Real Estate Rumblings

San Antonio housing market poised for strong end to 2020 despite pandemic

Home sales continue their banner year.

Photo by Ariel Skelley/Getty

San Antonio's housing market is poised for a strong end to a strange year. In its November report, the San Antonio Board of Realtors noted that single-family home sales — and prices — saw another steady rise last month, a trend echoed throughout most of Texas' major metro areas.

November home sales jumped 27 percent last month year over year to 3,125 while average home prices rose 20 percent to $311,604. Median price also inched higher, hitting $260,900 last month, a 13 percent increase over November 2019.

During that same period, days on the market plunged 18 percent to just 49 days. Even with that drop, properties in San Antonio and Bexar County are moving slower than the national average, which averaged 25 days so far in 2020.

“As we look to the finale of the year, the housing market is one of the things that has remained steady and strong in 2020,” said Kim Bragman, SABOR's 2020 chairman of the board. "Our home sales are up by 10 percent in the city, year-to-date, and overall, in the state of Texas, 335,836 homes have been sold. Our state, and specifically San Antonio, is definitely a great place to live, and the numbers show it."

In Bexar County, home sales increased 22.4 percent to 2,249 sales. And though Bexar County remains the most affordable market among Texas' four major metros, its increase in home sales last month nearly matched the red-hot Travis (23 percent), and surpassed that of Harris (20.3) and Dallas counties (18.2).

In total, 2020 home sales across the San Antonio region are already up 10 percent over 2019, even after a major spring slowdown sparked by the pandemic. With 6,197 active listings and 3,092 new listings popping up in San Antonio and the surrounding areas last month, that trend is likely to continue through December to make this year one for the record books.

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bang for your buck

San Antonio ZIP code is 4th most affordable place for renters in U.S.

Photo by Florian Schmid on Unsplash

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Trying to afford buying a home in San Antonio is difficult enough with current mortgage rates, and doubly so if you're already paying high rent on an apartment or a house. But there are six San Antonio ZIP codes where renters can get the most bang for their buck, according to a new study by financial services company CashNetUSA.

To find the most affordable ZIP codes for renters in the U.S., analysts compared median household incomes by ZIP code to the average annual rent costs in those areas using the Zillow Observed Rent Index. ZIP codes where the average annual rental constituted the lowest percentage of median household income were considered the "most affordable."

San Antonio's 78248 ZIP code specifically stood out as the No. 4 most affordable in the country, and the No. 1 most affordable in Texas. This area encompasses the north San Antonio neighborhoods of Inwood, Forests at Inwood, Oakwood, The Park at Deerfield, Canyon Creek Bluffs, Canyon Creek Village, Blanco Village, Deerfield, Cadillac Drive, and Churchill Estates.

According to the study's findings, the average monthly cost of a rental in 78248 comes out to $1,259.17, and the median annual income of a household in the area is $122,986. Analysts then calculated that the annual rent of a home in this ZIP code only takes up 12.29 percent of a household's median income, which is the fourth-lowest in the nation.

CashNetUSA found the No. 1 most affordable ZIP code for renters nationwide is 66224 in Leawood, Kansas, where annual rent only takes a 10.57 percent cut out of a household's median annual income.

Elsewhere in Texas, two Houston-area ZIP codes – 77401 and 77094 – ranked No. 9 and No. 12 nationally, while Allen's 75013 ZIP code fell two spots behind to claim the No. 14 spot.

The most affordable San Antonio-area ZIP codes for renters
CashNetUSA further unveiled the five most affordable ZIP codes across major U.S. cities, including in San Antonio, Austin, and Houston.

Following 78248 (which took the No. 1 spot citywide) is 78261 (No. 2), which spans east of Highway 281, across Smithson Valley Road. Rent costs in this ZIP code averaged out to $1,698 per month, the report found.

Landing in the No. 3 spot is 78258, which includes Rogers Ranch, The Vineyard, Stone Oak, Summit, Hidden Canyon, and Big Springs neighborhoods. The report said average rent in the area comes out to $1,507 per month, which takes up 17.54 percent of a household's median annual income.

The remaining top two most affordable ZIP codes for San Antonio renters are located in 78259 (Encino Park, Encino Ranch, Cavalo Creek Estates, Northwood Hills, Summit at Bulverde Creek, Roseheart, Redland Woods) and 78260 in Timberwood Park, which is about 25 miles north of downtown San Antonio.

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