Other Texans are searching for Austin homes on Zillow
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The majority of people searching Austin-area Zillow postings from outside of Austin are from Dallas, Houston and San Antonio.
Driving the news: Roughly 59% of page views from out of town for Austin-area Zillow listings are from within Texas, according to first-quarter Zillow data shared with Axios.
- Dallas folks are doing the most searching, at 23.9%, followed by Houstonians at 22.9% and San Antonians at 12.2%.
- Of the top 10 metros from which searches originate, 41% were from out of state — with the top location Los Angeles at 11.2%, followed by New York and San Francisco.
Catch up fast: Average home prices in greater Austin fell more than 10% between July 2022 — when the market peaked — and April 2023.
- It was the biggest percentage drop in the country, coming after a pandemic-era market boom that analysts called the most overpriced it had been in at least three decades.
The big picture: Since 2021, there's been an exodus from high-cost tech hubs along the West Coast — including the Bay Area and Seattle — for more affordable mountain region states and Texas, says Redfin deputy chief economist Taylor Marr.
- Indeed, Austin was a top destination for fleeing remote workers during the pandemic.
Yes, but: "We're seeing a big pullback in migration right now," Marr tells Axios.
- Currently, it's simply too expensive for many people to buy. Across the U.S., the number of Redfin users searching for homes within their metro is down 18% from a year ago, per a June report.
- Meanwhile, the number of users surfing listings in a new area dropped 7%.
Between the lines: If people are moving right now, it's in search of cheaper housing.
What's next: Growing environmental concerns will start to influence migration patterns, though affordability will likely still be the No. 1 driver, Marr predicts.