume stabilized over the past three
quarters of 2010 -- a sign of a turning tide.
At the same time, leasing activity has been relative unscathed:
Lease volume and pricing of both the single family and multifamily
properties are up, albeit by relatively small margins. That said,
a decline in rental income opportunities does not explain the reduced
demand for multifamily properties, or for their decline in value.
Without speculating on why this disparity exists, what this data
indicates is an opportunity to buy multifamily properties at
significantly reduced values, and therefore with stronger net cash flow
results than just a couple of years ago. The strength of current
gross rents, and the stability in multifamily pricing for most of last
year, suggest that we have seen the bottom of this cycle. New
project announcements and building permits for multifamily construction
(including substantial additions to the inventory of available
apartment units) show that large investors and developers are betting
on coming growth. Now is the time for smaller investors to take
advantage of the trend as well.
Huntington Beach, Newport Beach, Seal Beach, Irvine REALTOR - Huntington Beach, CA
Huntington Beach & Newport Beach Coastal Specialist
Hi Bill, Austin is a great area, and I think it's perfect for an investment property. Great post.
Mar 20, 2011 05:49 AM
RE/MAX Capital City - Austin, TX
ABR, CRS, CDPE, ePRO, MBA
Thanks, Rob. I love Southern California, too, but you have certainly felt the brunt of this housing downturn. Here's to a great 2011!
Mar 20, 2011 06:04 AM
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