How A Women-Led Firm Is Helping To Boost Affordable Housing In Austin

Austin’s affordable housing sector is seeing a shift as leaders in the space work to add more units across the city.

“It’s been really cool to see how the Austin market has changed over the past 20 years and how we’ve been able to create and effectively produce affordable housing in a city that was struggling with that,” said Megan Lasch, owner and president of Austin-based O-SDA Industries LLC, a women-led affordable housing development company.

Lasch was speaking at Bisnow's Austin Women Leading Real Estate Awards on May 14 at the Mansion in Austin.

Lasch was honored as a Leader of the Year for her work financing more than $1B across 43 affordable housing developments in Texas. She said her firm has built more than 3,000 affordable units throughout Texas over the past 14 years.

Seven other women also received the honor for their contributions to the commercial real estate industry. At the event, panelists discussed flexible work environments, team dynamics, cross-generational mentorship, and how to empower women in leadership.

Austin's multifamily market is gearing up for an influx of activity as more people move to the area, according to Lasch.

“People still want to be here. They still want to move here,” she said.

Austin is the 12th-most populous city in the U.S. and the fourth-most populous in the state, surpassing more than 1 million residents last year, according to a recent report by the city. Millennials, largely lured by the city’s career opportunities, make up 40% of the population, according to CultureMap Austin. Young people moving to Austin need residences and may look to affordable housing options.

More than 32,000 affordable housing units were built in Austin from 2018 to 2024, according to Community Impact, after the city adopted its Strategic Housing Blueprint in 2017 to address a severe shortage. This week, The NRP Group broke ground on a 348-unit affordable housing community in Southeast Austin. 

And last week, the Austin City Council voted to overhaul its density bonus program, DB90, in an effort to boost affordable housing construction, according to the Austin Current. That program lets developers build bigger buildings than typically permitted in exchange for community-oriented benefits such as affordable units, but it has faced criticism for not delivering enough affordable housing.

At the start of 2026, total inventory in the Austin-Round Rock multifamily market reached 350,991 units, according to a Colliers first-quarter report. There were 16,171 units under construction at the beginning of the year.

The first quarter also saw occupancy rise to 92.8%, signaling an improved balance between supply and demand driven by population growth, according to the report. The increased occupancy across the city means there will be more demand for housing construction.

Lasch said she is positive there will be continued growth in the near future.

“We’re kind of feeling a shift in the market from some of the effects of what we’ve been able to accomplish as a city,” she said. 

At the Bisnow event, more than 20 women won awards in various categories. In addition to Lasch, the honorees in the Leader of the Year category were: 

• Kelli Morrison, principal of property tax at Ryan Tax Firm

• Lauren Brunner, founder and CEO of The Retail Strategy

• Dianne Bangle, CEO of the Real Estate Council of Austin

• Dedee Boring, founder of Boring & Co. 

• Penny Chung, principal at LT Commercial Group

• Sabrina Butler, chief real estate development officer for Foundation Communities

• Julie Ferguson, president of the southern division at Ryan Cos.