March 13, 2023
https://www.bizjournals.com/houston/news/2023/03/13/despite-sales-dip-luxe-sales-grows.html
Despite home sales slipping, luxury real estate sales gain slight bump in 2022
By: Brianna GriffWhile single-family overall sales dipped in 2022, Houston's luxury real estate market saw a slight increase in transactions with an average sell price of $1.6 million, about $30,000 more than the previous year, per HAR data pulled for the Houston Business Journal.
The luxury market bucked the overall home sales trend in Houston. After two years of skyrocketing sales, Houston's thriving real estate market saw a slump in 2022 due to a combination of low affordable home inventory and the Federal Reserve's continuous raising of interest rates to stave off inflation. The 2022 market dropped 10.9% compared to 2021 in single-
family home transactions, according to the Houston Association of REALTORS' December/FullYear 2022 Housing Market Update.
Luxury homes, on the other hand, saw a steady stream of sales. That includes the home at 120 Carnarvon Drive, the reportedly record-breaking listing that sold for more than $20 million.
"Luxury sales in coveted neighborhoods, like River Oaks, remained solid last year and I expect this trend will continue for the immediate future," said Laura Sweeney of Compass Real Estate via email and HBJ's No. 1 luxury real estate agent. "Astute luxury buyers are always ready to move quickly when legacy properties come on the market."
Sales are steady in luxury, but time will tell if 2023 will experience a housing shortage in the bigger ticket listings. The National Association of Home Builders' data indicates that singlefamily building permits declined 12.5% year-over-year. The Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land market issued the highest number of permits across the country, but it still endured a 9% decrease in December from the previous year.
Construction on speculative "spec" houses has also slowed, said Jennifer Hamelet of Houston-based Mirador Builders.
"We're not seeing any retreat right now on labor and material cost," she said.
That may be true, but one of Hamelet's own spec homes sold last October after the first showing, lasting only four days on the market.
"It's not like buyers are just sitting on the sidelines," said Harris Benson, a broker associate with Douglas Elliman. "If there's a beautiful house that's well designed that fits the needs of what they're looking for, it's going to transact. I'm very confident in the market."
