Tierra Grande

July 2010

In This Issue

Texas’ Changing Demography

Reverse Mortgages

Luxuries and Land Prices

Commercial Outlook

Rural Land Prices Dive

Transfer Fees

Texas Home Price Declines Unlikely

Features

Consumer Spending Survey: Texas Downturn Had an Upside

5 minute read

Jul 26 2010

Consumer Spending Survey: Texas Downturn Had an Upside

Consumer spending data suggest why Texas has had it so much better than much of the rest of the nation during the recession. It turns out that states where housing costs are lower, home prices fell less than elsewhere.

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A Horse is a Horse, of Course, of Course . . . Unless It Can Predict Land Prices

Land Markets

4 minute read

Jul 26 2010

A Horse is a Horse, of Course, of Course . . . Unless It Can Predict Land Prices

As the nineteenth century drew to a close, Thorstein Veblen, an academic economist, observed the expansion of affluence in the maturing economy. He identified this burgeoning wealth as the root...

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Land Markets

3 minute read

Jul 26 2010

Landslide

It had to happen. Land prices have been in the stratosphere, but now, as the laws of nature dictate, they are coming back to earth.

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< 1 minute read

Jul 26 2010

Reverse Mortgages

Alternative Home Equity Funding

Some parents are warning their kids not to bank on inheriting the homestead. Reverse mortgages may not be beneficial for everyone, but their popularity is definitely on the rise.

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< 1 minute read

Jul 26 2010

Debt Perception

Everyone in commercial real estate is waiting for the other shoe to drop. Credit is still tight. Deals are scarce. And investors have no idea when banks will begin to...

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Transfer Fees: More Than You Bargained For

6 minute read

Jul 26 2010

Transfer Fees: More Than You Bargained For

Texas law relating to transfer fees is complicated and confusing. Suffice it to say that while reading the small print in purchase contracts has always been a good idea, it’s an ever better idea now.

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