Housing crunch reaches Austin

AUSTIN (KXAN) - The housing crunch hitting America has definitely reached Austin. Austin's vacancy rate overall is 18 percent, with office space and industrial hit the worst. Home listings are up 25 percent compared to 2006, while home sales are down 26 percent over the same period.

Housing starts in Austin peaked at 16,504 in 2006, compared to 8,000 in 2008. Some Realtors believe that with less new homes, the market availability will shrink and eventually firm up the marketplace.

Investors said it is a good time to buy, If you do not have to sell any time soon, and they expect the downturn here to last at least last through 2009. Austin has lost roughly 3 percent of its Realtors in the past two years.