About Katy's Firethorne

Market Trends 2012 Update for Current Homes Available in Firethorne Katy Texas

What is happening in the Firethorne Real Estate Market?

The Real Estate market in South Katy Texas (MLS area 36) is basically defined by what occurs in the numerous Master Planned Communities which are scattered across the whole area. I have written several detail market reports about Firethorne in the past with the last on being a December 2011 Year to Date report which you can see right here.

The Chart is showing current listings of homes for sale in Firethorne in Katy Texas by price point ranges during March, 2012.

HOMES AVAILABLE IN FIRETHORNE March 2012 DOLLAR NUMBER DISTRESSED NUMBER % OF CHANGE PRICE POINTS OF HOMES PROPERTY < 300,000 Total FROM JAN. <100,000 0 0 100,000-150,000 0 0 150,000 - 200,000 7 0 200,000 - 250,000 12 (1) 250,000 - 300,000 18 37 55.2% 8 300,000 - 350,000 8 1 11.9% 3 350,000 - 400,000 5 7.5% (3) > 400,000 16 23.9% 9 FORECLOSURE 0 0 SHORT SALE 1 1.5% 1 TOTAL 67 100.00% 17

As shown above there are 67 homes currently available in Firethorne with only 1 home or 1.5 % of the total being classified as Distressed (Foreclosure or Short Sale). The Distressed Homes are not having any significant impact on the market in Firethorne or for that matter a vast majority of the submarkets in Katy Texas. My report for Grand Lakes had the same observation. Since January 2012, there has been a increase in available homes by 17 homes or 34 %. The new home builders recently opened a section east of highway 1463 and the increase mainly reflects the builders putting several new spec homes on the market during early 2012 in advance of spring. At the same time there has been a decrease of 7 homes priced at less than $300 K as the inventory of reasonably priced homes in Firethorne has increased. Right now only 55.2 % of the available homes are priced at less than $300 K while during January that statistic was 60.0 %. The new homes added to the inventory in the higher priced homes amounted to 10 homes while at the lower less than $300 K price point only 7 homes were added.

Firethorne similar to Grand Lakes is a great place to live with many amenities and conveniences close at hand. If you or your family would like to learn more about this wonderful family neighborhood contact me. Time to take action is right now as interest rates continue to hover around historical lows and builders in Firethorne have added to their spec inventories. I expect Firethorne to have a big selling season during the remainder of 2012.

Please see Active Rain’s article on Real Estate Recovery or Not?

If you would like to search for homes in Firethorne or any other community in the Katy or surrounding areas go to my web site and construct a search.

Local Real Estate Market Report for Year 2011 Firethorne in Katy Texas

The Firethorne neighborhood is part of Katy Texas or MLS area 36. Firethorne is a Master Planned Community located off of the Highway 1463 about 2 miles south of the I-10 exit. The neighborhood recently opened a new section of homes that are being built east of FM 1463 while the main section of already built homes is west of 1463. FM 1463 gives commuters easy access to I-10 as it maybe 2-3 miles away and to FM 1093 and the West Park Toll way. Firethorne subdivision is located in an excellent spot with easy access to several major roads. It has a same town feel while being close to the big city.

mls area 36, firethorne, katy

Firethorne consists 1,400 acres plus of land with numerous amenities and recreational facilities scattered through the neighborhood. The Developer states Firethorne provides “an urban convenience with small town charm”. Currently there are six (6) builders who are constructing new homes in Firethorne. Firethorne is located in both the Katy and Fulshear areas of far western Houston away from the hustle and bustle of the big city but very close to old Katy Texas. A significant portion of Firethorne is zoned for Katy ISD and the remaining sections are zoned for Lamar ISD. Firethorne is a very beautiful area and has ample recreational facilities. Living allows residents to easily stay in the neighborhood or only travel very close by it.

There current are 50 homes available for sale in Firethorne (per HAR MLS) ranging from $159,900 to $499,971 in list price. Last month there were 59 homes available. The median list sales price or mid-point is $265,400 or $91.93/ sq. ft. with 116 days on the market. As I have reported for the last43 months, there continues to be a good supply of reasonably priced homes available in Firethorne and that combined with the small town atmosphere makes Firethorne a must see for families looking for home in the Katy area. If we examine the breakdown of available homes it indicates:

HOMES AVAILABLE IN FIRETHORNE
17-Jan-12
DOLLAR		NUMBER	NUMBER	% OF	CHANGE
PRICE POINTS		OF HOMES	< 300,000	Total	LAST MONH
<100,000		0			0
100,000-150,000		0			0
150,000 - 200,000		7			1
200,000 - 250,000		13			(3)
250,000 - 300,000		10	30	60.0%	(1)
300,000 - 350,000		5		10.0%	2
350,000 - 400,000		8		16.0%	(4)
> 400,000		7		14.0%	(4)
TOTAL		50			(9)

As we can see from the above chart, 30 homes (down from 33 last month) or 60 % of the available homes are priced at $300,000 or less. The percentage of available homes priced at or less than $300,000 increased but the actual number decreased by 3 while overall inventory was reduced by 9 homes. It is my personal opinion as it has been for the last 4-5 months that the number of reasonably priced homes will continue to decrease each month until late spring or early summer as builders will try very hard to sell inventory homes and delay construction of new spec homes. As I have said several times this year, if you thinking of buying a home in this area of Katy or any other master planned community stop procrastinating and take action as these very affordable homes are slipping through your fingers. Activity levels during early January 2012 indicate many buyers are back in the market once again.

During the first year of 2011, there were 176 homes sold in Firethorne with low being priced at $149,500 and the high being priced at $612,004. The median adjusted sales price or mid-point price of homes sold the year of 2011 is $270,911 or $87.19/ sq. ft. and the average adjusted sales price is $286,920 or $ 88.58 sq. ft. The absorption rate or numbers of months of available inventory is 3.4 months which has continued to move into a sellers’ market position as this indicative statistic has gone down almost every month since August when the supply was 5.2 months.

The breakdown of sales for year 2011 is as follows:

HOMES SOLD IN FIRETHORNE
12 MONTHS 2011
DOLLAR		NUMBER	NUMBER	% OF	CHANGE
PRICE POINTS		OF HOMES	< 300,000	Total	LAST YEAR
<100,000		0			0
100,000-150,000		0			0
150,000 - 200,000		30			6
200,000 - 250,000		40			(9)
250,000 - 300,000		34	104	59.1%	(15)	(18.00)
300,000 - 350,000		25		14.2%	3
350,000 - 400,000		22		12.5%	(2)
> 400,000		25		14.2%	6
TOTAL		176			(11)	-5.88%

Units sold so far during 2011 are down slightly by 11 homes versus year of 2010 or 5.9 % decrease. The good news here is the median price of homes sold has increased by $2,561 or .9 %. The discount from list price has been reduced from 5 % during 2010 to 3 % for 2011 as this seller concession amount has decreased and I personally think this will continue during early 2012. This is also good news for home sellers. However, the median number of days on the market has increased from 59 last year to 85 days for 2011. This statistic tracks about the same as all of MLS area 36 and similar to Grand Lakes and several other neighborhoods in the Katy Area. Prices of resale homes in Firethorne are lower than in Grand Lakes.

There are 13 pending sales in Firethorne with 4 homes being priced above the $300,000 level and 9 priced below that level. There are NO available foreclosure or short sale homes.

The year 2011 found 6 foreclosures being sold in Firestone at a median price of $197,150.

It is still excellent time to look and buy a home in Firethorne, Grand Lakes, Cinco Ranch ( new and resale), Seven Meadows, Silver Ranch, Kelliwood, Green Trails or any other neighborhood in the Katy or surrounding areas.. If you and your family are interested in Firethorne or any other neighborhood in Katy and I will be happy to arrange to take you on a tour of the whole area.

If you or your family would like to search for homes in Firethorne or another neighborhood in Katy or search the Houston MLS go to my profile on Houston Assocation of Realtors.

Local Real Estate Market Report for YTD November 30, 2011 Firethorne in Katy Texas

The Firethorne neighborhood is part of Katy Texas or MLS area 36. Firethorne is a Master Planned Community located off of the Highway 1463 about 2 miles south of the I-10 exit. The neighborhood recently opened a new section of homes that are being built east of FM 1463 while the main section of already built homes is west of 1463. FM 1463 gives commuters easy access to I-10 as it maybe 2-3 miles away and to FM 1093 and the West Park Toll way. Firethorne subdivision is located in a excellent spot with easy access to several major roads.

Firethorne consists 1,400 acres plus of land with numerous amenities and recreational facilities scattered through the neighborhood. The Developer states Firethorne provides “an urban convenience with small town charm”. Currently there are six (6) builders who are constructing new homes in Firethorne. Firethorne is located in both the Katy and Fulshear areas of far western Houston away from the hustle and bustle of the big city but very close to old Katy Texas. A significant portion of Firethorne is zoned for Katy ISD and the remaining sections are zoned for Lamar ISD. Firethorne is a very beautiful area and has ample recreational facilities and living there it is easy to stay in or close to this neighborhood.

There current are 59 homes available for sale in Firethorne (per HAR MLS) ranging from $169,795 to $499,971 in list price. Last month there were 65 homes available. The median list sales price or mid-point is $268,285 or $91.94/ sq. ft. with 98 days on the market. As I have reported for the last 3 months, there continues to be a good supply of reasonably priced homes now available in Firethorne and that combined with the small town atmosphere makes Firethorne a must see for families looking for home in the Katy area. If we examine the breakdown of available homes it indicates:

HOMES AVAILABLE IN FIRETHORNE
18-Dec-11
DOLLAR		NUMBER	NUMBER	% OF	CHANGE
PRICE POINTS		OF HOMES	< 300,000	Total	LAST MONH
<100,000		0			0
100,000-150,000		0			0
150,000 - 200,000		6			(2)
200,000 - 250,000		16			(3)
250,000 - 300,000		11	33	55.9%	(9)	(14.00)
300,000 - 350,000		3		5.1%	1
350,000 - 400,000		12		20.3%	4
> 400,000		11		18.6%	3
TOTAL		59			(6)

As we can see from the above chart, 33 homes (same as last month) or 55.9 % of the available homes are priced at $300,000 or less. The percentage of available homes priced at or less than $300,000 remained the same from August to September but increased in October by 6 % and the number of available homes decreased by 6 but during November the available homes at this price point decreased by 14 homes. It is my personal opinion that this number will continue to decrease each month until spring as builders will try very hard to sell inventory homes and delay construction of new spec homes. As I have said several times this year, if you thinking of buying a home in this area of Katy or any other master planned community stop procrastinating and take action as these very affordable homes are slipping through your fingers.

During the first 11 months of 2011, there were 157 homes sold in Firethorne with low being $149,500 and the high being $574,950. The median adjusted sales price or mid-point price of homes sold so far this year is $274,397 or $87.22/ sq. ft. and the average adjusted sales price is $287,608 or $ 88.63/ sq. ft. The absorption rate or numbers of months of available inventory is 4.1 months which are continuing to move into a sellers’ market as this has gone down almost every month since August when the supply was 5.2 months.

The breakdown of sales for 11 months of 2011 is as follows:

HOMES SOLD IN FIRETHORNE
11 MONTHS 2011
DOLLAR		NUMBER	NUMBER	% OF
PRICE POINTS		OF HOMES	< 300,000	Total
<100,000		0
100,000-150,000		0
150,000 - 200,000		23
200,000 - 250,000		34
250,000 - 300,000		34	91	58.0%
300,000 - 350,000		20		12.7%
350,000 - 400,000		17		10.8%
> 400,000		29		18.5%
TOTAL		157

Units sold so far during 2011 are down slightly by 8 homes versus 11 months of 2010 or 4.8 % decrease. The good news here is the median price of homes sold has increased by $6,047 or 2.2%. The discount from list price has been reduced from 5 % during 2010 to 3 % for 2011 as this seller concession amount has decreased and I personally think this will continue during December. This is also good news for home sellers. However, the median number of days on the market has increased from 54 last year to 84 days for 2011. This statistic tracks about the same as all of MLS area 36 and similar to Grand Lakes and several other neighborhoods in the Katy Area.

It is still excellent time to look and buy a home in Firethorne, Grand Lakes, Cinco Ranch ( new and resale), Seven Meadows, Silver Ranch, Kelliwood, Green Trails or any other neighborhood in the Katy or surrounding areas.. If you and your family are interested in Firethorne or any other neighborhood in Katy I and will be happy to arrange to take you on a tour of the whole area.

Local Real Estate Market Report for YTD October 30, 2011 Firethorne in Katy Texas

The Firethorne neighborhood is part of Katy Texas or MLS area 36. Firethorne is a Master Planned Community located off of the Highway 1463 about 2 miles south of the I-10 exit. The neighborhood recently opened a new section of homes that are being built east of FM 1463 while the main section of already built homes is west of 1463. FM 1463 gives commuters easy access to I-10 as it maybe 2-3 miles away and to FM 1093 and the West Park Toll way.

Firethorne consists 1,400 acres plus of land with numerous amenities and recreational facilities scattered through the neighborhood. The Developer states Firethorne provides “an urban convenience with small town charm”. Currently there are six (6) builders who are constructing new homes in Firethorne. Firethorne is located in both the Katy and Fulshear areas of far western Houston away from the hustle and bustle of the big city but very close to old Katy Texas. A significant portion of Firethorne is zoned for Katy ISD and the remaining sections are zoned for Lamar ISD.

There current are 65 homes available for sale in Firethorne (per HAR MLS) ranging from $169,795 to $499,971 in list price. Last month there were 71 homes available. The median list sales price or mid-point is $259,950 or $91.95/ sq. ft. with 69 days on the market. As I have reported for the last 3 months, there continues to be a good supply of reasonably priced homes now available in Firethorne and that combined with the small town atmosphere makes Firethorne a must see for families looking for home in the Katy area. If we examine the breakdown of available homes it indicates:

Priced $150.000 - $200,000 8 homes available (same as last month)

$200,000 - $250,000 19 homes available (decrease of 1 home from last month)

$250,000 - $300,000 20 homes available (increase of 1home from last month

$300,000 - $350,000 2 homes available (decrease of 3 homes from last month)

$350,000 - $400,000 8 homes available (decrease of 3 homes)

Over $400,000 8 homes available (same of last month)

As we can see from the above chart, 47 homes (same as last month) or 72 % of the available homes are priced at $300,000 or less. The percentage of available homes priced at or less than $300,000 remained the same from August to September but increased in October by 6 % and the number of available homes decreased by 6. It is my personal opinion that this number will continue to decrease each month until spring as builders will try very hard to sell inventory homes and delay construction of new spec homes. If you thinking of buying a home in this area of Katy or any other master planned community stop procrastinating and take action as these very affordable homes are slipping through your fingers.

During the first 10 months of 2011, there were 143 homes sold in Firethorne with low being $149,500 and the high being $574,950. The median adjusted sales price or mid-point price of homes sold so far this year is $275,000 or $87.65/ sq. ft. and the average adjusted sales price is $289,231 or $ 88.94/ sq. ft. The absorption rate or numbers of months of available inventory is 3.3 months which are continuing to move into a strong sellers’ market as this has gone down each month since August when the supply was 5.2 months.

Units sold so far during 2011 are down slightly by 8 homes versus 10 months of 2010 or 5.3 % decrease. The good news here is the median price of homes sold has increased by 6,000 or 2.2%. The discount from list price has been reduced from 5 % during 2010 to 3 % for 2011 as this seller concession amount has decreased and I personally think this will continue for the rest of this year. This is also good news for home sellers. However, the median number of days on the market has increased from 54 last year to 84 days for 2011. This statistic tracks about the same as all of MLS area 36 and similar to Grand Lakes and several other neighborhoods in the Katy Area.

It is still excellent time to look and buy a home in Firethorne, Grand Lakes, Cinco Ranch ( new and resale), Seven Meadows, Silver Ranch, Kelliwood, Green Trails or any other neighborhood in the Katy or surrounding areas.. If you and your family are interested in Firethorne or any other neighborhood in Katy I and will be happy to arrange to take you on a tour of the whole area.

Build Lacrosse Skills in Katy Texas

The Katy Lacrosse Club will offer a training program taught by Max Siebald on Saturday November 5, 2011 at the Lacrosse field at Firethorne Katy Texas. The seminar will be break the groups by High School Clinic A to be held from 9:00 A.M. until 12:00 P.M. and Clinic B Middle School or Junior High School from 2:00 P.M. until 5:00 P.M. The cost of his training is $75.00 per player for both clinics. Max offers an outside lunch for $10.00 per person with parents invited from 12:30 P.M. until 1:30 P.M. and he will give a motivational speech obviously geared towards playing competitive Lacrosse.

Max is a professional Lacrosse midfielder with the Denver Outlaws of the Major League Lacrosse and the Philadelphia Wings of the National Lacrosse League. Max played Lacrosse at Cornell University where is was first team all-Ivy league four times and three time First Team All American Lacrosse player.

I personally never got an opportunity to play Lacrosse as where I grew up it was considered a Rich Man's sport. Lacrosse has grown dramatically in popularity among young people and now both men and women have high school teams all across Texas and the rest of the United States.

If you want more information go to Katy Lacrosse Clubs' web site.

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