DALLAS, Feb. 18, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- New homes in Texas hit a record sales pace in January, selling faster than any other month since HomesUSA.com released its New Home Sales Index nearly four years ago. Based on a 12-month moving average, the Days on Market for new homes in Texas fell to 92.09 days last month versus 107.04 days in January 2020. In February 2017, the statewide average DOM HomesUSA.com reported was 122.28 days.
Dallas-Ft. Worth, Houston, Austin, and San Antonio all reported fewer Days on Market for new homes sold in January as demand for new homes continues and inventory tightens. Total new home sales in Texas hit their highest level in the last 12 months, with a 12-month moving average of 4,571 sales reported statewide.
The HomesUSA.com new homes report uses data from the North Texas Real Estate Information Systems, Houston Association of REALTORS, Austin Board of REALTORS Multiple Listing Services, and San Antonio Board of REALTORS.
“Builders are selling new homes at a faster pace than ever remembered, and some builders are limiting their monthly release of homes they can sell,” said Ben Caballero, owner of HomesUSA.com and a current Guinness World Record titleholder, who has personally sold more than $15 billion in new homes since 2004. “The phenomenal demand for new homes in Texas is so high that builders are struggling to keep up.”
Caballero notes that in January, two leading indicators – active listings and pending sales – declined, based on a 12-month moving average. January’s pending sales fell to 5,477 versus 5,725 in December. The 3-month moving average for Pending Sales in Texas, which captures market seasonality, dropped in January to 3,947 versus 5,434 in December.
Active listings told the same story, as they also declined statewide last month to 21,339 versus 21,872 in December. Dallas-Ft. Worth, Houston, Austin, and San Antonio all reported a decline in active listings and pending new home sales in January.
New home prices statewide rose again in January rose to $360,573 versus $358,928 in December, based on the 12-month moving average. The average price of new homes was higher in all major markets of Dallas-Ft. Worth, Houston, Austin, and San Antonio.
Caballero points out the monthly HomesUSA.com new homes report includes the 3-month moving averages of essential market data, including Days on Market, sales volume, sales prices, a sales-to-list price ratio, pending sales, and active listings.
"The 3-month index tracks market seasonality while the 12-month moving average removes the seasonality and tracks the longer trend, together, they are a good indicator of future market direction," Caballero explained.
Caballero is sharing the HomesUSA.com New Homes Report in advance of the release by the Commerce Department of its nationwide New Residential Sales report for January set for Wednesday, February 24, at 10:00 am Eastern.
Days on Market – New Homes in Texas (Exclusive Data)
The HomesUSA.com New Home Sales Index showed the average Days on Market dropped for new home sales in Dallas-Ft. Worth, Houston, Austin, and San Antonio. The DOM for Dallas-Ft. Worth was 86.94 days in January versus 89.35 days in December. In Houston, the DOM was 104.14 days in January versus 106.45 days in December. Austin's DOM was 81.84 days in January versus 85.30 days in December. In San Antonio, the DOM was 87.93 days in January versus 89.05 days in December. (See Chart 1: Texas New Homes Days on Market)
Texas New Home Sales Data
New home sales were higher in all four major Texas new home markets, according to the 12-month moving averages. In Dallas-Ft. Worth, January sales totaled 1,598 versus 1,593 in December. Houston posted January sales totaling 1,552 versus 1,546 in December, while Austin’s January sales were up, totaling 758 versus 755 in December. In San Antonio, January sales totaled 664 versus 656 in December. (See Chart 2: Texas New Home Sales)
Texas New Home Prices
In all four of the state’s biggest new homes markets – Dallas-Ft. Worth, Houston, Austin, and San Antonio – the 12-month moving average price was higher. Dallas-Ft. Worth reported its average price for new homes was $375,716 in January versus $373,360 in December. In Houston, the average new home price was $349,562 in January versus $348,789 in December. Austin's average price was $403,807 in January versus $400,650 in December. In San Antonio, the average price was $300,636 in January versus $299,873 in December. (See Chart 3: Texas New Home Prices)
Texas Sales-to-List Price Ratio
Home buyers continue to purchase new homes close to the asking price last month. The 12-month moving average of the January sales-to-list price ratio for new homes in Texas was 98.299 percent of the asking price versus 98.253 percent in December. In Dallas-Ft. Worth, it was 98.217 percent in January versus 98.155 percent in December. In Houston, it was 97.993 percent in January versus 97.947 percent in December. The Austin ratio was 98.997 percent in January versus 98.943 percent in December, and San Antonio's ratio was 98.419 percent last month versus 98.437 percent in December. (See Chart 4: Texas Sales-to-List Price Ratio)
Texas Pending New Homes Sales Data
The 12-month moving average for pending new home sales fell last month, and all of the state's top new home markets reported a decline in pending sales, based on 12-month moving averages. In Dallas-Ft. Worth, last month’s pending sales were 1,842 versus 1,950 in December. In Houston, January's pending sales were 1,779 versus 1,867 in December. In Austin, it was 1,014 in January versus 1,048 in December, and in San Antonio, it was 812 last month versus 860 in December. (See Chart 5: Texas Pending New Home Sales)
Texas Active Listings for New Homes
The 12-month moving average for active new home sale listings continued to decline in January. Dallas-Ft. Worth reported 6,501 last month versus 6,640 in December, and in Houston, last month’s active listings were 8,168 versus 8,279 in December. In Austin, it was 3,132 in January versus 3,287 in December. San Antonio reported 3,538 active new home listings last month versus 3,666 in December. (See Chart 6: Texas Pending New Home Sales)
About the HomesUSA.com New Home Sales Index
The HomesUSA.com Index is a 12-month moving 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, it is the first Days on Market index to track Texas's new home market.
About Ben Caballero and HomesUSA.com®
Ben Caballero, founder and CEO of HomesUSA.com, holds the current Guinness World Record title for “Most annual home sale transactions through MLS by an individual sell side real estate agent.” Ranked by REAL Trends as America’s top real estate agent for home sales since 2013, Ben is the most productive real estate agent in U.S. history. He is 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 through 2018, when he achieved more than $2 billion. An award-winning innovator and technology pioneer, Ben works with more than 60 home builders in Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, Austin, and San Antonio. His podcast series is available on iTunes and Google Podcasts. An infographic illustrating Ben’s sales production is here. Learn more at HomesUSA.com |Twitter: @bcaballero - @HomesUSA | Facebook: /HomesUSAdotcom.
Note for journalists: You may contact Ben Caballero directly on his cell at (214) 616-9222 or by email at ben@homesusa.com.
"REALTOR® is a federally registered collective membership mark which identifies a real estate professional who is member of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® and subscribes to its strict Code of Ethics."
Media Contact:
Kevin Hawkins
(206) 866-1220
kevin@wavgroup.com
Image: Ben Caballero
https://www.homesusa.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/Ben-Caballero-Portrait-Grey-4288x2848.jpg
Individual Chart images:
Chart 1: Texas New Homes Tracking - Days on Market – January 2021: https://homesusa.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Chart-1-Texas-Days-on-Market.jpg
Chart 2: Texas New Home Sales – January 2021: https://homesusa.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Chart-2-Texas-New-Home-Sales.jpg
Chart 3: Texas New Home Sales Prices – January 2021: https://homesusa.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Chart-3-Texas-New-Home-Sales-Prices.jpg
Chart 4: Texas Sales-to-List-Price Ratio – January 2021: https://homesusa.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Chart-4-Texas-Sales-to-List-Price-Ratio.jpg
Chart 5: Texas Pending New Home Sales – January 2021: https://homesusa.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Chart-5-Texas-Pending-New-Home-Sales.jpg
Chart 6: Texas Active Listings for New Homes – January 2021: https://homesusa.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Chart-6-Texas-Active-Listings.jpg
Chart 7: Texas 3-Month Rolling Averages – New Homes – January 2021: https://homesusa.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/Chart-7-3MonthChart-DataOnly.jpg