The Downtown Austin Neighborhood Association (DANA) is holding its 4th Annual Downtown Living Tour Sunday, September 30th, from noon to 5 pm. The event, which typically attracts more than 1,000 visitors, showcases homes and the benefits of living in downtown Austin. This year’s tour will feature a combination of existing residences, units in new buildings,…
News
Austin real estate news combined with editorial and opinion.
Jumbo Mortgage Rates Spike
The mortgage crisis is now front page news all across the United States. While conforming loans remain okay — primary loans with values below $417K and full income documentation for buyers with solid credit – the investor market for everything else is in trouble. The result is a rapid rise in rates. As for the…
Mortgage Crisis Hits Austin
Over the last two days, the Austin lending market has changed dramatically for the worse. As the subprime lending crisis has evolved into a global problem—the bankruptcy of two large lenders seems to have tipped the scales — the market spotlight has turned a negative eye on every participant in the residential mortgage market. As…
Austin Crane Shortage
Austin’s KXAN is reporting tonight that an acute shortage of cranes and crane operators is complicating high-rise construction in Austin. We’ve heard numerous reports from developers that a scarcity of construction labor — and skilled general contractors and sub-contractors — is leading to escalating constructions costs, and higher condo prices in the end. According to the story: “There’s no…
W Austin Condo Update
The W Hotel & Residences continues to make progress. They are now actively selling units ad have completed nearly 200 meetings for the 206 planned units in the 36 story tower. Supposedly, they have taken firm reservations for somewhere between 20-35% of the units. The W is offering 19 different floor plans ranging in size…
Monarch Switches to Condos
As predicted , Monarch has officially announced that they are switching their project from all-rental to all-condo. This is big news, It’s indicative of both the hot condo market and the weakness of the high-end downtown rental market. The 29-story building at 805 West fifth street, is located just a block from Whole Foods. The buidling,…