AUSTIN, Texas, Jan. 25, 2016 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ — Luxury home sales continued to be one of the fastest growing housing segments in Texas’ largest markets in 2015, according to the 2016 Texas Luxury Home Sales Report released today by the Texas Association of Realtors. The report cited sales volume increases from 4.5 percent to 36.4 percent for homes sold at $1 million or more in Texas’ four major markets.
Leslie Rouda Smith, chairman of the Texas Association of Realtors, commented, “Texas’ economic prosperity continues to make luxury home sales one of the strongest sectors of the Texas housing market, particularly in the
$1 million to $1.5 million range. In some neighborhoods, the lot alone is well worth $1 million and up.”
A popular trend for homebuyers in this price class is to purchase homes on smaller lots but in more desirable locations and with higher-end amenities.
Jim Gaines, Ph.D., economist at the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University said, “Rising land and development costs are changing what today’s luxury market looks like, and many developers are now entering the high-end custom homebuilding market due to more expensive lot costs. Rising home prices across the state are also pushing more higher-end homes into the luxury market. Many homes priced in the $800,000 – $900,000 range a few years ago will now sell for more than a million.”
According to the report, the price-per-square-foot for luxury homes is often double or triple that of a typical single-family home, due to higher-end building materials and amenities. Furthermore, some homebuyers are purchasing older homes in prime locations for less than $1 million to demolish and rebuild a new home in its place.
The following describes trends in specific markets of Texas real estate.
The Houston market saw the highest amount of luxury home sales at 1,284 from January to October 2015, an increase of 4.5 percent compared to the same period in 2014. These sales represented almost two percent of overall home sales in this market.
Sales of $1M+ homes in Austin represented more than two percent of the overall housing market and saw a 16.3 percent increase in sales volume year-over-year. The median price for Austin homes in the luxury price class was $1,381,252, and the average amount of time it took to sell a luxury home was almost two months longer than the typical home.
In Dallas-Fort Worth, luxury sales grew 12.4 percent, rising to 1,088 homes sales from January to October 2015. The median price for luxury homes in Dallas reached $1,400,000. It took 37 more days for a luxury home in Dallas to sell compared to a typical home.
In San Antonio, $1M+ homes saw a 36.4 percent increase compared to the same time period in 2014. Although luxury homes accounted for less than one percent of the market, active listings increased 33 percent and median price was $1,298,375, the lowest compared to Austin, Houston and Dallas.
About the Texas Luxury Home Sales Report
Data for the Texas Luxury Home Sales Report is provided by the Data Relevance Project, a partnership among local REALTOR® associations and their MLSs, the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University, and the Texas Association of REALTORS®. The report analyzes trends in homes sold for $1 million or higher from January through October 2015 in the Metropolitan Statistical Areas for Austin, Houston, Dallas-Fort Worth and San Antonio. The Texas Association of Realtors distributes insights about the Texas housing market each month, including quarterly market statistics, trends among homebuyers and sellers, condominium and townhome sales, international trends, and more. To view these reports, visit TexasRealEstate.com.
About the Texas Association of REALTORS®
With more than 100,000 members, the Texas Association of REALTORS® is a professional membership organization that represents all aspects of real estate in Texas. We advocate on behalf of Texas REALTORS® and private-property owners to keep homeownership affordable, protect private-property rights, and promote public policies that benefit homeowners. Visit TexasRealEstate.com to learn more.
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