Local December sales mirror yearlong trend

By Landan Kuhlmann landan@theleadernews.com

As 2022 wound to a close, the home sales market in local areas ended the year with a similar result as has been a nearly yearlong trend of down turning home sales across the region.

According to the most recent data released by the Houston Association of Realtors, year-over-year December home sales declined by figures ranging from 15 percent to as much as 63 percent across all but one (77092) six zip codes served by The Leader. It was largely a similar trend in year-end results, with only a single zip code (77091) coming out ahead of its 2021 sales figure.

On the pricing front, year-overyear December sales prices were up across the area save for the Central Northwest and Garden Oaks/ Oak Forest areas (77008), while year-end sales prices wound up outpacing their 2021 marks in all six local zip codes.

77018

In the zip code encompassing Garden Oaks/Oak Forest, Shepherd Park Plaza, and much of Central Northwest, it was a tough end to a tough year. Year-over-year December home sales dropped 54.3 percent last month, with 37 homes coming off the market compared to 81 the previous December. On the whole, the 726 sales here this year was down 25.2 percent from its mark of 970 sales in 2021.

Pricing-wise, average price went up 1.1 percent to $559,087 yearover-year, and the median December price spiked 26.8 percent up to $535,368. For the year, average price for a home rose 12.3 percent ($595,216) compared to 2021, while median home price was up 13.3 percent to $483,473.

77091

Just to the north, the zip code which includes Acres Homes and Greater Inwood along with part of the Northside area saw its home sales dip from 20 sales in December 2021 to 17 in the area last month – a 15 percent downturn. Despite that, however, it was a banner year for the area as a whole with 342 homes sold – representing a 26.2 percent increase from its 271 sales in 2021.

On a pricing front, December average sales prices jumped 18.2 percent here up to $335,328 while median price jumped 9.4 percent year-over-year to $339,000. As a whole, the average price of a home here went up 15.5 percent ($321,906) while median price figure jumped 17.5 percent to $334,888.

77092

On the western edge of the area, the zip code including the rest of

Central Northwest plus Langwood and Kempwood was the only local market to see a year-over-year rise in home sales – albeit very slight, with 26 sales in the area last month compared to 24 in December 2021. Despite that, however, its 291 sales last year was a 7.9 percent downturn from its 2021 figure of 342 sales.

Average cost of a home in December jumped 5.1 percent yearover-year ($317,324), while median December price was down 3.9 per- cent to $301,000 year-over-year. Home prices in this area remained largely the same as last year, with average price rising 1.8 percent ($340,866) and median price going up 0.2 percent to $320,000.

77008

Down in the Greater Heights, it was a tough ending to the year. There were 60 homes sold in this zip code last month, as opposed to the 115 sales in December 2021. On the whole, its 1,028 sales for the year represented a 22.9 percent downturn from its 2021 mark of 1,333.

Pricing wise, the year-over-year December average home price dipped 2 percent to $666,176, while December median price was down 3.3 percent to $551,250. The average buyer paid 8.9 percent more ($675,341) for a home here in 2022 compared to 2021, while year-end median sales price jumped 8.6 percent to $570,000.

77009

On the eastern edge of the Heights and part of Near Northside, December home sales dipped massively with just 31 home sales – a 43.6 percent year-over-year downturn compared to the 55 homes sold in 2021. This zip code was another lagging behind its previous year’s pace, with its 564 sales representing 17.2 percent dip from its 681 sales in 2021.

With regards to pricing, this area saw its average December home price rise 3.8 percent up to $532,077 and its median price spike 7.6 percent to $479,000. For the year, an average buyer paid 12.4 percent more ($570,891) for a house compared to 2021, while the median figure was up 6.6 percent to $470,000.

77007

In the southernmost neighborhood of The Leader’s coverage area, the zip code including Rice Military and Washington Avenue saw the largest percentage downturn in year-over-year December sales. Agents closed on 35 homes here last month, a sharp 63.5 percent dip compared to selling 96 homes in the same month last year. This zip code had 814 houses come off the market for the year, down 25 percent from its 1,086 sold in 2021.

Accompanying the sales dip was a massive spike in home prices in the area, with year-over-year December average prices spiking 45.2 percent to $772,529 and median home price figures jumping 27.7 percent up to $590,000. The average buyer spent 12.6 percent more ($663,303) to purchase a home compared to 2021, while the yearend median price was up 12.1 percent ($532,600) compared to last year.