Texas Existing Home Sale Prices UP, Number of Sales Drop in February 2011
Just over 12,000 existing single-family homes were sold in Texas last month, a 10 percent drop from February 2010. That’s according to the most recent Multiple Listing Services (MLS) data compiled by the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University.
The median home price in Texas was up 3 percent from February 2010, at $145,800. There was a 7.2-month inventory.
February 2011 MLS data for many Texas cities (current as of today) are available on the Center’s website. Here is a sampling:
| Sales | Change from Last Year |
Median Price |
Change from Last Year |
Months’ Inventory |
|
| Abilene | 91 | down 2% | $110,000 | up 12% | 6.2 |
| Austin | 1,214 | down 3% | $190,000 | up 4% | 5.9 |
| Bay Area | 334 | up 6% | $153,200 | up 4% | 9.8 |
| Beaumont | 108 | no change | $116,700 | down 16% | 10.7 |
| Brazoria County |
54 | down 17% | $115,000 | down 6% | 9.7 |
| Collin County |
604 | down 9% | $205,200 | up 4% | 5.1 |
| Dallas | 2,390 | down 14% | $158,700 | up 6% | 6.6 |
| Fort Worth | 464 | down 19% | $107,200 | down 3% | 6.9 |
| Houston | 3,603 | down 2% | $151,900 | up 4% | 7.5 |
| Longview- Marshall |
113 | down 3% | $124,300 | up 4% | 9.4 |
| Montgomery County |
372 | up 2% | $179,100 | up 5% | 7.3 |
| Port Arthur | 36 | down 20% | $126,700 | up 35% | 11.6 |
| San Antonio | 1,100 | down 12% | $146,400 | up 3% | 7.9 |
| Texarkana | 51 | down 18% | $110,000 | down 16% | 9.2 |
| Waco | 107 | down 11% | $118,600 | up 4% | 9.3 |
| Texas | 12,008 | down 10% | $145,800 | up 3% | 7.2 |
Source: Real Estate Center
Read MoreTexas September 2010 Home Sales Report
Existing home sales in September were down from last year, according to newly released data from Texas Multiple Listing Services (MLS).
About 15,200 homes were sold in September, down 18 percent from September 2009. Meanwhile, the median price remained virtually the same at $147,700. There was a 7.9-month inventory of existing homes on the market.
Here are data for a few Texas cities (current as of Oct. 21, 2010). More data on these and other cities are available on their website.
| Sales | Change from Last Year | Median Price | Change from Last Year | Months’ Inventory | |
| Abilene | 124 | down 3% | $121,400 | up 9% | 6.5 |
| Austin | 1,393 | down 28% | $193,300 | up 5% | 6.8 |
| Beaumont | 124 | down 15% | $121,100 | down 8% | 11.7 |
| Bryan-College Station | 122 | down 5% | $149,300 | down 2% | 8.8 |
| Dallas | 3,066 | down 24% | $159,300 | up 2% | 7.2 |
| Fort Worth | 608 | down 18% | $109,200 | down 3% | 7.3 |
| Houston | 4,296 | down 19% | $154,400 | no change | 7.9 |
| Kerrville | 41 | up 2% | $190,000 | up 27% | 22.8 |
| Longview-Marshall | 173 | down 7% | $128,600 | up 1% | 9.1 |
| Lufkin | 36 | down 22% | $124,000 | up 3% | 9.3 |
| McAllen | 125 | down 31% | $102,300 | down 2% | 12.7 |
| San Antonio | 1,434 | down 11% | $149,400 | up 2% | 8.2 |
| Texarkana | 85 | up 18% | $123,800 | up 27% | 9 |
| Victoria | 71 | up 15% | $118,600 | down 15% | 8.2 |
| Waco | 136 | down 25% | $100,000 | down 15% | 8.7 |
| Texas | 15,199 | down 18% | $147,700 | no change | 7.9 |
Source: Real Estate Center
Read MoreDallas-Fort Worth home prices edge higher in report
D-FW was one of 100 U.S. metropolitan areas that saw improved home prices from a year earlier, the National Association of Realtors said Wednesday. Median home sales prices in the area rose 2.1 percent in the second quarter from the same period the previous year, the Realtors said. That beat the nationwide increase of 1.5 percent.
And it was more than double North Texas’ first-quarter gain. Almost two-thirds of the U.S. markets that the Realtors track had year-over-year price rises at midyear. But analysts aren’t overselling the latest numbers, which are compared with the depths of the housing shakeout in 2009. “The recorded home prices in many markets were significantly depressed last year because of a large percentage of distressed homes sold at discount,” said Realtor economist Lawrence Yun.
“Now as more normal, nondistressed home sales are occurring, the median price in many areas is showing higher values,” he said. Sales of distressed homes still account for almost a third of U.S. purchases nationwide, according to the Realtors. An increase in the number of sales of higher-priced homes in some markets may also increase the median price, Yun said.
In the Dallas area, sales of homes in affluent neighborhoods are up sharply this year. Nationwide, prices were up for the first time since 2006 in the closely watched report. Some of the biggest second-quarter price increases were in California, which in recent years suffered huge residential value declines. Prices were up 36 percent in San Jose, 25 percent in San Francisco and 17.8 percent in Riverside. Prices were still falling in more than 50 areas, including Cumberland, Md., -15.4 percent, and Tucson, Ariz., -13.7 percent.
The D-FW area had the best quarter price performance among major Texas markets. Prices were up 1.3 percent in the Austin area. But median home sales prices fell 1 percent in Houston and were down 3.2 percent in San Antonio.
EXISTING HOME PRICE CHANGES
| Home prices in North Texas were up 2.1 percent in the second quarter of 2010 compared with a 1.5 percent nationwide increase. Median home price for each city for second quarter of 2010 and the percentage change from the same quarter of previous year. | ||
| BIGGEST INCREASES | ||
| Akron, Ohio | $119,700 | 36% |
| San Jose, Calif. | $630,000 | 26% |
| San Francisco | $591,200 | 25% |
| LARGEST DECLINES | ||
| Cumberland, Md. | $104,500 | -15.4% |
| Tucson, Ariz. | $150,200 | -13.7% |
| Beaumont, Texas | $120,700 | -12.9% |
| U.S. Median | $176,900 | 1.5% |
| MAJOR TEXAS CITIES | ||
| Austin | $196,600 | 1.3% |
| Corpus Christi | $135,500 | 1.6% |
| Dallas-Fort Worth | $134,700 | 2.1% |
| El Paso | $133,800 | 1.5% |
| Houston | $155,900 | -1% |
| San Antonio | $148,200 | -3.2% |
| SOURCE: National Association of Realtors | ||
Source: Dallas Morning News, NAR, MetroTex
Read MoreDallas-Fort Worth home sales rise 11 percent
The North Texas home market took a turn for the better in March. Sales of pre-owned homes rose 11 percent from March 2009. And condo sales soared by more than 30 percent.
Even more encouraging for the market, median home sales prices increased by 6 percent from a year ago.
The upbeat home market data may signal that the worst of the local housing market downturn is in the rearview mirror. But analysts and economists stress that the spike in sales is partly due to a federal tax credit for homebuyers, which expires at the end of April. That temporary incentive could have artificially inflated sales.
“Certainly, the expanded tax credit … has been an incentive to buy now,” said Dr. Bernard Weinstein, a Southern Methodist University economist. “We may see lower sales in the second quarter as buyers have shifted typical spring buying.”
Analysts also point out that the March results are being compared with a period a year ago when housing was at its lowest point. So, the gains are from a low base.
Real estate agents sold 6,036 pre-owned single-family homes in March, according to the latest statistics from the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University and North Texas Real Estate Information Systems. It was the strongest single month for sales since last October.
The median price of pre-owned homes sold last month was $144,900. That’s the best price since last summer.
And in one peek at the future, the report indicates that the surge is likely to continue, at least for the short term. Pending pre-owned home sales in the North Texas market – which includes 24 counties – were up 22 percent at the end of March.
Mortgage rates
Some buyers included in the March data may have signed home purchase contracts in late January and February because of worries that mortgage rates would rise soon.
Indeed, mortgage rates this week averaged about 5.2 percent nationwide, the highest level in eight months.
“Many people expect to see interest rates increase now that the federal government has ended its program of purchasing mortgage-backed securities,” said David Brown, who heads the Dallas office of housing analyst Metrostudy Inc. “Buyers and agents realize this may be as low as we see interest rates for a while.
“Some of the buyers who will close home purchases this month and next likely accelerated their purchase decision to qualify for the tax credit. The outlook for sales in the second half of the year is less certain.”
The median price of pre-owned homes sold last month was $144,900, the best price since last summer.
Some of the biggest year-over-year sales jumps in March were in affluent neighborhoods in the Park Cities, North Dallas and Westlake. Buyers in these areas usually don’t qualify for homebuying tax credits.
“A year ago, those high-end buyers were running for the hills,” Brown said. “Some of the buyers are now viewing this long term as a great investment and jumped out there to buy.”
Conversely, some more affordably priced areas such as Lancaster and Duncanville saw sharp annual declines in sales last month.
With March’s strong home sales numbers, year-to-date prices are up 3 percent from the first quarter of 2009 and total sales are up a scant 1 percent.
No flood of sellers
So far, the improvement in home activity hasn’t prompted more sellers to enter the market. Last month, 36,730 pre-owned single-family homes were up for sale in local real estate agents’ multiple listing services, 6 percent fewer than in March 2009.
There is a 6.4-month supply of homes on the market in North Texas – close to what is considered a balanced market.
But that supply figure doesn’t include some previously foreclosed homes that aren’t being marketed through the multiple listing service.
About 23 percent of Dallas-Fort Worth residential sales are from foreclosed properties sold by lenders or from distress sales, another report out Thursday says.
While that may seem high, it’s among the lowest among the 25 largest U.S. housing markets studied by First American CoreLogic in January. Among the highest were Riverside, Calif., where 62 percent of home sales were from foreclosures or distressed sales, followed by Las Vegas at 59 percent, and Sacramento, Calif., at 58 percent.
Foreclosures
While Thursday’s report had positive signs, Dallas-Fort Worth continues to see record home foreclosures. And more than 6 percent of mortgage holders in the area are seriously late in making payments.
At the same time, residents who feel better about economic conditions and are secure in their jobs are still in the market to buy and take advantage of lower home prices and finance rates, real estate agents say.
The increase in pre-owned home sales in March was in contrast to D-FW new home sales, which were down 20 percent from the first quarter of 2009.
But the new home market makes up a small share of overall sales.
Fewer than 3,600 vacant new houses were on the market this year – about a tenth of the number of pre-owned homes up for sale.
“Certainly another objective of the tax credit has been to help mop up foreclosures, and the absorption of this shadow inventory goes a long way to adding stability to the market,” said Ted Wilson with Dallas’ Residential Strategies Inc.
Recent forecasts that North Texas’ economy will add between 10,000 and 15,000 jobs this year also give analysts hope that the housing turnaround here will last.
“Ultimately, the job market will need to improve for the home sales to experience sustained growth,” Brown said.
D-FW AREA HOME RESALES UPDATE
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Source: DallasNews.com
Read MoreDallas-area home prices turn positive!
Dallas-area home prices turn positive in S&P/Case- Shiller index 
After more than two years of declines, home prices have finally turned positive for Dallas in the closely watched Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller Home Price Index.
Residential values in the Dallas area were up 1.4 percent in November from a year earlier – the first increase in the price index of pre-owned homes since September 2007.
The Dallas area also performed the best out of the 20 cities Case-Shiller tracks each month in the survey released Tuesday.
The upbeat Dallas numbers support other recent reports that show residential values in the area are no longer falling.
“Obviously this is positive news and reflective of the tight inventory of both new and existing homes,” said Ted Wilson of Dallas-based home market analyst Residential Strategies Inc. “And we could see further strengthening of home demand and prices in 2010 if job growth resumes later this year, as several forecasters have predicted.
“But before we get too giddy about the housing market, we should understand that there are still headwinds.”
Continued high home foreclosure rates in North Texas are a drag on home values, industry analysts warn. And sales could dip again when the federal home buying tax credit runs out in April, economists say.
Economic pressures also still constrain home buying.
“I expect to continue to see mixed signals in the home price indexes month to month during 2010 because demand will not measurably strengthen until job growth re-emerges,” said David Brown of Metrostudy Inc.’s Dallas housing research office.
Positive territory
No one doubts that the Dallas housing market is among the healthiest in the country, and the Case-Shiller numbers confirm that.
“Looking at the annual figures, four markets – Dallas, Denver, San Diego and San Francisco – finally entered positive territory, something we haven’t really seen in at least two years,” Standard & Poor’s David M. Blitzer said Tuesday in the report.
Other major U.S. home markets weren’t so lucky. Charlotte, N.C.; Las Vegas; Seattle; and Tampa, Fla., hit new low points in the index.
Prices were down 5.3 percent for all the cities in the report from a year ago and fell 0.2 percent for the month of November.
Dallas-area home prices were flat in November compared with October, Case-Shiller said.
For all of 2009, median home sales prices in North Texas were unchanged from 2008 levels, according to statistics from North Texas Real Estate Information Systems Inc. That follows 2008′s 3 percent decline in homes sold by Realtors through the Multiple Listing Service.
Dallas-area home values bottomed out in the Case-Shiller in March, when prices were down 5.6 percent on an annual basis.
Prices here are still down about 5 percent from their peak in mid-2007.
Case-Shiller tracks the prices of typical single-family homes in each metropolitan area. The index does not include condominiums and townhouses.
Its researchers compare sales of specific properties over time.
Rebound expected
Most analysts expect the Dallas housing market to begin to rebound this year. The National Association of Home Builders is predicting that the local home construction market will be back to “normal” by 2011.
Economists are cautious given the fragile state of the U.S. financial markets and sluggish consumer spending.
“I don’t think it’s time to celebrate,” said Bernard Weinstein, an economist with Southern Methodist University. “We still have a lot of cleanup to do before the local housing market reaches equilibrium.”
But Weinstein said the strong Case-Shiller number “gives more testimony to the strength of the metroplex economy and the likelihood of an ongoing recovery in the local housing market.”
Source: STEVE BROWN / The Dallas Morning News
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