Housing in Austin and Homelessness

The causes of homelessness are complex and can include both systemic and individual factors. The inability to afford housing is a key driver of homelessness.

This analysis sought to compare several parameters relating to housing cost and supply in Austin, Texas to both other cities in Texas and similar cities around the United States.

These parameters include:

Rent

Though similar to other U.S. cities, Austin’s rent prices are the highest of Texas’s large cities

Austin’s rent prices are high for a Texas city, with median gross rents consistently several hundred dollars above their Texan counterparts for the past several years. Rent prices in Austin are still far below many cities on the west coast like San Jose and San Francisco, where median gross rent is nearly double that in Austin.

Home Prices

Home values are much higher in Austin than other Texas cities

Home values closely mirror rent prices, with Austin’s median home values far outpacing other cities in Texas but lagging behind the West Coast cities.

Building Permits

Austin is building an impressive amount of housing each year

New housing can help to lower housing costs by increasing supply. The number of residential building permits issued each year can give a good indication of the amount of new housing construction. Though cities in Texas tend build housing at a faster pace than many other cities in the U.S., the Austin metro area is exceptional in this regard with about twice as many building permits issued per capita in recent years compared to metro areas like Dallas or Houston. This pattern is more stark when comparing Austin to cities like Philadelphia or San Francisco, which build little housing.

Vacancy Rates

Despite the construction boom, low vacancy rates show that demand for housing is high

Vacancy rates (both for rental homes and for homeowner inventory) remain low in Austin compared to Texas cities, indicating a high demand for housing. Low vacancy rates can make it harder for people to find housing to live in.

Low Income Housing

Austin has more low income housing than other cities in Texas but is average compared to similar cities

Low income housing- subsidized to increase the number of people who can afford housing- can be a good resource to help those dealing with homelessness or who may be at higher risk of homelessness. While Austin has more affordable housing than other Texas cities, its affordable housing stock is more average compared to similar cities.

Housing Choice Vouchers

A large gap exists between the number of available Housing Choice Vouchers and the number of severely rent burdened households in every US city including Austin

The Housing Choice Voucher Program provides rental housing assistance to households with low incomes. Demand for this program is high across the United States, and obtaining a voucher often involves a applying to a lengthy waiting list and a lottery. This set of graphs compares the number of available vouchers offered by each city with the number of severely rent burdened households (households spending more than 50% of their income on rent). This gap is wide in Austin, where there are about ten times more severely rent burdened households than available vouchers.

Conclusion

  • Housing in Austin is expensive, especially when compared to neighboring cities in Texas

  • While Austin’s construction boom is helping to keep housing costs lower than coastal cities, demand for housing is so high that vacancy rates remain extremely low

  • Austin does have more low income housing that cities in Texas, but is average compared to cities across the United States

  • Austin, like many others US cities, does not have enough housing choice vouchers to meet demand