Is 78701 a buyer’s or seller’s market for Downtown condo owners?
Quick answer
Buyers have the edge downtown. Downtown Austin sellers gave up more of their asking price over the past twelve months than sellers anywhere else in Central Austin. That makes it a buyer’s market for the ZIP as a whole, and a single building or price range can read differently.
Public-record median: $635,625 for ZIP 78701 sales recorded in the MLS, twelve months ending October 20, 2026. The public record understates Downtown Austin. The sales that would pull this number up trade privately and never reach the MLS, and a downtown lot alone rarely changes hands under a million dollars.
What we analyzed
- 220 homes sold in ZIP 78701 (Austin city addresses) in the twelve months ending October 20, 2026
- 218 homes for sale in ZIP 78701 as of October 21, 2026, 25 of them builder listings
- 11.9 months of inventory in ZIP 78701, against 5.5 in the Austin metro
- Downtown Austin price ranges, twelve months ending October 20, 2026
- The prior twelve months on its own row
Sources: Unlock MLS, pulled October 21, 2026.
Selling above $1M? Part of this market never goes online
The figures on this page describe the public side of this market, the sales that were listed in the MLS. Above $1M in the Austin area, a large share of sales are never listed there and never appear online.
Those sales trade on a broker-to-broker private network, and I am a participating broker. Only the agents and brokers who do most of the business at this price point use it, and a surprising number of agents do not know it exists because they do not sell in this range. It covers homes, lots, ranches and condos priced over $1M, and much of it is waterfront or in the Austin core, West Austin, Westlake and Rollingwood, where prices run past $1.5M.
Sellers and their brokers use it for privacy: no public photos or floor plans, and no showings to buyers who have not been qualified.
Contact me for off-market private luxury listings you will never see online
57 Central Austin homeowners have trusted my real estate team to sell their home in the MLS, and that count doesn’t include a single buyer we’ve represented. Everything on this page comes from the same MLS record we used to price those homes.
What these numbers mean if you are selling is on the Central Austin, TX market report.
Last updated October 21, 2026. Sales data covers the twelve months ending October 20, 2026 (Unlock MLS via MLS Grid, the public MLS side only); listing inventory as of October 21, 2026. This page refreshes annually.
How does Downtown Austin compare with the rest of the area and the metro?
Downtown sellers gave up more than anyone else in Central Austin, closing at 92.4% of original asking. The metro figure was 94.3%.
Table 1. ZIP code 78701 compared with Central Austin and the Austin metro. Sales are from the twelve months ending October 20, 2026; homes for sale are as of October 21, 2026. The ZIP column covers 78701 homes recorded with an Austin city address. “Failed to sell” means the listing expired or was withdrawn without selling. Figures describe the public (MLS) side only. Source: Unlock MLS.
| Measure | ZIP 78701 | Central Austin | Austin metro |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes sold | 220 | 734 | 34,996 |
| Public-record median sale price | $635,625 | $550,000 | $415,000 |
| Median days on market | 83 days | 58 days | 58 days |
| What homes sold for relative to their initial asking price | 92.4% | 93.9% | 94.3% |
| Price per square foot (median) | $690 | $451 | $205 |
| Homes for sale | 218 | 518 | 16,078 |
| Months of supply | 11.9 | 8.5 | 5.5 |
| Buyer’s or seller’s market | buyer’s market | buyer’s market | balanced |
| Listings that failed to sell | 352 | 884 | 19,679 |
| Share of listings that failed to sell | 61.5% | 54.6% | 36.0% |
| Active under contract | 14 | 36 | 1,422 |
| Pending | 5 | 27 | 2,064 |
| New listings in the last twelve months | 559 | 1,613 | 54,447 |
| Homes for sale priced below their original asking price | 105 (48.2%) | 267 (51.5%) | 59.1% |
| New builds for sale (builder listings) | 25 of 218 (11.5%) | 59 of 518 (11.4%) | n/a |
Supply is the other difference. Downtown carries 11.9 months of it at this year’s pace, the most of any Central Austin ZIP.
Which downtown buildings have their own report?
One so far, 360 Condominiums, the busiest building in the ZIP this past year.
Table 2. Neighborhoods in ZIP code 78701 with their own page, by sales in the twelve months ending October 20, 2026. Source: Unlock MLS.
| Neighborhood | Sold, twelve months | Public-record median sale price | Market report |
|---|---|---|---|
| 360 Condominiums | 32 | $525,000 | 360 Condominiums market report |
Are downtown prices higher or lower than a year ago?
Lower. The typical downtown sale was $635,625 this past year, against $682,500 the year before.
Per square foot the move was small, $690 this past year against $697 the year before.
More homes sold, 220 this past year against 188 the year before. Buyers are coming out of the woodwork downtown even as prices slip.
Table 3. 78701 sales in each period. Each row stands on its own. Figures describe the public (MLS) side only. Source: Unlock MLS.
| Period | Sold | Public-record median sale price | Median days on market | Share of original asking price | Price per square foot |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Twelve months ending October 20, 2026 | 220 | $635,625 | 83 days | 92.4% | $690 |
| Prior twelve months (October 21, 2024 to October 20, 2025) | 188 | $682,500 | 105 days | 91.9% | $697 |
What that means for a seller across the area is on What should Central Austin homeowners know before they sell?
Which downtown price range is your condo in?
Look up your price in the range table. Each range is judged by what sold against original asking over the past twelve months, and only ranges with at least 10 sales appear.
Table 4. 78701 homes by price range. Sales are from the twelve months ending October 20, 2026; homes for sale are as of October 21, 2026. A range is a seller’s market when homes sell for at least 97% of their original asking price, balanced from 94% to 97%, and a buyer’s market below 94%. Only price ranges with at least 10 sales in the twelve months are shown. Figures describe the public (MLS) side only; ranges at $1M and above trade largely on a broker-to-broker private network, so days on market and failed-to-sell figures are not shown for them. Source: Unlock MLS.
| Price range | Sold | Public-record median sale price | Median days on market | Share of listings that failed to sell | For sale | New builds for sale | Homes that cut their price | Months of supply | Market |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $400,000 to $449,999 | 11 | $412,500 | 73 days | 52.2% | 8 | 0 | 3 | 8.7 | balanced |
| $450,000 to $499,999 | 18 | $447,000 | 57 days | 55.0% | 22 | 0 | 8 | 14.7 | balanced |
| $500,000 to $549,999 | 16 | $457,500 | 76 days | 54.3% | 14 | 1 | 9 | 10.5 | buyer’s market |
| $550,000 to $599,999 | 19 | $559,000 | 29 days | 59.6% | 16 | 3 | 9 | 10.1 | balanced |
| $650,000 to $699,999 | 17 | $619,999 | 110 days | 54.1% | 8 | 0 | 4 | 5.6 | buyer’s market |
| $700,000 to $799,999 | 14 | $654,200 | 207 days | 64.1% | 16 | 3 | 12 | 13.7 | buyer’s market |
| $800,000 to $899,999 | 13 | $780,000 | 124 days | 64.9% | 16 | 4 | 9 | 14.8 | buyer’s market |
| $1,000,000 to $1,249,999 | 18 | $1,038,754 | n/a (private sales) | n/a (private sales) | 12 | 1 | 5 | 8.0 | buyer’s market |
| $1,250,000 to $1,499,999 | 12 | $1,216,500 | n/a (private sales) | n/a (private sales) | 10 | 2 | 4 | 10.0 | buyer’s market |
| $1,750,000 to $1,999,999 | 12 | $1,725,000 | n/a (private sales) | n/a (private sales) | 4 | 2 | 1 | 4.0 | buyer’s market |
| $2,000,000 to $2,499,999 | 10 | $2,190,000 | n/a (private sales) | n/a (private sales) | 7 | 2 | 4 | 8.4 | buyer’s market |
Most downtown ranges were buyer’s markets for that range this past year. Condos asking in the high $500,000s came closest to full price, at 96.6% of original asking.
Above $1M these ranges show only the public side of the market.
How does 78701 compare with the other Central Austin ZIP codes?
Downtown had the longest typical wait for a contract of the five, a median 83 days.
Table 5. The other Central Austin ZIP codes, twelve months ending October 20, 2026. Source: Unlock MLS.
| ZIP | Sold | Median sale price | Median days on market | Share of original asking price | For sale | Months of supply | Market |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ZIP 78701 | 220 | $635,625 | 83 days | 92.4% | 218 | 11.9 | buyer’s market |
| ZIP 78705 | 153 | $305,000 | 77 days | 92.8% | 125 | 9.8 | buyer’s market |
| ZIP 78751 | 173 | $640,000 | 40 days | 95.0% | 82 | 5.7 | balanced |
| ZIP 78752 | 88 | $374,000 | 34 days | 96.3% | 61 | 8.3 | balanced |
| ZIP 78756 | 100 | $759,000 | 39 days | 95.2% | 32 | 3.8 | balanced |
Do these downtown numbers describe your home?
They describe the ZIP, and one condo can sit well above or below it. Run your address for the units a buyer would tour against yours.
- Closer fit for a condo in a tower with several similar units listed.
- Looser fit for a unit priced in the high $500,000s, where sales ran closer to asking.
- Looser fit above $1M, where much of the market trades privately.
- Looser fit for a home that is move-in ready and priced off this year’s closed sales.
Who a downtown seller is really up against is on Which homes will your buyer tour before your Central Austin home?, and the value question is on What is your Central Austin home worth beyond the public record?
Your situation
The tables give the whole of Downtown Austin. They can’t show the units listed in your building this month or where your price would land among them, and your address can.
Before You Put Your Home on the Market, See the Homes You’ll Have to Beat
If you own downtown and aren’t sure which of these numbers fits your unit, start with the listings in your building and the ones around it. Request my complimentary Home Competitor Analysis for your address. You get:
- The homes for sale in 78701 a buyer would likely tour alongside yours
- How recent sales on your street compare with 78701 as a whole
- How the walkthrough works and what we look at in your home
No obligation. The report for your part of Central Austin arrives within a minute; the pricing analysis comes after we walk the home. Nothing here promises a price, a timeline, or an outcome. 57 homes sold by Watters International Realty in Central Austin (Unlock MLS, all time).
Why do I watch months of supply downtown?
Chris’s position, approved September 9, 2026.
Months of supply is the number I watch. It means: if no more homes came on the market, how long would it take to sell everything listed at the pace homes are selling now.
Downtown that number is 11.9 months, against 5.5 for the metro. I read it beside what sellers actually got, and here the two point the same way.
About Watters International Realty in Central Austin
Watters International Realty is a Texas real estate brokerage, and I am its broker of record. This page is based on Unlock MLS data analyzed on October 21, 2026. 57 homes sold by Watters International Realty in Central Austin (Unlock MLS, all time).
See the homes you’d be competing against
You get the downtown listings a buyer would weigh against yours, how your building compares with the ZIP, and a walkthrough before we talk price.
Contact me for off-market private luxury listings you will never see online.
No obligation. The report arrives within a minute; the pricing analysis comes after we walk the home. Nothing here promises a price, a timeline, or an outcome.
More for Central Austin sellers
- What should Central Austin homeowners know before they sell?
- How hard are buyers bargaining near campus in 78705 this year?
- How is 78751 treating Hyde Park and Highlands sellers this year?
- Which side of the 78752 market is your price on?
- How much room does a Rosedale seller in 78756 have on price?
- Should you sell your Central Austin home now, or wait a year?
- Which homes will your buyer tour before your Central Austin home?
- Why are so many Central Austin listings failing to sell?
- What is your Central Austin home worth beyond the public record?
- The Austin seller hub
