Posts Tagged ‘houston real estate market’

What Will Two Hundred Thousand Buy Today?

Monday, June 27th, 2011

Well quite a bit actually, and right now if a person has great credit and a down payment they can buy a dream home for two hundred thousand dollars. The State of Texas has always had more affordable housing, even in the luxury end of industry, but if you take that same amount and try to buy a home in Chicago, New York, or Hawaii, and you will not receive very much for your money. Currently a studio apartment on East 54th street in New York is going for $319,000.00, and that does not include the $568.00 monthly maintenance fees.

Right now a home shopper in the Metro area can find three bedroom two and one half bathroom homes that are new construction from the $121,000.00 range and up. Dual income households can easily afford the monthly mortgage payments, and up keep costs. One problem is that those typical thirty year mortgages are harder and harder to come by today. Most home loan lenders want bigger down payments, and a fifteen-year term. They are still gun shy from the fall out of all those sub-prime loans that were approved in the 2000s.

If you do not mind the commute, some super custom luxury homes, in areas like Spring, The Woodlands, Conroe, Magnolia, and Tomball are widely available. The Spring Texas area has been voted one of the most affordable and best places to live by many real estate, and financial publications in recent years. It is perfectly situated for work, outdoor activities, dinning, and entertainment. Add all those previously mentioned attributes to a reasonably, or below market priced home, and you have your own personal nirvana.

Prices remain extremely high in the Galleria, Hedwig Village, Memorial, and Spring Branch area, and unfortunately, $200k is not going allow for the purchase of a mini mansion or personal compound anytime soon. However, looking further west there also seems to be homebuyers frenzy out toward the Cypress, Texas area, and many PGA designed golf courses are popping up out there too.

For persons relocating their families to the Houston Metropolitan area, you will be like a kid in a candy store when you start shopping for a home. The overall lot sizes, options, and amenities in most suburban neighborhoods outshine any state in the Union when it comes to the bang for the buck factor.

Tags:
Posted in Market News | No Comments »

Looking Back: Houston’s Real Estate Market in 2009

Thursday, January 7th, 2010

Houston played it safe and came out relatively unscathed in 2009. Unlike others areas of the country that experienced the housing boom – and then bust – Houston kept its sights on its low-tax, business-positive climate to maintain a steady housing market and excellent growth.

In fact, home prices in Houston continued to rise through the first quarter of 2008 to the first quarter of 2009, which is a rarity among major markets in the United States. It is because of this steady growth that Houston’s future is expected to be quite promising.

The sound, local economy, which is buoyed along by the energy and health care sectors, has kept Houston real estate healthy and growing, thereby keeping a balanced housing market; despite the real estate debacle affecting most of the country.

Houston’s real estate numbers, as of the last quarter of 2009 (compared to the same time in 2008):

  • An increase of 33 percent in single-family home sales
  • An increase of 42 percent in dollar volume sales
  • A seven percent increase in the average sales price
  • Average days on the market: 76

It is important to realize that, although the numbers from 2008 are quite bleak due to Hurricane Ike, it can’t overshadow the gains made at a time when other markets around the United States were posting massive decreases in home sales.

November 2009 marked the third straight month that sales volumes increased and pricing recorded gains. Total property sales in November 2009, as compared to November 2008, were 32 percent higher.

A certain percentage of this increase is due to low interest rates and the federal home buyer tax credit.

The median home price for the last quarter of 2008 was $150,000, and the average price of a single-family home in Houston was $198,948, a nearly seven percent increase from a year earlier.

Tags: ,
Posted in Market News | No Comments »

The Future of the Houston Real Estate Market

Tuesday, May 26th, 2009

The nationwide recession and credit crisis has left many cities around the US struggling to keep their heads above water, and Houston is no exception.

Industry analysts have seen Houston-area home sales continue to drop and the housing market slip further into the hole of the recession. In fact, sales of Houston-area homes have dropped for 21 straight months, and it looks as if this trend will continue for the second half of 2009.

A bright spot, however, is the fact that home prices are holding their own. For example, the median price for a single-family home in Houston this year is $149,050, compared with $150,000 from a year ago.

It is with this knowledge that industry analysts are positive when speaking of the future of Houston’s housing market. Where other cities in the country have seen home prices tumble, Houston has remained strong and steady, thanks in part to the fact that the housing boom and inflated housing prices never took over.

In addition, foreclosure sales continue to decline, indicating an improvement in the market. For example, foreclosure sales made up about 25 percent of all single-family home sales in April, which is a decline from 34 percent in January.

Houston’s Struggles

Houston is having a tough year. As the demand for oil decreases due to the nation’s financial crisis, the energy capital of the US is certainly going to be hit hard.

In fact, Houston expects to lose about 60,000 jobs over the next two years as a direct result of the lack of demand for oil.

This news, of course, doesn’t bode well for the economy of Houston or home sales, for that matter. A beacon of light for Houston are the historically low interest rates and first-time home buyer tax credits which are luring buyers off the sidelines and into the market.

Tags: ,
Posted in Market News | No Comments »