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It’s the last week of 2025, and we’re reflecting on the year of news here in Austin, including:
Resolution in a decades-long cold case known as the Yogurt Shop Murders.
The summer’s deadly flooding in Austin and Central Texas.
School campuses set to shutter across the city.
We’re also taking a look at the status of Austin’s housing market heading into the new year.
Plus: Another favorite track from 2025, and a look at some of the artists we lost this year.
The full transcript of this episode of Austin Signal is available on the KUT & KUTX Studio website. The transcript is also available as subtitles or captions on some podcast apps.
Jerry Quijano [00:00:09] It’s the last week of 2025 and we are reflecting on the year that was in news here in Austin. We had a resolution on a decades-long cold case known as the yogurt shop murders, the summer’s deadly flooding in Austin and central Texas, and school campuses set to shudder across the city. We’re going to talk more about the news that demanded our attention this year and housing is always a big topic of discussion in Austin, and 2025 was no different. More about the status of Austin’s housing market heading into the new year. That is coming up next.
KUT Announcer: Laurie Gallardo [00:00:41] The Austin Signal is a production of KUT News, hosted by Jerry Quijano.
Jerry Quijano [00:00:46] Plus, no day or year in Austin would be complete without a little music. We’ve got another favorite track from 2025, and we’ll talk about some of the artists we lost this year. That’s coming up next on Austin Signal. Howdy, and thank you for tuning in to Austin Signal. This is KUT News 90.5. We’re on the KUT app and online at KUT.org. Proud to be listener powered public radio. It’s Monday, December 29th, the final Monday of 2025, the last week of the year. I’m your host, Jerry Quijano. Thank you for being here. We’re gonna be looking back on the year that was, but first we wanted to update you with a bit of local news. Bob Kafka, an Austin-based activist who pushed for accessibility at the local, state, and federal level for more than 40 years died at his home here in the city last Friday. The former Army veteran moved to Texas in 1974 after a car crash left him with quadriplegia. From there, he began a decades-long career in activism for disability rights. Kafka is survived by his longtime partner and fellow advocate Stephanie Thomas, who and more recently, voting rights for people with disabilities. This is Austin Signal. Thank you for tuning in today. We’re wrapping up 2025 by looking and listening back to the year that was here at KUT and KUTx. Now, if you listen to KUT frequently, you know that there is a lot going on here in Austin, as well as across the state, pretty much across the entire globe. So today, we’re gonna reflect on some of the bigger stories covered by the KUT newsroom. Over the course of this year, Saida Carrillo is a senior editor for KUT News. She is joining us now. Hi Saida.
Syeda Carillo [00:02:41] Hi Jerry, good to be with you.
Jerry Quijano [00:02:43] I’m glad you are joining us to give us a little bit of a rewind into what we experienced this year here in Austin. It is the holiday season. We’re not expecting the sort of airport delays that were caused by the federal government shut down a few weeks ago, but Austin’s airport had already been dealing with issues already this year. What’s the story there?
Syeda Carillo [00:03:02] Yes, so that was one of our biggest stories in 2025 was Nathan Bernier’s coverage of the air traffic controller shortage at Austin’s airport, which, as you mentioned, of course was exacerbated during the government shutdown. But this has really been a source of ongoing delays at airport as Nathan reported back in June. He found that the Austin Airport actually only has about half the number of controllers that are recommended by federal guidelines. And so that’s led to not only ground delays, but also staff working a lot of overtime, sometimes working six-day work weeks. And I think that’s an issue that really was relevant to anybody that flies out of ABIA.
Jerry Quijano [00:03:44] Absolutely. We are almost seven months removed now from the devastating flooding that killed a lot of people in the Texas Hill country, as well as here in the Austin area. I wanted to talk a little bit about how our reporters contributed to that reporting, you know, that we obviously have our local needs here in the Austin Area, but there’s also a statewide, a statewide view that we have to take of things. How did KUT reporters jump into that reporting?
Syeda Carillo [00:04:08] Yeah, absolutely. So it certainly didn’t happen in a vacuum. The Hill Country flooding affected folks from all across central Texas and the Austin and San Antonio areas. Our reporters spent a lot of time on the ground talking with people that were affected, particularly in the Big Sandy Creek area in Travis County. So I think that they spent a lot of times building meaningful relationships with folks that were affected and finding out what type of information was going to be useful to them in terms of how to navigate. Things like FEMA aid or insurance and getting back on their feet. And also you might remember, Jerry, people here in Austin were really looking for ways to help. You might remember the lines we saw down the road at the local P. Terry’s the day that they were donating their profits. So really just a community-wide picture, I think, of what that flooding response looked like, and then most recently, our Williamson County reporter, Kaylee Hunt. Visited with a family that she had been talking with previously in Big Sandy Creek that lost their farm. And they actually spent Thanksgiving with one of the volunteers that had been helping them and assisting with cleanup efforts in the area. So the recovery is ongoing and good to keep in touch with folks and follow their stories as it continues on.
Jerry Quijano [00:05:25] Yeah, and Kaylee’s been doing a really great job of staying in contact with those folks. We’re gonna have links to a lot of these stories in our show notes at kut.org slash signal There was also a big breakthrough this year in a decades-long Austin cold case. What was that?
Syeda Carillo [00:05:40] Yes, the Austin yogurt shot murders in September. Austin police identified a new suspect after they linked his DNA from the scene to another case. And I think that that was a moment in Austin where it really just kind of a lot of folks just took in the gravity of this development. You know, this was a case back from 1991, where the families of the victims have been waiting and searching for answers for literally decades. And so Andrew Weber put together a really beautiful retrospective piece talking with folks who had been involved in investigating or reporting on the case. Also our current mayor, Austin Mayor Kirk Watson, who was mayor back when there were some significant developments in the case earlier on. And so I would really encourage folks to check out that story for a good look at kind of the significance of this development to the city and Austin’s history.
Jerry Quijano [00:06:34] Yeah, so it’s a really great radio story definitely worth checking out and Finally a big story this year that will surely continue on into 2026 are the school closures happening at Austin ISD remind us how many campuses are closing it and why are they closing them?
Syeda Carillo [00:06:49] So Austin ISD in November voted to close 10 schools and this is happening because the district is doing this in an effort to save money as they are facing a really major budget shortfall. Katie McAfee has been following this story for KUT and there will be lots more changes to come at Austin IST before the start of the next school year and she and other KUT reporters will definitely be following those developments.
Jerry Quijano [00:07:15] Yeah, and you can find all of those developments at KUT.org. Saeeda, one last question for you. You mentioned a few reporters there, but there’s a lot more that goes on in the KUT newsroom. What are you most proud of your team this year accomplishing as you look back on 2025?
Syeda Carillo [00:07:31] Oh, that’s a great question. I think that there’s just been so much great storytelling around these stories that all could have just been, you know, kind of quick hit, here’s the headline and here’s what happened. But I’m really proud of the work that reporters did to dive deeper, tell the history and the human stories behind some of these headlines. I think when you look at any of these stories, you really get a deeper picture of the folks behind stories like the yogurt shop murder investigations, or even folks that are working in the air traffic control tower, I think reporters have done an excellent job of making those stories come to life.
Jerry Quijano [00:08:07] Yeah, bringing Austin to life on the radio. That is Saida Carrillo, she is a senior editor for KUT News. Saida, thank you for your time today.
Syeda Carillo [00:08:14] Thanks, Jerry.
Jerry Quijano [00:08:19] Buying a home in Austin has come with lots of ups and downs over the last several years. Add in inflation and tariffs and things only get more complicated. But it seems as though the market is starting to level out. KUT’s Jennifer Stayton talked about it with KUT City Hall reporter Luz Moreno Lozano.
Jennifer Stayton [00:08:37] All right, so first of all, let’s start just with where we are right now. Luz, what did buying a house look like?
Luz Moreno-Lozano [00:08:44] In 2025? Well, from what I heard from experts, they felt that buying a house while still not easy was a tad less painful this year. And when I say that, I mean, that means a little less expensive and less competition.
Jennifer Stayton [00:08:58] And we’re going to be talking about why this is happening throughout the conversation, but it seems like, I don’t want to jinx it, it seems like those things are starting to stabilize. Is that a fair way to characterize it?
Luz Moreno-Lozano [00:09:09] Yeah, home prices have started to level off. And that could be better heading into next year. But we should talk about one of the big factors that keep people from purchasing a home, and that’s the mortgage interest rate.
Jennifer Stayton [00:09:21] Right, anybody who right now is buying a house or has bought a house knows that those rates help determine your monthly payment.
Luz Moreno-Lozano [00:09:28] Exactly. So right now, those interest rates are hovering around 6% for a 30-year fixed loan, and it’s a little lower for 15 years. I heard from the Austin Board of Realtors that they expect that to remain around the same. It might even dip a little next year, but that is still relatively high compared to those interest rates we were seeing during the pandemic.
Jennifer Stayton [00:09:50] Lou, so if the Austin Board of Realtors is right and those rates stay level or maybe even slide a little bit, what could that mean for home buyers?
Luz Moreno-Lozano [00:09:59] Well, if those rates stay consistent, that could help lead some folks who were on the fence to the purchase side of things. The lower the rate, the less it will cost to buy a home and the more people that will be able to afford to buy one. So we do want to see those rates go down a little bit more.
Jennifer Stayton [00:10:13] All right, so, Lou, speaking of affording a home, just out of curiosity, what is a home running, roughly price-wise, for Austinites these days?
Luz Moreno-Lozano [00:10:22] Well, the median home price for the Austin area was $439,000 in October, and that’s about the same as it was last year. It seems we might see pricing go down a little bit, and we’ll get to that in a second, but one of the things to note about that 439K is less than it was more than two years ago. So back in June, 2023, the median Home price peaked out at like $480,000, so. That is what we’re talking about when we say, a little less strain on your pocketbook. I mean, that’s a pretty big difference.
Jennifer Stayton [00:10:53] So why is the median home price in Austin lower now than it was a little over two years ago?
Luz Moreno-Lozano [00:11:00] Right, so home pricing is also determined by supply and demand. I heard from experts that there is a lot of supply right now, both new and resale. Builders put a lot houses on the ground during the pandemic, but also people are starting to move outside of Austin and putting those homes on the market too.
Jennifer Stayton [00:11:17] So then those suburban areas must be seeing growth.
Luz Moreno-Lozano [00:11:20] Oh yeah. If you drive anywhere outside Austin right now, it feels like there are new homes in every corner. And what I heard from the Austin Board of Realtors is that more and more developers are starting to build outside of Austin in places like Williamson, Hayes and Bastrop counties, and even in San Antonio and Colleen. And that’s because they are wanting to build in these areas because they want to be able to provide homes that people can actually afford.
Jennifer Stayton [00:11:44] Well, Lou, so that word affordability, what can people actually afford?
Luz Moreno-Lozano [00:11:50] Yeah, it’s an excellent question. Affordability is relative, but I was told that to get more people into housing, that price needs to be closer to like $400,000, in addition to a drop in those mortgage rates that we were all putting on our wishlist.
Jennifer Stayton [00:12:04] All right, Lou, so then let’s talk about what’s ahead. What is 2026 looking like for the housing market in the Austin area?
Luz Moreno-Lozano [00:12:10] Yeah, people in the industry are hopeful that we’re going to see more stabilization. We mentioned tariffs and inflation earlier that has started to normalize in the last several months and that is expected to continue. Home prices should stay relatively flat and mortgage rates are likely the same because the less fluctuating there is, the more confident buyers are feeling.
Jennifer Stayton [00:12:30] And Lou, so the last thing that we should mention about the 2026 market is Austin’s efforts to bring housing costs down.
Luz Moreno-Lozano [00:12:37] Yes, the home initiative. So Austin created that home options for mobility and equity program. The goal is to create more housing and different kinds of housing to make buying a home more affordable. We saw a recent report found that the city is starting to make some headway in this effort. They’ve had hundreds of permits already approved to create a more dense housing in these single family neighborhoods. And there have been little negative impacts with it.
Jennifer Stayton [00:13:03] So, Luz, how does the city feel like the program’s going right now?
Luz Moreno-Lozano [00:13:06] Yeah, I think they’re encouraged by what they’ve seen so far, but you know, only time will tell. And they know that this is just one of the tools in the toolbox that helps create more buying options for us tonight.
Jennifer Stayton [00:13:18] All right, that was KUT City Hall reporter Luz Moreno-Lozano. Thanks for joining us, Luz. Thanks, Jen. And you can read more of her coverage at KUT.org.
Jerry Quijano [00:13:28] This is Austin Signal.
Taylor Wallace [00:13:44] Hi, you’re listening to Austin Signal. My name is Taylor Wallace. I’m the morning drive time host and song of the day producer over at KUTX. And my favorite Austin song of the year is Anything to Get It by Blah Spa.
Blah Spa [00:13:56] That’s what I deserve Shake a leg, shuffle past, send it, eat, deliver No warning, no telling
Taylor Wallace [00:14:05] One of my favorite genres is dance punk, so anything that is or is tangential to at all dance punk is me, me all over it, and so it’s just like, that whole album is just amazing. I saw these guys a few years ago at Rio Mart, up the street from campus. Yes, there’s a convenience store that has random shows at four o’clock in the afternoon, and I was in love.
Blah Spa [00:14:50] Set me up for the attack
Taylor Wallace [00:14:55] For fans of Austin music of decades past, get ready for some real big boys bassline energy. Match with the attitude of the hives.
Blah Spa [00:15:06] I’m not going to stop Put it up fast, but it don’t even hurt
Taylor Wallace [00:15:11] And once you’ve properly fallen in love with them like I do, you can see them at the KUTX Free Week Show Friday, January 9th at Stubbs Indoors.
KUT Announcer: Laurie Gallardo [00:15:22] Take me get it
Taylor Wallace [00:15:28] And to showcase both of those things, here’s a little bit of Blah Spa’s Anything to Get It. You’re listening to Austin Signal. My name is Taylor Wallace. I’m the morning drive time host at KUTX and the Song of the Day producer.
Jerry Quijano [00:15:55] And you can find more of KUTX’s favorite songs of 2025 that is at KUTx.org. The loss of musicians important to Austin and Central Texas in 2025 has been a heavy blow. As we look back at the folks that we’ve lost, we’re also taking time to recognize their musical contributions. Host Miles Bloxson sat down with Rick McNulty, music director for KUT-X. To remember a few of these musicians.
Miles Bloxson [00:16:27] It’s been really hard out here for Texas music fans. I mean, we just lost Joe Ely a couple weeks ago. Could you tell us a little bit about him?
Rick McNulty [00:16:35] Yeah, he was a… Kind of a rock and roll sort of Texas roots. You know, he performed it with gusto.
Joe Ely [00:16:43] With a briefcase full of money and a pistol in his boot The cards are on the table when the law came bustin’ in The road goes on forever, a party never ends
Rick McNulty [00:16:59] He was a bit of a rebel growing up in Lubbock, and he was kind of a pioneer in the sense of that roots rock with Jimmy Dale, Gilmore, and Butch Hancock with the Flatlanders. And then when their first record went belly up, he just went after it on his own and became actually kind of well known through the Clash of all bands, the English rockers, if you will. And from that point on, he was just kind of the staple of Austin music by the time he had moved here.
Miles Bloxson [00:17:28] Oh wow, we’ve also got a link to the memorial piece on kut.org. We also lost Flaco Jimenez for folks who don’t know who was he.
Rick McNulty [00:17:37] He was a brilliant accordionist from San Antonio, caught the attention of Doug Som way back when, joined the Texas Tornadoes, and then he specialized in like Conjunto, Norteño, Tejano, and yet he also recorded with Dr. John, Bob Dylan, Freddie Fender, and the Rolling Stones.
Miles Bloxson [00:18:08] And along those lines, we also lost another pioneer of music, Raul Malo, right? I mean, what does he mean to music in Texas in general?
Rick McNulty [00:18:17] Well, even though he was from Florida, we won’t hold that against him. Um, he was beloved here. He had a lot of friends on the scene and he was an honorary citizen of Texas. No doubt about it. He was friends with just about everybody in this town.
Raul Malo [00:18:32] But you need to see
Miles Bloxson [00:18:52] and this year also brought the loss of Bobby Whitlock, a key member of Derek and the Dominoes. What should people know about his legacy?
Rick McNulty [00:19:01] Well, he grew up in Memphis and learned how to play organ from Booker T. Of Booker-T. The M.G.’s. Became kind of a soul guy, but then toured in England, became friends with Eric Clapton and George Harrison. Really, the biggest thing about Bobby Whitlock, besides writing a couple of great songs on that Derrick and the Dominoes album, was that he is on the Rolling Stones’ greatest album, but he’s uncredited, exile on Main Streets, and he’s also on George Harrison’s All Things Must Pass as a session musician.
Miles Bloxson [00:19:56] And finally, there’s Todd Snyder. Who is Todd Snyde to Austin?
Rick McNulty [00:20:00] Todd Snyder was a beloved honorary Austinite, if you will. He had an acerbic sense of humor, great songwriter, and cut his teeth a lot here in Central Texas, even though he kind of grew up on the West Coast.
Todd Snyder [00:20:14] A little out of place, a little out-of-tune Sort of lost in space, racing the moon Climbing the walls of this hurricane Still lower off can’t complain. All I wanted was one chance.
Miles Bloxson [00:20:50] And all of these musicians and all these people who you know advocated for music just in general like how is this for Texas now like what do we do where do we go from here Rick this is this is a lot of a lot, of great musicians that we lost.
Rick McNulty [00:21:02] Well, the first thing we do is get some more bubble wrap and put it around Willie. And then after that, we just, I mean, we’re coming to the time in our lives where a lot of these great musicians are hitting a certain age, and you know, a lot them did not treat their body so well. So we’re kind of staring down mortality. I think each passing year, for those of the rock generation, it’s going to be a little tougher and sadder.
Miles Bloxson [00:21:25] And which one of these like hit you the hardest? I mean, because this is a list of a lot of musicians here.
Rick McNulty [00:21:30] Surprisingly, it was Raul Malo. I said I’d never want your love again. I could, you know, I was a fan of the Mavericks, but I didn’t really appreciate his singing voice as much as I should have. And then when we were starting to talk about him and play his music right after he passed, it was like, oh, what I wouldn’t give to see him one more time live.
Miles Bloxson [00:21:53] Yeah, and I think that happens a lot, right? We have these musicians right in front of us and we take them for granted when they’re here. And then when they leave, they leave these long-lasting legacies and at least they leave us their music.
Rick McNulty [00:22:04] That is the most valuable lesson is to see them before they go, before they stop coming. And, you know, I’ve done that myself. I’m like, oh, I’ll catch them the next time. No, there is no text next time I wouldn’t advise every one of you. If you’ve got a favorite out there that it’s still alive, see them before they do.
Miles Bloxson [00:22:20] We’ve been speaking with KUTX music director Rick McNulty. Rick, thanks so much for being with us here on Austin Sigma.
Rick McNulty [00:22:26] It is a pleasure.
Jerry Quijano [00:22:30] And that is it for today’s show. We’re gonna have a link to a bunch of the stories and the music we talked about in our show notes that is at kut.org slash signal. Kristin Cabrera is our managing producer. Rayna Sevilla is our technical director. And Jimmy Mass is Austin Signal’s Santa Claus. I’m his elf and your host, Jerry Quijano. We will be back tomorrow and we’ll talk to you then. Have a great Monday.
This transcript was transcribed by AI, and lightly edited by a human. Accuracy may vary. This text may be revised in the future.
