http://www.realestatenewsline.com/

Carver Communications - Index

Carver Communications - 1.15.09 - Index

Vol.XXVIII, No.2 © Carver Communications, Inc. January 15, 2009
The Forecasts! Read All About It!
San Antonio Board of REALTORS®
SABOR) annual Housing Forecast was
attended by 650 professionals.
Industry insiders were treated to four
perspectives of the current real estate market.
The presentation started with a look at downtown
living and moved to the overall San
Antonito real estate market. The focus then
shifted to Texas and concluded with an assessment
of the national real estate and economic
climate.
Lisa Schmidt, downtown living specialist
with Phyllis Browning Co., discussed
downtown living in San Antonio. According to
data provided by Schmidt, downtown can
accommodate 1,000 to 1,200 condo units over
an eight-year period (2007 – 2015), and already
has 910 units underway or completed.
Downtown can also support an estimated 1,600
to 2,000 apartment units for the same period.
There are currently 500 being built or ready to
occupy.
Many factors are enticing buyers to look
at this area with an optimistic vision, including
the San Antonio River improvements and
extension projects, River North project and
mixed use developments. Another feature of the
area is the availability of free parking for residents
as well as numerous properties from
P.O. Box 33862
San Antonio, Texas 78265
which to choose.
Bob Gardner, CEO of Legacy Mutual
Mortgage, provided analysis on the San
Antonio market. His evaluation of the market
included a look at annual sales trends, the number
of sales by price range, inventory numbers,
foreclosure information and median sale price.
Information provided by Gardner from
SABOR’s MLS data puts overall sales for 2008
near those of 2004. Homes $200,000 and less
continued to enjoy positive sales growth.
Properties priced at $500,000 and above are
down by 5 percent from November 2007 compared
to November 2008. There is a 23 to 48
month supply in this higher price range as of
November 2008. Homes in the $250,000 to
$499,999 range are at a 14-month supply, and
homes below $250,000 sit at a seven-month
supply.
According to Gardner, home prices in
San Antonio showed a slight increase in 2008, a
trend expected to continue in 2009. San Antonio
is still a viable real estate market, and the message
to consumers is that with current interest
rate levels at a record low, now is the best time
to buy a home.
Dr. Mark Dotzour, chief economist and
research director for the Texas Real Estate
Research Center, provided a statewide view of
PRSRT STD
U.S. Postage
PAID
San Antonio, Texas
Paid Permit #1957
the economy. His indicators pointed to growth
over the last year in several sectors used to
assess the state’s economic viability. Texas
added 126,487 jobs in 2008, home prices
remained stable, and building permits in the
state led other traditional growth states like
Florida, California and Arizona. Energy prices
are a concern for Texas since the statewide
economy is still closely linked to the energy sector.
The sooner prices stabilize the better for the
state and its economic future.
He called for the private sector to help
fix things in a quicker manner. He also suggested
the economy would hit bottom before
the end of the year and that a rising stock market
will signal the beginning of recovery.
Paul Bishop, Ph.D., managing director
of real estate research for the National
Association of REALTORS®, presented information
on the national economic outlook. Dr.
GSABA Says . . .
The Westin La Cantera was the sight
of the 24th Annual San Antonio Housing
Forecast™ hosted by the Greater San
Antonio Builders Association on January 5,
2009. This year’s Forecast saw a record
crowd of 900+ industry professionals
eagerly awaiting the predictions of our
speaker panel. The 2009 panel included
Jack Inselmann of Metrostudy, Jon
Hockenyos of TXP, Steve Dufilho of
Compass Bank, Richard Perez of the
Greater San Antonio Chamber of
Commerce and Norman Dugas of Dugas
Diversified Development. GSABA would
like to extend a special thank you to our
speakers.
San Antonio faced a challenging
year in 2008 with an expected decline in the
new home market. We ended with a worse
than expected decline due to the continual
appearances of numerous financial market
issues unforeseen at the beginning of the
year. As we begin 2009, the San Antonio
Bishop explained that consumers are in uncharted
territory with a global recession, job losses
accelerating, uncertainty in financial markets
and shrinking consumer confidence. While
subprime loans only affected about 10 percent
of actual loans, they were bundled into structured
securities that made them impossible to
target and fix. That bought about the complex
issues of today’s financial institutions.
The positive news for the real
estate market is that consumers
still view homes as an investment
and have a desire to be
homeowners. According to
Bishop, there won’t be a quick
rebound in the housing market,
but it will continually improve
housing market continues its adjustment
phase as local builders and developers work
through their excess inventory by closing
more houses than they started during the
year. The market will continue its normalization
process as the industry works its
way towards its real demand level.
“There are many factors in trying to
determine exactly when we can expect the
housing market to turn around, not to mention
the least of which is a larger national
recession that will surely impact San
Antonio in some fashion,” said Jack
Inselmann of Metrostudy. “With that being
said; the bottom line is that San Antonio
remains a buyer’s market and will likely
remain so for much of 2009. What we will
look for are forms of stabilization in the
national economy, the credit markets, the
stock market and our housing market. Once
stability transpires, the San Antonio housing
market can begin to recover.”