Bob Hale from HAR on the Ever-Evolving Real Estate Industry
Edge100112
1. Houston Ranks as One of America’s
Best Cities
• Houston is Texas’ second-best city to live in, according to a 2012 ranking
by Bloomberg Businessweek.
• Houston ranks No. 22 nationwide, but in Texas it is second only to Austin,
which came in No. 8 nationwide.
• Houston’s 549 bars and 5,549 restaurants contribute to the city’s quality of
life. Cultural and recreation options — six professional sports teams, 58
museums, 63 libraries and 22 park acres per 1,000 residents — help put it
over the top, Businessweek reports.
• The city is also home to 17 colleges, and 6.6 percent of residents have a
graduate degree. The median household income is $48,889.
• San Francisco took the top spot on the 2012 “America’s 50 Best Cities” list.
• The rankings evaluated the country's 100 largest cities in areas such as
leisure attributes, educational attributes, economic factors, crime and air
quality. A greater emphasis was placed on leisure amenities this year than
last.
2. Weekly HAR Market Stat
As October gets under way already, some factors to watch this fall are probably the
same things you've likely been watching all year. Changes in sales levels, active
listings, market times, seller concessions and, of course, home prices have taken
center stage. To showcase just one, home prices may moderate on a month-to-month
basis, but should continue to demonstrate resiliency in a year-over-year context. While
the economy has been sending some mixed signals lately, one aspect of this recovery
remains convincing: housing will be a net contributor.
In the Houston region, for the week ending September 23:
• New Listings decreased 5.6% to 1,828
• Pending Sales increased 49.6% to 1,581
• Closed Sales increased 14.7% to 1,237
3. Negotiate Your Educational Path
Advanced Negotiations for Buyers
Date: Wednesday, October 10
Time: 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Location: HAR Central
Investment: $99
Mastering Email Negotiations
Date: Thursday, October 11
Time: 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Location: HAR Central
Investment: $99
Register @ www.har.com/edu Questions? 713-629-1900 ext. 6
