The 1,700 homes sold during February provide another bellwether that the San Antonio housing market is on the upswing. Katie Burke reports in the San Antonio Business Journal that “following a February housing boom, the San Antonio Board of Realtors recorded a 14 percent year-over-year increase in homes sold…Inventory remained low at 3.6 months and days on market dipped to 74 days.” As of March 1st, almost 2,000 sales were still pending, an increase of 21.5 percent over 2014, which provided a very strong lead-in for the month.
Mary Ann Jeffers, chairman of the board for SABOR, says that “We continue to see unprecedented growth in the San Antonio housing market in just about every area…Nationally, improved buyer demand at the beginning of 2015 pushed pending home sales in January up and buyers closed on homes at a swift pace despite tight inventory.”
A 6.4 percent jump in existing home sales—roughly 5.26 million homes—is expected for 2015. This increase runs parallel to the rise in the national median existing-home price, which is projected to gain a 5 percent increase. The past few monts have seen San Antonio’s housing market gain traction. Low interest rates, economic growth, and high job availability have set the stage for a real estate renaissance. with the market picking up, home prices have risen. The current average-per-square-foot cost of $101 is an increase of 5 percent over 2013’s cost.
The economic and job growth experienced in San Antonio has also driven the construction of mid-and-upper-range homes. Sales of homes costing between $200k and $500k rose 7 percent over 2014, and averaged 40.7 percent of February’s sales. Just over half of the market was comprised of homes priced lower than $200k. Although homes costing more than $500k only accounted for 3.5 percent of home sales for February, sales of higher-end properties have begun to pick up steam. Key to this momentum is the spike in residential developement happening in downtown San Antonio. As income and employment availability increase, so too has the demand for walkable, mixed-use urban living in the urban core.