COMING UP I'LL LET YOU KNOW
HOW HOT IT WILL GET 2-SYDNEY:
IT'S A SCARY HEADLINE.THE
AUSTIN-ROUND ROCK METRO.. ON
THE VERGE OF A HOUSING CRISIS.
THAT'S WHAT A COMPANY CALLED
24/7 WALL STREET SAYS.2-ROBERT:
THEY LOOKED AT HOW QUICKLY
AUSTIN'S HOME PRICES ROSE
AFTER THE 2008 MARKET CRASH
AND FOUND TOO MUCH GROWTH --
TOO FAST CAN BE DANGEROUS.
SO... SHOULD YOU BE WORRIED?
KXAN'S YOOJIN CHO GOT US SOME
ANSWERS. "THIS ONE'S IN CEDAR
PARK. THEY'RE ASKING $350,000
FOR IT."BROKER ERIC BRAMLETT
ISN'T SEEING ANY SIGNS OF THE
HOUSING MARKET SLOWING DOWN.
"IF THEY'RE PRICED RIGHT, THIS
TIME OF THE YEAR YOU'RE GOING
TO BE ON THE MARKET FOR 2-3
WEEKS."HE SAYS HE GETS ABOUT
500 CALLS A MONTH. ERIC
BRAMLETT, BROKER: "WE'RE
PRETTY LUCKY. OUR HOUSING
MARKET'S INCREDIBLY HEALTHY,
INCREDIBLY STRONG."VAIKE
O'GRADY WITH METROSTUDY TOLD
US YES, HOME PRICES HAVE BEEN
GOING UP, BUT THE PRICE IS
STABILIZING. VAIKE O'GRADY,
AUSTIN REGIONAL DIRECTOR AT
METROSTUDY: "SO THE AVERAGE
RESALE PRICE IN AUSTIN WAS
ABOUT $315,000 LAST YEAR.
THAT'S THE SAME PRICE IT IS
THIS YEAR."ANOTHER FACTOR THAT
AFFECTS THE HOUSING MARKET IS
INCOME. VAIKE O'GRADY:"WE'VE
SEEN THE MEDIAN INCOME IN
AUSTIN GO UP, AND AS A RESULT
THAT PINCH ASSOCIATED WITH
HIGHER HOUSING PRICES HASN'T
BEEN QUITE AS TIGHT AS IT
COULD BE."AND EXPERTS SAY
THERE IS ONE KEY DIFFERENCE
BETWEEN THE 2008 CRISIS AND
NOW. ERIC BRAMLETT:"LENDING
GUIDELINES IN 2007 IN
HINDSIGHT WERE INCREDIBLY
INSANE." "BELIEVE IT OR NOT IN
2007, THEY WERE NOT VERIFYING
WHETHER OR NOT SOMEBODY WAS
EMPLOYED BEFORE THEY WOULD
GIVE THEM A LOAN TO BUY A
HOUSE."BRAMLETT AND O'GRADY
BOTH SAY AT THIS TIME, AUSTIN
áISN'Tá NEARING A CRISIS
LEVEL. BUT THAT DOESN'T MEAN
THE HOUSING MARKET IS PERFECT.
VAIKE O'GRADY:"WE'VE BEEN
UNDERSUPPLIED FOR SUCH A LONG
TIME, AND WE'RE GETTING TO A
POINT NOW WHERE WE'RE GOING TO
START CATCHING UP, PRICES ARE
GOING TO START TO MODERATE."
ERIC BRAMLETT:"THE BIGGEST
ISSUE HERE IS GOING TO BE
TRANSPORTATION. WE REALLY NEED
TO GET OUR INFRASTRUCTURE TAKE
CARE OF."YOOJIN CHO KXAN NEWS.
ROBERT:ANOTHER SIGN THAT
THINGS AREN'T AS BAD AS THEY
MAY SOUND IS THE DECLINING
MORTGAGE DELINQUENCY RATE. THE
90-DATE RATE SHOWS BORROWERS
WHO MISSED THREE OR MORE
PAYMENTS.AS YOU CAN SEE, THAT
NUMBER IN CENTRAL TEXAS IS
SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER NOW...
COMPARED TO THE PEAK IN 2010.
SYDNEY:HOMEOWNERS AREN'T THE
ONLY ONES KEEPING AN EYE ON
RISING COSTS.RESEARCHERS FROM
THE ONLINE BLOG "RENT CAFE"
COMPARED RENT PRICES NEAR
UNIVERSITIES TO OTHER
NEIGHBORHOODS.THEY FOUND THAT
THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS HAS
THE SECOND-LARGEST DIFFERENCE
IN RENT COSTS COMPARED TO
OTHER MAJOR UNIVERSITIES IN
THE STATE.WITHIN ONE-MILE OF
CAMPUS -- THAT'S ABOUTANCHOR
THE SIZE OF THIS SHADED AREA
-- THE AVERAGE RENT BILL
CLOCKS IN AT MORE THAN
24-HUNDRED DOLLARS A MONTH.
OUTSIDE OF THAT CIRCLE, PEOPLE
PAY AN AVERAGE OF MORE THAN A
THOUSAND DOLLARS LESS. SYDNEY:
JUST HOURS AGO -- AUSTIN CITY
COUNCIL MEMBERS APPROVED A
FIVE-YEAR PLAN TO ACCESS 13
MILLION DOLLARS IN FEDERAL
HOUSING GRANTS.THAT MONEY
WOULD BE USED TO SUPPORT LOW-
INCOME FAMILIES AND PEOPLE
WITH DISABILITIES.THE CITY
SAYS THEY HEARD FEEDBACK FROM
