July home sales highest for year
Houston Business Journal - by Allison Wollam

The local housing market recorded its 23rd consecutive month of declining home sales in July, while also reaching its highest home sales volume in a year.

The total number of single-family homes sold in July was 5,788, down 4.4 percent from July 2008, but still the highest number since July 2008. The 4.4 percent decline is the smallest fluctuation since the market downturn started in late 2007, according to statistics released by the Houston Association of Realtors.

Year-over-year sales of single-family homes priced between $150,000 and $250,000 rose 1.2 percent in July.

At $163,000, the July single-family-home median price was up 1.5 percent from one year earlier and was the second-highest median price on record. The highest median price of all time, $164,500, was reached in June 2009.

Sales of all property types in Houston in July totaled 6,744, off 5.1 percent compared to July 2008. Total dollar volume for properties sold during the month was $1.4 billion compared with $1.5 billion a year earlier, representing a decline of 6.2 percent, the smallest since November 2007.

Vicki Fullerton, HAR chairwoman and broker of record at RE/MAX of The Woodlands & Spring, said strong pricing performance, an easing decline in sales volume and the slowdown of foreclosure sales make for positive indicators about the state of the local real estate market.

“We look forward to further improvement as the tax credit incentive, historically low interest rates and an attractive variety of housing inventory continue to draw buyers to the marketplace,” Fullerton said.

Month-end pending sales totaled 3,909 — 17.8 percent lower than last year — and indicates another decline in sales when the August numbers are tallied.