HOME SALES

At first glance, this report makes you wonder what all the hoopla about declining home sales is about. However, when you check out my column in the next issue of D Home, you’ll see why builder’s homes are moving. Still, according to the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University, Austin, Houston, and San Antonio continue to defy the downward trend–sales are up in those cities, as are home prices compared to one year ago. (Note–I’ve copied some of the report in the jump, to save you lots o’ clicking…)

MEANWHILE AUSTIN SALES CONTINUE CLIMB

AUSTIN (Austin Business Journal) – More than 2,800 homes sold in the Austin area in August, a 6 percent increase over the same time last year. The median home price increased 8 percent, to $182,500.

According to the Austin Board of Realtors (ABoR) Multiple Listing Service (MLS), sales brought in more than $683 million, an increase of 19 percent. At 60 days, the average days-on-market was 10 percent less time than in August 2005. Active single-family listings dropped by 2 percent to 8,137.

“The Austin market continues to buck the national trend because this city is really in the infancy of its life as a major metropolis,” says John Rosshirt, the board’s chairman.

SAN ANTONIO SALES STILL SIZZLE

SAN ANTONIO (mysanantonio.com) – Home prices continue to rise and the inventory of homes on the market remains at a low four-month supply. According to new data from the San Antonio Board of Realtors, home appreciation experienced a notable increase from several years of a steady 4 to 5 percent annual appreciation. The median price of an existing home this year rose to $142,300, up 9 percent over last year’s January-August median price of $130,900.

HOUSTON HOME SALES DEFY NATIONAL TREND

HOUSTON (Houston Business Journal) – Defying national reports of a collapsing real estate market, Houston area total property sales for August reached 8,451, a 5.5 percent increase from August 2005. Sales exceeded $1.6 billion, a 12.8 percent increase compared with $1.4 billion for August 2005.

For the fourth month in a row, the average single-family home price, currently at $200,555, exceeded the $200,000 mark. The current median price of $152,000 is a monthly record for the Houston market.

Available homes at the end of August numbered 46,201, 588 properties more than in July, a 2.7 percent increase over August 2005. August was the second consecutive month with a year-over-year increase after 10 consecutive previous monthly declines.

Total sales for single-family homes in Houston increased by 5.9 percent to 7,052, compared with 6,661 last year, marking 31 consecutive months that sales have been higher than the same month of the previous year.

http://houston.bizjournals.com/houston/stories/2006/09/18/daily47.html