Keller Williams Realty's vice chairman, Mo Anderson has been selected by the Council of Real Estate Brokerage Managers (CRB) as 2008's inductee into their Hall of Leaders.

The Hall of Leaders recognizes brokerage professionals who significantly shape and influence both the local and the national real estate market.

“Mo’s success is not by accident or luck. Passion, leadership and innovative vision are just a few of many characteristics that make her a respected industry leader. Her generosity of time and talent have enhanced the profession and her community. We are so pleased to honor her with this prestigious award,” says Ginny Shipe, CAE, chief executive officer of the Council of Real Estate Brokerage Managers. “Mo has absolutely demonstrated that leadership is about action not position.”

Both single-family home sales and leased property in Central Texas have reached their highest point this year to date, according to statistics released mid-July by the Austin Board of Realtors Multiple Listing Service (MLS).

"Austin remains one of the best cities to become a homeowner," said ABoR Chairman Socar Chatmon-Thomas. "Locally, our homes are holding their value and the average mortgage payment is not much higher than renting."

Last month 2,211 single-family homes were sold, with their median price rising four percent to $200,000. These homes spent an average of 65 days on the market and contributed $577,471,191 to the economy. There were 10,886 active listings in June.

Leased property rose two percent since last year to total 1,146. With a median price of $1,250, these properties contributed $1,541,370 to the Austin-area economy, a nine percent increase from June 2007.

Source: Austin Board of Realtors

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Land sales in Texas had a banner year in Texas for 2007, primarily driven by sales in small- to medium-sized properties.

"The 2007 market saw a pronounced shift away from larger properties," said Dr. Charles Gilliland, a research economist with the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University. "The size of tract per transaction dropped precipitously to 80 acres compared with 98 acres in 2006."

Gilliland said markets have hovered in the 100-acre range for the past five years, and 140-acre tracts were the norm about ten years ago.

"The 80-acre tract size per transaction sets a new low for Texas land markets," he said.

But while tract sizes shrank, prices did not.

Sales prices increased 20 percent, nearly matching the stratospheric 23 percent posted in 2006. At $2,190 per acre, the 2007 statewide price topped $2,000 per acre for the first time. The 2006 price was $1,825 per acre.
Gilliland said the recent surge in commodity prices has many investors anticipating strong earnings from farming well into the future, so they see cropland as a viable investment option.

"It's a safe haven for their investment dollars," he said. "These investors are competing with farmers flush with cash from good crops, and the result is higher prices for cropland."

In addition, the falling U.S. dollar has made land prices even more attractive to foreign investors.

Source: Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University

The Texas economy continues to create more jobs albeit at decreasing rates while the nation's labor market is losing jobs. Texas nonfarm employment rose 2.3 percent from June 2007 to June 2008 compared with a 0.1 percent decrease for the United States.

The state's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rose from 4.3 percent in June 2007 to 4.4 percent in June 2008.

Driven by higher oil prices, the state's mining industry ranked first in job creation, followed by professional and business services, leisure and hospitality, construction, and education and health services industry.

All Texas metros experienced positive employment growth rates from June 2007 to June 2008. Smaller metro areas posted the highest employment growth rates. Longview ranked first in job creation followed by McAllen-Edinburgh-Mission, Odessa, College Station–Bryan, and Killeen–Temple–Fort Hood.

The state's actual unemployment rate in June 2008 was 4.8 percent. Midland had the lowest unemployment rate, followed by Amarillo, Odessa, Abilene, San Angelo and Victoria.

Source: Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University

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