Stagnant Housing Market --- in HOUSTON?!?!?
By iHeartMedia’s Sally Adams
The American housing market is standing still - what about Houston? Dr. James Gaines, Chief Economist for Housing markets at Texas A&M, definitely not. “Houston IS NOT stagnant! The energy sector has come back, jobs are being created, and Houston is still vibrant!”
He says real estate is really hopping this year. “For the first nine months of 2018, sales volume is up over 5% for the entire Houston market.”
Builders just can't seem to build fast enough for the new families moving into the area. Another interesting phenomenon in the country is people in most U.S. housing markets are staying in their houses much longer than before. That's true here as well. “You used to figure the typical turn-over in housing in the Houston area is 5 to 7 years. That has now increased to 9 to 12 years,” commented Gaines. And why not? “Interest rates were lower when they bought those houses, the new housing market is tight, why would they leave?”
Gaines sees a real slow-down and many American markets, but not Houston. “We think that 2019 will be another good year!”<PSI_END_OBJECT>
By the way, most homes sold in Houston range from 100 to 300 thousand dollars.