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Texas has 3 of Forbes Top 10 Places To Flip A Home
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Texas is making every top list there is when talking about real estate value.
With 3 of the top 10 Markets Selected by Financial Experts at Forbes on where a Flipper Can Make a Buck

Flipping went out of fashion last year, leaving thousands of flippers in trouble in many areas, but an analysis by Forbes magazine shows that there are markets all over the country where investors can still turn a profit if they pick their properties wisely.

Forbes calculated whether a market is ripe for flipping by using data from Moody's Economy.com to calculate a market's rate of sales against inventory, and to determine supply and demand. Then it looked at current and new-home construction numbers through the end of 2008, based on data from the National Association of Home Builders; the magazine sought out markets where planned new home construction is low.

Forbes List of Best Places To Flip a Home

Seattle, $385,000
San Francisco, $759,000
Raleigh, N.C., $225,000
Houston, $150,000
Austin, Texas, $175,000
San Antonio, $150,000
Boston, $389,000
Los Angeles, $590,000
New York, $489,000
Portland, Ore., $295,000

Source: Forbes, Matt Woolsey (07/26/2007)

Then Forbes used price appreciation data from the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® to get a sense of short-term market direction. Finally, it examined Moody's figures on investor share. The higher the share of investors, the more sellers outweigh buyers, which is bad news in a bearish market.

The results identified the following markets as the best candidates for flipping. Here are the best markets, along with the price in each market that would make a home a candidate for a quick turnover.

Flipping--in which an investor buys a home, makes quick improvements and resells at a higher price--"was a rage in the housing market surge," says Anthony Sanders, a professor of real estate finance at Arizona State University. "But it is not as popular in this flat housing market."

It's easy to understand why. With prices falling quarter after quarter, the prospect of buying low and selling lower doesn't sound nearly as appealing as buying low and selling high.

The 3 cities mentioned in the Forbes list are major market sources for retirement and second home buyers on the Texas Coast. The ability to make a buck in those cities bodes well for the economic viability of our coastal areas, especially for the upcoming wave of retirees looking to sell and relocate to a nearby coastal resort city that still keeps them close to family and friends. Experts predict (and recommend) most retirees will want to stay within a two hour drive of their primary homestead.

Drivers for the Texas Coast

According to Dr. Mark Dotzour, the chief economist at the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University, “Interest in Texas real estate has been magnified by the declining markets elsewhere across the nation,” citing the current Texas housing market as one of the strongest in the United States.

“Texas housing is still very affordable,” he said, “and the low tax structure and pro-business climate makes Texas a destination for corporate relocation for firms that are striving to compete in the global marketplace.”

Dotzour said population growth is another key factor contributing to the state’s healthy real estate climate.

Houston, Austin and San Antonio are experiencing large population and job growths, driving an increase in demand for real estate.The average prices are steadily increasing from year to year making these ideal markets for flipping real estate. The factors influencing these markets (population growth, job growth and strong local economies) have also influenced the coastal real estate markets. Residents of these large metropolises have been increasingly interested in renting or purchasing an oceanfront retreat at a driving distance.

TexasGulfCoastOnline.com has compiled data of visitors to the different coastal sites and the data shows that visitors to our Corpus and Port Aransas site are mainly from Austin and San Antonio which are only a couple of hours drive from there. Our Galveston site, on the other hand, attracts people mainly from Houston which are only a 30min. to an hour drive away.

Huge capital projects in cities nearby our coastal resorts are also predicted to influence the Texas Coastal economies

The influx of money from large capital projects has greatly influenced the local economy as well as the coastal markets. For example, the Valero Energy Corporation announced that they are going to spend about $2 billion to build a new plant in the Beaumont area and Eastman Chemical said that it plans to operate and invest in two new plants on the Gulf Coast -- including one in Beaumont, Texas.

Construction employment is expected to peak at 1,300-1,500 workers, with permanent employment expected to be approximately 250. The trickledown economics of 3.6 Billion is enormous. The part that goes into the local economy should circulate 6 times according to the rule of thumb.

The family purchasing power on the Bolivar Peninsula is currently a significant amount and with the influx of the money being invested in the new plants, it will raise it even higher. The executives and white collar workers in these plants will want to own a nice affordable beachfront home or retreat close by. Check out BolivarChamber.org for more information about the area.

The Toyota Plant has also impacted San Antonio's economy. The plant not only enhances the community economically but also environmentally. It has no smokestacks, no effluent. It is generating money for education, health care and training. The money being generated by jobs and for local business suppliers will be tremendously beneficial to the local economy which in turn will trickle down to have a positive effect on the coastal markets. Residents that may have not been able to afford to spend a weekend on the beach will now be able to. This means that vacation rentals may be going up as well along with second-home sales.

Major developers have already seen the potential for these developing areas and are investing in new resort communities close to Dallas, Houston, San Antonio and Austin such as: Cinnamon Shore in Port Aransas, Audubon Village in Gilchrist, Laguna Harbor in Port Bolivar, and Palisade Palms in Galveston.

More Positive Signs that could bode well for the Texas Coastal Markets are described by the National Association of Realtors

Lawrence Yun, Senior Economist of the National Association of Realtors has predicted that existing-home sales will improve markedly by the fourth quarter.

Pent-up demand	The country has added nearly 4 million jobs since home sales started cooling in mid-2005, and the typical worker’s wages have risen 7 percent, leading to a $1.35 trillion rise in aggregate national income. At the same time, wealth has grown significantly, with the Dow Jones Industrial Average hovering at record highs. Indeed, accumulated household wealth as of the first quarter was at a record $56.2 trillion. So, if you’re wondering if people have the means to purchase, they do.
Delayed household formation	The number of households typically grows by up to 1.5 million a year, but in the first quarter, the year-over-year figure was only half a million. That weak performance suggests people are holding back because of uncertainty over the future, a trend that fuels pent-up demand.
Rising rents	With renters hesitating to buy, landlords are raising rents. Average rents rose 8 percent in the past two years. As renters start feeling squeezed, ownership will look increasingly good.
Condos make modest gains	The condo market has outperformed the single-family market in sales and price changes since early this year. Single-family homes could follow suit.
Better mortgage quality	Mortgage applications for home purchases have been rising nearly 10 percent on a year-over-year basis since May. This data, from the Mortgage Bankers Association, focuses mainly on applicants for prime and FHA loans, so the rise indicates a flight to quality.
Dollar weakness	The falling dollar has dangled a big “For Sale” sign in front of property attractive to foreign buyers. Europeans can now buy a vacation home at essentially a 15 percent discount. That’s good for sales. And despite the weak dollar, which usually leads to higher interest rates, mortgage rates remain attractive at around 6.7 percent.
2008 rate cut	Inflation looks to slide as the year proceeds. If it does, the Federal Reserve could lower interest rates, possibly as soon as early 2008

Foreign buyers are a big part of the U.S. housing market, with almost one in five real estate practitioners in early 2007 selling to buyers from outside the country.

So keep your eyes on the horizon. There are forces at play that will turn the market around, and buyers who make the commitment now could be smiling next year.

Check out our top 10 reasons report on why the Texas Coast Market will boom in 2008

Comments

BySuzannah Gonzales AMERICAN-STATESMAN @ Wednesday, September 12, 2007 1:08 AM

Texas No. 2 in housing growth

Texas ranked second in adding housing units from 2005 to 2006, according to U.S. Census Bureau data released today.

In 2005 and 2006, the Texas economy was outperforming the nation's economy in terms of gross state product and employment growth, explained Karl Eschbach, associate director of the Institute for Demographic and Socioeconomic Research at the University of Texas at San Antonio. In addition, the state's population — Texas is the second-largest state by population — was growing faster than the nation's during those years, Eschbach said. "So it's not surprising that the housing unit growth was so strong in the state."

During that period, land values went up quickly and more building took place, said Mark Sprague of Residential Strategies Inc., which tracks and forecasts real estate trends in Texas. The land values and building have slowed down some, but compared with other states, they are still strong in Texas, he said.

Texas also grew more desirable, Sprague said. "Texas was on top of everybody's list."

ByBusinessWeek @ Wednesday, September 19, 2007 1:05 PM

Texas also grabs 3 of the top markets in a report by Business Week on "Where to Find Valuable Home Bargains Now"

The days of home flipping appear to be over, but there are still good real estate bargains to be found in many parts of the country – places were homes are affordable, price appreciation is imminent and the underlying economy is strong. Many of them are in the South where the climate is appealing to both retirees and businesses.

With assistance from economists at Fiserv (FISV), Lending Solutions, and Moody's (MCO) Economy.com, BusinessWeek put together a list of the best metropolitan areas for bargain homes by looking at affordability, forecasts for price appreciation and job growth, and recent price fluctuations.

Here are their top picks, the median home prices in these areas and the predicted increase in value over the next two years:

Austin-Round Rock, Tex., $186,600, 5.4 percent
Baton Rouge, La., $174,700, 7.7 percent
Birmingham-Hoover, Ala., $164,900, 9.2 percent
Corpus Christi, Tex., $130,000, 10.3 percent
Durham, N.C., $180,100, 6.1 percent
Gulfport-Biloxi, Miss., $154,200, 10.8 percent
Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, Tex., $154,900, 6.4 percent
Mobile, Ala., $140,400, 8.1 percent
Montgomery, Ala, $150,100, 7.8 percent
San Antonio, $154,300, 6.4 percent

Source: BusinessWeek.com, Maya Roney (9/18/2007)

ByCNN @ Thursday, September 27, 2007 12:05 PM

A CNN real estate article details the top ten cities that are an opportunity for first time homebuyers and investors. If you are able to purchase property now you will be ready and waiting for the upswing, which will inevitably happen! Real estate has operated in cycles for years, so the turn of the market will not happen this year, and may not happen next year, but it will happen! Take advantage.

The top ten cities listed are:

Dallas-Forth Worth- An increasing job market is the promise for this city.
Indianapolis-You can buy a nice sized home in this city for less than $200k.
New Orleans-This one is easy.
Atlanta-Top destination for young professsionals in America.
Montgomery-New car company hit down, sparking employment.
Memphis-A foreclosure capital.
Mobile-Huge industry push sparks the future market.
Austin-A buyers market is booming, due to many high paying jobs.
Houston-Texas-land of opportunity.
St. Louis-Single family homes on the rise.

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