AUSTIN, Texas — A new report from the Austin Board of Realtors (ABoR) revealed that the city is dealing with housing shortages in each council district.
The report, which cites research commissioned in August, found that more than half of four-person households earning 80% median family income (MFI) or less – just over $93,000 a year – face a severe shortage of homes. The report said the city is short precisely 211,023 homes considered affordable to families making the median household salary, equating to an estimated 50% undersupply.
However, the report found that the shortages are not evenly distributed across the city.
The data revealed that:
- District 4, which primarily covers North Austin, has the greatest need for new housing to meet demand for its population, missing an estimated 27,815 homes, equitable to a 65.6% undersupply of housing
- District 10, which encapsulates northwest Austin, has the lowest need for new housing but is still short 25,627 homes, an estimated 39.3% undersupply
- District 5, which is based in South Austin, has the largest number of missing homes, estimated to be at 32,109 or a 53.4% undersupply, immediately followed by District 7, located in North and northeast Austin, with a 31,130 shortage of homes or a 51.3% undersupply
The analysis also found housing affordability disparities among racial and ethnic groups in Austin, a trend that is seen elsewhere across the U.S.
All racial and ethnic groups in Austin earning 80% MFI or less faced a shortage of affordable homes for sale in the first half of 2023. On average, minority groups, namely Hispanic or Latino, Black and households of other races face lower housing affordability than non-Hispanic or white households across all 10 city council districts.
Here's a look at the percentages of affordable homes for sale by race in Austin:
- Black households face a 68.7% undersupply, an estimated 26,388 shortage of homes
- Hispanic/Latino households face a 63.2% undersupply, an estimated 77,677 shortage of homes
- Households of other races face a 57.1% undersupply, an estimated 60,746 shortage of homes
Boomtown is KVUE's series covering the explosive growth in Central Texas. For more Boomtown stories, head to KVUE.com/Boomtown.