Austin Housing Weekly offers the most comprehensive market coverage you’ll find anywhere. Sign up today to keep up with real estate trends.
In a hurry? Here are five key points from this report:
- You might already know that the Austin, Texas metro area became one of the hottest housing markets in the U.S. during COVID.
- You might also know that the Austin real estate scene has cooled down considerably since the last boom.
- What you might not know is that the Austin metro area is literally the slowest housing market in America, as of March 2025.
- In January of this year, homes listed for sale in this market spent a median of 87 days on the market, according to data from Redfin.
- The Austin-area housing market will likely remain sluggish for a while longer, continuing to favor home buyers over sellers.
Austin, Texas: Slowest Housing Market in America
After becoming one of the hottest housing markets in the U.S. during the pandemic, the Austin area experienced a prolonged downturn that is still dragging on in early 2025.
We used data provided by the national real estate brokerage Redfin to determine the median days on market for the largest U.S. metro areas.
Definition: The median “days on market” (DOM) is the midpoint for how long it takes to sell a home within a particular area, similar to an average.
Of all the housing markets we analyzed, the Austin-Round Rock metro area had the highest number of days on market—and by a wide margin.
The following graph (based on data from Redfin) provides a simplified view of this trend. It shows the median DOM for the Austin area and the U.S. as a whole.
The far right side of this graph shows early 2025. Notice how much higher the median days on market is for the Austin-Round Rock metro area, compared to the national median.
If we added the nation’s largest metropolitan areas to this graph, it would look like a plate of spaghetti, but still show the same thing. Austin would still be the slowest.
How it Compares to Other Texas Metros
For a statewide analysis, we compared the Austin metro area to the other major metros in Texas, including Dallas, El Paso, Houston, and San Antonio.
Here are the median DOM stats for those markets, as of February 2025:
- Austin: 87 days
- Dallas: 70 days
- El Paso: 62 days
- Houston: 56 days
- San Antonio: 79
As you can see, Houston’s real estate market pace is in line with the national average, with a median days on market of 56 as of January 2025.
Homes within the Dallas and San Antonio metro areas are taking longer to sell, with a median DOM of 70 and 79 days, respectively.
And as we’ve already established, Austin clocks in with the highest number of days on market for both the state of Texas and the nation as a whole, at 87 days.
Bottom line: The Austin-Round Rock-Georgetown metro area is currently the slowest real estate market in the nation, among major cities.
Home Buyers Could Capitalize in 2025
Austin-area home buyers who enter the market over the coming months could benefit from the slow pace of home sales—and the leverage that comes with it.
Here are the advantages of buying in a sluggish real estate market:
- Negotiating power: With homes taking longer to sell, buyers have more leverage to negotiate on price and other terms of the sale.
- Due diligence: In a slow market, buyers don’t feel as rushed and can take more time to view properties, research prices, and explore options.
- Price reductions: Sellers in a slow real estate market like Austin are often willing to lower their asking prices in order to attract buyers.
- Seller concessions: Buyers have more room to request concessions from the seller to cover closing costs, make repairs, or include other perks in the deal.
- Less competition: Slower markets often have a low level of buyer demand. This reduces the likelihood of stressful bidding wars and multiple-offer situations.
- Contract contingencies: Sellers may be more open to accepting offers that include contingencies, such as home inspection or appraisal contingencies.
The one downside for potential buyers is that home prices are still declining.
But later this year, the market could hit “bottom” and start to rebound again, creating a golden window of opportunity for Austin-area home buyers.
When Will the Market Rebound?
It’s hard to make predictions for a housing market like Austin because it’s currently such an anomaly. While most U.S. cities went through a post-pandemic “price correction” phase, they have since stabilized and rebounded.
Austin, on the other hand, continues to decline in early 2025.
But by analyzing historical “boom-and-bust” cycles, and examining other pandemic boomtowns across the U.S., we can make an educated guess.
Given the current supply and demand situation, we expect the Austin real estate market to rebound during the second half of 2025.
In this context, a “rebound” means that home prices will flatten and then begin to rise again, but at a much slower pace than the last appreciation stage.
Savvy home buyers might be able to capitalize on this turning point, by purchasing a home at the bottom of the market before things heat up again.
Disclaimer: Housing market forecasts are an imperfect science based on an educated guess. No one can predict future real estate trends with complete accuracy.
Stay Informed: Sign Up for Austin Housing Weekly
Want to know when the Austin housing market heats up again? Want to stay informed on home prices, sales activity, and related trends?
If so, you’ll want to subscribe to Austin Housing Weekly.
Authored by veteran market analyst Brandon Cornett, this weekly email newsletter delivers a steady stream of real estate news, analysis, and insights.
It’s the easiest and most effective way to keep up with housing market trends!