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Monthly Housing Update

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A comprehensive overview of monthly property sales activity for the Greater Houston area as recorded in the MLS.

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Multiple Listing Service of the Houston Association of REALTORS® includes residential properties and new homes listed by 50,000 REALTORS®

June 2005 Sales
No “Bubble” Foreseen In Greater Houston Real Estate Market
Consistent Growth Pattern Defies National Trend, as Sales and Prices Show Single-Digit Increases
 
HOUSTON – (July 25, 2005) – The greater Houston area’s economy continued to grow last month as unemployment rates were down, housing prices were up and the number of pending sales was at an all-time record in June, according to statistics released by the Houston Association of REALTORS® Multiple Listing Service. Monthly home sales also reached a new record high, beating out last month, which marked the previous all-time record

Total property sales for the month totaled 7,880, which was a 5.0 percent increase over June 2004. Properties sold during the month reached a total of more than $1.4 billion, a 7.5 percent increase compared to last year’s more than $1.3 billion in June sales. Additionally, year-to-date total property sales reached 37,629, which is an increase of 7.2 percent over the first half of 2004.

“The Houston real estate market is luckily bucking the trend being experienced in most other major cities across the U.S.,” said Toni C. Nelson, HAR Chair and a Division Vice President for Coldwell Banker United, REALTORS®. "With the summer sales season officially beginning last month, the MLS figures show that Houstonians are receiving a great return on their investment in real estate, while prices still remain affordable for first-time homebuyers, current homeowners looking for something new or those seeking a second home.”

June Monthly Market Comparison

All listing categories combined, Houston’s overall housing market in June experienced increases across the board including total property sales, average sales prices, median sales price, available inventory, pending sales – those listings expected to close within the next 30 days – and overall total dollar volume on a year-over-year basis.

The number of available homes (active listings) at the end of June was 45,386 properties, which was an increase of 7.0 percent versus last June and a new all-time record. Month-end pending sales of properties reached 5,428, which was up 17.0 percent from last year, and was also an all-time record high. The months inventory of single-family homes for June was down slightly at 6.2 months, which remains low, signaling more of a seller’s market and also shows that demand is keeping up with the available supply of homes.
June (all categories)
All Classes June 2004 June 2005 Percent Change
Total property sales 7,506 7,880 +5.0%
Total dollar volume $1,349,055,449 $1,450,570,779 +7.5%
Average single-family sales price $187,798 $194,376 +3.5%
Median single-family sales price $142,290 $145,670 +2.4%
Active listings 42,411 45,386 +7.0%
Pending sales 4,640 5,428 +17.0%
Months inventory* 6.3 6.2 -2.0%
* Months inventory estimates the number of months it will take to deplete current active inventory based on the prior 12 months sales activity. This figure is representative of the single-family homes market.
 
Single-family Homes Update

The overall median price of single-family homes reached $145,670 in June, which was an increase of 2.4 percent compared to the prior year, and the average price for single-family homes reached $194,376, which was up 3.5 percent versus the same period last year. The median is a typical market price where half of the homes sold for more and half sold for less than that figure. Both the median and average sales prices were all-time monthly records.

Houston’s current median price of $145,670 is 28.8 percent less than the national median price, which reached $204,600 in May, according to statistics released by the National Association of REALTORS®. These data continue to show the tremendous value and lower cost of living afforded to Houstonians.

Additionally, total sales for single-family homes in Houston increased by 4.1 percent to 6,559 in June, up from last year’s 6,299. In the first six months of 2005, 31,067 single-family homes sold, which was a 7.6 percent increase over the 28,878 homes sold during the same period in 2004.

HAR is now also reporting existing home statistics for the single-family home segment of the real estate market. For the month of June 2005, existing single-family home sales totaled 5,868, which was an 8.2 percent increase from June 2004. The median sales price for existing homes in the Houston area was $139,950, an increase of 3.7 percent compared to the same period last year. The average sales price for the month of $185,556 was an increase of 3.5 percent from last year’s level.

Townhouse/Condo Update

The overall median price in the townhouse/condo segment in Houston rose by 1.3 percent, from $114,000 in June 2004 to $115, 500 last month. The average sales price for which a townhouse or condo sold in the greater Houston area was $147,462 in June 2005, which was a 4.3 percent increase from the same month last year.

Additionally, the number of townhouses and condos that sold in June were up compared to last year’s sales, with 699 units being sold last month, versus 679 properties in June 2004. In the first half of 2005, 3,341 townhouse/condos have sold, which was a 1.1 percent increase compared to the 3,305 units sold in the first six months of 2004.

Houston Real Estate Milestones in June
  • Marked the highest-ever number of pending home sales at month-end.
  • Reached the highest number of homes sold in a single month.
  • Achieved the highest number of available homes (active listings) at month-end.
  • Reached the highest-ever average sales price for single-family homes.
  • Marked the highest-ever median sales price for single-family homes.
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    The computerized Multiple Listing Service of the Houston Association of REALTORS® includes residential properties and new homes listed by 19,000 REALTORS throughout Harris, Fort Bend and Montgomery counties, as well as parts of Brazoria, Galveston, Waller and Wharton counties. Residential home sales statistics as well as listing information for more than 40,000 properties can be found on the Internet at https://www.har.com.

    The information published and disseminated to the HAR Multiple Listing Services is communicated verbatim, without change by Multiple Listing Services, as filed by MLS participants.

    The MLS does not verify the information provided and disclaims any responsibility for its accuracy. All data is preliminary and subject to change. Monthly sales figures reported since November 1998 includes a statistical estimation to account for late entries. Twelve-month totals may vary from actual end-of-year figures. (Single-family detached homes were broken out separately in monthly figures beginning February 1988.)

    Founded in 1918, the Houston Association of REALTORS® (HAR) is a 20,000-member organization of real estate professionals engaged in every aspect of the industry, including residential and commercial sales and leasing, appraisal, property management and counseling. It is the largest individual membership trade association in Houston, as well as the second largest local association/board of REALTORS® in the United States.