Montgomery County, and its pride and joy, the Woodlands, continue to post strong home sales for a second, consecutive month, leaving many industry analysts and realtors hopeful for a rebound in the local real estate market.
Government Tax Incentives Encourage Growth
Much of the rise in home sales has been credited to the government home-buyer incentives. Many local realtors have noted that there are a large number of first-time homebuyers ready to jump into the home buying market so that they can claim their $8,000 federal tax credit.
In fact, it is the federal tax credit that is partly responsible for the 20 percent increase in home sales in October (compared with sales from the same month in 2008), according to the Houston Association of Realtors.
There were 510 homes sold in Montgomery County in October 2009, compared to just 425 homes in October 2008. September sales were 30 percent higher compared to September of last year. The increased number of homes sales in September, however, was expected because of Hurricane Ike, which destroyed homes sales in September 2008.
The increase in home sales in October, however, was undoubtedly a result of the government tax incentive.
The Woodlands, Magnolia
Although the numbers were positive for all four areas of Montgomery County, the Woodlands and Magnolia posted some particularly impressive numbers.
Closed sales for these two areas were over 21 percent higher in October of this year than they were in October of 2008. There were 279 homes closed last month, compared with just 230 in October of 2008. Total dollar volume also increased for the Woodlands and Magnolia nearly 19 percent to $72.7 million.
New Home Sales
New homes sales continue to struggle, however, although this is also expected to steadily improve, particularly in the first quarter of 2010. The Woodlands issued a total of 2,059 single-family building permits as of September 2009, while 3,539 total permits were issued in 2008.
Other areas of Montgomery County also saw positive signs in the real estate market. Lake Conroe, for example, saw a 2.4 percent increase in home sales from October 2008 to October 2009. Year-to-date sales are up 0.9 percent.
The New Caney-Porter-Splendora area remains the leader in closed sales, with a year-to-date increase of 1.2 percent and a month-to-month increase of 50 percent.
Tags: Montgomery County, The Woodlands