Home prices in Texas and across the nation have been steadily increasing as homeowners find themselves competing with investors looking to convert homes into rental properties, according to Redfin News.

These investors have a competitive advantage due to their ability to pay cash rather than taking out mortgages, and the increased interest in real estate has contributed to price increases.  

Texas A&M University's Texas Real Estate Research Center reports the median home price in the state increased 19.3% overall as of June 2021, while certain areas, such as Austin and Houston, reported 43.2% and 19.4% increases, respectively

Real estate investors purchased 67,943 houses in the U.S. in Q2 2021, a record quarterly amount and a 15.1% rise over Q2 2020, when the housing market was immobilized by severe restrictions.

According to a White House data sheet released on Sept. 1, investors purchased one in every six properties in the U.S. by 2021, totaling $49 billion worth of homes.

Due to this significant level of investor activity, particularly in more moderate- to low-cost housing areas, the Biden administration intends to restrict investor access to some FHA-insured and HUD-owned homes.

The strong demand for housing, coupled with a limited supply of available homes, has also resulted in record-low average days on market (DOM) for the country in major metro areas.

As of June 2021, the average DOM for houses in Texas was 30 days.

Houston's DOM remained around the state average of 33 days; however, this number fell to just 15 days in Austin.