Real Estate 2021

The 2021 Real Estate Market

Long hours, bidding wars, long lines for open houses, and more. It’s been a record-breaking year for Austin and San Antonio and there are still six more months to go.

If you’ve been following the real estate news recently, then you have definitely seen a plethora of articles describing the unusual situation we’re all in. What is typically a busy time of year has escalated due to the pandemic and we’re now in a climate that has been referred to by some experts as “The Real Estate Wild West.” We’ve heard stories from realtors stating that they have had 20+ offers on a house in an hour and if they don’t respond to the best ones as quickly as possible, the entire conversation can change. Buyers are flirting with many properties at once, making it challenging for agents to operate as they normally do. From our point of view, we can confidently say that the market is HOT. 

According to CultureMap Austin, home sales in the city of Austin skyrocketed 51.4 percent in April 2021 compared to April 2020. As you may remember the city was under shelter-in-place orders, which caused the 2020 numbers to be fairly low, however, April’s home sales figure (1,167 sales) was an all-time high for any April on record. Also, the median home price in Austin soared 31.7 percent in April to $550,562 – the highest price ever recorded. By comparison, in February 2021, just two months prior to April, the city’s median price made waves as it neared the $500,000 mark for the very first time.

In April 2021, San Antonio’s average home price shot up 22 percent year-over-year to $333,671, and the median home price jumped 15 percent to $277,000. Those increases also represent significant month-over-month growth: In March 2021, the average home price sat at $316,971, while the median price was $268,500. Also, homes are spending much less time on the market, too, an average of only 36 days compared to 61 days a year ago.

Even though our world of real estate is intense now, especially in these two areas, it’s constantly evolving, which is why it’s important for both sellers and agents to be set up for success in the future.

Foreseeing the Coming Months

Through our research, our Twist Tours Team can say that a big reason for homes selling above the normal asking price is due to low inventory. In the next few months, as the world returns to a more “normal” state of being, we expect inventory to increase again, which would cause home prices to decrease. According to Susan Horton, 2021 ABoR president, back in May, “Housing inventory was slightly higher in April than in March, and the pace of home price appreciation month to month is slowing, indicating that the rush on the housing market at the beginning of the year could be easing.” This change mirrors COVID-19 restrictions being decreased and people feeling more comfortable about transitioning to a new residence. 

Now, if you’re hearing this and you’re a seller, it’s understandable to question if you should have listed your home earlier. The great thing is – it’s possible to still create a high demand for your home right now, even as median prices change.

The Twist Tours Advantage

For those of you who don’t know, we are a real estate marketing company composed of photographers, videographers, drone pilots, and a wonderful office team that specializes in showcasing properties in Austin, San Antonio, & surrounding areas. Our services include 

The main purpose of our services is to help real estate agents get their sellers top dollar. Through capturing high-quality marketing collateral, we’re able to:

  • Create demand for properties
  • Decrease the time homes are on the market
  • Provide agents with wonderful single property websites & photos/videos to showcase on multiple listing websites or direct to potential buyers
  • Give realtors an edge. When an agent works with us, their seller can have the utmost confidence their home will be captured in its best light

Our 2021 Experience So Far

Over the past few months, we have streamlined our processes to be simple, easy to follow, and most importantly, quick. Our virtual tour & 3D scan services have become increasingly popular since potential buyers can learn about a house and fully visualize it without being present in the actual home (great for social distancing.) These products have yielded high click-through rates and greater interest in homes from remote buyers. Cutting-edge, unique product offerings have allowed us to help agents and sellers accomplish their goals, even as the state of our industry varied.

Outside of the world of real estate, we know times have been challenging. Virtually every industry has changed in one way or another (some for the good, some for the unfortunate), families faced hardships, and stress has been a common feeling among individuals since at some times, it seemed like the pandemic would never end. We feel the pain that many of our family members, friends, and neighbors experienced and know that better days are on the horizon. We can get through this together.

To assist our clients, we’ve done our very best to be flexible. Whether that be rescheduling a shoot due to someone having COVID in a household to planning on taking photos at a time when no one else would be in a home, we’ve focused on establishing a safe environment for all. We know that we’re not “fully” back yet and will continue to listen to agents, research, and use our best judgment.

As the real estate market continues to transform, we will be researching, listening, and understanding so that we can offer the absolute best service possible to our incredible clients. We can’t thank those who have stuck with us over the past year enough. Your support genuinely means the world to us and inspires us to work hard every single day. 

If you have any questions regarding the real estate industries in Austin/San Antonio or would be interested in utilizing our Twist Team to take your listings to the next level, we encourage you to contact us here: https://www.twisttours.com/contact-us/