They say that everything is bigger in Texas. Well, it turns out that everything is better in Texas too, at least when it comes to housing.
That’s because all areas of Texas real estate experienced “significant” growth in 2014, according to a new report from the Texas Association of Realtors.
In its 2014 Texas Annual Housing Report, the Texas Association of Realtors states that Texas experienced growth in job, population and the economy as a whole in 2014, all of which drove housing and real estate to a highly successful year.
According to the TAR report, Texas currently gains more out-of-state residents than any other state and is a leader in home sales from international buyers. An October TAR report showed that that more than 584,000 people moved to Texas from out of state in 2013.
Additionally, the share of international homebuyers reached a five-year high in the last year, adding more than $11 billion to the Texas economy in a 12-month period.
In 2014, Texas homes sales have kept pace with last year’s strong levels, TAR said, which would put 2014 on-pace to surpass 2013 as the second-best year in Texas real estate.
“It’s a great time to live in Texas. The high demand for Texas real estate is not being fueled by speculation and investment activity – it’s driven by the thousands of people who move to the Lone Star State daily,” said Dan Hatfield, chairman of the Texas Association of Realtors.
“People are moving to Texas from across America and around the world to take part in our state’s booming economy, business-friendly environment and quality of life.”
Hatfield said that nearly every segment of the Texas housing market has benefited from the state’s continued growth. “Over the last year, however, we saw several areas of Texas real estate that were still recovering from the recession in 2012 really begin to take off in 2013 and 2014, including luxury home sales and housing development,” Hatfield added.
According to the TAR report, luxury home sales surged in the last year to become one of the fastest growing price classes of the Texas housing market. January’s 2014 Texas Luxury Home Sales Report from TAR reported an average 35% year-over-year increase for luxury home sales in Texas’ four major metros in 2013.
Housing development increased significantly over the last year, with new home sales in Texas outpacing those nationally by more than half, TAR said in the report.
And the positive trend is expected to continue into 2015.
“The Texas housing market will likely continue to be highly competitive in 2015, but rising housing development and inventory levels as well as greater access to homebuyer education programs like those promoted through Get Ready Texas will help make the dream of homeownership attainable for all Texans,” Hatfield said.
“This has been a glowing year for Texas real estate, and 2015 is on-pace to be just as bright.”
