Houston price of Single Family home reaches all- time high

Houston Home Sales Show Continued Strengthening in June

Median price of a single-family home reaches all-time high


HOUSTON — (July 21, 2009) — Sales of single-family homes for the greater Houston area continued to improve in June, with the highest volume recorded since August 2008 and the highest median price in history. This comes despite a year-over-year decline in overall property sales of 15.0 percent and 13.5 percent for single-family homes, according to new monthly data compiled by the Houston Association of REALTORS® (HAR).

At $164,500, the June single-family home median price – the figure at which half of the homes sold for more and half sold for less – rose 2.8 percent from one year earlier to reach an all-time high. The average price of a single-family home in Houston dipped 2.4 percent last month to $221,783 compared to June 2008. That represents the highest average price since August 2008.

Foreclosure property sales showed further decline, as they have each month this year, making up 16.8 percent of all single-family home sales in the Houston area in June. That compares to 34.0 percent in January, 28.0 percent in February, 24.5 percent in March, 23.6 percent in April and 19.9 percent in May. The median price of June foreclosure sales reported in the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) fell 3.0 percent from $90,000 to $87,000 on a year-over-year basis.

Sales of all property types in Houston for June totaled 6,306, off 15.0 percent compared to June 2008. Total dollar volume for properties sold during the month was $1.3 billion versus $1.6 billion one year earlier, an 18.3 percent decline.

Demand for rental properties eased slightly in June, possibly reflecting a growing readiness among renters to purchase a home. Leases of single-family homes edged up 3.2 percent and leases of townhouses and condominiums rose 8.7 percent on a year-over-year basis.

“The Houston real estate market has shown incremental improvement each month this year, both in terms of sales volume and the pricing stability that others around the country envy,” said Vicki Fullerton, HAR chair and broker of record at RE/MAX of The Woodlands & Spring. “Seasonal spring home buying, particularly among first-time buyers who are taking advantage of the government’s $8,000 tax credit and historically low interest rates, accounts for much of the June sales activity and, naturally, we hope that continues through the summer months and beyond.”

June Monthly Market Comparison
The month of June brought Houston’s overall housing market mixed results when all listing categories are compared to June of 2008. Total property sales, total dollar volume and average single-family home sales prices fell on a year-over-year basis while median single-family home sales prices rose to an historic high.

The number of available properties, or active listings, at the end of June fell 14.5 percent from June 2008 to 45,989. That is 707 more active listings than one month earlier, in May 2009, and continues to reflect balanced housing inventory levels.

Month-end pending sales—those listings expected to close within the next 30 days—totaled 3,896, which was 12.6 percent lower than last year and portends another decline in sales when July’s numbers are tallied. The month’s inventory of single-family homes for June came in at 6.4 months, down from 6.7 months one year earlier. The national month’s inventory of single-family homes fell slightly to 9.6 months, according to the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR).

CATEGORIES JUNE 2008 JUNE 2009 PERCENT CHANGE
Total property sales 7,418 6,306 -15.0%
Total dollar volume $1,644,522,286 $1,344,025,973 -18.3%
Average single-family sales price $227,340 $221,783 -2.4%
Median single-family sales price $160,050 $164,500 2.8%
Total active listings 53,792 45,989 -14.5%
Total pending sales 4,456 3,896 -12.6%
Months inventory* 6.7 6.4 -4.2%
* Months inventory estimates the number of months it will take to deplete current active inventory based on the prior 12 months sales activity. This figure is representative of the single-family homes market.


Single-Family Homes Update

At $164,500, the median sales price for single-family homes reached its highest level ever, rising 2.8 percent from June 2008, when it was $160,050. The national single-family median price reported by NAR is $173,000, illustrating the continued higher value and lower cost of living that the Houston market offers consumers. The average price of single-family homes in June was $221,783, down 2.4 percent from one year earlier.


June sales of single-family homes in Houston totaled 5,422, down 13.5 percent from June 2008, and accounted for the 22nd consecutive monthly drop. However, that volume is the highest since August 2008. Year-over-year sales of single-family homes priced at $80,000 and below declined 7.2 percent in June, reflecting tapering transactions involving distressed properties.

Forbes Names The Woodlands TX - Top 25 Places to Move in the USA

Forbes Names The Woodlands One of the Top 25 Places to Move in the US
July 13, 2009

Forbes, in its July 7, 2009 online edition, named The Woodlands, Texas #14 in its list of the Top 25 Best Places to Move in the country. The Woodlands was the only Houston-area community to make the list, although seven other Texas communities – six in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, and one in the Austin area – were also included.

Forbes looked at “Relovilles”, defined as young, mid- and upscale suburbs near major corporate plants and offices with populations of 25,000 and over to locate America’s best places to move. Using data from 2000 to 2007 Census records, they looked at the number of people in each town who were born out of state or abroad, who had moved to town from a considerable distance within one and five years, and who had moved for a job.

Other factors considered included population growth, family incomes, people in executive and professional jobs, and the price, size and age of homes, along with reports of moving van companies, changes in school enrollments, the proximity of multinational companies, and the observations of local builders, government officials and residents.

According to the article by Peter T. Kilborn, author of “Next Stop Reloville, Life Inside America’s New Rootless Professional Class”, these Relovilles sprout up where “cheap land, exits off Interstate highways and an international airport provide quick access to the global economy. Hundreds of towns have bloomed, predominantly in the Sun Belt, where aspiring multinational corporations began gravitating in the 1970s,” Kilborn states.

“The Woodlands is ideally situated in one of the most stable markets in the country, and we have always made job creation a top priority,” said Tim Welbes and Alex Sutton, co-presidents of The Woodlands Development Company. “This is why companies like Anadarko Petroleum, CB&I, Chevron Phillips Chemical, Huntsman, Lexicon Pharmaceuticals, Tetra Technologies, US Oncology and Woodforest National Bank have brought their corporate headquarters here. Everything is in place to attract major employers, including easy access to downtown Houston and a major airport, a wide selection of homes, top-ranked public and private schools, outdoor recreation, shopping, dining, entertainment and medical care.”

“Recognition by a media outlet such as Forbes clearly illustrates that The Woodlands has become known as a very desirable place to live, work and visit,” said Nelda Blair, chairman of The Woodlands Township. “The Woodlands has long been a premier place for quality of life. With this kind of exposure, the rest of the world is learning just how special The Woodlands has become.”

The Woodlands is a 28,000-acre master-planned community located 27 miles north of downtown Houston with a current population of more than 90,000. There are 1,587 companies employing more than 44,000 people in The Woodlands. It is a project of The Woodlands Development Company, a limited partnership of Morgan Stanley and General Growth Properties, Inc.

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