COMMERCIAL ARTICLE FOR November 21, 2010
Nov/100
The “Texas Triangle”, outlined by Houston, San Antonio and the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex, with Austin inside the Triangle is renowned for being THE catalyst in Texas economy. Relatively close and connected by major highways, the cities give the Triangle sides of 268, 199, and 243 miles. According to Forbes Magazine, “Although the Triangle cities make up only 62 percent of Texas’ population, they provide 68 percent of the state’s wage and salary jobs and 71 percent of personal income. Houston Business Journal described these cities’ rapid growth as the primary reason for the convergence of Texas’ per capita income to U.S. income levels.
Texas Economic Indicators publication for November 2010 from the Dallas Federal Reserve Bank reported that Texas employment increased somewhat in September, in line with the modest recovery taking place in the state’s economy.
Improvement in the Texas housing market is raising slightly, as housing starts, single-family housing permits and existing-home sales increased from their August levels. Also noted was Texas exports edged up in August, and the Texas Manufacturing Outlook Survey indicated Texas factory activity increased in October. A key measure of state manufacturing conditions, the production index, was positive for the second straight month and slightly higher than its September analysis.
Actions of general business conditions rose noticeably in October, signifying the broader economy strengthened. After four months in negative territory, the general business activity index rose sharply from MINUS eighteen in September to a POSITIVE three this month.
Texas monthly exports edged up 2.3 percent in August after falling 3.3 percent in July. The most exciting news was the the August level of real exports was twenty four percent higher than a year earlier!
Good news is that the current Texas employment stands at 10.37 million. September showed a gain in Texas jobs at 7,400 after losing 5,400 in August. The Texas unemployment rate edged down from 8.3 percent in August to 8.1 percent in September. The Texas unemployment rate remains below the U.S. rate, which was 9.6 percent in September.
Commercial real estate investment, according to real estate investment adviser, CoStar, has” picked up dramatically”. In August, for all types of property acquisitions, real estate funds and companies brought in $9.18 billion. That is more than double what was raised in July according to CoStar.
Of course, $63.26 billion raised this year is pocket change compared to the industry’s pre-2007 heyday, when real estate investments took in $200 billion annually. Still there is money to be made in careful commercial investing.
Norm Miller, CoStar consultant, says, “It’s not a bad time to buy, but I’m not going to tell you we’re at the bottom on prices.”
Our take on this is that investors should take a watch commercial market conditions closely. Seek someone who knows the market in your area. If a good deal comes along, perhaps investors should “seize the moment”. After all prices are edging up ever so slowly.
We found the following very interesting. Here are the Top Ten Worst Cities for Real Estate Investing:
1. Lakeland-Winter Haven, Florida
2. Reno-Sparks, Nevada
3. Orlando-Kissimmee, Florida
4. Deltona-Daytona Beach-Ormond Beach, Florida
5. Port St. Lucie, Florida
6. Las Vegas-Paradise, Nevada
7. Boise City-Nampa, Idaho
8. Cape Coral-Fort Myers, Florida
9. Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, Arizona
10. Warren-Troy-Farmington hills, Michigan
Please note that these states were those whose real estate values rose more than 30 percent and as high as 50 percent annually. Remember we have said that Texas, and Houston area especially, did not have that huge “bubble”.
Remember a few months ago when we wrote that Susan Combs, Texas Comptroller, said that “if Houston were a nation, its economy would be 25th largest in the world, just behind Norway’s economy…??
Truthfully, we all need to be so very thankful that we live in this area so close to Houston, Texas.
From our family to yours:
HAVE A VERY BLESSED THANKSGIVING!
Please Don’t Shoot The Messenger!
Nov/100
Q. Recently we had a contract on our home and were scheduled to close on it last month. We had an estate sale and worked diligently to have everything out prior to closing. The day before the closing was scheduled, our listing agent called to say the buyer had decided not to purchase the house. We were furious! Surely, she knew something before that! She said she called to check on things and the Buyer’s agent always said things were going well. But at the last minute the buyer was told he had to put more money down and he did not like the interest rate. How could this happen??
A. Please do not shoot the messenger! Often times this very thing happens-the Listing agent can only go by what she is told. If the Buyer backs out, there is nothing she or he can do. Listing agents do not control how much down payment it needed, the mortgage companies have guide lines they must follow. When the file goes to underwriting, the underwriters decide if the down payment is enough with the financial information the buyer has provided. Please do not be mad at the listing agent.
COMMERCIAL ARTICLE FOR November 7, 2010
Nov/100
What an exciting Halloween weekend for Cavender’s Boot City! Why?? THE Mr. James Cavender who owns the stores along with his sons, Mike, Joe and Clay, attended the grand opening of the Conroe store located along the I-45/FM 3083 corridor. It was overheard that Mr. Cavender said that this was the biggest grand opening in the HISTORY of Cavender‘s Boot City Stores. There are FIFTY-FIVE locations throughout the United States and Montgomery County’s was the largest grand opening in Cavender’s history! What a prestigious achievement for Montgomery County! Advertising like that is priceless! Truly it is proof positive that Montgomery County has what it takes to succeed, even in a recession.
Coupled with this knowledge, and the news that Conroe’s sales tax revenues were up for the sixth straight month, this county’s future appears to be on an upward swing!
Apparently the economic development leaders in Montgomery County have what it takes to strengthen and build on economic opportunities for our area. Jobs are not created by the government-they are created by a prosperous business friendly environment which boosts job growth.
Houston maintains one of the strongest retail markets in the United States. According to the October issue of RED NEWS, “Builders remain optimistic about initiating projects in outlying areas in Houston where population growth forecasts are strong, particularly Fort Bend County and Montgomery County. Nearly 4.7 million square feet of retail space is planned for these areas.” What a fantastic boost for our area!!
The article in RED NEWS went on to say that, “Local investors, encouraged by an improving lending environment, are targeting value-add and repositioning opportunities.” Montgomery County and Fort Bend County were mentioned as fast-growing counties where new properties could be found. In closing, the article gave this OUTLOOK: “The local employment situation will continue to improve this year as 33,500 jobs are created, a 1.3 percent increase. Between 2010 and 2011, nearly all of the 104,000 positions lost during the recession will be regained.”
Exciting happenings around our county! The Willis area will be happy to know that we just inked a deal with Pizza Hut to occupy a space in the Canyon Falls Shopping Center located on FM 1097 West. Final negotiations are under way with a large national firm locating to Willis. Also, we have been working diligently with two oil field related companies to relocate their employees to this area.
What is the fate of commercial real estate in our area?? As we have said before, “There are glimmers of hope on the horizon. Just persevere!”
Call us today!
Please e-mail questions to Kim at Kim@FrankeTeam.com. Kim is a member of the Marion Franke Team and a Top Producing REALTOR® in Montgomery County. Kim is a Buyers and an Accredited Luxury Home Specialist. Commercial Article by team member Dixie Estep