Shouldn’t be much of a surprise. Austin topped another Forbes list. I have to admit that we definitely notice Austin’s “boominess” – the jobs market is great, the real estate market is healthy, and people are moving here in droves.

This surprised me a bit b/c the changes weren’t addressed on the austinenergy.com FAQ until today, when they pulled it down. http://screencast.com/t/Ekes1RYN

The amendments to the ECAD Ordinance affect condo sellers quite a bit in that condominiums are no longer exempt from the ordinance. All owners of a condo older than 10 years old will now require an energy audit at the point of sale.

Another fairly poignant rule change has to do with the time period the energy audit is to be provided to the buyer. In the past, the energy audit had to be provided prior to closing. Now, the audit must be provided to the buyer while the buyer has at least 3 days remaining in his/her option period.

The city of Austin has decided to rename the solid wastes department & put it to its residents to come up with names and cast votes. I must say, looking at the winning entry (and winning by a TON) makes me proud to share this city with such cool people. Want to vote? Click here.

Austin was towards the top in yet another poll, this time with regards to “security.”  Farmers Group ranked cities crime, weather, risk of natural disasters, housing depreciation, foreclosures, air quality, terrorist threats, environmental hazards, life expectancy and job loss statistics.

Homebuyers seeking to take advantage of the First Time Homebuyer credit must enter into a binding contract to purchase a principle residence by April 30, 2010 and must close on the property by June 30, 2010, according the IRS.gov website. Buyers may elect to use the credit on their 2009 or 2010 tax returns.

The IRS.gov website has some great information to brush-up on filing requirements and to help with submitting the required application. Below are several useful links:

• First Time Homebuyer Credit Page
• Common Questions and Answers

Home buyers who purchased a home as their principal residence in 2008, 2009 and early 2010 may be able to take advantage of the credit. The credit is 10 percent of the purchase price of the home with a maximum credit of $8,000. The credit will either reduce the buyer’s tax bill dollar for dollar or increase the refund. The credit does not have to be paid back unless the home ceases to be the buyer’s principal residence with three years after the purchase.

Long-Term Residents

In addition to the First Time Homebuyer Credit, long-term residents of the same house may qualify for a $6,500 credit when purchasing a new principal residence in the United States. The purchase must take place after November 6, 2009, and before May 1, 2010 or after April 30, 2010, and before July 1, 2010, and the buyer must have entered into a binding contract before May 1, 2010, to purchase the property before July 1, 2010. To qualify, buyers must have lived in the same home for any five consecutive-year period during the 8-year period ending on the date you purchased your new main home.

Who Cannot Claim the Credits

According to the IRS.gov website, you cannot claim the credit if the purchase price of the home is more than $800,000. This rule applies to homes purchased after November 6, 2009. Also, you cannot claim the credit if your modified adjusted gross income is $95,000 or more ($170,000 or more if married filing jointly) and you purchased your home before November 7, 2009, or $145,000 or more ($245,000 or more if married filing jointly) and you purchased your home after November 6, 2009.

How to Apply for the Credit

Buyers seeking the credit must fill out the IRS Form 5045 and file with your federal income tax return. If you have already filed your return, you may claim the credit by filing out an IRS 1040X with the completed Form 5045 attached. All supporting documentation is required.

All information provided above on the First-Time Homebuyer credit was pulled directly from the IRS.gov website. It is deemed reliable, but it is not guaranteed. Please refer directly to the IRS.gov website or your accountant to verify any information important to you.

John Allen is the broker and owner of Allen Real Estate Services, Inc., a 30-year boutique Sarasota real estate firm. He specializes in luxury Sarasota FL homes for sale, condominiums, gated neighborhoods and golfing communities. John’s team of outstanding buyer’s agents can help you with all of your Sarasota Florida real estate needs.

Third quarter numbers look very promising.  We obviously have to take into account the affect of the first time homebuyer tax credit, but it looks promising that it will be extended for 6 months, which will give our job market time to firm itself up a little before we ask the real estate market to stand on its own legs.

There were no considerable changes in the stats from 3rd Quarter 2008 to 2009.  Sold units were down 3.25%, median old price was down 2.12%, and average sold price was down 4.31%.  The discrepancy between median and average sold changes are the result of the higher end homes taking a larger hit.  The luxury market has seen larger declines than median & average priced homes.

Here are the 2008 numbers & the 2009 numbers.

I manually ran the # of units sold for the first halves of 2008 & 2009, then broke it down by price point.  I was very surprised.  We’ve only seen negligeble median depreciation, but we’ve seen a larger (3-4%) average depreciation this year.  My assumption was that demand for luxury property is down, and we would see a larger decrease in units sold the higher the price point.  I was wrong (with the exception of $2mm+ homes.)

So, price is typically a function of supply & demand.  Demand is down, so it would logically follow that supply is up.  I ran the numbers for months inventory in each price point (# of homes available/absorption rate.)

And, voila…  The reason for the discrepancy (in my opinion) between average & median price depreciation is the increasing inventory as you go to higher price points.  Unfortunately, I don’t have historical data on inventory, or I would show year to year change.

What does this mean?  Prices will probably continue to decline in the luxury market for the near future – demand will have to go up, or remain constant while supply is allowed to absorb.  Most luxury builders have haulted production for the time being, so supply will be absorbed over time – it will just be a matter of when.

Up next….inventory conditions in different areas of town.

Well, we topped another top 10 list.  I don’t know if we need to be proud of this one or not. :)  Austin’s definitely a fun place, and according to Forbes, funner than anywhere else.

And again….the Austin real estate market is down from 2007′s record year, but still fairing well.  Active listings are up 20%, and # of homes sold are down 20%.  However, we’re still appreciating.  The median sales price is up to $196,120 from last year’s $184,050.  The average sales price is up 5%, $263k from $250k.  The good news is that the glut of inventory looks like it’s being absorbed.  Last month’s numbers indicated 5.03 months of inventory on the market, and this month’s indicate 4.91.

The market is still holding strong.  The median sales price is slightly up, and the average sales price is slightly down.  The # of homes sold is down roughly 14% from April 2007.  Again, we’re not setting records this year, but the market is doing fine.  In my opinion, the average sales price dip is due to the difficult jumbo market, and the glut of luxury homes (14 month+ inventory) currently on the market.  Definitely a good time to get a steal on a luxury property.