Texas New Home Market Stabilizes in March

DALLAS, April 23, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- New home sales, prices and sales pace were all flat in Texas last month, according to new data released by HomesUSA.com for March, based on data from local Multiple Listing Services, including the Houston Association of REALTORS, North Texas Real Estate Information Systems, San Antonio Board of REALTORS and the Austin Board of REALTORS.

Pending sales continued to fall in March statewide, with local pending new home sales down in all four of the state’s biggest new homes markets including Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, Austin and San Antonio, HomesUSA.com reported.

“Despite the fact that the Texas new home market was flat in March, we are still seeing a strong overall volume of new home sales,” said Ben Caballero, owner of HomesUSA.com, and real estate’s first Guinness World Record holder for real estate sales. “Pending home sales are the one troubling number, as there has been a steady decline since November. Again, we will just have to wait and see the long-term impact of lower pending sales,” he added.

Average Days on Market – New Homes in Texas
The HomesUSA.com New Home Sales Index also showed the average Days on Market for new home sales pace was relatively flat: 111.67 days in February and 112.01 days in March. In Dallas-Ft. Worth, the DOM was 115.30 days in February and 115.71 days in March. The new home sales pace in San Antonio showed some slowing, as the DOM increased from 102.25 days in February to 103.84 days in March. The DOM in Austin showed the only improvement, down slightly from 112.74 days in February to 112.21 days in March. [The Houston Association of Realtors recently resolved its technical issues with local Days on Market data. The Houston DOM data will be included with next month’s report.] (See Chart 1: Texas New Homes Days on Market)

Texas New Home Sales Data
New home sales were marginally lower statewide. New home sales posted a 12-month rolling average of 3,858 total sales in March, down from 3,865 total sales in February. In the state’s three biggest new home markets, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Houston and Austin, total new home sales were all marginally higher. Dallas-Ft. Worth total sales in March were 1,344 and there were 1,339 total sales in February. Houston total new home sales were 1,330 in March and 1,323 total sales in February.

Austin total new home sales were 683 in March and 678 in February. San Antonio total new home sales dropped from 526 total sales in February to 502 total sales in March. (See Chart 2: Texas New Home Sales)

Texas New Home Prices
New home prices were flat statewide, with the average new home price for March at $357,720 and it was $357,762 for February. In the state’s three biggest new homes markets, Dallas-Ft. Worth, Houston and Austin, average prices were also flat. In Dallas-Ft. Worth, the average new home price for March was $373,252 and it was $374,233 for February. In Houston, the average new home price for March was $359,739 and it was $360,316 for February. In Austin, the average new home price for March was $368,164 and it was $368,123 for February.

San Antonio was the anomaly, as its average new home price rose in March to $298,104 from $296,513 in February. (See Chart 3: Texas New Home Prices)

Texas Pending Sales Data
Pending new home sales were lower throughout the state of Texas once again, dropping from a 12-month rolling average of 3,705 in February to 3,467 in March. Dallas-Ft. Worth posted pending new home sales in March of 1,220 and there were 1,293 pending sales in February. Pending new home sales in Houston for March were 1,203 and there were 1,274 pending sales in February.

Austin's pending new home sales also were lower last month. Total pending sales for Austin in March were 606, down from 646 pending home sales in February. San Antonio pending new home sales in March were 438, down from 492 pending new home sales in February. (See Chart 4: Texas Pending New Home Sales)

Caballero is sharing this Texas new homes data as the Commerce Department will release its national report for New Residential Home Sales for March today, Tuesday, April 23 at 10:00 am Eastern. The Commerce Department is running behind schedule issuing its nationwide new home construction data due to the recent lapse in federal funding.

About the HomesUSA.com New Home Sales Index
The HomesUSA.com Index is a 12-month rolling average of the Days on Market (DOM) for new homes listed in the local Multiple Listing Services (MLSs) for the four largest Texas markets, including Dallas-Ft. Worth, Houston, Austin, and San Antonio. Created by Ben Caballero, founder, and CEO of HomesUSA.com and the most productive real estate agent in the world, it is the first index to track the sale pace of new home sales specifically.

About Ben Caballero and HomesUSA.com®
Ben Caballero is a Guinness World Record holder¹, earning him the reputation as the world’s most productive real estate agent. Top-ranked in America by REAL Trends since 2013, as published in the Wall Street Journal, he is also the only agent to exceed $1 billion in residential sales transactions in a single year; a feat first achieved in 2015 and repeated each year until 2018 when he achieved more than $2 billion. An award-winning innovator, Caballero is the founder and CEO of HomesUSA.com, Inc., working with more than 60 home builders in Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, Austin and San Antonio. He recently released a podcast series available on iTunes and Google Play. Learn more at HomesUSA.com |Twitter: @bcaballero - @HomesUSA | Facebook: /HomesUSAdotcom.