Jill Wente - Spring TX Real Estate

Spring Texas Real Estate: Market Report July 2008

What's going on with the Spring TX Real Estate Market?

•  Decrease in closed sales. The 2008 YTD closed sales for MLS area 13 was 1,629 which is a decrease of 14.6%.

•  Decrease in single-family median homes price of 1.8%.  Even though the Spring Texas Real Estate market is experiencing a decrease in closed sales the GOOD NEWS is that our home prices are still remaining stable with only a small decrease over 2007. 

 • Spring Texas homes remain affordable.  At $143,400, our area's single-family median home price is over 30% less than the national median explaining why Spring Texas homes were ranked #14 for affordability.  

 •  Increase in Days on Market (DOM) from 72 to 90.  With fewer buyers in the market and plenty of homes to choose from, sellers are having to wait longer in 2008 before getting that contract.  With fewer motivating factors to create a sense of urgency, buyers are content to look longer and be more choosy in their home selection. The staged homes that are priced right go fast the rest just lanquish on the market.

•  Increase in months of inventory from 6.2 to 6.8 months. A 14.6% decrease in closed sales coupled with a 3.5% decrease in active listings of homes on the market equals an increase in months of inventory.

• Average Sales Price to List Price is 97%.  The Sales Price to List Price has remained unchanged from 2007 to 2008.  In 2008, we are seeing more houses go through several rounds of price reductions before they eventually sell for the average S.P. / L.P. of 97%.  This does nothing but increase the days on market for the seller. If Spring Texas home sellers set their prices to match the market in the beginning, they will experience less inconvenience because the DOM will be shorter.

If you are thinking about selling your Spring Texas home, contact Jill Wente at 281.804.8626.  If you are considering purchasing a home, please contact us and we will guide you through the entire home buying process.

 

There is no denying that our real estate taxes in Spring Texas are higher than in other states. But you shouldn't ONLY take into consideration real estate taxes when considering whether its affordable to live in Spring Texas.  

For 18 consecutive years the nonpartisan Tax Foundation has published an estimate of the combined state-local burden of each of the 50 states. And they have just released the State and Local tax burden estimates for 2008 and our big state of Texas came in as the 8th lowest state in state-local tax burden.  And this rating of being in the top 10 lowest states in state-local tax burden is not a flux. We have enjoyed this ranking for the last four years. 

We, Texans, pay 8.4 percent of our income in state and local taxes, compared to New Jersey at 11.8 percent, New York at 11.7 percent, Connecticut at 11.1 percent and Maryland at 10.8 percent. What's the national average? The national average state-local tax burden is 9.7 percent.

Would you be able to guess what state enjoys the lowest state-local tax burden?  If you guessed, Alaska, you would be correct. Alaska's state-local tax burden is 6.4 percent. The other states with a lower state-local tax burden than Texas are Nevada, Wyoming, Florida, New Hampshire, South Dakota, and Tennessee. Coming in at #10 is Louisiana with a state-local tax burden of 8.4%.

Just one more reason why we live in Spring Texas. Read our Top 20 reasons to call Spring Texas home. Did you hear the news that Spring Texas homes are #14 for affordability? 

If you are thinking about relocating to Spring Texas, please give us a call at 281.300.3141 or 281.804.8626. We will be happy to help you find the right house to call "home" in Spring Texas.

The release of the latest TEA (Texas Education Agency) school ratings have left some Spring Texas school teachers and principals beaming with joy and some down right crowing from their accomplishments.  The TEA rates schools and districts primarily based upon the test results of the Texas Assessment of Knowledge and Skills (TAKS). A standardized test that is administered to students in grades 3 - 11.

The ratings given by the TEA to the schools and districts are (E) - Exemplary, (R) - Recognized, (A) - Academically Acceptable, and (U) - Unacceptable.  The ratings are one of the ways parents evaluate Spring Texas schools in determining the quality of education provided to their children. 

 

13 schools (37% of the campuses) in the Klein School District improved their ratings.  The most notable being the quantity of schools earning the coveted Exemplary (E) rating increased from 2 to 7.  Move over Hassler and Haude elementary, you now have been joined by Theiss, Benfer, Roth, Metzer, and Benigus elementaries as holders of an Exemplary rating.

KLEIN SCHOOL DISTRICT	2008 TEA RATINGS
	E	R	A	U
Elementary	7	16	2	0
Intermediate / Middle	0	1	7	0
High	0	0	4	0
Totals	7	17	13	0

 

Six schools in the Conroe School District improved their ratings in the 2008 TEA ratings. True it is a small quantity of schools experiencing improvement. But with 63% of the Conroe School District elementary schools and 3 of its Intermediate / Jr High schools holding the Exemplary rating, they definitely have some high marks to be proud of. Congratulations goes out to McCullough Junior High which improved its rating from Recognized (R) to Exemplary. 

CONROE SCHOOL DISTRICT	2008 TEA RATINGS
	E	R	A	U
Elementary	17	10	0	0
Intermediate / Junior High	3	4	6	0
High	0	0	4	0
Totals	20	14	10	0

 

Eight schools (27% of the campuses) in the Spring School District experienced improvement in their ratings. A BIG CONGRATULATIONS goes out to Smith Elementary its only school to earn an Exemplary rating. The newly opened Dekaney High School received an Unacceptable rating. Let's just hope its next year's scores will be better.

SPRING SCHOOL DISTRICT	2008 TEA RATINGS
	E	R	A	U
Elementary	1	16	4	0
Intermediate / Middle	0	1	5	0
High	0	0	2	1
Totals	1	17	11	1

 

Only 1 school out of the entire 11 schools in the Tomball School District improved its rating.  Rosehill Elementary school teachers worked hard and increased their rating from an Academically Acceptable to Recognized.

TOMBALL SCHOOL DISTRICT	2008 TEA RATINGS
	E	R	A	U
Elementary	1	3	6	0
Intermediate / Junior High	0	1	4	0
High	0	0	1	0
Totals	1	4	11	0

 

Cypress - Fairbanks School District also known as Cy-Fair has something to crow about. They earned a Recognized rating for the entire school district. It is now the largest school district in the State of Texas to hold a Recognized rating. 18 schools (25% of the campuses) earned an improved TEA rating. A BIG Texas CONGRATULATIONS goes out to Cy-Fair High School and Cypress Woods High School both earned a Recognized (R) rating. The majority of high schools earn an Academcially Acceptable rating. Thus a Recognized rating is a HUGH accomplishment.

CY-FAIR SCHOOL DISTRICT	2008 TEA RATINGS
	E	R	A	U
Elementary	9	32	6	0
Middle	1	5	9	0
High	0	2	7	0
Totals	10	39	22	0

 

E = Exemplary, R = Recognized, A = Academically Acceptable, and U = Unacceptable

Additional detail on the ratings, student - teacher ratios, campus demographics is available at TEA ratings. 

When relocating to Spring Texas and considering schools you need to do your research. Review the school districts and campuses TEA ratings, review the student - teacher ratios and other public data. After you have narrowed your choices down, go and visit the campuses you are considering. Walk through the halls, get a feeling for the campus, meet with the Principal and teachers and then make your own decision on which schools you want your kids to attend. 

Even if you do not have children attending Spring Texas schools the quality of education provided by the schools still will have an impact on you. Its impact will be felt in your pocketbook. Good schools increase the value of Spring Texas homes. Bad schools decrease demand to live in the area and decreases the value of your home.

Got questions about Spring Texas real estate?  Contact us at 281.804.8626 or 281.300.3141 and we will be happy to answer them.

Vintage Park, an upscale town center shopping center, announces its first Summer Events schedule. On the following Saturdays, August 2 and 16, September 13 and 20 from 4 - 6 pm enjoy live music plus additional entertainment for the kids at Vintage Park.

The recently opened Vintage Park is located at the HWY 249 and Louetta intersection in Northwest Houston. Careful attention to detail has been paid in the construction of the Mediterranean architecture structure including hand-laid pavers, stone columns, clay tile roofs, and hand painted murals.

Vintage Park's first tenant of Potbelly Sandwich Works opened its doors in December of 2007. Since then construction has been completed on additional buildings with more tenants moving in including Imagination Toys and Shoes, Eminence Fine Furniture, Starbucks, Alan Murphy Salons. And its newest tenant Cheeburger Cheeburger.

A good old-fashioned Cheeburger and malt in a replicated 50s and 60s diner is waiting to be enjoyed by you at Cheeburger Cheeburger. This is Cheeburger Cheeburger's first location in the great State of Texas and we are proud for it to be located in Houston.

The center of activity at Vintage Park is certain to occur in its Piazza. Designed to be reminiscent of an Italian shopping promenade with dramatic landscaping and fountains to be enjoyed al fresco by diners. None of the restaurants overlooking the Piazza are open as of yet. Mia Bella an Italian restaurant has secured space at one corner of the Piazza. Shogun a Japanese restaurant will occupy space in the opposite corner of the Piazza.

I can't think of too many better things to do on a Friday night than having an enjoyable dinner in a wonderful atmosphere with my husband. So if you are one of the workers working on this project, please hurry up and finish. Because I am hungry and am ready to eat.

If you want a quick drive home after a night of shopping and dining at Vintage Park consider the neighborhoods of Champion Forest, Champion Woods, Memorial Northwest, and Gleannloch Farms. They are all within a short 10 minute drive. Begin your search for Spring Texas homes and discover the great homes available in these and other neighborhoods. If you have questions or are ready to begin viewing homes, give us a call at 281.300.3141 or 281.804.8626.

The Houston Association of Realtors (HAR) has released the MLS statistics for the month of April 2008 for Area 13 which the majority of Area 13 would be considered Spring TX.

The closed sales for April 2008 were 836 which was 12.5% less than a year ago. The quantity of active listings for Area 13 are 1,671 which is 2.5% more than a year ago. The average days on market (DOM) has experienced a small increase of 6 days from the prior year to 89 days.

The combination of the decrease in closed sales and the increase in inventory over the prior year has added .8 of a month to the quantity of months of inventory increasing it to 6.6 months. Unlike other parts of the country, the Spring TX real estate market continues to remain stable.

Although it may be considered a slight buyer's market, Spring Texas sellers are not accepting low ball offers as indicated by the percentage of sales price to list price which was 97%.

Interest rates are still good, although the lenders continue to tighten thier lending requirements. With the demise of 100% financing, we are starting to see more home loans going FHA instead of conventional.  The increase quantity of Spring Texas homes for sale gives buyers a great selection of homes to choose from and the ability to be picky about their chose.

Read also: New FHA loan limit for Spring Texas Homes

If you are a Spring Texas seller, the increase in inventory / competition means your house needs to put forth its best impression to attract those buyers. You must stage your home to capture the buyers attention and hire a tech savvy Spring Texas Realtor to sell your home.

 

 

(281) 804-8626 - jwente@garygreene.com