Lakeway real estate is valuable for a variety of factors. The nearby schools are great, neighborhoods are idyllic, homes are spacious, and as the name suggests, it’s close to a lake — which is always a plus. All these factors contributed to the median listing home price nearly doubling in less than three years.
If you’ve owned one of the select Lakeway homes in the area for even just a year, you have a great chance to make a sizable return on your investment. The general trend for home values in Lakeway is that they’re quickly increasing, but certain outside economic factors contribute to dips in what people can expect for offers every once in a while. If you’re selling your Lakeway real estate, you’ll want to pay attention to the local real estate market to make sure you sell at the right time.
Look for interest rates to fall soon
One of the big deterrents for buyers in recent months has been the huge increases to interest rates that are set by the Federal Reserve. Mortgage interest rates are included in that, which means if someone recently took out a loan to pay for a house they’ll wind up paying slightly more over the course of the loan than if they had, for example, a year ago.
The Federal Reserve has been raising rates to offset inflation, and as inflation starts to slow down, there is reason to believe that the Fed’s rate increases will as well. From October to November of 2022, inflation fell from 7.7% to 7.1%. The Fed responded by raising rates by 0.5% to 4.5%. For reference, the interest rate was less than 1% as recently as the spring, and was up to 4% in November. The recent 0.5% increase actually signifies a slowing down.
Interest rates may not be finished increasing, but there are encouraging signs. The Trade Economics Forecasts predicts that they’ll go up to 5% early in 2023, meaning another increase of 0.5%. If the rate of inflation continues to decrease, the Fed could start to lower interest rates which could be really encouraging for buyers. After months of rising rates, a drop could be enough reason for buyers who have been waiting for the right moment to start giving offers on homes.
Buyers vs sellers markets
Something that could have a big effect on the kinds of offers you receive is the amount of demand for homes in Lakeway at a given time. The amount of demand determines whether there’s a buyers market or a sellers market.
If there are more buyers looking for homes in Lakeway than there are homes available, then that favors the sellers. The buyers essentially have to compete with one another for homes, giving larger offers than they otherwise would have. If there are more homes for sale than there are buyers, then that’s a buyer’s market. There’s less demand for homes, so if a buyer doesn’t like the asking price, they can just go to someone else who’s asking for less.
Signs that there is high demand for Lakeway homes
It can be difficult to gauge the amount of demand for real estate in a small town. You could of course look at Austin as a whole and that should give you a pretty good indication, but it won’t be exact to Lakeway. There are some signs you can look for that could indicate just how in-demand your town is.
If there’s lots of construction, both private and commercial, then that’s a good indicator that more people are moving to town, which means higher demand. If you drive around town and see new developments, apartment buildings, and shopping centers being built, then that’s likely because the area is becoming a popular place to relocate. If there were only so many people moving into town as there were people selling their homes, then they wouldn’t need new developments. You could also look at Lakeway’s population over the years. According to the U.S. census, it has increased from just over 11,000 in 2010 to over 19,000 in 2020. That means that a lot of people are moving to Lakeway. While the census only has data for every 10 years, there are various estimates about population growth over shorter periods of time.
Maybe the best indicator is just the number of homes sold. A good way to gain insight into this would be to talk to a realtor as it's their job to know the local market and sales that occur. Beyond that, just think about driving around town or your own neighborhood. Do you see lots of “For Sale” and “Sold” signs in front yards? If so, then the local real estate could be in-demand.
For help selling, reach out to the Dicker Morin Group
Contact the Dicker Morin Group so that you can sell with the help of a realtor who knows the local market and will be able to help you decide when it’s the right time to sell. Fluctuations in local markets in areas as small as towns like Lakeway can be difficult to quantify just by researching on the internet on your own. A realtor who is constantly looking what other homes in the area are selling for is invaluable for determining whether you’re in a buyers or sellers market.
They can not only help you with deciding when to sell, but they can help you prepare your home for showings and negotiate the selling price. So many things, including timing, can affect how much you’re able to sell your home for, so make sure you prepare with the help of experts.
