THE ALLMANAC

New Homes Sales Rise, Prices Dip in DFW

DFW: New homes in North Texas continue to sell at a good rate and the prices for homes tapering down. HomesUSA.com reports in a New Home Sales Report that the three-month average of new home sales in DFW was 2,078 in April, up from 1,825 in March. And because of a larger supply of new homes in DFW that has created more competition, the three-month moving average sales price fell from $494,241 in March to $487,799 in April. DFW was the market with lower prices compared to the price increases in Houston, Austin and San Antonio. HomesUSA, based in Dallas, pulled its data from the Realtor organizations in DFW, Houston, Austin and San Antonio. The report also notes that new homes stayed on the market longer in April (117.5 days) compared to the 112.1 days in March. That’s more than double the 50% average last year.

DFW: Renters are staying put and getting some good news these days. ApartmentData.com reports that the apartment rental rate increase in North Texas in the past year has dipped to less than 1%. That’s quite a difference from the double-digit increases last year fueled by high demand. Rental rates in Houston are up 1.8% from last year and Austin’s rental rates are down 2.7% ApartmentData.com says DFW leads the other metro areas in occupancy with 91.6% compared to Houston’s 89.9%, followed by San Antonio at 89.4% and Austin at 89.1%. Many would-be homeowners who are renting remain on the sidelines due to numerous factors—an uncertain economy, higher mortgage rates and high home prices. North Texas remains one of the leaders in apartment construction.

DFW: It’s one of the costs of owning a home that many times is just penciled because it nearly always goes up—the price of home insurance. Insurify, which tracks and compares insurance rates, says that Texas is one of the most expensive states for home insurance. Insurify’s 2023 Homeowners Report says that between 2021 and 2022, home insurance prices rose 13% in Texas, nearly twice the national rate of 7%. Prices across the country are expected to go even higher this year. Why the price increases? We’ve heard the storyline before—inflation, supply chain disruption, labor costs, and, oh yes, the weather. In fact, Dallas County and Harris County are among only 19 across the entire country that have a “very high” FEMA risk rating because of hurricanes and flooding on the Gulf Coast and lightning, hail and tornadoes in North Texas. Home insurance rates vary from just over $2,000 in Austin; $2,200 in San Antonio; $2,500 in North Texas; $4,100 in Houston; and $5,600 in Corpus Christi.

DFW: Lake Texoma is poised for a luxury development like no other. The Denison City Council has approved a luxury development plan from the developer of McKinney’s Craig Ranch for a project called Preston Harbor, multibillion-dollar development will stretch more than 3,000 acres, including 9 miles of shoreline. It will have a resort hotel, about 7,500 homes that include luxury single-family to townhomes, condominiums and apartments, plus retail, lakeside restaurants, parks, hiking and biking trails, and, of course, a high-end marina with up to 600 boat slips. David Craig, the head of Craig International that was the lead developer of Craig Ranch, will lead the Preston Harbor project. It has been in development talks over the past 20 years. The acreage of the new Lake Texoma eclipses many other major developments in North Texas.

LA LA LAND: There are many unique properties out on the West Coast and Kat Von D’s is certainly one of them. Never heard of the tattoo artist, beauty biz entrepreneur and TV personality? Does “Cheaper by the Dozen” or the mansion’s red-blood pool ring a bell? In any case, her LA-area mansion has been sold, but for about half of the $15 million she was asking when it came on the market in 2022. Von D paid $6 million for the 12,500-square-foot, eight-bedroom, seven-bath Victorian-era mansion in 2016. It had been used as a production location for the “Cheaper by the Dozen” remake in 2003. Von D worked on the home, adding numerous amenities, like the red-blood swimming pool that is a conversation starter—or killer.

COPYRIGHT © 2022. Allie Beth Allman & Associates, a HomeServices of America, Inc. company. All Rights Reserved.

THE ALLMANAC