Home » Archive for January, 2012
U.S. Supreme Court Rejects Interim Maps, Leaving Texas’ Redistricting Future Unclear
It sounds simple enough. Redraw Texas’ district lines to account for the 4.3 million additional people that now call Texas home. But then add to that the opinions of opposing political parties, civil rights groups, courts and county election officials, and the process of drawing the new state and federal district lines becomes as difficult as trying to pin JELL-O® to the wall. In order to...
The EDGE: Week of January 30, 2012
The EDGE: Mortgage Rates Fall to Yet New Record Lows, December and Full-Year 2011 Sales Statistics and More
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Confidence Grows in Houston’s Housing Market
The confidence of the Houston market is beginning to build steam, according to a recent report by Metrostudy (http://bit.ly/zMKZ08).
Houston homebuilders started 18,417 new homes in 2011, a 2% decline from the 2010 total, however the 4,387 homes started in 4Q11 represent a 24% increase from last year’s tax credit-depressed quarterly starts count.
4,892 new homes were closed in 4Q11, 388 more than...
State and Local Officials Speak to Business Issues Subcommittee at HAR
Harris County Judge Ed Emmett discusses issues impacting the county with members of TAR's Business Issues Subcommittee
On January 26, the Texas Association of REALTORS® (TAR) held its January 2012 Business Issues Subcommittee meeting at the offices of HAR. TAR’s Business Issues Subcommittee is comprised of REALTOR® volunteers from across the state of Texas who weigh issues of importance...
Safety is an Issue That Really Hits Home
Unfortunately, during the last two months, I have received more calls and emails about one topic than any other. Safety!
We have put out alerts on the Members Only Site, included them in the 5-Minute REALTOR®, highlighted them in The Edge, featured them on the cover of the Houston REALTOR® magazine and more. Helping a client sell, purchase or lease a property doesn’t mean much if you are harmed...
You Can’t Spell February Without the REALTOR® R
While the weather so far in 2012 might be characterized as lukewarm, the same cannot be said for the 2011 real estate market in the greater Houston area. Total property sales were up 4.3 percent versus 2010 sales and the average single-family sales price was 0.9 percent higher. That might not set the world on fire, but other cities across the country would kill to have a plus sign in front of their...
Houston Office and Industrial Markets Conclude 2011 with Positive Absorption and a Bright Outlook For The New Year
Click here to access complete statistics and broker commentaries.
Houston Office Market
Houston’s office market ended 2011 with a total of almost 2 million square feet of positive net absorption, rallying in the fourth quarter with 1.1 million square feet, according to quarterly market research compiled by Commercial Gateway, the commercial division of the Houston Association of REALTORS®.
Class...
2011 Ends on a Healthy Note for the Houston Real Estate Market
December marks the seventh consecutive month of increased home sales; 2011 bests 2010 in sales volume and pricing
After several months in which home sales figures were skewed by the effects of the 2010 homebuyer tax credit, the Houston real estate market concluded 2011 solidly in the black. December marked the seventh straight month of increased home sales and the month contained a host of indicators...
Mortgage Rates: How Low Can They Go?
Another week brings another record low, as the average rate on a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage ticked down to 3.88% for the week ended January 19 from 3.89% the prior week.
A year ago, the 30-year rate was at 4.74%.
The average for the 30-year fixed mortgage rate has now been below 4.0% for seven straight weeks.
Meanwhile, the 15-year fixed-rate mortgage ticked higher to 3.17% in the latest week from...
Safety Advisory for Our Members
Dear HAR Members:
We have received reports about two burglaries that took place in the last few days during open houses. The first one occurred last Thursday in the close-in Memorial area, while the second one took place during the weekend in West University Place. In both instances, jewelry was stolen from the homes. Both burglaries involved a white male in his 50s with...
