News / Features

Houston construction caps off 2016 in disappointing fashion

The Houston new construction market concluded 2016 in underwhelming fashion, according to research from Dodge Data & Analytics. In December, Houston saw more than $564 million in total residential construction spending, which is a 12 percent decline from Nov. 2015. Moreover, year-to-date construction spending, which

Houston most unequal housing market in Texas

Houston has one of the most unequal housing markets in the country. In an analysis of the country’s biggest housing markets, Redfin compared avg. luxury home price with the bottom 95 percent of the market, respectively. Of the 10

Texas a top 20 destination for retiree homebuyers

There are few better places to retire in the country than Texas, according to a new report from WalletHub, and the state’s real estate market stands to gain big because of it. Basing its analysis on more than 30 data

What to do about Fannie & Freddie? How the Trump administration could change the mortgage industry

The Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae, created in 1938) and the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac, established in 1970) are government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) in their eighth year of conservatorship under the FHA. That is an exceedingly

Trump administration suspends planned FHA insurance premium reduction

In one of its very first moves since assuming power, the Trump administration has suspended a reduction in FHA mortgage insurance premiums. Originally announced just 11 days ago, the reduction would have lowered insurance premiums 25 basis points (or

7 important qualities of the Baby Boomer buyer in 2017

Understanding buyers is going to be especially important this year – interest rates and prices are rising, inventory shortages remain commonplace throughout the U.S., and our housing market is now operating under a president promising a broad spectrum of

Greater Houston’s 3 hottest markets in 2017

Spring Branch Central is going to be Greater Houston’s hottest market in 2017 – or at least that’s how Redfin sees it. And it has a point. With a healthy median sale price ($297,500), a fair turnaround on listings (median

Crystal Lagoons makes waves with Land Tejas in Houston

Crystal Lagoon U.S. Corp is partnering up with Houston-based Land Tejas to add new lagoons to their two master planned communities. One lagoon will cover 1.5 acres (seven times the size of an Olympic-size swimming pool) and serve as the

Study: Top 20 most trusted homebuilders in America

Taylor Morrison Home Corporation is once again the most trusted homebuilder in America, according to Lifestory Research’s 2017 Home Builder Study. Polling the opinions of more than 31,000 active home shoppers, Lifestory Research’s survey, now in its fifth year,

Housing associations celebrate Carson as HUD secretary, but experts urge caution

Ben Carson is close to becoming the next head of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and industry associations are throwing their support behind him – while many housing experts are not. In a letter sent to

Zillow’s ranks The White House as America’s most valuable home

The White House is the most valuable home in the nation, according to a new report from Zillow. Currently valued at $397.9 million, the White House has appreciated 15 percent since the Obamas moved in eight years ago. Zillow first

Houston’s population grows as city remains Texas’ No. 1 destination

The Texas Association of Realtors just released its annual Texas Relocation Report, which uses data from the  American Community Survey. The numbers confirm that Houston is still a magnetic market. Here is what we learned: 1. Houston’s population is

Five Greater Houston schools nominated for Blue Ribbon status

The Texas Education Agency announced this month that 26 Texas schools had been nominated for national 2017 Blue Ribbon Schools recognition. Five Greater Houston schools were named among the nominees: Austin Middle School, Eastwood Academy, Lyons Elementary School, KIPP

5 questions on how Ben Carson will manage the nation’s housing market

In mid-November of 2016, Ben Carson’s business manager, Armstrong Williams, told a Retuers reporter that Carson was turning down President-elect Trump’s offer to join his Cabinet, because his life had “not prepared him to be a Cabinet secretary.” Less

These Houston agents grew their business most in 2016’s fourth quarter

Our REAL DATA 2016 reports look at, among other things, the top-producing agents in Greater Houston based on total sales volume. Which Greater Houston agents saw the biggest year-over-year gains in their business in the second quarter 2016? We took a deeper

Does HAR’s new housing report ignore the market’s problems?

The Houston Association of Realtors released its December/year-end sales report this week, and although the association’s messaging was very positive, it may be ignoring prominent warning signs of where the market is heading. “We could not be happier with