Austin tops 2 of Zillow’s year-over-year rankings

Austin is no.1… in home and mortgage increases.

For a 30-year fixed-loan on a typical Austin home, mortgage costs have jumped 63.2 percent year-over-year, according to the March Zillow Real Estate Market Report. Across the 50 largest metro areas in the U.S. analyzed by Zillow, every single one saw a double digit increase in mortgage costs compared to the same time last year. Nationwide, mortgage costs last month were 38 percent higher than in March 2021.

The Texas capital also topped the list in home value growth with a 42.7 percent increase. For reference, the nation as a whole saw a 20.6 percent spike year-over-year —the 12th consecutive month that a new record for annual price appreciation was set.

“Higher mortgage rates were anticipated this year, but the speed of their rise has been breathtaking,” said Zillow senior economist Jeff Tucker.

For the prospective homeowner, there was a silver lining in Zillow’s latest report— supply. Inventory rose substantially in March. Total listings jumped 11.6 percent from February, marking the biggest monthly gain since 2018. Coincidentally, newly pending sales in March also rose 11.6 percent year-over-year.

Though rising mortgage rates are compounding affordability challenges for potential homebuyers, the housing market has yet to hit a price ceiling that would diminish demand.

“March was the biggest test yet of whether enough buyers can meet the new asking prices to keep home values growing at a record pace, and the answer was, so far, yes,” said Tucker.

“There will be a point when the cost of buying a home deters enough buyers to bring price growth back down to Earth, but for now, there is plenty of fuel in the tank as home shopping season kicks into gear,” Tucker says.

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