HOUSTON – (By Dale King, Realty News Report) – The number of homes in Texas selling for $1 million or more rose dramatically in the 12-month period ending in October, according to the 2021 Texas Luxury Home Sales Report released by Texas Realtors.
Statewide, luxury home sales jumped 89.6 percent compared with the previous year. In total, 11,980 homes priced at $1 million or above closed during the year-long period ending Oct. 31.
Although luxury sales represented less than 3 percent of all homes sold in Texas, they accounted for 13 percent of the state’s residential sales dollar volume.
Among the four major metropolitan areas examined, the Houston–The Woodlands–Sugar Land MSA recorded the smallest increase and was below the state average, with a 76.8 percent rise in luxury home sales compared with the same period the year before.
Even so, Houston posted solid results: 3,264 homes priced at $1 million or more sold in the Houston MSA during the year, generating $5.4 billion in sales. Luxury purchases made up 13.3 percent of the Houston MSA’s total residential sales dollar volume.
Monthly counts in the Houston area varied through the year. In November 2020, 210 luxury homes sold; by October 2021 the total was slightly higher at 258. Sales dipped to 121 in January 2021 after 275 in December 2020, then ranged through the first half of the year as the pandemic evolved.
Sales peaked at 393 in June 2021, then declined over the next three months — 355 in July, 295 in August and 253 in September — before finishing October with 258 closings.
The San Antonio–New Braunfels MSA led the four major metros with the largest percentage gain: luxury sales there surged 122.1 percent year over year. A total of 622 homes sold for $1 million or more, generating $918 million in sales and representing 6.6 percent of the area’s residential sales dollar volume.
Second was the Austin–Round Rock MSA, where luxury sales totaled $5.2 billion — a 101.5 percent increase. By the end of October 2021, the Austin MSA’s residential sales dollar volume had climbed 22.7 percent.
The Dallas–Fort Worth–Arlington MSA saw an 80.7 percent increase in million-dollar-plus home sales, with 3,818 such homes sold and $6.6 billion in luxury sales. Luxury transactions comprised 14.3 percent of the DFW area’s residential sales dollar volume.
“Home price increases in Texas have led to a strong spike in the number of homes sold in the million-dollar-and-up range,” said Marvin Jolly, chairman of Texas Realtors. “The price increase has shifted the profile of homes that were historically listed in this category.”
“We are seeing more neighborhoods with homes selling for above $1 million,” he added. “In many cases, homes that would have sold for under a million dollars last year are topping that mark this year.”
Across Texas, total luxury sales dollars reached $19.9 billion for the January–October period, a 93.3 percent increase from the prior year.
The report found the median price for Texas luxury homes during the first 10 months of 2021 was $1,360,133, essentially unchanged from the prior year, while the average price per square foot for luxury homes rose 9.5 percent to $395 — more than double the statewide average of $166 per square foot for all residential sales.
From January through October 2021, luxury homes in Texas spent an average of 55 days on the market, 31 days fewer than the same period in 2020. Luxury homes generally remain on the market longer than lower-priced properties.
“What defines a million-dollar home is rapidly evolving across the state,” Jolly concluded. “There is strong demand in the luxury home market in Texas as many buyers from out of state find they can afford a larger or higher-end home compared to the area they came from.”
Dec. 16, 2021 Realty News Report Copyright 2021