Sales were as hot as the weather in Houston in July. According to the local Realtor organization, sales were up for the 14th consecutive month. Indeed, the gain was the steepest in nearly a year.
“July was another very healthy month with strong sales across all housing segments, from lower-priced homes to luxury homes," said Wayne A. Stroman, chairman of the Houston Association of Realtors. “Sales volume isn't achieving the record levels we experienced in 2006, before the recession, but you’d be hard-pressed to find a market performing as well as Houston.”
Single-family home sales soared 27% in July compared to the same month a year ago, HAR reported, keeping local housing inventory at its lowest level in more than five years.
Both average and median prices were up in July. The average price of single-family homes increased 3.7% year-over-year to $231,484, the highest level for a July in Houston and the third highest price of all time for the market. The median rose 6.3% to $170,000, matching June's revised record high, which was originally reported as $171,000.
Better yet, perhaps, foreclosures accounted for just16.3% of all property sales, a share that has continued to slide since 27.8% recorded in January. The median price of July foreclosures declined 4.5% to $80,199.
Sales of all property types in the huge Houston market totaled 7,363, a 24.6% increase compared to July 2011. Total dollar volume for properties sold during the month rocketed almost 30% to $1.6 billion versus $1.3 billion a year earlier.
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