Housing Report for Austin-Round Rock

When comparing areas across the State of Texas, Austin-Round Rock ranks 2 of the 25 metro areas in terms of percentage growth in new housing structures. The metropolitan statistical area (msa) ranks 25 of 361, comparing the percentage change in residential real estate in other US MSAs.

The residential home values in Austin-Round Rock, Texas have seen large increases from the housing values in 2000. The residential values have increased by $32,900, or 25.7 percent, from 2000 when they had reported median values of $128,100.

Austin-Round Rock recorded median owner-occupied home value in the year 2005 of $161,000, accounted by the American Community Survey. This value is greater than the State of Texas 2005 median owner-occupied dwelling value of $106,000 and less than median home value of $167,500 for the United States in the same year.

Austin-Round Rock may be described as having a relatively high proportion of residential real estate that is high priced. During the year 2005, the American Community Survey counted that 5.1 percent of the houses were valued over a half a million dollars.

In Austin-Round Rock, the real estate market was made up of 590,900 housing units in the year 2005. This represents a medium-high growth level in the number housing units, adding a total of 66,277 residential structures since 2001, a change of 12.6 percent.

According to the data, there is a fair amount of housing that is affordable in Austin-Round Rock, Texas. In 2005, 29.8 percent of residential real estate was valued under $125,000.

Data Source: U.S. Census Bureau

Employment Report for Austin, Texas -- Annual 2005 Industry Summary

A well-paying sector in Austin is the wholesale trade industry with an average annual wage of $75,914. Locally, since the year 2001, the annual average wages in the industry have declined by 17.1 percent or $15,636. The State of Texas has a different economic condition in the wholesale trade industry, falling in the middle of industries in term of the average annual pay of 2004.

In Austin, Information, Wholesale trade and Accommodation and food services industries, in terms of United States location quotient, are the most dominant in the region. The Information sector has a United State LQ of 1.44. The percent of employment in the Information industry is 1.44 times greater than the US average, showing signs that Austin produces more than its local requirement of products and/or services of Information.

Manufacturing has the largest employers in Austin MSA, with the industry averaging 43 employees per business. This is greater than the industry's average at the national level of 39 and greater than the State of Texas average of 38 for the Manufacturing industry.

Manufacturing between the years 2001 and 2005, saw the greatest loss in employment in the Austin Metro Area. The sector dealt with a loss of 19,133 jobs during the period, or 25.1 percent of industry's employment. The industry declines made up 78.7 percent of all Metro Area employment losses since 2001.

Utilities has had the highest level of job growth from 2001-2005 in Austin, with an employment growth of 18.5 percent. This is greater than the United States change in the sector jobs of -8.2 percent. The State of Texas faced a industry job change of -9.6 percent, from 2001 to 2005.

In Austin, Retail Trade, Accommodation and food services, and the Health care and social assistance industries have the largest percent of jobs of all industries. The Retail Trade provides the most jobs and contributes 13.7 percent of all the jobs in the Metropolitain Area. This makes up 74,471 employees. The Accommodation and food services and Health care and social assistance industries make up 11.5 and 10.8 percent of total employment, respectively.





Datasource: U.S. Department of Labor. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages (QCEW).