Austin homeowners are staying put
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Austin-area homeowners are staying in their houses for the longest time in at least 20 years, largely thanks to their low mortgage rates, data shows.
Why it matters: That — along with still-high home prices and tight inventory — has kept the housing market on ice, though it may be thawing.
Zoom in: Austin metro sellers at the end of 2025 had owned their homes for an average of 7.3 years.
- In the second quarter of 2025, they had owned their homes for 7.7 years — a record in data going back to early 2005, when the average was just 2.7 years.
The intrigue: Austin's homeowner tenure trails the national average (8.6 years) — but Central Texas generally sees a lot more migration than other parts of the country.
Zoom out: Homeowner tenure has increased steadily in almost every major metro area over the past two decades, according to ATTOM, an industry data provider.
Yes, but: Many Sun Belt and Midwest markets are still seeing shorter ownership periods than those in coastal and Northeast metro areas, ATTOM CEO Rob Barber tells Axios.
- Pricier locales tend to have longer homeowner tenures, like San Francisco (12.8 years) and Boston (12.7 years).
- Provo, Utah (6.9 years), Crestview, Florida (7 years), and Oklahoma City (7.3 years) posted the shortest tenures.
Between the lines: The housing market appears to be thawing following a post-pandemic freeze. According to the January Central Texas Housing Report by Unlock MLS, a data site operated by the Austin Board of Realtors, pending sales increased to 2,349 transactions last month, up 10.1% year over year.
- The median home price in greater Austin in January was $400,495, or 2.3% less than in January 2025.
What they're saying: "We're seeing borrowers and lenders settle into a more stable interest rate environment after years of volatility," JC San Pedro, senior vice-president of mortgage banking and loan administration at Austin-based Amplify Credit Union, said in a statement to Axios.
- "Rates are still higher than the historic lows of the pandemic era, but the day-to-day reality is that buyers are adjusting and moving forward with clearer expectations around financing."