Click the image to watch the news segment from KXAN TV.

New home starts jumped 27 percent in a year’s time in Austin, according to Metrostudy.

In the first quarter of 2013, there were 1,952 new home starts, an increase of 413 homes. Closings also jumped about 30 percent between the first quarter of 2012 and the first quarter of 2013. In all, there were 1,995 final sales of new homes during the first quarter.

Currently, there are about 4,000 homes in inventory with 313 furnished model homes, 1,378 finished vacant homes and 2,296 homes under construction. The homes under construction represent a 52 percent increase from a year ago.

There are 2.2 months of supply of new finished homes, down from a 2.4 months supply a year ago.

“The growth of homebuilding activity for the remainder of the year will be governed by the volume and timeliness of new lots delivered to the market,” said Madison Inselmann, regional director of Metrostudy in Austin.

Jan Buchholz Staff Writer- Austin Business Journal 4/22/2013

This simple chart says it rather concisely. Resale Homes are selling much faster than they are being replenished and are selling for approximately 9.5% more. Yes, this equates to a Seller’s Market.

Another important trend is that “Days on the market” has decreased by 45% to only 25-days for resale homes. Some neighborhoods are faring better than others. Keep in mind that every neighborhood is different and no two homes are exactly alike.

Austin Business Journal

Austin is one of 35 U.S. cities that have been invited to throw their hats in the ring for the 2024 Olympics nominating process, The New York Times reports.

The U.S. Olympic Committee sent letters Tuesday to the mayors of nearly three dozen cities “to gauge their interest in making a bid for the 2024 Games,” according to the Times.  Click here to read the full article from the ABJ

DALLAS, TEXAS (February 17, 2013) — Keller Williams Realty, Inc. announced today that it is the largest real estate franchise company by agent count in the United States, with approximately 80,000 associates. In recent years, Keller Williams Realty has posted record growth numbers, surpassing RE/MAX, Century 21, and now Coldwell Banker to secure the industry’s top position. The news, based on publically available information as of February 6, 2013, was announced in front of more than 10,000 Keller Williams associates during the company’s annual convention in Dallas, Texas.  Click here to read the full press release.

From ABCNews.com: More signs of renewed strength for the housing market… Mortgage delinquency rates are down to their lowest level in five years. Credit reporting firm TransUnion says only 5 percent of people with home loans were at least two months behind with their payments in the final quarter of 2012. That’s compared with 14 percent the year before. This finding means that in the future fewer foreclosure properties and short sales will be on the market. Home prices rose in nearly 90 percent of the nation’s largest metropolitan areas in the fourth quarter of 2012, according to the National Association of Realtors.

Virgin America, the airline that is reinventing domestic travel, announces it will bring its low-fare, tech-forward flights to Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS) beginning May 21, 2013. Tickets are on sale today for a daily nonstop roundtrip flight from the carrier’s home base at San Francisco International Airport (SFO) to the Texas capital - also known as the “the live music capital of the world.” As the only domestic airline to offer WiFi on every flight, and with features like power outlets and personal touch-screen entertainment platforms at every seat, Virgin America’s flights will offer a fresh new option that will keep travelers connected and productive when journeying between two of the nation’s leading innovation hubs.

Click here to read full press release.