October 2012

It’s been a long time coming, but the housing market is on its way up. Prices have stabilized, inventory is returning to normal and building permits are on the rise.

Foreclosure sales do not automatically depress values of all houses. Depressed prices of foreclosures may present investment opportunities when those prices return to owner-occupied market values.

The oil and gas industry supports roughly two million direct and indirect jobs in Texas. That’s a huge chunk of the state’s economy.

Center research reveals that despite the Great Recession, the state’s real estate industry remained strong, second only to manufacturing. And Texas’ real estate wealth continues to climb.

The automatic tax hikes scheduled to take effect in January will take a big bite out of virtually all American’s wallets. Will Congress take action to extend existing tax cuts in the eleventh hour?

Housing markets are divided into segments based on what percentage of all sales fall into which price brackets. Texas’ markets consist of three segments, two of which are growing and a third that’s declining.

Everything’s relative. Texas didn’t avoid the pain of foreclosures completely. Thanks to our strong economy and fewer job losses, though, it was more a headache than a concussion.