Houston-Area Home Sales Rise for a Fourth Straight Month

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Houston temperatures finally cooled a bit in September, but home sales remained hot. Sales of single-family homes climbed nearly 17 percent when compared to one year earlier and accounted for the fourth consecutive month of increased sales volume. The prices of those homes achieved all-time highs for a September in Houston. In addition, months inventory fell to the lowest level since May 2010 while pending sales rose and active listings declined. All are considered signs of a healthy and balanced housing market as the fall season gets underway.

According to the latest monthly data prepared by the Houston Association of REALTORS® (HAR), September sales of single-family homes rose 16.9 percent versus one year earlier. This increase followed home sales gains recorded in January, June, July and August of this year. All segments of the housing market, from the sub-$80,000 to the $500,000 and above, experienced positive sales in September. On a year-to-date basis, sales were up 3.2 percent.

“The combination of increased closed and pending sales, fewer active listings and strong pricing suggests that we are entering the fall home buying season on strong footing,” said Carlos P. Bujosa, HAR chairman and VP at Transwestern. “HAR’s September report shows rebalanced supply and demand throughout the Houston housing market with diminishing traces of the distortions caused by last year’s federal home buyer tax credit.”

The average price of a single-family home ticked up 0.4 percent from September 2010 to Read the rest of this entry »

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Mortgage Interest Deduction is a Middle Class Pillar

Eliminating or curtailing the mortgage interest deduction would have a disproportionate impact on younger, middle-class families, who would see their ability to become owners significantly diminished, with sober implications for their longer term financial prospects, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) told Congress today. 

“How housing is treated in any future tax reform will shape the economy going forward,” Robert Dietz, an economist and assistant vice president for NAHB, testified during a Senate Finance Committee hearing on tax reform options to provide incentives for homeownership. 

Most Americans consider homeownership to be their single best long-term investment and a primary source of wealth and financial security. According to the 2007 Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances, the median net worth of a home owner is $234,600, compared to $5,100 for renters. 

“We believe that any policy change that makes it harder to buy a home, or delays the purchase of the home until an older age, will have a significant long-term impact on household wealth accumulation and the make-up of the middle class as a whole,” said Dietz.  Read the rest of this entry »

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