Very interesting article from the San Antonio Express News....enjoy!
San Antonio real estate isn't exactly as hot as it was last year. The city has thousands of additional homes on the market: nearly 40 percent more existing homes than at this time last year, and it's taking longer to sell them. In a report last week, the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas cited softness in real estate across Texas and said San Antonio quickly had turned into a buyer's market. "For the past couple of years, I think San Antonio has been on everyone's radar as the number one hot spot in the country," said D'Ann Petersen, associate economist for the Dallas Fed. "It's not terrible. It's not like sales have dried up. There's just too much product out there now." More than 11,700 existing homes were for sale at the end of May. That's 3,300 more than at that point last year, according to the San Antonio Board of Realtors. It also is taking slightly longer to sell a house: 69 days compared with 66 last year. In the new-home market at the end of first quarter 2007, there were 60 percent more new homes for sale than at the same time last year. So while builders still are starting new homes, they are offering incentives such as upgrades to sell off their existing inventory. San Antonio's economy still remains strong and the city keeps adding jobs, which translates into more home buyers. Also, despite this year's more timid market, home prices keep rising and builders expect to start another 16,000 homes in the San Antonio area by year's end. During the first five months of the year, San Antonio's median home price reached $147,400, about 7 percent higher than at this point last year. PMI Mortgage Insurance Co. ranks the nation's 50 largest metropolitan areas according to the likelihood that home prices would be lower in two years. This week, the company reports there's just a 10 percent chance that home prices would drop in San Antonio. The biggest slowdown in new-home sales has happened in the under-$150,000 price range, where most first-time home buyers (who may not have great credit) tend to shop. Although house hunters have more homes to consider, the room for negotiation might not be as great as they expect. Homes continue to sell at more than 97 percent of the asking price. But no one thinks San Antonio real estate has taken a true turn for the worse. Travis Kessler, CEO of the San Antonio Board of Realtors, said the city remains among the bright spots in housing in Texas and across the country and that last year's head-over-heels sales pace couldn't last forever.
[San Antonio Express-News]
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