Austin A Top City For Jobs In 2022

Recon  – 1/4/2022

Austin is the fifth-best city in which to find a job this year, according to a WalletHub study. The Texas Capital ranked eighth in job market and 15th in socio-economics. Plano was the next Texas city on the list, ranking 11th overall.

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Self-Driving Truck Company Torc Robotics Picks Austin For Tech Hub

Austin American Statesman    – 1/7/2022

Torc Robotics is opening an Austin engineering hub to accelerate development of its self-driving truck technology. Torc, which operates as a subsidiary of Daimler Truck, said it chose Austin because of its deep talent pool as well as its location along the Southwest shipping corridor.

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OHT Partners Pitches Apartment Project Near The Domain in North Austin

CoStar – 1/7/2022

OHT Partners has lined up its next apartment project in Austin, Texas.  The development, construction and investment firm formerly known as Oden Hughes said it plans to soon break ground on Lenox Grand, a proposed 315-unit apartment building to be located at 13505 Burnet Road in North Austin.

Lenox Grand has been designed to offer one- to three-bedroom apartments, as well as eight townhouses. Planned amenities include a shared work studio, two resort-style pools, a pickle ball court, dog park and walking trail.  Construction on the project is slated to wrap up in 2023.

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Meta Leases Up All Office Space In Austin’s Tallest Tower In Historic Deal

ABJ – 1/8/2022

Months of speculation have come to an end as California-based Meta Platforms Inc. — the parent company of Facebook — recently leased the entire commercial half of Sixth and Guadalupe, the 66-story high-rise under construction that will be Austin’s tallest building when finished. Meta confirmed to Austin Business Journal that it leased 589,000 square feet of office space across 33 floors at Sixth and Guadalupe, located downtown at 400 W. Sixth St.

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Semiconductor Giant Micron Scouts Central Texas For Major Factory, Sources Say

ABJ   – 1/5/2022

One of the world’s largest semiconductor companies is considering an investment in Central Texas as it moves forward with a $150 billion plan to expand its chipmaking capabilities, according to multiple sources.  Boise, Idaho-based Micron  Technology Inc., has been scouting the region for several months and is considering Caldwell and Williamson counties for its next fabrication plant.

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Austin’s Housing Market Should Keep Booming In 2022, Experts Say

Austin American Statesman   – 12/29/2021

Low housing supply. High demand. Higher prices.  It’s the same formula that has fueled the Central Texas housing market for the past decade or so — and more of the same is ahead in 2022, local housing market experts and real estate agents say. Job and population growth are expected to continue in the five-county Austin region spanning from Georgetown to San Marcos.

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U-Haul Ranks Austin No. 16 Growth City For One-Way Moves In ’21

ABJ – 1/3/2022

Austin and other parts of the Lone Star State were among the hottest destinations for where people were moving last year, according to the latest annual ranking from U-Haul. Austin ranked No. 16 among the top U.S. growth cities in 2021, and Texas reclaimed its spot as the top state for move-ins after ranking second the two years prior.

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Austin Streaming Media Company Atmosphere Raises $100 Million, Plans To Hire Hundreds

Austin American Statesman    – 1/5/2022

Atmosphere, a fast-growing Austin media company, said it has landed $100 million to grow its streaming entertainment service, and says it plans to hire hundreds of new employees.  The funding — which follows a $25 million round raised in April  —  will be used to expand Atmoshpere’s distribution network and grow its operations in content, marketing and ad sales.

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Texas Personal Income Up In Third Quarter

Recon  – 1/3/2022

Texas’ personal income increased 4 percent at an annual rate in third quarter 2021, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA). This comes after the metric increased 21.7 percent in the second quarter.

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Former Dallas Cowboy Troy Aikman Announces Austin-Based Beer Company

Community Impact – 1/5/2022

Former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman announced the launch of Eight, a new Austin-based beer company, in a Jan. 4 news release. The beer, a light lager, will use organic grains and Hallertau Taurus hops and aims to offer a healthier option for beer drinkers. The beer will be available in Texas bars and restaurants in February and in retail stores in March.

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Report: Latest Data Shows Home Sales In Round Rock, Pflugerville And Hutto Area Still Trending Strong

Community Impact – 1/6/2022

Area home sales took a slight dip over where they were in November 2020, but a November 2021 report from the Austin Board of Realtors states the market is still trending strong, if not slowing slightly. However, other indicators from  ABoR suggest that the market is still hot as months of inventory remain low at 0.7. The Round Rock, Pflugerville and Hutto area is also showing stable high demand through a 37.5% year-over-year increase in median sales price to $427,550.

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New Curved Office Tower Leased by Google Sails Into Austin’s Skyline

CoStar – 12/30/2021

With less than six months to go before a Google-leased office tower in downtown Austin is completed, the curved 35-story building has already transformed the skyline over Lady Bird Lake.

Google’s tower at 601 W. Second St., formerly known as Block 185, is on track for its core and shell to be finished in May, said Aaron Thielhorn, managing director for developer Trammell Crow Co. Rising 590 feet, the tower is expected to be the tallest in Austin that is only office space.

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Teacher Retirement System of Texas Buys Austin Building for New Headquarters Campus

CoStar  – 1/3/2022

The Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS) has acquired a soon-to-be-completed office building in the Mueller Business District in Austin, Texas, where it plans to establish its new headquarters campus.

The retirement system, one of the largest in the country with a pension fund totaling around $201.8 billion as of August, completed a deal with Shorenstein Properties to buy the 236,428-square-foot, six-story building at 1900 Aldrich St., also known as the Alpha Building.  TRS plans to relocate select divisions to the Alpha Building in the spring of 2023.

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State Job Performance November 2021 – Four States Now Back to Pre-Pandemic Levels

Stewart Title  – 12/31/2021

Jobs are everything to the economy.  Jobs ultimately create and sustain the demand for real estate of all types.  Good news is that now four states – Utah, Idaho, Texas and Arizona – had more jobs in November 2021 than in February 2020, the month prior to the pandemic, as reported by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Good news for most readers of this blog, the primary recovered sector is real estate.

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Pearlstone’s Next 2 Projects: Tower Near SXSW Center, Condos On S. Lamar

ABJ  – 1/5/2022

Development firm Pearlstone Partners LLC continues to pursue a unique strategy to try and address the tight residential market. The Austin-based firm has revealed details on two new projects slated to start construction in mid-2022 and early 2023.

The first: Pearlstone plans to build 170 condos at 2323 S. Lamar Blvd., in the desirable 78704 ZIP code.  The second project will replace a dilapidated gas station in downtown Austin with a residential tower at 14th and Lavaca streets, near the SXSW Center.

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Austin Area Among Top U.S. Markets For Home Sales In Master-Planned Communities

Austin Culture Map  – 1/7/2022

The Austin area — particularly the Capital City’s surrounding suburbs — is mastering the art of the master-planned community. A report released January 4 by RCLCO Real Estate Advisors shows the Austin metro area was home to two of the 50 top-selling master-planned communities last year. They are:

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Real Estate Roundup: Alabama Firm Buys Suburban Land For Rentals; Austin Firm Scoops Up Prime Downtown Site

ABJ  – 1/6/2022

◈ Birmingham, Alabama-based LIV Development LLC acquired a 30-acre parcel at the intersection of State Highway 130 and East Pecan Street from Austin-Pecan Ventures LLC and plans to build 463 rentable units on the site.
◈ Austin-based developer Wilson Capital has plans to redevelop the site of the Avenue Lofts condominiums on East Fifth Street.
◈ MTM Transit LLC signed a lease extension for 32,000 square feet at 817 W. Howard Lane in Austin.
◈ Paradise Spas & Outdoor Living signed a 20,000-square-foot industrial lease at 12955 Wright Road, Creedmoor.
◈ Olly Olly leased 10,011 square feet of office space at Atrium Office Building, 8701 N. Mopac Expy.
◈ Smoke N Chill has leased 3,339 square feet at 9709 Menchaca Road in Austin.

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372K-Square-Foot Office Tower On Austin’s South First Street To Be Completed In Early 2022

Community Impact  – 1/3/2022

Construction on the 372,000-square-foot RiverSouth office project is expected to wrap up in early 2022 with its first tenants moving in next spring. Development of the 15-story tower from Stream Realty Partners, located at the former home of a south shore Hooters restaurant at 401 S. First St., Austin, has been underway for years. Stream said the building is now around 50% preleased.

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SOLD: East Austin Boutique Hotel

BeckReitcre.com  – 1/3/2022

The Cat Noir Hotel has sold.  The property  had multiple offers in less than 24 hours & within a week it was under contract after a bidding war that drove the price above asking.  The property was picked up by a local hotel group looking to expand their Austin holdings and take advantage of “revenge travel” in 2022.  For more details, click on the link below.

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