Home prices in Austin have dropped $85,000 since last year, but San Antonio prices hold steady

Home prices in the Austin metro area have dropped $85,000 since last year, according to a new report from Redfin.

Austin was among the pandemic boomtowns. Redfin analysts say those pandemic prices were unsustainable and “are now coming back down to earth.”

The median home price in the Austin Metro has come down 15.3% from where it was at its peak in April of 2022 — $555,000.

It’s a trend seen across the country — just not to that extreme.

Nationally, the median sale price fell 4.1% year over year.

In San Antonio, the drop was even less significant — about 1.3%.

In April of 2022, the median home sale price for the San Antonio market was $325,000, according to Redfin figures. It dropped to $320,604 last month.

Across the country, high mortgage rates are keeping buyers and sellers from making moves.

“Elevated mortgage rates are preventing would-be buyers from buying and would-be sellers from selling. And because sellers aren’t selling, the buyers who are out there have very limited options,” said Redfin Chief Economist Daryl Fairweather. “Home prices are faltering due to sluggish homebuyer demand, but the shortage of homes for sale is preventing them from falling as much as they did in the Great Recession. In some places, there are so few listings that prices are actually rising as a limited pool of buyers competes for an even more limited pool of homes.”

But Texas’ big cities, outside of Austin, are faring better than most across the country, Redfin data shows. Texas metros made the list of places with the smallest decline in new listings. The state also issued more residential building permits last year — 263,000 — than any other state.

“In the Fort Worth area, all of the new construction means buyers aren’t hindered by a lack of new listings. They’re building all over and in various price ranges,” said local Redfin real estate agent Gena Campbell. “Still, home prices aren’t low enough for everyone. Many people—especially first-time homebuyers—can’t afford to buy a home due to the rise in mortgage rates and property values.”

More on KSAT: