re: Why are homeownership rates precipitously declining?

Ya, Austin definitely made us nervous since we knew it already has run up for some time and unlike New Orleans, you can actually build out from downtown, which the MS River and Ponchartrain prevent, which puts demand on those homes in Orleans parish.

The house we ended up offering on has come down 60k or so from when they originally listed it and had been sitting awhile, so hopefully we've mitigated some downside there. That's pretty much been our MO for our two purchases. Find something we like that has been sitting too long.

But yes, certainly more worrisome than just checking rental rates and picking one. If you don't like the price after a year, move.