Real estate and other stuff

According to an October 1 Forbes.com article, San Antonio ranks 8^th on the list of most stable housing markets, nothing new for a city that has placidly resisted the ups and downs of other Texas cities such as Houston, Dallas, and especially Austin. While those cities are also doing well compared to other, more expensive or more depressed markets, San Antonio continues to chug along its usual unexciting way. The median home price of $154,300 is 6.6% higher than last year's. Forbes projects it to increase another 5.35% to 2008, and expects the sales rate per capita to rank sixth in the nation next year.

The foreclosure rate is high, at 4.5%, mostly affecting homes under $150,000 (of which there are a lot), but not as high as one might expect. The evaporation of subprime mortgage financing has hit first-time homebuyers and buyers with poor credit the hardest. These people add to the pool of potential renters, and rents are indeed expected to increase in coming months.

Following are statistics from the local MLS showing the trend of residential sales from September to date:

Sep 30:  sold 1,747 - avg list price $189,885 - avg sold price $183,145 - DOM 68

Oct 31:  sold 1,476 - avg list price $184,745 - avg sold price $178,091 - DOM 74   

Nov 14:  sold 296 - avg list price $184,731 - avg sold price $177,368 - DOM 75

Total single-family currently active: 12,441 - avg asking price $252,861 - DOM 95 all

Notice the unsold time on market is a little over 3 months, not the 10 months of homes that need to be cleared in other markets. However, many builders don't put their inventory on the MLS, so only a portion of new homes are represented in MLS statistics.

Condos and some townhomes are excluded from these figures, too, since they are a smaller, specialty market in San Antonio.

Multifamily (under 8 units) sales from September to date:

Sep 30:  sold 20 - avg list price $163,490 - avg sold price $158,475 - DOM 46

Oct 31:  sold 27 - avg list price $220,460 - avg sold price $213,951 - DOM 58

Nov 14:  sold 6 - avg list price $144,541 - avg sold price $139,350 - DOM 54

Total multifamily currently active: 587 - avg asking price $203,921 - DOM 120 all

North Star Mall used to be the place for families from Mexico to come for their Christmas shopping. I suspect the Rivercenter Mall may have taken over the number-one spot, with its downtown location on the River Walk. But it's hard to beat the surprising sight of the trademark North Star Mall boots, visible from Loop 410 near the airport, all twinkling with stars.