South Austin Real Estate & Central Austin News
78704 Real Estate — October 2026
Fresh numbers from the MLS this week. Here's where the 78704 market actually stands — not what the headlines say, which is a very different thing.
Here is the number that deserves the most attention this week: the listing failure rate in 78704 is 49.8%. Roughly half of everything listed in this zip code over the past 12 months failed to sell. Withdrawn. Expired. Back to square one.
This is not a demand problem. Buyers are out there — 182 homes sold in South Austin last month alone. This is almost entirely a pricing problem. The overpricing spread in 78704 is currently $81,979 between asking price and actual sold price per bedroom. Sellers who priced against hope instead of data handed that gap directly to their own timeline.
"78704 is Austin's most expensive non-lakefront ZIP code. Lot scarcity controls the pricing floor — you can build more homes in Round Rock. You cannot build more 78704." — LRG Realty Neighborhood Guide, 2026
For buyers: 729 active listings means genuine options and genuine negotiating room. For sellers: price it correctly from day one. The homes that closed last month are proof it's possible. The 49.8% that didn't are proof of the alternative.
What's Actually Open in Central Austin Right Now
Austin Sports Club — Kevin Durant Opens Downtown
Austin Sports Club opened September 10 at 205 East Third Street downtown — Kevin Durant's first restaurant venture, developed with Rich Kleiman's Boardroom Hospitality, Airbnb co-founder Joe Gebbia, and Austin's own Lobos Hospitality. A ribbon-cutting ceremony took place September 23.
The concept is described as a luxury sports lounge and dining experience — "a timeless restaurant reimagined for the modern athlete, executive and tastemaker." Durant, who played one legendary season at UT Austin in 2006-07, said: "Austin is an incredibly important place to me and I've wanted to have a space like Austin Sports Club to come back to for a long time."
Hours: Mon–Thu 5–10pm, Fri 5–11pm, Sat 10am–11pm, Sun 10am–10pm.
The Watershed — Coffee, Cocktails and Community Downtown
The Watershed opened September 8 at 1004 West 11th Street — a combination coffee shop, cocktail bar, restaurant, and event space operating with a genuine "third space" ethos. Natural wines, locally roasted coffee, craft and old-world beer, and a thoughtful non-alcoholic cocktail program. Open 8am daily for coffee service. Muy Yum food truck handles on-site eats, sourcing primarily from Texas and Mexico.
The concept plans to host open mic nights, poetry readings, and live music through partnerships with UT Austin. Coffee and community in one space — something Austin keeps finding new ways to do well.
Bar Fino — Creative Cocktails Hit Rainey Street
Bar Fino is the latest addition to Rainey Street, opening in early October with a creative cocktail menu — including a tomato and pineapple margarita that either sounds brilliant or concerning depending on your relationship with tomatoes. Rainey Street continues its methodical takeover of Austin's Friday night social calendar. We remain impressed and mildly exhausted by the pace of it.
Churchrow Tejas BBQ — Simon Madera's Newest Concept
Churchrow Tejas BBQ launched in mid-October, run by Simon Madera — the restaurateur behind La Holly and Taco Flats, two of Austin's most beloved neighborhood concepts. Madera has a track record of building restaurants that become community anchors, not just dining destinations. Churchrow brings that same philosophy to Texas BBQ.
Alloy Autohaus — Cars, Coffee, and South Lamar Vibes
Alloy Autohaus celebrated its grand opening Saturday, September 19, at 2706 South Lamar — a car-themed coffee shop and vintage car showroom pairing luxury aesthetics with specialty coffee. The founders wanted a space that lives up to Austin's car culture while serving the neighborhood as a genuine daily destination.
A coffee shop that doubles as a vintage car gallery on South Lamar is either the most Austin thing to open this year or the second most Austin thing. Either way it's in 78704 and it's open.
Talisman Coffee at La Holly — East Austin's Next Great Coffee Bar
Family-run Talisman Coffee Co. — a 2026 CultureMap Tastemaker Awards nominee for Coffee Shop of the Year — is opening a container-turned-coffee bar at neighborhood cocktail bar La Holly on East Sixth Street. Pop-up preview dates are running October 8, 13, and 23, with the official launch on November 1. The menu includes espresso drinks, cold brew, chai and matcha lattes, and housemade syrups including caramelized banana and guava.
Talisman's differentiator: the coffee is family-grown, family-owned, and family-roasted. In a city saturated with specialty coffee, that pipeline is genuinely rare.
ACL Festival Weekend Two — October 9–11
Weekend Two starts Friday: ACL Festival runs October 9–11 at Zilker Park in the heart of 78704. Headliners include Lorde, Kings of Leon, Brandon Flowers, The War on Drugs, and Steve Aoki. Weekend Two tickets remain available at aclfestival.com. South Lamar and South Congress will be operating at full capacity. Plan accordingly — or embrace it. Both are valid strategies.
Every person who attends ACL Weekend Two and walks South Congress on Saturday afternoon is doing an unintentional neighborhood due diligence tour. The restaurants are full. The streets are alive. The weather in early October in Austin is — for once — actually cooperating. And some percentage of those 75,000 daily attendees will open a real estate app before they get back to their hotel.
The 2025 ACL Festival generated $557.8 million in economic impact and attracted 450,000 attendees across two weekends. The festival is contracted at Zilker Park through at least 2040. Twenty-five years in. Fifteen more guaranteed. The neighborhood that hosts this event isn't going anywhere — and neither are its home values.
This Week in 78704 and Beyond
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OCT
9–11ACL Festival Weekend Two — Zilker Park
Lorde, Kings of Leon, Brandon Flowers, The War on Drugs, Steve Aoki. Zilker Park, 78704. Right in your front yard if you live in South Austin.
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OCT
All MonthZACH Theatre Fall Season — 202 S. Lamar Blvd
South Austin TX 78704. One of the best regional theater programs in the country, a block from South Lamar. Consistently one of the most underrated real estate selling points in the zip code.
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OCT
All MonthBarton Springs Pool — Daily · 2201 Barton Springs Rd
78704. October at Barton Springs is the neighborhood's best-kept secret. The crowds have thinned. 68 degrees year-round. The homeowners within walking distance know this — and they're not telling everyone.
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OCT
8, 13, 23Talisman Coffee Pop-Up at La Holly — 2500 E. 6th St
East Austin. Preview the new coffee bar before the official November 1 launch. Worth the trip.
78704 Real Estate FAQs — October 2026
What is the median home price in 78704 in October 2026?
Approximately $825,000, with a price per square foot of $541. Homes are averaging 75 days on market with 729 active listings across South Austin — giving buyers more options and more negotiating leverage than the market has offered in years.
Is 78704 a buyer's or seller's market right now?
Balanced to slightly favoring buyers. The listing failure rate of 49.8% and an overpricing spread of $81,979 between asking and sold price are the defining signals. Homes priced correctly are selling. Overpriced homes are becoming the statistic. This market is efficient at that distinction.
What new restaurants have opened in Austin in October 2026?
Verified October 2026 openings include Austin Sports Club at 205 E. Third St (Kevin Durant, opened September 10), The Watershed at 1004 W. 11th St (opened September 8), Bar Fino on Rainey Street (early October), Churchrow Tejas BBQ at 1521 W. Anderson Lane (mid-October), and Alloy Autohaus at 2706 S. Lamar Blvd (opened September 19).
When is ACL Festival Weekend Two and who is headlining?
ACL Festival Weekend Two runs October 9–11 at Zilker Park in South Austin's 78704 zip code. Headliners include Lorde, Kings of Leon, Brandon Flowers, The War on Drugs, and Steve Aoki. Weekend Two tickets are still available at aclfestival.com.
What does the 49.8% listing failure rate mean for sellers in 78704?
It means roughly half of all homes listed in 78704 in the past 12 months failed to sell. This is almost entirely a pricing issue — not a demand issue. Homes priced at market value are still closing. Overpriced homes are not. If you're considering listing in 78704, the conversation about pricing strategy is the most important one you can have before anything else.
The Weekly Take
October in 78704 is a particular kind of good. The heat finally steps back. ACL turns Zilker Park into the world's front yard for two weekends. Kevin Durant is open for dinner downtown. A car-themed coffee shop opened on South Lamar and somehow feels completely at home there.
The market is doing what markets do when they're healthy and honest: rewarding the informed and gently educating the overconfident. The 49.8% listing failure rate is the most important number in 78704 real estate right now — and it has one simple lesson embedded in it. Price it right. Do that, and you join the 182 families who sold last month. Don't, and you become the other half of the stat.
Meanwhile — buyers have options. Real ones. 729 active listings, motivated sellers, and a price-per-square-foot that's still holding up year over year. The fundamentals of this zip code haven't changed. The negotiating landscape has — in your favor.
ACL Weekend Two starts Friday. Lorde is headlining. The weather is going to cooperate for once. And whoever is sitting on the fence about South Austin real estate is going to have a very persuasive two days.
We'll be here Monday.
— Bob Hachtel, Founder | Record Realty | 78704
Ready to Make Your Move in South Austin?
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