James Brown is a Realtor with Coldwell Banker United, Realtors working in Memorial.
Every week, we ask a Houston real estate professional for their thoughts on the top three stories from the week before. This week, we spoke with James Brown, a Realtor with Coldwell Banker United, Realtors.
Houston Agent (HA): As someone who stays up to date on the market, what have you found to be some of the best resources for agents who want to learn more about the industry?
James Brown (JB): There are a lot of good resources out there for agents who want to stay current with market trends and industry knowledge. The best ones are RIS Media, Inman News, and Realty Times, which I read daily. I also browse through HAR’s blog and NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun’s blog every week or so. Stefan Swanepoel’s annual trends report is also a must read.
HA: Recent construction spending data showed that multifamily builders have slowed down from last year and are likely to continue slowing business deep into 2016. What effect do you think this will have on Houston’s market?
JB: Houston is still among the top five markets for apartment construction despite the slow down nationwide, and building permits for multifamily construction are up 33 percent over last year in the Houston metro area. I expect that upward trend in the Houston market will to continue to be the case through 2016. As Millennials enter the housing market they are opting for luxury apartments, townhomes and condos near the city center instead of suburbia. We are even seeing Exxon/Mobil employees choosing multifamily homes in Houston’s Inner Loop neighborhoods; and they plan to commute to The Woodland’s for work at the new campus being built there.
HA: A survey from the MacArthur Foundation found that 41 percent of Americans still think were in the midst of a housing crisis. What do you think is driving this perception, and how do you handle misinformed clients?
JB: Good news travels fast, but bad news travels farther. It will take some time to overcome the mis-perception that we are still in a crisis. Houston area home prices have risen sharply in the last few years, and last year we crossed the threshold where foreclosures in our area have returned to their pre-recession levels, so the crisis is over. When I meet with clients that I think might be misinformed, I always come armed with overwhelming amounts of data. The national market rarely mirrors the local one. Presenting them with local market data is key to overcoming misinformed clients.