San Antonio, Texas saw a 15% drop in new home starts during the second quarter of 2011 in an annual comparison, according to Residential Strategies, Inc., a housing research firm. The median price of a new home in San Antonio has increased by 6.4% to $196,106. Which is to say that half of the homes sold for less than the median price and half of the homes sold for more.

This time last year, however, home buyers where scrambling to purchase homes before the Federal Tax Credit expired, which makes it no surprise that housing starts have dropped. Low rates on a 30 year fixed rate mortgage combined with low home prices has done very little to spark interest in potential homebuyers, as the high unemployement and tight lending standards are stamping out the ability to purchase a new home.


According to Cassie Gibson, Senior VP of research and consulting for Residential Strategies, We aren't really able to charge more for the same house today than we were a year ago. The market is still demanding the best possible value. You're still getting a lot of negative news on the national level. Most of the buyers still think the market is challenged, and they can really garner a good deal.