Falling oil prices in Houston were anticipated to noticeably impact the single-family housing market; however, recent data suggests only luxury home sales activity has taken a hit.
“Mid-range housing actually saw a healthy sales volume in January,” said Mario Arriaga of First Group.
According to the Houston Association of Realtors (HAR), the volume of single-family sales priced between $150,000 and $249,999 increased by nearly 9 percent in January on a year-over-year basis, while the number of homes that sold for $500,000 and above dropped by 9.3 percent.
January represented the fifth straight month where the number of luxury transactions declined on a year-over-year basis. Last month actually performed better than December and November, when luxury sales activity declined by 17.2 percent and 22 percent, respectively.
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Houston condo sales spike
The performance of the condo/townhouse sector during January also stood out among HAR’s data.
With 393 units sold last month, condo/townhouse sales activity increased by 15.6 percent year-over-year, with a median price of $140,000.
Driving a portion of condo sales, specifically those in the Galleria and River Oaks District, are foreign national buyers.
According to Nancy Almodovar, CEO of Nan & Co. Properties buyers from Mexico and Latin America are looking to purchase units, often on a pre-sale basis, as second or investment homes, while another portion are relocating to Houston.
Single-family home sales fall
Overall last month there were 4,024 single-family home sales, 3,403 of which were existing properties. The first figure equates to a 2.1 percent year-over-year drop in activity.
On a more positive note, the volume of single-family pending sales was up 9.1 percent last month, with 5,714 pending transactions. Additionally, last month’s median home price of $200,000 was the highest recorded by any January.
Consistent year-over-year sales activity coupled with continued price growth appears to be influencing more owners to list, as single-family inventory grew by more than 30 percent last year. Entering February single-family inventory sat at 3.3 months.
