Since recovering from a dip in sales due to the pandemic, the Texas real estate market has rebounded nicely. Homes in the prime markets move from listing to offer in approximately three weeks on average. This is close to the national average of 23 days.
Let's take a closer look at the top markets in Texas as well as the factors that can affect how fast a home sells.
Hottest Housing Markets in Texas
Austin and Dallas lead the way with robust sellers' markets. Kathy De La Cruz, a top-selling Austin Realtor with RE/MAX, describes the scene in the state capital: "A week to 14 days, and they're gone. This is a trend we expect to last for the next two years."
Outside these prime markets, it takes longer to sell a house, up to two months in McAllen and 47 days in El Paso. The state average days on the market is 43 days.
Now that you know approximately how long it takes to sell a house in Texas, you may be interested to learn some of the factors that affect home sales in the Lone Star State.
Factors That Affect How Fast a Home Sells in Texas
Inventory
Inventory is the single biggest factor driving sellers' markets across the United States, and Texas is no exception. According to the Texas Real Estate Research Center, there is only a 1.7 month supply of available homes right now. Six months is considered a healthy amount of inventory, so there is a real scarcity of homes in the Lone Star State.
Low inventory has the most impact on the affordable home market, or properties under $300,000. Competition for homes in this price range can be fierce. Compounding the problem is the fact that low inventory drives up listing sales prices and causes bidding wars.
Location
If you're looking to become a Texas real estate agent, the first thing you'll learn is some locations are much more desirable than others. Texas's fastest-growing real estate markets are in the major metropolitan areas. These cities and their suburbs experience positive net migration and are thriving cultural hubs.
The further you get from Austin, Dallas, Houston, and university towns like College Station, the longer it takes on average for a home to sell. An exception may be real estate near recreational and coastal areas. For instance, pandemic fears have fueled sales in ranch land far removed from crowded cities.
However, even in popular tourist destinations like Galveston and Port Aransas, the pace of real estate sales is slower than in prime metropolitan areas.
Employment Opportunities
Some people come to Texas for warm year-round weather or to escape the high cost of living in states like California and Colorado. Others flock to Texas cities that have low unemployment rates and plenty of job opportunities.
The hottest real estate market in the Lone Star State is the greater Austin metropolitan area. A big reason why — the economy is thriving. The unemployment rate was 5.1% in December 2020, well below the state unemployment rate of 7.1%. The Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area's unemployment rate, 6.3%, is also lower than the state average.
Houston, on the other hand, had an unemployment rate of 8.0% at the end of 2020. This is one reason why the real estate market here is less competitive. In fact, according to Redfin, housing prices have dropped 17.2% year-over-year, and homes here go to pending after 68 days on average.
Low Interest Rates
They're a little higher than they were in 2020, when some lucky people were able to finance a mortgage for less than 2%. Nevertheless, interest rates remain near historic lows, giving homeowners more bang for the buck.
The desire to secure a loan at such low rates drives interest in the real estate market, keeping it competitive.