What's Real with Real Estate

What’s Real With Real Estate Fall 2022

Calvin is making his way through his first year of highschool with his many talents including drumming, baseball, and doing the wave with his eyebrows. Calvin is learning French and is on track for taking French 3 next year. He is excited to interview experts on their opinions about the local market.. He wants to see how inflation is affecting different people of varying socioeconomic status.

Aravis is a freshman at LASA high school and her hobbies span from cooking to drawing to singing to playing ultimate frisbee and even to doing pottery. She’s interested in learning and writing about the quality of the housing market and how it has changed over time. She’s a Kealing Middle and Alpha Academy alum, and most importantly, her grandparents own fifteen rabbits.

Violetta goes by Vita and likes to create pictures and designs but not particularly write. Her favorite hobbies are dance, volleyball, baking, cooking, playing the flute, and anything to do with plants. Vita likes to create visual art, she hopes to practice being expressive throughout this magazine. In the future Vita hopes to be in the field of medicinal plants. When asked what she thinks is unique or weird about her she says that's hard, I'm just me I'm just weird in general.

Ethan is a high school student in Liberal Arts and Science Academy. Ethan is a kind and open minded person. He loves to have meaningful conversations with others and talk about what makes them happy. Fettuccine alfredo is Ethan’s favorite food and Halloween is his favorite holiday. Ethan loves art and plans to pursue it in the future. For Ethan, art is natural, calming, and it lets him really express himself.

What Tomorrow Holds

Since 1994, Paul Reddam has been a realtor in Austin Texas who has helping many Americans from a variety of economic backgrounds find a house that best fits their needs. “I’ve sold 4 million dollar houses and I’ve sold 100,000 dollar houses. We operate based on people.” Reddam was familiar with the industry since he was young since it took his parents years to decide on a home which is why he eventually decided to work in this field. Reddam also jokes, “That billy joel song ‘Paul is a Real Estate Novelist’ you know had some impact”. An old colleague of Reddam’s once explained his theory that one day, Austin, San Antonio, Dallas, and Houston would all merge into one city called the Texaplex. Reddam had at first brushed it off as merely a strange theory of his, but as there are more and more suburbs surrounding each city, they’ll probably eventually connect and Reddam has adjusted his opinion on the matter.

Aravis Lenfest

courtasy of Paul Reddam

courtasy of Sharmila Meht

“And I think he may be right in 25 years . It’s pretty close right now you know Austin and San Antonio are pretty well connected, and Austin and Dallas are pretty well connected. It’s the Houston connection that’s really kind of harder.”

In 2008, the term Texaplex was coined by David Winans, an author and real estate broker. Winans posted a video explaining the theory in depth that quickly went viral. While Texas’s future seems destined for housing to escape further and further into the country so that they all collide, another realtor from North Carolina has a prediction for the entire nation.

Realtor Rane Gretsch has houses scattered around the east coast, but predominantly in Raleigh, North Carolina, where he lives. He is a business major who has been helping people buy and rent houses for far fewer years than Reddam.

Pull quote: Grestch predicts, “I think [in 25 years], [housing] is going to be owned by the super wealthy and there's going to be a larger divide between property owners and renters.” Arguably, already true. In the future that Gretsch predicts, there would be a few people getting filthy rich off of housing while everyone else would be forced to pay outrageous prices for rent. People living in cities would buy houses in more rural areas while everyone else would try moving towards the cities to find better jobs.

“I think [in 25 years], [housing] is going to be owned by the super wealthy and there’s going to be a larger divide between property owners and renters.”

Gretsch’s prediction of people living in cities more and more is what I think will cause Reddam’s Texaplex. People from California flee like rats from a fire to the major cities in Texas and the Texans living in the city will get pushed out to the suburbs. So they’re living in that half way city and country. As the demand for housing in the suburbs increases, more housing will be built farther and farther out until low and behold, the suburbs run into eachother.

Perks and Pains

manages AirBnBs, buys, sells, and rents houses. He likes his job simply because of the flexibility in his schedule and for his love of looking at cool properties. On the flip side, Grestch is always wary of the people. “ doing what I do it lets me see cool houses and see cool neighborhoods and get to transform houses from to complete dump to nice places to live”

Taking care of houses is extremely important and often extremely expensive. Be sure to treat your house with respect whether it’s yours or not because if you don’t, someone will end up paying for it.

Gretsch is a realtor and a landlord. He Sharmila Mehta is another self-employed realtor who became a realtor when she moved to Austin from India 10 years ago with two teenage daughters. She doesn’t rent houses, she only buys them, fixes them up, and then sells them for a much higher value. Mehta is a very hardworking person who “The housing market will continue to favor the wealthy who can afford to buy a lot of land. Houses are a tangible asset that you can use and that you can pass on to your children.”

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The best part about being a realtor seems to be the flexibility in the schedule and being your own boss, but as the realtors have said, that is also a distinct downside. Meht says, “The bad thing is I don't have a boss and I'm completely reliant on myself to do what I need to do and my income is completely unpredictable.” Reddam also remarks that the predictability of getting paid was often worrisome. People don’t often think about that when they get into real estate. “The hardest part about being a real estate agent is that it's super competitive and there are so many realtors out there.” says Meht. The cut throat nature of the field makes it difficult to get in and easy to be forcibly shoved out. Being in real estate is very difficult. It takes a lot of determination and an understanding of seeing the bigger picture. So what can you do? Take care of your house and be kind to the realtors in your life!

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“The hardest part about being a real estate agent is that it’s super competitive and there are so many realtors out there.”

A Local Market

The housing market in Austin has boomed, especially since the early 2000’s, where the city’s population zoomed from one to two million in a matter of just twenty years. For a stretch of time, Austin was a diamond in the rough, so to say, a progressive, developed, urban and suburban city where people could live without the worry of an un

reasonable cost of living. But, as the population continues to ascend at alarming rates, that worry becomes a part of more and more people’s lives because as said population peaks, so does the price of housing.

This instance of inflation has greatly impacted the lives of people in our city, and

around the globe, even if we may not have realized it. While it sounds professional, the idea is quite comprehensible. Inflation can simply be described as an increase in prices. In the real estate market for example, prices of living spaces have gradually been increasing for almost the last hundred years. Case in point, Kimberly

Zipfel

Calvin Fedyszyn

Photo by Calvin Fedyszyn

of Marye Realty expressed that “through the pandemic, [housing prices] have appreciated about forty percent, which is quite extreme,”. But depending on the income and socioeconomic status of certain buyers , these inflating prices will have different effects.

The socioeconomic class pyramid is used to describe society based on their economic worth, with the three divisions being the working, middle, and upper class. The first and lowest class, the working class (who generally make less than fifty grand annually), have been the most negatively impacted by inflating prices. This is because as prices continue to rise around them, finding a suitable home becomes continuously harder and harder. Certain options they once had eventually become close to or entirely impossible for their limited price range. Channel Sykes, realtor of Sprout Realty had this to say, “It’s a lot for someone who’s barely able to make ends meet. It’s much harder for them to look into purchasing a home if they’re willing and wanting to stay

in areas close to the city”.

The middle class, as their name probably suggests, are in a reasonably neutral situation. Prices around them are constantly rising, but so is the value of property they own. Lastly, the upper classes, those who make more than six figures,

are in the most prime position. Considering their stand in the market is probably already developed to a certain extent, the value of the property they own only continues to rise, and therefore so does the payout when said property is sold.

Summarizing, the difference between classes is massive,

Photo by Calvin Fedyszyn

and it is only continuing to widen. “In the city of Austin, we continue to have this disparity of jobs that are paying employees $150,000, after graduation to work, yet, we have grocery workers, or people who work at In and Out who can’t afford to live here because of the jobs they work at. It’s a huge disparity,” said Zipfel.

Unsurprisingly, Austin hasn’t been the only place affected by inflation. All around the world, it’s struck housing markets, sending prices out of reach for much of their respective populations. However, this effect greatly

“Until our city can address a solution, then Austin will be stuck in this loop of prices rising, and people’s salaries not being able to meet it.”

- Kim Zipfel

depends on the local economy of the country, said Mark White of Sprout Realty. “It really depends on certain areas and whatnot, highly developed countries are seeing spikes in inflation, while lower developed ones like the Philippines experience less drastic changes.” So, because the United States are very very developed, they’ve sort of taken the brunt, but that doesn’t mean that other countries haven’t too. But, what does this all mean for younger generations ? What is inflation going to do to us? Are any of us going to be able to live in a developed city like Austin? Will

the never-dropping prices forcibly drive us away? Short answer, probably. Likely, by the time we enter the market, only a small amount of us will be able to afford property in Austin. In response to that, realtors envision the lines of cities being blurred and becoming more connected with one another, in order for younger generations to continue taking residence here. They expect to see sprawl in all directions, and into small cities such as Brenham, Elgin, and San Marcos.

The real problem is that inflation is an effect that doesn’t have a definite solutionbecause it’s based on supply and demand, of property in our case, it’s hard to really label it as “hurtful”, despite how much it obviously has hurt our city. Rather, it’s just a thing that happens. It is merely an event. But without a solution, what is to be done about the displacement of families, and sky-rocketing prices? Truthfully, no one is sure. “Our city will be trapped in this never-ending cycle, until someone comes up with a solution and I’m

“I’ll just say that if you can get real estate here in Austin, you’re in a pretty good position.”

- Mark White

not saying it’s an easy one, it’s certainly not one I have,” says White.

Inflation’s impact on our city will continue to wreak havoc and leave wildly large numbers of our population without livable conditions, until prices lower once again.

Photo by Calvin Fedyszyn

Perspective Real Estate

Violetta Istomina

Everyone has different views on real estate. Some people see it as an opportunity to help others, while others just see it as a source of income.

For some people, like children, real estate isn’t very important. But for others, it can be the biggest decision of their lives. It’s not just a big decision because they are picking which house or apartment they like more, but it also involves things like the cost, community, region, what schools it’s zoned to, and how far away it is from wherever they need to go during the day. In the beginning of 2020, home sales were dropping, but as people started to move from the centers of the city to less densely populated areas, more suitable for remote lives, property prices hit a record high. It was an extreme sellers market where houses were under contracts for over the asking price within hours of being on the market. After that wave, the market started to become more stabilized again. There are several things that made the real estate market so extreme during covid times. One being the rise of interest rates. The interest rates were pretty low before, standing at 2.5% to 3% before rising to almost

be considered as the peak of the market. Currently, prices still remain high, just not as high as they used to be.

Yuliya Brody has realized that working in this profession is different from when you go to school and read text books. In real life, you need to promote yourself and shake hands with people. But Yuliya doesn’t always have time to go to all the happy hours and sudden parties, but she knows that as the people she used to work with move or want to change up their residency, she will potentially get more clients because of her connections. Another important aspect that she has come to realize is that it will take a lot of investments. These investments can be different for different people, but for her, the biggest investment is time.

double that, at 5% to 6%. When the interest rates were low, people could get a big mortgage and pay less over time. Allowing buyers to get a larger mortgage with the ability to pay it off. When the interest rates increased, less people were able to afford a mortgage so sizable. . The demand for homes will go down or up depending on the interest rate at that time. The second thing that makes a market extreme is inflation. Inflation is the gradual increase of the cost of goods and services. Meaning that when the inflation rate goes up, goods will cost more, taking away the power a certain amount of money held.

Yuliya Brody, a realtor from Keller Williams Realty, worked her entire life in a high tech industry and has now been a realtor for a year and a half. Being in the high tech industry did not really allow her to connect to her customers So she sought out another profession she could be more passionate about, that let her contribute to something important in another person’s life. Yuliya Brody loved the experiences of real estate where you get to look at homes, the designs, and where they’re located. She then decided to get licensed in real estate so she could follow her passion as a career. As Yuliya Brody was going through real estate school, the market began heating up resulting in an influx of realtor students. This time would later

Courtesey of Yuliya Brody

When a client comes to Yuliya Brody to search for a property, she first has them go through a discovery process. In that discovery process, she finds out what her client wants in the property, puts in a search for it, and sets up notifications for them so that they know when something is found. After the client sees something they may be interested in, they contact her, and then she contacts the other agent to see if the property is still available and what the status of it is. The client can also search for themselves because there are many websites and resources available online. It is still important for Yuliya Brody to represent her clients because it is a privilege that you get to work with them. If a client finds a property that they are interested in despite missing one or two elements they want, they have a choice of either giving up that property and finding a new one or settle with that one because you’ll never find a perfect property unless you build it from the ground up.

Tisha Shipman is also a realtor that began her career in real estate during covid time. Shipman works with Realty Pros of Austin, and this will be her third year, but unlike

Yuilya Brody, the change was pursued for financial reasons. Tisha Shipman already had a background in property management from her first career as a hairstylist, and although it was for financial reasons at first, she later found out that she has a strong passion for real estate. Shipman has also experienced the sellers market when she was in real estate school and agrees that the market has changed a bit from then till now.

When the market changed from a sellers to a buyers market, Tisha Shipman became more excited about working as a realtor. She enjoys being able to negotiate and “argue” to get a better price for her clients. Another aspect of Shipman’s career choice she enjoys is the flexibility of her schedule. Shipman’s background in being a hairstylist now sets her apart from other realtors because by having this background in a creative job where details are very important, she is able to pick at details in a house that someone else might not. And when most realtors would hire someone to help stage their clients house, she can do it herself. But one of her pet peeves about working with customers is when they are “too picky.”

“If you’re working in the market in some way, shape or form that you don’t have a license yet it gives you an opportunity to see if it’s up your alley, if that’s something you really want to do.”

When looking for a house people should be open minded when they go into it because there isn’t always going to be a perfect thing out there just waiting for you and sometimes there is a lack of inventory, so you won’t be able to find exactly what you’re looking for. Brandon Drayden is also a realtor and works with Habitat Hunters, but he doesn’t enjoy it as much as

Courtesy of Tisha Shipman

Yuliya Brody and Tisha Shipman. He used to work full time but has taken a step back since. Brandon says that unfortunately real estate nowadays is seen as a way to make wealth, and that’s also what he thought going into it. Brandon thinks of real estate as an investment, and over time throughout his journey he figured out that it wasn’t for him. “I’m not a salesperson at heart.” A house can be built but if a disaster happens then it could go away in an instance.

Brandon Drayden doesn’t think that it’s right for people to just buy a lot of houses and rent them out to people; however, what he did enjoy working about being a realtor is being able to help people,to be able to meet people, make them smile, and of course see different houses. Brandon Drayden transitioned out of doing real estate during COVID times because everyone was social distancing and people weren’t able to do showings because they were uncomfortable with people in their home. . Brandon noticed as new companies were moving to Austin, all the prices of properties were rising as well. It was unfortunate for local people because then they couldn’t buy a home. In addition to this there were still new houses that were being built, but the price of lumber and labor was going up, so the price of houses was also going up.

For anyone who wants to get into real estate, first figure out what it is exactly that you want to do within Realty. Figure out if this is what you have a passion for, and then just put yourself out there. If you’re interested in a career in real estate but you’re not sure about it, try gaining some experience in the field because then you will be able to tell for certain if you want to stay in it or step away. You can start off by just being an assistant for somebody and when you do decide that going into real estate is what you want then you’ve got to promote yourself, by attending social gatherings or

anywhere where you can get connections. People have different views and opinions on real estate, but no matter what you think, it is still an important part of everyone’s lives.

“So right now the real estate market is still high, but not as high as it was two years ago during covid. So there were a lot of people moving to Austin because of the industry we have, the quality of life we have, weather, and a safe environment where you can raise your kids, but the market is not the same anymore.”

Central Texas Markets

In the past few years, the market has seen many changes. There have been spikes in prices, markets outside of Austin growing exponentially and recently, interest rates have spiked to levels that were unsettling, to say the least, to new homebuyers.

We have

gathered realtors specializing in markets of Austin. Specifically, Austin -of course-, Kyle, and Round rock. They will tell you about how they got started, and through their stories I bet you’ll learn alot about Texas, and the housing market that formed it. So let’s go meet our realtors!

By Ethan Pfeiffer

Jenny has wanted to be in real estate from a young age, but when she went to college, They stopped offering degrees in real estate, so she got a degree in finance and

then took classes for real estate while living with her boyfriend. Now they are married. Congratulations, Jenny!

Currently, Jenny is investing in a future Airbnb instead of a third home, and is partnering with a contractor to help people remodel or repair their existing homes.

Jenny Kay Garcia

Andy Chewning

Andy has been around the business from childhood, with his dad working in the mortgage business. Andy was in a very close proximity to real estate, so when he took an interest in real estate, His dad noticed and they began working together while Andy was in college.

Now, Andy has been in the industry for 13 years!

Audrey Serenil

Audrey Serenil Is an Austin Realtor with over 10 years of experience, she has a passion for educating buyers on the home buying process.

She believes knowledge is power so whether you are ready to buy or just considering it, schedule an appointment with her so she

can guide you through the process so you are better equipped to make the best decision for your life.

When you choose her as your Realtor, you get a full service team. Her team’s experience and expertise will help make your real estate needs as stress free as possible.

Audrey started her career in real estate in 2008, almost 15 years ago!

She has seen the market through some of its biggest changes, one of which was the recession of 2008, “It was a down market.

There were a lot of people who had lost their jobs and it was a difficult market to sell in,” Serenil says. It was a huge chhallenge for her, and obviously working through paid off!

On a lighter note, she tells me how she first got interested in real estate. She says that she has always loved decorating houses and helping people find their first homes, and that the joy of deocrating has always been a crutial part of the home.

Courtesy of - Audrey Serenil

Round Rock Kyle

In this small city just south of Austin, the market is doing quite well. While they don’t have a huge amount of businesses, “Kyle offers more affordable homes which appeals to first time homebuyers.” Audrey explained to me. And since the houses are more affordable, the homes will sell faster. Audrey put it in great terms when she said “ Kyle homes are close enough to Austin that people can still enjoy Austin but not buy at Austin prices.”

The next stop around texas takes us to Round Rock, while only Ten minutes closer to Austin relative to Kyle, Round Rock is distinctive in many ways.

Round rock has many new homes, but when it comes to new business, that’s where they really stand out.

Luxury Homes In Austin

When it comes to the luxury market, my interviewees have not had much experience selling Luxury Homes in Central Texas but what they have told me is that there is more availability of mid range homes rather than homes that can reach prices in the millions,

When driving to round rock, it seems like less of an outskirt of tex as and more like a smooth continuation of austin. It may seem like this because there are many more small businesses, but also a mix of already well established ones you could very well be found in austin.

moving to Kyle, homebuyers can shave off up to 200,000$ off of their overall home expenses.

One of the reasons that Kyle has been doing so well is that there are a large number of companies moving to Austin, and has hit the point where homebuyers can’t live in central Austin without paying an arm and a leg. A significantly more reasonable amount, Andy told me that when “people had to start moving to the outskirts of Austin and into the suburbs to find reasonable sized homes and prices.”

-Jenny Kay Garcia

-Jenny Kay Garcia

Andy explained. He also told me that when selling a luxury home it has to be marketed to the right group of buyers, because the average person isn’t looking for what the luxury market is selling.