Located some 900 miles apart, Austin, TX, and Nashville, TN, have emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic era as thriving boomtowns with strong job growth, rapid in-migration, and high quality of life—so it comes as no surprise that both metros now rank among the nation’s top luxury housing markets.
Each city attracts throngs of wealthy buyers looking to snap up trophy properties in amenity-rich communities. However, according to the latest research from Realtor.com®, Nashville and Austin’s price trends and inventory shifts tell two different stories.
The main difference between the two popular Southern luxury markets lies in their stages of maturity, explains Realtor.com senior economist Anthony Smith: Nashville’s high-end sector is still expanding, while Austin’s is beginning to soften.
Over the past six months, the top 10% of Nashville’s housing market has held steady, even as home prices nationwide ticked down. Meanwhile, in Austin, prices in the high-end tier have continued to ease, reflecting the city’s broader market shift toward buyer-friendly territory fueled by an inventory surge.
“Nashville, by contrast, shows a maturing seller’s edge, luxury prices holding, quicker turnover, and the number of million-dollar listings continues to rise,” says Smith.
Music City becomes a magnet for the wealthy
Home to roughly 835,000 residents and renowned around the world for its music scene, Nashville ranks 14th nationwide for million-dollar listings, with close to 2,000 seven-figure properties on the market, representing a surge of more than 18% from a year ago.
In Music City, the entry point to the luxury tier is just under $1.6 million, or more than $300,000 higher than the national figure. For context, that figure is roughly double the price of an entry-level luxury home in Nashville in 2018.
“Much of Nashville is now considered a luxury market, with the average list price of a single-
family home hovering above the $1 million mark,” Liz Gatlin, a real estate broker and architect with Southern Athena, tells Realtor.com. “Demand is being driven by a mix of high-income transplants from industries like tech, entertainment, and finance, along with local legacy buyers and those looking for second homes or long-term investment opportunities.”
While Nashville’s high-end housing market has cooled from the red-hot days of the pandemic, according to Smith, it has now transitioned into a stable but growing sector.
Prices for homes in Nashville’s top 10% tier have barely budged, buoyed by strong buyer demand, even as the overall market has eased since 2022.
“We’re seeing price adjustments in pockets where supply has begun to outpace demand, particularly in the $1.5 million to $2.5 million range,” notes Gatlin. “Overbuilt modern homes in transitioning areas, especially those lacking thoughtful design or neighborhood cohesion, are sitting longer.”
At the same time, top-dollar inventory in Nashville continued moving at a fast clip, with the typical property spending just 75 days on the market, in line with the national median.
“Buyers are willing to spend, but only if the product feels worthy of the price tag,” adds the broker.
What’s more, they get more bang for their buck in Nashville compared to coastal metros.
For example, a home in Nashville that is priced between $1 million and $2 million boasts a median size of 3,618 square feet, which is over 20% larger than the national average.
Gatlin confirms that a significant share of Nashville’s luxury demand is coming from buyers leaving pricier markets in California, New York, and South Florida.
“Whether they’re priced out or simply seeking a change, they’re drawn here by Tennessee’s tax-friendly environment, pro-business culture, and lifestyle perks,” she says. “Many are used to intense bidding wars and inventory shortages, and they’re often surprised by the relative value they find in Middle Tennessee, though that window of opportunity is narrowing in prime neighborhoods.”
At the ultraluxury, top 1% tier, prices in Nashville are up 0.6% year over year, and the entry point into this vaunted sphere is currently $5.51 million. That signals that high net worth buyers continue to shop for trophy homes in Nashville’s ritziest enclaves, like College Grove and Brentwood.
What are Nashville homebuyers looking for?
Gatlin says that affluent buyers in Nashville fall into two groups: The first is looking for a slower pace of life and an escape from the hustle and bustle of big-city living.
“These buyers want expansive design, natural finishes, wellness spaces, land, and privacy,” she says.
The second group is all about ease, so these buyers are searching for low-maintenance, new construction, and condominium developments that offer walkability, access to shops and restaurants, green spaces, and convenience.
“In both cases, lifestyle is leading the decision-making process more than square footage or even location alone,” says Gatlin.
Many affluent shoppers looking for privacy and room to entertain are drawn to large, gated estates in tony suburbs such as Brentwood, Franklin, and Forest Hills.
Shoppers with a taste for new builds head for Green Hills and Oak Hill, where they can find modern homes with custom finishes. In fact, Nashville has the nation’s third-highest share of new-construction listings, at 37%, according to a recent report from Realtor.com.
Jet-setters and second-home investors tend to gravitate toward luxury condos in Midtown and downtown Nashville, while those looking to own a renovated historic home with plenty of charm can find those types of properties in Belle Meadows and East Nashville.
“Luxury in Nashville is hyperlocal,” stresses Gatlin. “Neighborhood features like greenways, proximity to country clubs, or even a well-placed pickleball court can dramatically impact perceived value. A short golf cart ride to dinner or a friend’s house? That’s become a major selling point in some communities.”
Austin is finding its footing
With a population approaching 1 million, Austin has emerged as a quintessential pandemic-era high-growth hub packed with tech startups and global businesses like Tesla and Apple—and a luxury housing market to match.
Austin ranks 18th nationwide for seven-figure listings, with 1,745 properties priced at $1 million, down 3.4% from a year ago as the market tries to recalibrate after its recent meteoric growth.
The entry point to the luxury tier in Silicon Hills—so named for Austin’s thriving semiconductor industry—is just over $1.33 million, down 11% from a year ago—and more than $200 off Nashville’s threshold.
“After years as a seller’s market, Austin’s housing landscape has shifted significantly toward the buyer, a direct result of the post-pandemic expansion meeting a cooling demand,” explains Smith.
The ultraluxury tier of the market, the top 1%, has proven the most resilient, experiencing an annual decline of just 3.3%, with the starting price registering at $4.77 million. Meanwhile, the middle 5% tier saw prices ease 8.5% from 2024.
These figures indicate that Austin’s luxury housing market is undergoing a correction, according to Smith.
A typical million-dollar home in Austin currently waits for a buyer for 89 days, which is a full two weeks longer than in Nashville and nationwide.
“It’s certainly very different than the pandemic years,” Charlotte Lipscomb, an agent with Urbanspace Realtors in Austin, tells Realtor.com, referring to the pace of the city’s luxury market. “I would say it takes longer. It’s less predictable from a timing perspective and also from a pricing perspective.”
In Austin, homes priced between $1 million and $2 million offer 3,105 square feet, which is smaller than in Nashville but still significantly more spacious than the national median of 2,990 square feet.
Austin’s high-end market draws big-city buyers
With its bustling job market and celebrated music and food scene, Austin continues to attract a wide variety of wealthy property buyers from across the U.S., including from major metros like Chicago and New York City, as well as Houston and Dallas-Fort Worth, all looking for a more relaxed lifestyle.
“Austin is obviously a great place to raise a family, but it’s also just a fun, beautiful place to live with tremendous outdoor natural resources,” says Lipscomb.
The agent adds that high net worth buyers look for different things in a home, depending on their priorities: Those who plan to live in Austin only a few months out of the year tend to gravitate toward turnkey luxury condos in the downtown area, while those looking to become full-time residents might opt for a sprawling estate with a lot of outdoor space.
“The nice thing about Austin is you get a little bit of everything,” adds Lipscomb.
The one thing buyers have in common is that most of them prefer new construction or updated properties rather than fixer-uppers, and the agent says there is a good reason for that.
“If you’re coming from out of town, you don’t have the comfort and connections to hire [people to get] things done,” says Lipscomb. “And they like this idea of a move-in-ready lifestyle, ready-to-go sort of thing.”
Luckily for those buyers who favor new builds, Austin as a whole has among the highest shares of new-construction homes for sale in the nation, at nearly 25%.
A deep-pocketed homebuyer looking to invest in a luxury dwelling, from a sleek donwtown condo to a mansion surrounded by acres of land, could not go wrong relocating to either Nashville or Austin, as both metros have much to offer.
“For affluent shoppers seeking a lifestyle without the price tags of coastal metros, both cities offer compelling opportunities, just with different rhythms,” concludes Smith.