Texas ‘bucking the us trend’

Texas continues to show remarkable resilience in the face of the sub-prime crisis, according to the National Association of Realtors…

Here a re a few facts that illustrate how Texas is bucking the trend:

• Texas leads the nation in job growth in 2007, with double the new jobs of the number two state, Florida. Austin had the highest rate of growth in Texas in 2007 at 3.2%.
  
  
• Austin had the lowest unemployment rate in Texas in Dec. '07, at 3.6%.
  
  
• Housing starts are down nationally and Texas is no exception, but Texas still leads the nation in Single Family building permits. Even so, the Austin Metro area saw closings of 1,000 more new homes than were started in 2007, a strong indicator that area builders are working to manage inventory.
  
  
• Austin had the lowest months of supply of homes for sale (at 4.2 months in Dec. '07), making this one of the healthiest markets in the country.
  
  
• Unlike much of the rest of the US, Austin's home values continued to rise through 2007, ending at an average of $251,489.
  
  
• Overall, foreclosure rates in the Austin area remained low in 2007, but there is a spike in Feb. '08 postings that bears watching.

Paige Martin, Houston Realtor with Martha Turner Properties, commented: ‘Despite sub-prime mortgage issues and concerns over the national housing market, data indicated that the Houston, Texas real estate market is holding its own, which has to be great news for investors looking to prosper in an uncertain market’