According to the recently released 2008 National Association of Realtors Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers, 87% of buyers used the Internet in searching for homes which is no small number.

The survey also revealed where buyers first learned about the home they purchased. With 34% of the buyers saying real estate agent, 32% the Internet, 15% yard signs, 7% saying from friend, relative, or neighbor, 7% from home builders, 3% from a print or newspaper ad, 2% directly from the seller, and 1% saying a home book or magazine.

No real surprise in the survey as to where buyers are searching for homes. Buyers are on the Internet. And due to the large number of real estate websites, buyers are searching for homes not on one but several real estate websites. 

A strong online marketing presence is crucial to exposing your home to potential buyers.  Because the days of placing a sign in the yard, taking a few photos, and sticking the listing in the local MLS are gone. They are antiquated methods and NOT effective in selling homes.  

If you are interested in having your Spring Texas home’s listing where the buyers are, give me a call at 281.804.8626. I will be happy to share with you my marketing strategy which includes having your home’s listing on a smorgasbord of real estate websites.

Including the real estate sites of Realtor.com, Yahoo.com, MSN.com, AOL.com, Zillow.com, Trulia.com, Homes.com, Move.com, HAR.com, Homescapes.com, Google Base, Frontdoor.com, Roost.com, Hotpads.com, Vast.com, Geebo.com, OLX.com, Craigslist.com, Oodle.com, Frontdoor.com, Houston.org, Homestore.com, Prudentialproperties.com, Prudential.com, Activerain.com, Localism.com, Garygreene.com and other real estate sites. 

You probably have not heard of the majority of these websites, but the buyers have. And when you are selling your home you need to be where the buyers are.  

Read also:

• More photos = more money when selling Spring Texas homes
• All real estate sites have the same listings - True or False?

How’s the Spring TX real estate market fairing?  Is it getting better or is it getting worse? In a word “BETTER”.

Our months of inventory has decreased and is creeping closer to a balanced market at 6.2 months. According to the National Association of Realtors, nationally the real estate market has 10 months of inventory.

Our Spring Texas real estate market has out-performed the national real estate market through out all of 2008 and it continues to do so.

•  Sales ↓  -  12% decrease with 201 October 2007 sales versus 189 October 2008 sales. The percentage decrease in sales was smaller in October versus recent months. With the majority of the damage caused by Hurricane Ike repaired and the national election now behind us, the buyers are starting to find their way back out into the Spring Texas real estate market. 

• Active Listings ↓ -  23% decrease in active listings on the market from 1,772 in October 2007 to 1,365 in October 2008.  Less active listings and less qualified buyers combine for a balanced market.

• Months of Inventory ↓ -  7% decrease in months of inventory to 6.2 months. With the months of inventory now hovering closer to 6 months, a more balanced market between buyers and sellers has returned.  Buyers your best chance to get a good deal on a Spring Texas home is right NOW. As Sellers are experiencing less showings due to the Holidays and are more willing to deal.

Read More »

As only our third entry in our new series “Spring Texas Neighborhoods”, we are just getting started. Each week we provide a snapshot of a new neighborhood. Hopefully providing you with a “feel” for what it is like to call a particular neighborhood or subdivision “Home”.

By the end of the weekly series, we will have doubled our quantity of profiled Spring Texas Neighborhoods. Don’t worry if you miss a week because the full profile (not just the snapshot) with additional photos of the Neighborhood will be located in the Neighborhoods section of our blogsite for you to view at anytime.

This week, we take a look at the Spring Creek Forest subdivision and find out what makes it a great Spring Texas neighborhood to call “Home”.

If you desire a little breathing room between you and your next door neighbor, then you will want to consider the heavily wooded, established subdivision of Spring Creek Forest. Known for its large lots ranging in size from 10,000 to 30,000 square feet with the median lot size totaling 15,000 square feet, you are sure to find the extra space you crave.

There are a variety of architectural styles from which to choose including Colonial, Tudor, Contemporary and English Cottage. The majority of the homes were built in the 1970s and home prices range from $140,000 to $220,000. The higher priced homes have seen some renovation over the years. While the lower priced homes showcase the “in” styles of 1970s. 

The subdivision amenities include a baseball field, lighted tennis courts, playground area, Olympic sized swimming pool and a clubhouse which is available to rent exclusively by the residents of Spring Creek Forest.

View the complete profile of the Spring Creek Forest subdivision, additional photos and its homes for sale.

Read also:

• the first in the Spring Texas Neighborhoods “Weekly Series” - Stone Forest
• the second in the Spring Texas Neighborhoods - “Weekly Series” - The Thicket

$10,000 discount on selected homes, $15,000 decorator allowance, $10,000 towards closing costs, $2,000 gift card  … all of these are forms of incentives Spring Texas home builders are offering to attract buyers. But does a big discount equal a good deal on a home?

The builders certainly want you to think so. And home buyers, you want to think you got a good deal too. Because nobody wants to overpay for a home. And after all, if the home builder tells you its a good deal it has to be a good deal. Right???

WRONG!!!! Here’s some food for thought. Maybe the builder is offering BIG discounts on his remaining Spring Texas homes because nobody else wanted them. Maybe the reason they have not sold is because the homes are over-priced in comparison to other homes available on the real estate market.

Or maybe the home is in a less than desirable location (such as backing to a busy road, backing to commercial, close to a railroad track, or close to an airport). Maybe the homes have not sold because of its lot characteristics (such as power lines in the back yard or the size of the back yard is small.)

Maybe the builder is offering a BIG discount because the selections in the homes are customized. But not customized in a good way. They have been personalized to the extreme (such as green carpet or a red tile backsplash when the other houses in the neighborhood have tan carpet and beige tile backsplash).

All of these are reasons why BIG DISCOUNT DOES NOT EQUAL GOOD DEAL. Because they all affect the future resale value of the homes.

There is only one way to know for sure if you are getting a good deal on the purchase of your Spring Texas home. Get a knowledgeable Realtor to represent you in the purchase. He/she will be able to advise you as to how the home’s location, amenities, color selections, and lot characteristics will affect the home’s future resale value. By analyzing the prices of recently SOLD comparable homes, your Realtor will negotiate a good deal for you and not just a good deal for the builder.

Read also:

• How to get the best deal on your Spring Texas home purchase

It seems like every couple of days I hear about the government bailing out this company or giving this other company a loan. I am to a point that I want to know what I have to do to get a government loan.  Because after all if the government is giving out money …. I want some too.

You probably have not heard that you may qualify to receive an INTEREST FREE LOAN from the government. Why?  Because bad news SELLS and GOOD news well it is just not as exciting.

Now, I don’t qualify for the interest free loan since I am not considered a “first-time home buyer”. So I am still going to be waiting for my money.  But if you DO meet the government’s definition of a first-time home buyer, you can get a 15 year interest free loan up to $7,500. I know its not as good as FREE money since the money has to be paid back. Although, it is still a sweet deal.

The interest free loan is called the “first-time home buyer tax credit” and it is part of the Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008. The Recovery Act was designed to give housing a shot in the arm and a reason for buyers to purchase a home.

Read More »

The second entry in our new series on “Spring Texas Neighborhoods” in which each week we will provide a snapshot of a new neighborhood. Hopefully providing you with a “feel” for what it is like to call a particular neighborhood or subdivision “Home”.

By the end of the weekly series, we will have doubled our quantity of profiled Spring Texas Neighborhoods. Now don’t worry if you miss a week because the full profile (not just the snapshot) with additional photos of the Neighborhood will be located in the Neighborhoods section of our blogsite for you to view at anytime.

Since everything is better with a little fanfare ……  Drum roll, please ……. Introducing The Thicket, a small secluded neighborhood in Spring Texas. Located off of what looks to be an old country road is the main entrance to this tucked away neighborhood. The home buyers lucky enough to have found the Thicket love the quiet setting provided by its seclusion. Tucked away does not mean “far away” as it is located only 2.5 miles from I45.

The small subdivision contains 253 “custom built” homes with the majority being constructed by Partners in Building and Norwood Homes.  Built between 1991 - 2001 with an average size of 3,400 square feet. The Thicket’s homes would be characterized as “Executive” with a traditional architectural style. The homes typical amenities include detached garages with porte chocheres and long driveways, master bedrooms on the first floors, studies, and both formals. 

View the complete profile of the Thicket subdivision, additional photos and its homes for sale.

Read also:

• the first in the Spring Texas Neighborhoods “Weekly Series” - Stone Forest

With our weather being near perfect, this is one of my favorite times of year to live in Spring Texas.  We have very little rain and low humidity. And the temperatures hover between highs of 75 - 80 degrees with lows of 55 - 60 degrees.

The real estate market is also slower, providing Rick and I an opportunity (ie.. not the usual “don’t have time” excuse) to enjoy the beautiful weather. So with no more excuses, I decided that next Sunday, we were going to have a picnic lunch and enjoy a couple of hours in one of our many Spring Texas parks. 

I am ashamed to admit that I drive by our parks numerous times a week but rarely do I make the time to visit them. Well, that has now changed. For the last 3 Sundays we have packed a lunch and headed to a different park in the Spring Texas area. We have picniked at Meyer Park, Collins Park, and now Mercer Arboretum & Botanic Gardens.

With each park containing different amenities, its hard to say which park is the BEST park. I think it really depends upon which activity you want to do at the park.

If I wanted to play or watch soccer, I would definitely choose Meyer Park.  Meyer Park has 26 soccer fields and on a Sunday afternoon the fields are a buzz with activity.  We did notice that finding a parking spot can be a little challenging during the 2:30 - 3:00 pm time frame which is between soccer games. Meyer Park also has wonderful paved trails for bike riding, roller blading, or just walking your dog. 

Read More »

FALSE. All real estate sites DO NOT have the same listings. In addition to real estate sites missing active home listings, their listing data contains OUTDATED PRICES and homes no longer on the market.

Say it isn’t so Batman. Well, I am not batman but it is the TRUTH. A recent survey performed by WAV Group for Roost.com identified the inaccuracies in listing data between various real estate sites.

In the sample of missing listings in Dallas, Zillow was missing 64% of the listings, Yahoo was missing 54%, Trulia was missing 46%, and Google was missing 31% of the real estate listings. If you are looking for a home, that’s a lot of homes that you are not getting an opportunity to choose from.

Why are the real estate sites missing listings? The missing listings and inaccurate prices has to do with the source of the real estate sites listings. The most accurate source of real estate listings and prices is through the LOCAL MLS.

The above mentioned sites DO NOT receive a direct feed from the LOCAL MLS. Thus causing the major real estate sites to compile listings from numerous sources including advertising publications, agents, and direct feeds from brokers. Since the major real estate sites do not have direct feeds from ALL brokers nor the listings from ALL agents, its inevitable that they are going to be missing listings.

The cause of inaccurate listing prices is due to some of the same factors. The advertising publications are not notified of listing price changes and in turn the real estate sites are not notified. We, real estate agents are just as guilty. We adjust a price in our local MLS but don’t take the time to adjust the price at ALL the real estate sites where we have posted our listings.

So if you are a Spring Texas home buyer looking for the most complete and accurate source of listing data where do you go? Search for homes on real estate sites that receive a direct feed from the local MLS. These sites include our real estate site, broker sites, and the consumer site of our local (Houston Association of Realtors). All are powered by the local MLS which is the most reliable source of listing data.

What’s going on with the Spring Texas real estate market?  Is it good, is it bad, is it time to sell, is it time to buy?

Real estate is LOCAL and its fairing better in some cities than in others. The Long Beach CA real estate market is different than the Hoboken NJ real estate market which is different than the Houston TX market which is different than the Katy TX market which is different than the Spring TX real estate market.

Anyway you get the picture. Real estate is LOCAL.

The only real estate market that I am going to discuss is the Spring Texas real estate market because that’s the one I know.

The interruption caused by Hurricane IKE skews our September numbers. Thus comparing September 2008 to September 2007 does not provide an accurate picture.  

Instead I am comparing September 2008 YTD to September 2007 YTD which in my opinion is a better representation of what is going on in the Spring Texas real estate market.

• Sales ↓  -  17.7% decrease in YTD Sales with 2,459 sales YTD 2007 sales versus 2,023 sales YTD 2008.  A decrease in sales is not surprising considering there are fewer qualified buyers.

• Median Home Price ↓  -  Down 1.4% from $146,000 to $144,000.  GOOD NEWS is that home prices are holding steady and only experiencing a small decrease.            

     Read More »