This article originally appeared in the March 2018 Housing News Report newsletter published by ATTOM Data Solutions. For a free subscription to the award-winning Housing News Report, contact christine.stricker@attomdata.com.
In November 2017 the Houston Astros won their first World Series championship since the team was founded in 1962. It couldn’t have come at a better time for the city — and its residents — raising the collective spirit that was dampened just three months earlier when the flood waters from Hurricane Harvey left more than 137,000 single family homes in the Houston metro area either damaged or destroyed.
Considering that affected homeowners are still in the recovery process from Harvey, year-end housing data from the Houston Association of Realtors (HAR) came in strong, revealing a record year in terms of home sales and rental activity.
“No one could have imagined 2017 turning out to be a record-setting year for the Houston real estate market, which had weathered the effects of the energy slump only to have Harvey strike such a devastating blow,” said HAR Chair Kenya Burrell-VanWormer in the association’s January 2018 news release. “We know that many are still working tirelessly to rebuild their lives after Harvey, but overall, this clearly illustrates the incredible resilience of the people and the economy of Houston, Texas.”
Dr. Ted C. Jones, chief economist and senior vice president at Stewart Title Guaranty Company, who produces the annual economic forecast for HAR, agreed that the area’s overall economy continues to be strong despite the temporary setbacks caused by Harvey.
“All told we have a very healthy housing market in Houston,” said Jones, who focuses in on the metro area’s four most active counties — Fort Bend, Galveston, Harris and Montgomery. “Last year (2017) we sold more homes than anytime in history with a 2.4 percent growth rate in the sale of single family homes. Sales of homes for $1 million and up were up 11 percent for the year.”