rent house in Houston

Investors in Houston single-family rental houses are seeing annual returns on par with the nation and are beating out stocks and bonds, a new report showed.

While investors in the stock market have seen double-digit runups in their portfolios in recent years, a commodity that provides both rental income and price appreciation is also racking up gains, according to Roofstock.com, an online marketplace for housing investments.

Owners of single-family rentals in the Houston metro area saw an average annual return of 12.8 percent over the last 7 years, Roofstock.com said.

Houston rental

"It's like a whole other country," according to the motto of the state tourism board. Texas could truly be quite a large and successful country in its own right; it certainly has the size, economy and natural resources to do it up big, in typical Texas fashion. But at the same time, this is a quintessentially American land, where residents are patriotic, friendly, successful...and proud of it all.

Houston Rental Market

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.”

 

Houston rental market

Houstonians leased about 17,000 apartments in the two months after Hurricane Harvey, far more than this region leases in most years, new data show.

The supercharged rental activity has led to a swift reversal in Houston's multifamily market. Landlords who were offering as many as three months of free rent before the storm are now able to raise prices, especially if they're near residential neighborhoods most affected by the hurricane.

 

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"It's almost bordering on a year and a half worth of absorption in two months," said Bruce McClenny, president of ApartmentData.com, citing the new leases logged in September and October.

Yet even as landlords enjoy fuller apartment buildings and higher rents, their good fortunes may be limited.

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REAL ESTATE

"Next year, there's a potential for 17,000 people to move out," McClenny said.

Indeed, thousands of Houstonians will move back into their newly repaired homes in 2018, and there may not be enough demand to refill the vacancies. Creating further uncertainty are the 15,662 damaged apartment units being repaired and coming back online and the units still under construction.

As homeowners move back into their houses, rent levels could stall or even fall back, McClenny said.

Swapnil Agarwal, founder and managing principal of Nitya Capital, still has a bullish outlook on rent growth.

During Houston's recent oil bust, developers put the brakes on starting new projects, and little will come online in the coming years to accommodate demand, benefiting existing properties, said Agarwal, whose company owns 29 apartment complexes in the Houston area.

"All of a sudden, the demand is outpacing the supply," he said.

Renters in October paid an average of $1,105 for an apartment, the highest average rate in two years, a report from Richardson-based real estate analytics firm Axiometrics shows. That's $19 more than September's rate and $30 more than October 2016.

 

Occupancy across the Houston area increased to 93.7 percent, the highest rate in almost two years, the company said.

The market's rebound is mixed, depending on location. Apartment complexes that have seen the most benefit are in Tomball, Spring, Katy and the Energy Corridor, where high-end subdivisions were flooded after the reservoir releases.

"Those people up and down Buffalo Bayou in high-priced homes in well-to-do neighborhoods had the means to say, 'Hey. let's go to those apartments in CityCentre and up and down I-10 that didn't get damaged,' " McClenny said.

In those areas, rental specials have disappeared.

On the flip side, landlords are still offering concessions in Montrose, downtown, the Medical Center and the Galleria area.

Catalyst, a new downtown tower near Minute Maid Park, is offering one month of free rent. The building is about 12 percent leased, and renters only began moving into the building after the storm.

Three or four of the new renters were displaced after Harvey flooded their homes, developer Darren Sloniger said. He doesn't expect them to return to their homes for at least a year.

Across Houston, a certain number of post-Harvey renters may never return to homeownership.

"Our leasing agents tell us why people are looking to move and many are selling their homes and moving into apartments," Sloniger said.

McClenny expects that group to be a small one.

"I imagine most are going to become homeowners somewhere else (in Houston) or somewhere different than where they lost their home," he said. "I do believe most of them will leave the apartments."

Houston real estate

Houston Real Estate Highlights in March

  • Single-family home sales fell 2.5 percent year-over-year, with 6,810 units sold;
  • Days on Market (DOM) for single-family homes increased slightly from 61 days in March 2017 to 63 days this March;
  • Total property sales declined 2.3 percent with 8,274 units sold;
  • Total dollar volume edged up 0.7 percent to $2.3 billion;
  • The single-family home median price rose 2.4 percent to $233,500, which represents a March high;
  • The single-family home average price climbed 3.0 percent to a March high of $292,756;
  • Single-family homes months of inventory shrank year-over-year from a 3.6-months supply to 3.4 months, the highest level of this year and the same as the national inventory level;
  • Townhome/condominium sales fell 5.4 percent, with the average price up 3.3 percent to $211,944 and the median price up 9.6 percent to $172,250;
  • Leases of single-family homes fell 9.0 percent with the average rent up 6.0 percent to $1,748;
  • Volume of townhome/condominium leases dropped 13.1 percent with average rent up 0.7 percent to $1,496.

Houston single family home march 2018 report

Single-family home sales rose in February, with 5,260 units sold throughout greater Houston. That is up 5.3 percent from a year earlier when sales volume totaled 4,997. After three consecutive months of declining sales volume, the luxury market – defined as homes priced from $750,000 and up – was flat in February.

The median price reached the highest level ever for a February in Houston, increasing 1.4 percent to $226,200. The average price rose a fractional 0.4 percent, which was sufficient to achieve a February record of $281,945.

Days on Market (DOM), or the number of days it took the average home to sell, decreased slightly from 67 to 65 days. Inventory fell from a 3.4-months supply to a 3.2-months supply year-over-year, its lowest level since December 2017.

Broken out by housing segment, February sales performed as follows:

  • $1 - $99,999: decreased 2.8 percent
  • $100,000 - $149,999: decreased 11.8 percent
  • $150,000 - $249,999: increased 10.9 percent
  • $250,000 - $499,999: increased 10.2 percent
  • $500,000 - $749,999: increased 18.8 percent
  • $750,000 and above: unchanged

Houston single family homes and housing market

February Monthly Market Comparison

Most of Houston’s monthly housing market indicators reflected positivity in February, with single-family home sales, total property sales, average and median pricing and total dollar volume all up compared to February 2017. Month-end pending sales for single-family homes totaled 6,912, up 11.1 percent versus last year. Total active listings, or the total number of available properties, however, declined 2.2 percent to 33,939.

Single-family homes inventory shrank to a 3.2-months supply from 3.4 months a year earlier. For perspective, housing inventory across the U.S. currently stands at a 3.4-months supply, according to the latest report from the National Association of Realtors (NAR).

CATEGORIESFEBRUARY 2017FEBRUARY 2018CHANGE

Total property sales6,1816,3753.1%

Total dollar volume$1,639,814,909$1,713,566,9034.5%

Total active listings34,70733,939-2.2%

Single-family home sales4,9975,2605.3%

Single-family average sales price$280,813$281,9450.4%

Single-family median sales price$223,000$226,2001.4%

Single-family months inventory*3.43.2-0.2 months

Single-family pending sales6,2206,91211.1%

* Months inventory estimates the number of months it will take to deplete current active inventory based on the prior 12 months sales activity. This figure is representative of the single-family homes market.

Houston lease property update

HOUSTON — (March 14, 2018) — Houston home sales enjoyed their second positive month of the new year, and after three months of declines, stability returned to the luxury market. However, the overall supply of homes across greater Houston shrank slightly in February, narrowing options for house hunters heading into the traditionally active spring home-buying season.

According to the latest monthly report from the Houston Association of Realtors (HAR), sales of single-family homes rose 5.3 percent in February, with 5,260 units sold. Homes priced between $500,000 and $750,000 experienced the strongest sales activity.

The single-family home median price (the figure at which half of the homes sold for more and half sold for less) increased 1.4 percent to $226,200 – the highest median ever for a February. The average price eked out a fractional 0.4 percent gain to reach a February high of $281,945.

"February was a positive month overall for Houston real estate, but we really need growth in inventory to ensure that there is a plentiful supply of homes as we enter the spring buying season," said HAR Chair Kenya Burrell-VanWormer with JP Morgan Chase.

February sales of all property types in Houston totaled 6,375, an increase of 3.1 percent versus the same month last year. Total dollar volume grew 4.5 percent to $1.7 billion.

 

Lease Property Update

Rental properties drew less interest in February than a year earlier. Single-family home leases and townhome/condominium leases each fell 11.5 percent. The average rent for single-family homes was up 4.1 percent to $1,720 while the average rent for townhomes and condominiums rose 2.2 percent to $1,515.

Winter Olympic and Houstonians

From Texas Standard.

The 2018 Winter Olympics will feature many athletes from the Lone Star State. Most will compete for the U.S., but a few represent other countries, to which they have ties. And their chances of success are as varied as the sports in which they will compete.

“The U.S. team is one of the stronger ones in the world,” Barron says. “But, Jonathan qualified as the second skater in the 500 meters, but not in the 1,000 meters. The International Olympic Committee cut back on the number of spaces available this year to add another speed skating event. It’s typical of what the IOC does to increase participation from other countries. They’ll try to adjust the number of athletes to keep the participation level constant, which works against countries like the U.S.”

Houstonian, Sam McGuffie may be more well-known as a football player, but he is now part of the U.S. Olympic bobsled team.

“This happens a lot to former football players,” Barron says. “We have two former Texans who have medaled in bobsled.”

One of them is Justin Olsen from San Antonio. His participation is uncertain due to an emergency appendectomy. The team is hopeful he will be able to compete. Former Olympic team member Todd Hays from Del Rio was among the group that broke a 46-year long medal drought for the U.S. bobsled team at the 2002 Winter Olympics, and he’s back this year.

“Bobsled is not unlike playing football,” Barron says. “In bosled the start is key. In football the key is for the running back to hit the hole and find your way down field. For bobsled all four athletes have to hit a thousand-pound sled at the same time and get it moving and then jump inside. There’s also the equivalent of explosiveness.”

Olympic ice dancer Kaitlyn Weaver has had a circuitous path to the Olympics. There are many more female skaters than male skaters, so women are forced to relocate to find available partners.

“She was skating with a young man in Dallas and was able to make it up to the novice ranks in the United States,” Barron says. “Then her partner quit to go to college, which led her to Canada to find another partner.”

The former Houstonian is now competing as part of the Canadian Olympic team and has had some success on the international scene. Barron says that she hopes to replicate past success in the coming weeks.

A former University of Houston student is competing on Nigeria’s women’s bobsled team. The combination of Nigeria, Texas, and bobsledding may be a bit of a headscrather, but it’s part of the International Olympic Committee’s effort to grow sports in regions where they may not already have a following.

As far as other athletes with Texas ties Barron says we should still keep an eye out.

“You never know, it’s a big state,” he says. “People may slip through the cracks.”

Written by Jeremy Steen.

buy bitcoin? we can help. Houston and Bitcoin

MONTGOMERY, Texas - Tree-lined streets with rose bushes in the yards and squirrels on the lawn is the all-American-type of town Kingwood soccer mom Kym Morgan lives in.

She has three children, and her regular job is at MD Anderson, but a select few also know her as "Lady Bitcoin."

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"I know on Twitter I changed my handle to lady*bitcoin since, you know, I'm trying to increase my presence as a lady, you know, more sophisticated!" Morgan said.

The stereotype is much different. It's a techie mining for Bitcoin in mom's basement. But that's not the reality.

READ: How is bitcoin affecting the environment?

Everyday folks like Morgan are on the cutting edge of the cryptocurrency.

"I've paid my bills with it. I've used it to buy groceries," Morgan said when asked what she's used Bitcoin for aside from taking a trip.

Bitcoin is the financial buzzword right now.

How to Get Started: https://www.bitcoin.com/getting-started

"It's another way to buy goods and services, so you can use it as a currency," Morgan said.

When Morgan joined a Bitcoin meetup group in Houston in 2014, it was just a few people hanging out. Now at her meetup, and others like it across the country, it's standing room only.

"Fifty, 100 -- I've seen 200 people at the meetup before," she said. "I mean, it's grown exponentially."

The first widely publicized Bitcoin transaction was back in 2010 when 10,000 Bitcoin were traded for two pizzas.

Recently, one Bitcoin equaled about $8,000, and it's constantly changing based on the open market for the currency.

Check Bitcoin's current price: https://charts.bitcoin.com/chart/price | https://www.coindesk.com/

Anyone can buy Bitcoin through an online exchange. Or you can buy and sell Bitcoin and check the balance using an ATM, like at the George R. Brown Convention Center in downtown Houston.         

Morgan also uses a Bitcoin debit card, and she said she treats Bitcoin like an investment. She's constantly putting away dollars into Bitcoin.

"My hope is to continue to pay for college for my children, to be honest with you," Morgan said.

Exclusive Podcast - Owen Conflenti Gets To Know lady*bitcoin

 

"It's a little more mainstream than you even realize," said Cynthia Blanchard, president of AnthemGold.

Blanchard grew up in Orange, Texas, but now she and her husband travel the world talking about Bitcoin.

"My husband will actually go into a restaurant, or, in fact, he does it every single time -- he's like, 'Do you accept Bitcoin?'" Blanchard said.

Find Places to Spend Bitcoin: http://spendbitcoins.com/places/

Their next adventure together is a new business.

"In very simplistic terms, (it's) a marriage with Bitcoin and gold," Blanchard said.

Skeptics of the Bitcoin buzz are concerned about its recent rollercoaster value, but Blanchard wants to bring more security by tying it to solid gold. They're creating a new token.

"It has the stability of gold, which is thousands of years old, and it has the flexibility and fluidity of Bitcoin," Blanchard said.

They're bringing all that gold to small-town Montgomery, Texas. The locals KPRC2 spoke with had never heard of Bitcoin. They also didn't know the Blanchards will store their gold for the token in a high-security nuclear bunker right off of Highway 105 called the Westland Bunker.

"It's one of the coolest places in the world," said Blanchard.

The Bunker is so top secret, KPRC Channel 2's cameras weren't allowed into the vault.

History of the Bunker

"The Bunker has perhaps the most interesting history of any data center ever built," the website says. "Originally constructed in 1982 by Louis Kung (Nephew of Madam Chang Kai Shek), the mysterious complex was supposedly intended as the headquarters for his company, Westland Oil. The construction was shrouded in secrecy and protected by armed guards, and most local residents were unaware that he also built a 40,000 square foot nuclear bomb shelter next to the office building. Now known locally as simply “The Bunker”, it was designed to house Mr. Kung’s family, employees, and their families in the event of a nuclear attack or a complete breakdown of civilization.

"The bunker was designed to protect 350 adults for up to three months, and was a totally self-contained structure with it’s own diesel generators, multi-chamber chemical/biological/radiation (CBR) air filtration system, two water wells, decontamination showers, jail cells, and a full surgical suite. The entrance tunnel blockhouses (disguised as pagodas) concealed numerous gun ports and had rooftop-mounted machine gun nests. The adjacent office building includes many of the same massive reinforced concrete construction techniques as the bunker, with five-layer bullet-resistant glass, its own generators, water wells, and numerous security features.

"Today the 40,000 square foot nuclear bomb shelter is a state-of-the-art data center that provides colocation of critical IT operations, while the 100,000 square foot, four story office building serves as a business continuity and disaster recovery center. We are confident that we have the ability to meet or exceed any requirements for colocation, business continuity, or managed services.

"The last eight years have seen a strong commitment to growth, starting with fiber networks, generators, chillers, enhanced security and additional 107,000 square foot state of the art data center, making the The Bunker campus one of the premier technology centers in the nation. We are extremely proud of our zero-downtime performance during hurricane Ike. That trial-by-fire has allowed us to attract many additional Fortune 500 companies and government agencies that demand exceptional results and quality service. The Bunker is a financially sound private company, structured as a limited partnership and directed by a forward thinking team of highly skilled professionals with a passion for this business and a commitment for excellence."

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