Austin Number Two Market for Real Estate Prospects

Austin is the second top U.S. market to watch for overall real estate prospects, ranking fourth for real estate investment, first for real estate development, and second for real estate homebuilding, according to the Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2016, the 37^th such report published by PwC and the Urban Land Institute.

While the 2016 outlook for all property types in Austin received good-to-excellent ratings, single-family and retail were particularly favored. Compared to “24-hour cities,” the Austin market boasted a lower cost of living, particularly in housing, combined with strong growth potential.

The report says Austin is “an attractive place to live for all generations” and that it continues to benefit from diverse job creation ranging from service jobs to higher-end STEM and technology, advertising, media, and information (TAMI) positions. The report said Austin’s job growth has been highest in its core, which is in alignment how the majority of the top 40 U.S. metropolitan areas have grown “during the Great Recession and in the immediate post-recession years.”

The only concern noted was in public and private investment. “It may be that the market is growing faster than the local infrastructure.”

The report also noted that cities like Austin and San Antonio are becoming “hip” for global and domestic investors. A reason cited was their ranking in the top ten markets for entrepreneurship in the 2015 Kauffman Foundation Study. It also said Austin is a target market for coworking spaces and that Austin has the highest number of millennials out of the surveyed cities.

Dallas/Fort Worth climbed four spots from last year’s survey to take the top spot for overall real estate prospects. Houston fell from the top spot to the thirtieth, mainly from concerns over the oil industry.