In early December, while all eyes were on Amazon’s HQ2 announcement, Apple made an important one of its own: the decision to invest $1 billion in a new 133-acre Austin campus that will increase Apple to upwards of 15,000 employees in the coming years. With the completion of this campus, Apple will surpass other well-known names such as H-E-B and Dell to earn the title as the largest private employer in the city of Austin.
The Apple campus will be located right next to its counterpart just over the county line in Williamson County, placing it 12 miles from the city center. It will bring in a good mix of middle to upper range jobs in technology, research and customer call centers. In addition to catapulting Austin into the big leagues as a technology center, the incoming Apple campus will impact all sectors of life, such as housing, restaurants, traffic, and retail marketplaces. Some estimate that the overall impact of the new Apple campus could result in over 30,000 new jobs across all sectors of real estate, construction, and the marketplace in Austin.
What impact will this swell of jobs have on the Austin housing market? Prices will continue to rise if more supply is not created to meet these additional demands. As housing prices in the urban core of Austin continue to escalate, look for more incoming Apple employees to search for homes in the Round Rock, Pflugerville, and Hutto areas because of their close accessibility to the Robinson Ranch area (where Apple is located) via SH 45. Other communities that will likely see further development are Liberty Hill and Leader as I-35 will also become a main thoroughfare for Apple employees.
What might the arrival of Apple mean for your housing sale or purchase? If you are shopping in the housing market right now, the answer is simple. The sooner you can buy, the better. Competition and prices are only looking to increase. However, if you own a home in North Austin, you might want to hold onto it for a couple more years. That is, if you can afford its increasing property taxes!
The addition of the new Apple campus will only contribute to Austin’s reputation as a knowledge and talent center and will continue to draw more people from the West Coast who are looking for solid tech jobs in more affordable housing markets. However, the infrastructure will have to work hard to keep up with the demands of this brand new influx of people to make this a win for all Austinites.
