Houston area housing stats, March 2008
I am sure most folks interested in Houston housing read the latest HAR sales data as posted by Nancy Sarnoff in the Houston Chronicle on April 15. There is a slow down occuring across all housing segments but it is my opinion that the slow down is/has occured because of the tighter lending standards created by the mortgage meltdown. Houston is clearly creating jobs but if homeowners can't sell their existing home they will have trouble moving up to more expensive homes.
The data in the Sunday, April 13 Chronicle showed that most of the upper end housing communities located in Montgomery, Fort Bend, Brazoria and Galveston Counties had annual apprcciation during 2007 and we expect this to continue especially for the nicer Master Planned Communities (MPC's). Clearly job growth is moving west, southeast, south, southwest, northwest and north. There have been at least four major new office and/or medical developments announced in Fort Bend County in the past month. You can drive the West Sam Houston Tollway from Hwy 59 (Southwest Freeway) north to I-45 North and you will find at least 10 new office buildings under construction or recently finished and they are filling up based on leases announced in the Chronicle.
All of this job growth is fueling our economy. The only problem in Houston is that the mortgage meltdown has created a tight lending market, which, in time, will correct itself. Hopefully the mortgage issues will be resolved within the next six to ten months. When it is, rest assured the pent up demand for housing will be released. Even with slowing sales numbers this past March, the median home price still rose. Houston is still the best housing market in the country and with the creation of more jobs, Houston will contiue to prosper. Thanks for reading the blog, Kirk Laguarta
The data in the Sunday, April 13 Chronicle showed that most of the upper end housing communities located in Montgomery, Fort Bend, Brazoria and Galveston Counties had annual apprcciation during 2007 and we expect this to continue especially for the nicer Master Planned Communities (MPC's). Clearly job growth is moving west, southeast, south, southwest, northwest and north. There have been at least four major new office and/or medical developments announced in Fort Bend County in the past month. You can drive the West Sam Houston Tollway from Hwy 59 (Southwest Freeway) north to I-45 North and you will find at least 10 new office buildings under construction or recently finished and they are filling up based on leases announced in the Chronicle.
All of this job growth is fueling our economy. The only problem in Houston is that the mortgage meltdown has created a tight lending market, which, in time, will correct itself. Hopefully the mortgage issues will be resolved within the next six to ten months. When it is, rest assured the pent up demand for housing will be released. Even with slowing sales numbers this past March, the median home price still rose. Houston is still the best housing market in the country and with the creation of more jobs, Houston will contiue to prosper. Thanks for reading the blog, Kirk Laguarta
posted by Land Advisors Blogger at
4:03 PM
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