Good morning, Texas. Here’s what you need to know today. 

Your Weather Planner

The first half of our Friday will be the final hours of preparation before the winter weather moves in. Expect rain on and off through the day for much of the state. A winter storm warning and extreme cold warnings go into effect over the weekend as our winter storm begins to unfold. 

Get your 7-day forecast: Austin | San Antonio | Dallas

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Around Texas 

1. ERCOT issues Weather Watch ahead of cold temperatures, grid conditions expected to be ‘normal’

The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) has issued a Weather Watch for Jan. 24-27 ahead of incoming cold temperatures.

ERCOT says the Weather Watch is due to “forecasted below-freezing temperatures with the possibility of frozen precipitation, higher electrical demand, and the potential for lower reserves,” adding that grid conditions are expected to be normal during this period.

2. Airlines offer no-cost flight changes during winter weather threat

If you’re scheduled to fly out during the threat of severe cold weather this weekend, a few of the nation’s largest airlines are offering some relief.

Delta, American, Southwest and United Airlines are allowing passengers who are scheduled to travel starting Jan. 23 to change their travel plans at no extra cost.

3. TxDOT prepares roads for incoming winter weather

The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) has begun preparations in response to the incoming winter weather.

Texas Department of Transportation snow plows sit idle as a work crew, nearby, takes a lunch, Friday, Feb. 3, 2023, in Dallas. TXDOT continues cleaning off busy highways and streets that still have ice build up as the temperature is expected to dip down overnite in North Texas in the the low thirties. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez)

Around The Nation

1. Major winter storm will bring heavy snow and dangerous ice across the country this weekend

2. Border Patrol says it won’t leave Minneapolis until all undocumented immigrants are detained

3. Trump says deal framework would give U.S. ‘everything we wanted’ in Greenland

Deep in the Heart of Texas 

Kristine Crump, right, and her husband Todd clean up debris from fallen branches Friday, Feb. 3, 2023, in their northwest Austin, Texas, neighborhood. Nearly every house in the neighborhood had trees damaged by an ice storm earlier in the week. (AP Photo/Nell Carroll)

Austin Energy says it’s ready for the potential storm

Andrew Anstrom has vivid memories of the 2023 winter storm that left Austin covered in ice. He’s the owner of a tree service company and was out helping the community clean up their neighborhoods.

The ice and snow were so heavy that they caused trees to topple over onto homes, cars and power lines. The damage left over 400,000 Texans without power at the peak of the storm. Over 170,000 Austin Energy customers were without electricity, according to Austin Energy. The utility company reported that 10.5 million trees were damaged.

Over two years since the ice brought the city to a standstill, Austin Energy officials said their modernized program is leading to improvements.

AUSTIN, Texas — New research shows that the state’s real estate markets are still feeling the effects of recent building booms, especially in the capital city.

That’s just one of the many factors driving markets that an outlook from the Texas Real Estate Research Center at Texas A&M University explained. Daniel Oney, the center’s research director, said that while Austin is only approximately 13% of the apartment market in Texas, they have 22% of those unleased apartments. He explained that a developer in Texas will typically start a new apartment every time there are two new households in a market, but now they have an oversupply.

“Austin, for a while there were four apartments for every household that showed up,” Oney says. “So they were, they were building apartments at eight times the historical rate.”

While the leasing cost of some places has gone down in recent years, some rents remain pretty high, but renters can continue to see some concessions such as free gym memberships and other move-in deals.

Oney highlighted that this trend is also depressing rental rates for some houses.

“Someone that may have the financial means to rent a nice home, may decide ‘I can rent this brand-new shiny apartment and get six months’ rent free, so maybe I’ll just rent the apartment for a while longer,’” explained Oney. “So we know that landlords of single-family homes are also having to not raise rates at a minimum.”

Based on the current leasing speeds in Austin, researchers like Oney estimate it would take approximately three years to absorb all the existing units if no new apartments were added to the market, but that timeline, of course, depends on job and population growth.