(September 2022) 

Whether you listen to the news or not, chances are that your clients do. Primarily in the national news, and to a lesser degree locally, they have begun talking about the real estate slowdown. Most forecasts have prices holding up, while overall sales are expected to decline. You can see a return to a more normalized market in the latest stats on pages HERE. Active listings are up. Even with higher mortgage interest rates than we’ve seen the last decade or so, they are still historically low.

You may have noticed, hopefully, that we now break out the rental market stats in a separate report. With rentals having their own market dynamics at play, we thought the rental market deserved its own spotlight to help our members and your clients have the best data to make informed decisions. You may read more about the rental stats HERE.

Have you invested in TREPAC? The TREPAC fiscal year ends on September 30, 2022, so you only have one month left to have it count toward the current year. With the Texas Legislature in session in spring 2023, it’s never been more important to help protect private property rights and the real estate industry. You may see a list of your fellow members who have invested on pages 20-21. And if you are already an investor, consider increasing your participation to the next level.

Have you purchased your ticket for HAR Engage? On Friday, October 14, 2022, at the Norris Conference Center, some of the industry’s best and brightest will come together to provide practical and relatable tips for your business. There’s even this one presenter whose session is titled, “Did we just become best friends?” (hint: it’s me, and yes, we did.) I hope to see you there, and you may find out more HERE.

September is REALTOR® Safety Month. It is one of the most important topics year-round, but this is when we really focus on it. There will be a Safety Bootcamp, safety-related guests on Member Focus Monday, and safety tips on the HAR social media channels. We have unfortunately seen an uptick in the number of instances of harassment or threats against members in the last couple of years. You may read more about safety HERE. If you do need to report something, contact your local law enforcement agency first. Then, you can email safety@har.com so that we can see if there is a pattern and a need for an alert.

As mentioned above, the legislative session will be taking place next year. Before that happens, we vote. September 20, 2022, is National Voter Registration Day. Carve out time in your sales meeting to have people fill out voter registration cards. We only have power and strength in numbers, so we want as many REALTORS® as possible to make your voice heard. You may find out more HERE.

Until next month,