Austin housing market offers worst bang for the buck in Texas, says report
By John Egan
Apr 18, 2022, 12:55 pm
When it comes to buying a home that supplies the most space for the price, Austin has little to offer, a new study indicates.
For the study, real estate platform RealtyHop looked at how much square footage a homebuyer could get for a median price of $350,000 in the country’s 100 largest cities. The study found that in Austin, $350,000 gets a buyer only 1,056 square feet.
That makes Austin worst in Texas on the bang-for-your-buck scale, with buyers paying $332.10 per square foot.
Meanwhile, RealtyHop cites San Antonio and Houston as two of the standouts in the U.S. for affordable housing. In nearby San Antonio, a buyer can pick up a 2,116-square-foot home for $350,000, or $165.38 per square foot. In Houston, a buyer can get 1,804 square feet for the same price, or $194.06 per square foot.
Nationally, San Francisco tops the list of least affordable cities. There, $350,000 will get you a measly 349 square feet of space ($1,003.18 per square foot). At the other end of the spectrum, that sum will get you the most space (4,769 square feet, close to the size of a small mansion) in Detroit. That adds up to just $73.39 per square foot.
“For many, the tradeoff between space and cost is a deciding factor on where they choose to settle down. Should you buy a tiny studio in Manhattan or a large townhouse in Atlanta?” RealtyHop observes. “The reality is that living in certain places often means downsizing your expectations.”
Here’s what $350,000 will buy you in the largest cities in Texas, according to RealtyHop:
- Austin, 1,056 square feet, $332.10 per square foot.
- Dallas, 1,574 square feet, $222.36 per square foot.
- Plano, 1,741 square feet, $201.03 per square foot.
- Irving, 1,769 square feet, $197.81 per square foot.
- Houston, 1,804 square feet, $194.06 per square foot.
- Garland, 2,013 square feet, $173.91 per square foot. (The median home size in Texas is around 2,000 square feet.)
- Fort Worth, 2,204 square feet, $172.92 per square foot.
- Arlington, 2,056 square feet, $170.26 per square foot.
- Corpus Christi, 2,092 square feet, $167.27 per square foot.
- San Antonio, 2,116 square feet, $165.38 per square foot.
- El Paso, 2,742 square feet, $127.65 per square foot.
- Laredo, 2,842 square feet, $123.13 per square foot.
- Lubbock, 3,569 square feet, $98.07 per square foot.
Nice article! interesting! I wish I could find something in Austin for 350k
ReplyDeleteThanks for the actual comment. Austin, Texas is TOO expensive now. It's over. I've personally been having a hard time trying to a 350K or less Rental Income, in Central Texas, For example Lockhart, San Marcos, Hutto, Georgetown, Marble Falls, Taylor etc Central Texas is BOOMING...
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