By Sara Martin
THE ERICKSON TRIBUNE

Thinking of selling your home but afraid of current market conditions? You’ve got one less thing to worry about.

Due in part to a strong local economy and job growth rate, single-family home prices in the Houston area appreciated 4.5% over a 12-month period ending in October 2007, according to the First American LoanPerformance Home Price Index, a leading source in residential mortgage data and analytics.

“Houston is in much better shape than other parts of the country where home prices soared rapidly and then fell just as dramatically,” says industry analyst Mike Inselmann, president of the Houston-based housing market research and development firm, Metrostudy.

Houston has the edge
Nationwide, home prices fell in 21 states last year, plunging as much as 25% in former hot spots like Florida and California.

That leaves home owners in those parts of the country anxiously watching and waiting for the market to improve before putting their houses up for sale. Such is not the case for home owners in the Lone Star State.

In fact, Inselmann predicts Houston could lead the market in home sales for 2008. Land availability and affordable home prices give Houston an edge over other cities in the nation.

“While we’re not immune to changes in the mortgage industry, Texas is going to fare much better than other parts of the U.S. We didn’t have the big blow up, the bubble,” says Jim Gaines, a research economist with the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University.

Gaines anticipates a modest sales price increase in 2008, combined with a slight drop in new home construction. For those thinking of putting their houses on the market, this is an excellent time to sell.

Ready for a rapid sale
James and Naomi Watson, residents of Eagle’s Trace for the past four months, decided to put their home on the market last fall. They asked their son-in-law, a Realtor, to list their house in west Houston. Two days later, it sold.