About McLennan County, TX

These properties are posted to be auctioned off at the Mclennan county Courthouse tomorrow, September 1^st. Not all properties posted actually end up being sold. Some owners work out a settlement with their bank and keep the property.

6330 Old Dallas Rd, Elm Mott Texas, 76640. This is a commercial building, 7400 square feet, built in 1983. Currently appraised at $148,700

1615 Washington, Waco. This is an apartment complex built in 1920. Currently appraised at $303,000

705 N. Davis in West, Texas 76691. This is a 1284 square foot home built in 1925. Currently appraised at $52,200

316 Dixon in Hewitt, Texas 76643. A 1677 square foot home built in 1973. Currently appraised at $97,500

Today I attended the "Hour Economy", a quarterly luncheon the Waco Chamber of Commerce holds to keep members of the business community up to date on what is happening in McLennan County. I am happy to report that our unemployment rate is 7.2 compared to 5.1 last year, but the Waco Metropolitan Area has only lost 800 jobs from this time last year. That is still 2.5 % below the national unemployement level.

And many new jobs will be created in the next few months. The Waco VA Hospital just held groundbreaking ceremonies for a new post traumatic stress disorder research unit that will employ 200. The VA is also opening a national pharmacy call center in Waco which will employ 224 by next spring. L-3 Aviation, which refurbishes military aircraft, just opened a new hanger and will be hiring another 100 employees. And Allied Health Products will be opening a new diaper-making plant which will employ 115 people.

Jobs will also be created by a major face lift of the Waco Convention Center which will begin in October and take about 17 months to complete.

This time the keynote speaker was Liz Taylor from the Waco Convention and Visitors Bureau, who reported on tourism statistics. She reported that visitor spend an average of 2 days in Waco, 55% of them visiting friends and relatives, the other 45% on business. 6% come to look for real estate! They pump 5.7 million into the Waco economy and create over 4,700 jobs for hotels, restaurants and other tourism related jobs. About 77% come from within Texas and travel an average of 250 miles.

And what are they mainly coming to see? The Texas Ranger Museum, the Dr. Pepper Museum and Cameron Park Zoo . She said most international visitors come to see the Armstrong/Browning Museum and Library located on the Baylor campus.

Kind of makes you proud you live in Waco, doesn't it?

From the newsletter of State Representitive Kip Averitt:

"Following the 80th legislative session 2 years ago, the State legislature sent to the voters a constitutional amendment that would provide a property tax exemption for veterans who are 100% disabled. The voters approved the amendement in November 2007, and during the 81st Session, the legislature passed the tools necessary to put the exemption into effect.

Under the legislation passed this session, beginning in tax year 2009, a 100% disabled veteran whose disability is service related will receive an exemption from taxation of total appraised value of his/her residential homestead.

To apply for the exemption, contact you local appraisal district."

You can contact the Mclennan County Appraisal District at www.Mclennancad.org 0r (254)752-9864

Waco Residential Market Reports—July 2009

Around the middle of July I started to think we wouldn’t meet our figures from June. Well we didn’t, but we are very close.

Still down from last year’s sales at this time as well, but that is not too surprising with all things considered. Dollar figures were nearly identical to last years in median and average sales prices, but less than June of this year.

As usual, certain areas in and around Waco are doing better than others. If you are looking to sell or buy in the Waco or Greater Waco area, it's very important to understand the trends in each neighborhood.

I can tell you that in some neighborhoods you are simply going to find much better deals than in others. And most of the best deals are NOT in the most popular neighborhoods.

I can also tell you that positioning your home properly to sell is still of the utmost importance. This means the right price and the best condition possible. Good homes for purchase are still tough to find. You want your home to stand out and be the one the buyers just can't resist.

Here are the figures:

July 2008*

Residential Sales: 249

Median Sales Price: 116,200

Average Sales Price: 127,300

July 2009**

Residential Sales: 213

Median Sales Price: 117,000

Average Sales Price: 125,188

June 2009**

Residential Sales: 219

Median Sales Price: 128,000

Average Sales Price: 154,078

*Information gathered from The Real Estate Center Website. on 08/03/09.

**Information gathered from the Waco MLS on 08/12/09. These figures may change while all sales for the month of July may not yet be reported.

This information is deemed reliable but cannot be guaranteed. Use at your own risk.