The Austin housing market continues to send a clear message: buyers have leverage, sellers are adjusting, and the balance of supply and demand is reshaping expectations. With inventory levels climbing and buyer activity not keeping pace, the latest data shows a market that is moving slower than historical averages, even as affordability improves compared to the 2022 peak.

Market Overview

As of August 28, 2025, Austin’s active residential listings stand at 17,341, just shy of the summer high of 18,146 seen at the end of June. That’s a 15.8% increase from this time last year when inventory was below 15,000. Nearly 59% of homes on the market have already had at least one price drop, underscoring that sellers are competing harder for fewer buyers.

Year-to-date, 37,336 new listings have hit the market, up 5.2% compared to 2024 and a significant 24.2% above long-term averages. This flood of new supply hasn’t been matched by demand. Pending contracts year-to-date total 30,473, which is down 3.2% from last year, even though the raw August pending count of 4,271 is 5.8% higher than last year’s 4,038. In other words, more homes are available and more are being listed, but overall absorption remains sluggish.

The Activity Index, which measures demand relative to supply, is at 19.8%, a drop from 21.2% last year. For context, a healthy balanced market typically tracks closer to the mid-20s. This drop confirms that while buyers are active, they aren’t keeping pace with the expanding supply.

Housing Prices

Price trends continue to reflect the multi-year correction. The average sold price now sits at $593,779, down nearly $88,000 (-12.9%) from the May 2022 peak of $681,939. The median sold price has dropped even further in percentage terms, sitting at $450,000, which is a $100,000 decline (-18.2%) from the same May 2022 peak of $550,000.

Looking back three years, median sold prices are 9.3% lower than they were 36 months ago, showing that this isn’t just a short-term dip but a broader recalibration of values. The correction has hit the lower tier more noticeably than the luxury market. In the bottom quartile, home prices are down 1.2% year-over-year, with price per square foot down 3.3%. At the top end, prices are actually up 7.3% year-over-year, holding steady on a per-square-foot basis.

For homeowners and investors, the long-term view remains steadier. The 25-year compound annual appreciation rate for Austin housing is 4.981%, and if today’s median price of $450,000 represents the “bottom,” then using historical averages it would take about 52 months—until November 2029—for prices to climb back to $550,657.

Regional Trends

Inventory growth isn’t uniform across the Austin area. The city of Austin itself has 5.33 months of inventory, up from 4.90 a year ago, an 8.8% increase. Suburban areas have seen even sharper increases. Smithville’s supply doubled year-over-year, while Jarrell, Burnet, and Leander all recorded inventory growth above 65%. By contrast, markets like Buda, Lockhart, and Taylor have actually seen slight declines in available inventory compared to last year.

These city-level differences matter for buyers and sellers alike. In fast-growing inventory markets, sellers are under heavy pressure to price competitively and offer concessions. In the tighter submarkets, demand is still outpacing supply, giving sellers more room to hold firm on pricing.

List-to-Sale Price Performance

One of the clearest signals of today’s market is the high share of price reductions. With 59% of active listings marked down at least once, buyers are negotiating aggressively and sellers are adjusting expectations to secure contracts. This is showing up in the absorption metrics: the sold-to-active ratio is just 13.4%, well below the historical average of 31.8%, reflecting how much more difficult it is to move homes compared to past years. The Market Flow Score (MFS), a broad measure of turnover and demand strength, sits at 3.75, well below the historical average of 6.59. This reinforces the idea that while the Austin housing forecast remains positive long term, the near-term conditions heavily favor buyers.

Peak Value Trends

Austin home values remain well below the frenzied highs of 2022, and the correction has now stretched into more than two years. The median price decline of 18% is steep but not unusual compared to other overheated U.S. markets. Importantly, values have stabilized in recent months, suggesting that the worst of the drop may be behind us, though recovery is likely to be gradual rather than sharp. For buyers, this market represents opportunity: more choices, greater negotiating leverage, and prices that are significantly below the highs of just three years ago. For sellers, it is a reminder that pricing realistically and preparing homes well is essential to stand out in a crowded market.​

Scroll down to view the full Austin Daily Real Estate Briefing PDF for August 28, 2025.