By Maxine Shapiro, KERA 90.1 business commentator
Dallas, TX – There's been so much speculation on the housing market and its future I wouldn't be surprised if someone in Vegas wasn't capitalizing on it. So it's nice to hear some raw data to get a true pulse on the market. I'm Maxine Shapiro with KERA Marketplace Midday.
Commissioned by the National Association of Realtors, North Texas Real Estate Information Systems, Inc. released its second quarter Economic Market Watch Report. And the news is positive, highlighting a moderate to strong "sellers market" in an overwhelming majority of counties. For over two years now, economists have been waiting for the housing market to tumble and it doesn't look like it's going to oblige anytime in the near future. Trend lines suggest sales and home prices in northern Texas are healthy and will continue to grow.
Here's a breakdown for a few counties in the second quarter: the average home price in Dallas County was $188,000, a slight increase over the first quarter and forecasted still higher for the third quarter. Tarrant County: average home price almost $155,000, up minutely from the first quarter and staying with the trend the next. Denton and Collin counties also saw a slight rise in home prices and will continue to enjoy the upswing in the third quarter.
If you're like me, you enjoy clocking and commenting on how long it takes for a home to get sold in your neighborhood. Let's see how close we got: the average number of days a house is on the market ranges from 62 days in Dallas County to 66 days in Collin. If you've just put your home up for sale, expect to wait a little longer this quarter unless you live in Tarrant.
So this year, both existing and new home sales are on pace to shatter last years record. And to all those who suggest housing prices will bust just like the stock market did three years ago, chief economist for the report David Lereah says, "Poppycock. There are no signs of home pricing declining anytime soon, let alone portents of a price bubble bursting." For KERA Marketplace Midday, I'm Maxine Shapiro.
Marketplace Midday Reports air on KERA 90.1 Monday - Friday at 1:04 p.m.
Email Maxine Shapiro about this story.