Houston Heights District - Real Estate Market Report from Erion Shehaj on Vimeo.
Active on the Market
There are currently 135 total properties for sale asking an average of $200.27/SF (virtually unchanged) priced as low as $149.9k all the way up to $1.35M. Over half of the current inventory for sale (51.85%) are new construction homes. On average , active listings have been on the market for 124 days which is an improvement over January’s 139 days. Only 1.5% of the current inventory are foreclosures.
Pending Sales
A total of 12 properties went under contract in February, at different stages of the transaction (i.e. pending inspection, pending but taking backups, pending closing) - That’s significantly lower than the January figure. The average asking price of the homes that went under contract is $154.01/SF priced as low as $199k all the way up to $964k. A third of the homes that went under contract were new construction. On average, pending sale listings have been on the market for 83 days. Two of the twelve pending sales were bank foreclosures.
Sold
A total of 13 properties were sold during February (62% jump from a month ago) at an average of $163.33/SF with sales prices ranging from $192k all the way up to $866k. About a quarter of the sold properties in The Heights during January were new developments. On average , sold listings have been on the market for 146 days. Just over seven percent of the solds were bank owned properties.
The current absorption rate for Houston Heights remained unchanged at a healthy 6.78 months - that is, it would take about 7 months to sell all the current inventory at the rate homes have been selling in the neighborhood over the past year. There is a definite disconnect between the price Sellers are asking for their properties and the price homes are actually selling in the area. Currently the difference is about 11.5% which is considerable. Every home is different - that’s true. But if you are in the market trying to sell, you will be facing an uphill battle if your asking price is higher than what it takes to sell by double digit percentages. Without sugarcoating it, the choice is simple:
The numbers never lie - if you know how to read them.
Yesterday, we were contacted by one of our local stations, Channel 39, to contribute to a story on taking advantage of the current market and getting some great deals buying Houston Foreclosures. Kudos to Andrea Nguyen for a superb job on the story.
As stimulus package was signed into law this past Wednesday, speculation about the housing provisions in it ceased. During the course of congressional negotiations we went from a $15,000 tax credit to nothing, and everywhere in between.
Under the $787B recovery package, first time homebuyers (that make less than $75,000/year) are eligible to get an $8,000 tax credit that does not require repayment, if they purchase a primary residence from January 1st, 2009 through December 31st, 2009. The credit is refundable - If the annual tax liability is less than the credit, the taxpayer will receive the difference in a check. The tax credit does not apply for investment properties or second homes.
The median home price in Houston Real Estate as of January 2009 is about $130,000. In the current environment, buyers are getting an average discount of about 7% off asking price. Bank and government foreclosures are often priced 15%+ less than their true market value. With FHA financing, homebuyers can purchase a Houston home with a 3.5% down payment. Finally, the stimulus package tax credit amounts to about 6% of an average priced starter home.
To put it all together: You would be purchasing a home at a sweet 31.5% Off!! As in 68.5 cents on the dollar.
Need I say more to support my conviction that this is THE best time to buy a home in the last 50 years? To spin off a Warren Buffett nugget of wisdom: Be agressive when others are fearful and fearful when others are agressive. The time is now…
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Just over a month ago, 2008 came to an end as one of the choppiest years for the real estate market in at least two decades. Across the country, markets were hit with slow sales and falling prices with some areas in the West dropping as much as 30%. News media outlets latched on to the national data and milked it for all it was worth, arguably making it much worse by further frightening buyers that were already feeling uncertain. There was no effort whatsoever, to parse the data and point out markets that were actually doing well - relatively speaking. Instead, we had two equally stubborn extremes: Skewed catastrophic reports from newsmedia and stubborn boneheaded cliches from Associations of Realtors.
Now the numbers for the Houston Real Estate market are out and I’d like to give you the straight story without any coating - sugar or otherwise.
During 2008, Realtors sold a total of 69,220 single family homes which represents a drop of 17.3% drop over 2007. That is, 14,516 fewer homes were sold in 2008 when compared with the year before. The reasons that justify this drop are several and well known: Tightening credit markets and lending guidelines, loss of employment and overall uncertainty about the economy kept buyers from pursuing and purchasing homes. Further, Hurricane Ike put the brakes on the entire real estate establishment in the Greater Houston Area for at least four weeks. It also caused a large number of sales to fall through due to hurricane damage. When it comes to total number of transactions, virtually every market in the country suffered a drop over 2007.
The average sales price during 2008 actually rose by about 1% (to $208,266) over 2007 while the median sales price remained unchanged at $152,000. You won’t find this story in the Chronicle because this is very positive news and they’re not in THAT business. In a nutshell, this means that while it would be normal for prices to come under pressure during periods of slower sales, not only did home prices in the Houston area NOT drop - they actually rose. This makes a lot of sense, if you think about it. We did not experience the rampant post Y2K appreciation that states like California, Arizona and Florida went through. In other words, if prices didn’t rise aggressively, they will not fall aggresively either.
At the end of December 2008, the months of inventory was at 5.7 months - in other words, it would take 5.7 months to deplete the current inventory based on past 12 months sales (by comparison, certain markets in Florida are looking at 20+ months of inventory). This number is also down from December 2007 - a positive sign that shows the Houston Real Estate market is trending toward being more balanced after spending most of 2008 in Buyer’s Market territory.
In my opinion, the Houston Real Estate market (and other similar markets) will begin to rebound during the last quarter of 2009. Stronger sales will be fueled by home buyer incentives in the stimulus bill, looser Fannie Mae credit restrictions for investors and more fluid credit markets overall. With a stronger push in the sales territory, prices should remain stable if not experience mild appreciation.
As a consumer, you have the right to truthful information, not agenda driven spin. I hope to have provided some insight into the realistic conditions within the Houston Real Estate market.
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In the midst of an atmosphere of job losses, layoffs and unemployment, Houston just closed the year as the top in the country for job growth adding 57,300 jobs in 2008. From the Houston Business Journal story:
Houston had the best year of any market, picking up an additional 57,300 jobs, according to a new bizjournals analysis…Seventy-two of the markets suffered declines in employment in 2008. The New York City area took the worst hit in absolute terms, losing 120,300 positions…Texas dominated the small list of markets that added jobs last year, nailing down the top three positions, and four of the top five.
The increase is down significantly from 2007 when the area added 218,000 jobs. But the fact that we have job growth while 88% of markets lost jobs in the same time period is a testament to how well the area is weathering the storm. Since the local employment market is the foundation that supports (and fuels) our housing market, this is very positive news for Houston real estate.
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Houston Real Estate Company: Purchase and Sale of Houston Homes, Houston Foreclosures, HUD Homes and Distressed REOs
Commitment to Customer Service:
Signature Real Estate and its brokers, agents and staff are absolutely committed to providing the best customer service for every client through hard work, sound advice and most importantly, results. Our agents are absolute professionals with the knowledge, dedication and competence to help you through your real estate transaction no matter how big or small. Our commitment to service is not negotiable and we provide every one of our clients with our best effort regardless of the transaction amount. We believe that the majority of our work, starts after the business relationship is established and not vice versa. Our company is family owned, not franchised as to never compromise our service standards. We have been in business since 2003 and are proud to say that we have been growing each year.
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Since the beginning, our company has kept up with the newest cutting edge technology to facilitate the transaction enhance our marketing, as well as improve results. Alongside classical marketing techniques such as open houses, flyers and MLS, Signature Real Estate will put the power of the internet to work for you whether you are selling or buying your home. Providing our clients with online tools available on this website to make their home search easier, or featuring each property we sell prominently on our website are some of the many ways we utilize the latest technology to serve our clients better.
The majority of our resources is allocated to training and preparing our agents to serve you in a professional manner, exhibit the highest level of ethics and integrity and deliver expected results. Each agent has to abide by the company commitments to our clients 100% of the time. Signature Real Estate is proud to say that each one of our agents utilize their background to serve our clients better through multiple languages, financial academic background or interior design and staging experience.
Houston Real Estate Company
Houston Real Estate - We serve the Greater Houston Area, Harris and Fort Bend County including Houston, Sugar Land, Katy, Spring, Stafford, La Porte, Pasadena, Missouri City, Humble, Tomball, Rosenberg, Friendswood, League City, Clear Lake, Fresno. At Signature Real Estate we are "Just Different" in the sense that we go over and above to satisfy our clients. When you work with one of our agents you will find an unsurpassed level of commitment and efficiency that produces great results.
Houston Foreclosures and Houston HUD Homes - We specialize in investment properties below market value such as bank foreclosures and HUD homes. Our approach to real estate investments is prudent and rigorous, aiming to achieve solid profits while minimizing risk through disciplined market research and sound investment principles. The advantage we offer our clients is a research-based conservative strategy combined with a streamlined process from property identification to offer to acquisition to rehab to resale or lease.
Broker Price Opinions (BPO) and REO Listings - We provide broker price opinions (BPOs) and REO Listings services in the Houston Area in a prompt and efficient manner. Our professional staff is committed to turning in every BPO ahead of schedule and to provide instant clarifications when requested. Our commitment to asset managers is that we will aggressively market every REO listing with same-day MLS listing, virtual tours, high quality photos and fliers, online listings in Zillow, Trulia, Craigslist, GoogleBase, Backpage, Localism etc.
Erion worked a miracle!! I got the house I wanted and even a lower interest rate!! There were delays, but Erion gave precise details of what to expect. Kudos to Signature Real Estate! You guys specialize in excellency!
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Not everything went as planned but overall my first investment was a good experience. I hope to do more deals with them soon.
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This was a good deal all around. We had some problems but we were informed all along the way. Signature kept on top of everything and looked out for our interests. I will be dealing with them again.
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I start real estate investing recently. Erion is very helpful in the process of finding the properties and give very good/honest advices.
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I began looking for real estate to invest in, newspapers, City Halls, etc. One night, on the web, came across Signature Houston, responded that I would like more info. Erion followed up with a phone call within 20 minutes. We set an appointment for the next day. To make a long story short, not only did they help me find one, but 2 investment properties, closing only a couple weeks apart. What I really like is the communication, and their phyical presents every step of the way.
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I began looking for real estate to invest in, newspapers, City Halls, etc. One night, on the web, came across Signature Houston, responded that I would like more info. Erion followed up with a phone call within 20 minutes. We set an appointment for ...
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The knowledge and expertise that goes in to the investment process is second to none. Just call them and you will not be dissappointed.
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Make sure to bookmark this site right away. Great Real Estate Deals every day.
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Signature Real Estate not only made my dreams of becoming a home owner a reality, but they also took a lot of the fear and anxiety of becoming a first time homeowner away by being very personable and knowledgeable.
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HANDS DOWN THE BEST RESOURCE FOR REAL ESTATE INVESTMENTS IN HOUSTON.
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These guys update deals every week. Very knowlegeable on the whole investment process too. Give them a call, you wont regret it!
Thank you for helping me sell my home. Your service was excellent. It is so rare to receive such caring, personal customer service in today’s business world. You are very knowledgeable in your field and I knew you were giving me an honest answer to all my questions. I was also highly impressed with the amount of work and attention you were willing to perform for me as a client. To say that you went the extra mile is an understatement! I trust your judgment because you took the time to explain all the steps to me and ask for my opinion about all actions. I felt in control of the transaction at all times.
It was a pleasure doing business with you and an even bigger one to call you friends. May God Bless you always!
Christine Moore (Houston, TX)
We wanted to tell you how much my wife and I appreciate your quick service and willing attention you have given us as we sold our first home. We would also like to thank you again for helping us find and buy our new home. We are extremely happy with it and this would not have been possible if it weren't for your interest and effort in offering the best service you can offer. Our family would like to thank you for the cordiality and the confidence you have given us.
Scott and Lilia Buchar (Houston TX)
Signature Real Estate was able to sell my property at an attractive price when other brokers weren't able to get me a showing! Our broker was knowledgeable and helpful in securing a bid and negotiating a deal. After we signed our deal, Signature was there to handle the administrative work for a smooth closing process. I dealt with several other realtors in the process of this sale and in other deals, and Signature is on par with the big name players in terms of knowledge and experience, but will work with you on a personal level, providing a level of access and customer service not available with bigger realtors. I recommend Signature!
Hinds and Erjona Howard
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