San Antonio Home Buyers Struggle to Find Homes in Tight Market

The San Antonio housing market has gotten tighter in the last several months as prices are rising and supply of home on the market is getting tighter. For March 2018, there were 2012 homes sold in San Antonio, which was an increase of 3% over last year. The market has gotten stronger and bigger every year since 2012, and is being fueld by the strong local economy and a growing population.

The median home price for San Antonio was $215,000 in February 2018, which was a 6% increase from $202,000 a year ago. There has been a shortage of construction workers and a low supply of affordable homes for sale that have caused prices to rise. Still, prices in the area are still more affordable than many parts of the country, and San Antonio real estate investors can pick up homes in blue collar areas of the city for $70,000 or so that will produce 12% ROI, such as this one:

Excellent investment with tremendous potential. 307 Golodrina Ave., 3 beds 2 bath, 1370 sqft. Lot size: .11 acres, estimated rehab to make new and flip 50K, Max ARV: 169k, asking price: 75K.

Max ARV: $169k
Asking Price: $75,000

Exit strategy: Recommended exit strategy with 20K rehab: 5-10K down payment, sales price: 129K, $1,295.00 PI/TI 30 year amortization, 10% interest or rent $1200 monthly.

The San Antonio area’s inventory of homes on the market, which is measured by the time it takes for a house to be sold if no new homes go on the market, was 3.3 months, which is very tight. The record low was December 2017 at 3.1 months. An inventory of six months shows a balance between sellers and buyers. The last time the San Antonio market was balanced was Nov. 2012.

Interestingly, the San Antonio real estate market has continued to get stronger even as interest rates rise. The national average for a 30 yar loan fixed is around 4.5%, which is nearly 1% higher than early 2017. Still, interest rates are historically low, and the economy is strong, so people’s rising wages may be helping them to deal with the higher debt costs.

San Antonio Housing Market Was Red Hot in 2016

The housing market in San Antonio in 2016 was hot as home prices went to the highest levels ever. The local paper reported that 29,508 homes were sold, which was more than an eight percent increase from 2015.

The median price for San Antonio real estate increased six percent to $204,300. This was the very first time that the median sales price had been over $200,000 for an entire year, including the real estate boom years of a decade ago.

Also, the inventory of homes that are available dropped in December 2016 to only three months. this indicates there are more buyers than sellers in San Antonio.

So what does this mean for San Antonio real estate investors? Well in my experience, it means that real estate prices are going up, and buying homes for many people in San Antonio is becoming more difficult. For people who earn a good income of course, the homes in San Antonio are very reasonable.

But for people who earn $3000 per month and don’t have credit, buying a home with conventional financing is very difficult. That is the reason I focus my San Antonio investment strategy on owner financing.

Here is a good example of an under market value property that I am selling right now:

  • Finance Your Investment Properties
  • Address: 1319 S Hamilton St., San Antonio, TX 78207
  • Year Built: 1956
  • Description: San Antonio buy and hold investors and real estate investors  – Another Major cash flow opportunity, 30% instant equity under market value, almost cute cottage, needs minor help, booming San Antonio Market West of Downtown,  2 beds, 1 bath, 616 sqft, lot size: .05 acres, estimated repairs: 5K, clean/lawn maintenance/interior paint/front paint. Max After Repair Value: 69K
  • Cash Price on San Antonio Fixer Upper:  $42,000 CASH ONLY
  • Exit Strategy: Owner Finance with 5k in repairs: 5Kdown payment, $695.00 monthly PI/TI, 30 year amortization, 10% interest, Sales Price: 69K, see attached sold/rental comparables.
  • Sold and Rental Comps: Sold Comps 1301 S Hamiltonrental comps 1301 s hamilton

This property is only $42k cash, and with $5k in repairs, you can sell this with owner financing (you’re the bank), to a family with job and income but no credit. The major advantages of this type of deal are that you do not have repair expenses ongoing. Also, you can limit your initial out of pocket costs. If you were to rent this house out, you would have to do $20,000 in repairs, not $5000.

Owner financed homes is the backbone of my real estate investment portfolio in San Antonio. Each home earns at least 10% ROI with no expenses.  This type of buy and hold investing helps to support the working families of San Antonio as well, so it is a win win.