Austin’s real estate market is heating up again.

More than 2,560 existing single-family homes sold in April, 32 percent more than the year before, and they spent an average of 19 fewer days on the market, according to the Austin Board of Realtors and the Texas A&M University Real Estate Center. April marked the 23rd consecutive month of year-over-year increases in home sales.

Also on the rise? Austin’s median home price, which reached $227,250, 8 percent higher than a year ago. By comparison, the median home price is $160,400 in Dallas, $168,100 in San Antonio and $184,900 in Houston.

As hot as the real estate market in Austin is, the area around Burleson Heights remains a cool bargain. Only three miles from downtown and 1.5 miles from the increasingly thriving East Riverside Corridor, its single-family homes are on large lots with large trees — for considerably lower prices than comparable neighborhoods nearby.

Homes currently on the market in our part of ZIP 78741 range from a 1968 ranch-style home ($184,000 for a 1,545-square-foot, 3-2 home on 0.21 acre) to a 1999 geodesic dome home ($185,000 for a 1,178-square-foot, 3-2½ home on 0.39 acre) and a remodeled 1987 brick home ($235,000 for a 1,504-square-foot, 3-2 home on 0.31 acre). Nearby condominiums are on the market for as low as $53,000 on Burleson Road to $177,000-$259,000 in Edgewick.

A lower cost of living leaves that much more in our pockets to enjoy the music scene, creative restaurants and independent businesses. Keep Austin weirdly affordable!

(On a related note, check out public radio station KUT’s excellent series from this week, “Under One Roof: Affordable Housing 101.”)