in this issue…
Putting a Face on Real Estate since 1995™
• ABoR/HBA Housing Forecast • WCAoR TREPAC Bowling Tourney •AMBA Luncheon • WCR Monthly Luncheon • AYREP 2012 Kick Off Event • and much, much more!
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Associates in Progress
Housing Forecast
page 27
page 11 TM
FEBRUARY 2012 • VOLUME 16 • ISSUE 10
Experts forecast 2012 to look similar to 2011 by Stacy Hale
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n Jan. 12, the Home Builders Association (HBA) of Greater Austin and the Austin Board of REALTORS
(ABoR) co-hosted the fourth Annual Housing Forecast, the only comprehensive housing forecast in the Austin region. Nearly 750 people were present to hear that the Austin market saw an improvement with increased demand and positive job growth in 2011, which is expected to increase this year—with
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Speakers at the event included Eldon Rude, director of the Austin market for Metrostudy, the nation’s leading provider of primary and secondary housing market information; Dr. Greg Hallman, senior lecturer in finance and real estate finance at The University of Texas’ McCombs School of Business; and KXAN’s Chief Weathercaster Jim Spencer. Many attendees were impressed with the frankness of the speakers and the data presented, including Terry Godbold of Reliable Property Management (and ABoR’s regional water issues subcommittee chairperson), who says, “It appeared that they ‘told it like it is’, particularly in Jim Spencer’s presentation.” Spencer looked back at last year’s extreme weather pattern, particularly the drought, and provided a forecast for the coming year.
Sept. 2010 was the last time Central Texas saw significant rain, which ended with the arrival of La Nina in late fall. Now after the hottest summer on record, lakes are at record lows and several subdivisions have less than a six-month supply of water in reserve. According to the National Weather Service’s Climate Prediction Center, the drought is expected to persist through at least March of this year. “If the spring proves to be as dry, Central Texas may be looking at another excessively hot summer,” Spencer warns. This is not great news during a time when the area’s population is increasing, as population growth would create greater demand for water and put a strain on supply. According to a report released by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), we can expect more frequent extreme
Efforts to reverse sprinkler requirement for new homes built in Westlake derailed
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espite the efforts of the Home Builders Association (HBA) of Greater Austin to have a residential fire sprinkler requirement rolled back, the Westlake Fire Department is moving forward. The policy, enacted in 2007, requires fire sprinkler systems in all new homes and some remodels built within the Travis County Emergency Services District (ESD) No. 9. According to the HBA, requiring residential fire sprinklers increases the price of new homes, thereby reducing affordability for many buyers. On Jan. 24, the Westlake Fire Department staff was directed to work with Travis County’s Transportation and
Natural Resources (TNR) Department to inform builders building within the district. The HBA worked for several months to educate the ESD No. 9 board on the lack of notification procedures. The possibility the requirement may grow to other communities is real. The mayor of the City of Westlake Hills favors the requirement and intends to lobby the Legislature for statewide implementation. Builders who think they may be working on a project subject to the requirement should go to www.traviscad. org/property_search.html to determine if it is being taxed by ESD No. 9. RL
weather events over the next century, even as the Texas population is projected to double during that timeframe. But the good news is that it is possible to recover from a drought with one good rain. Even during the greatest drought on record, there were several rainy periods, and it is expected that our current extended drought will be no different, even if it lasts for years. “In short,” Spencer adds, “the adage, ‘If you don’t like the weather in Texas, wait five minutes’ really can still apply.” Dr. Greg Hallman expressed caution about the national forecast, stating that there is still quite a bit of slack in the economy due
Front Page: Continued on page 18
Upcoming Events Thursday, February 23 WCR District A and Business Resource Meeting - Hyatt Regency Town Lake 1:30 to 4 p.m. Thursday, February 28 HBA Networking Social Ferguson Bath, Kitchen & Lighting Gallery 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 6 HBA Lakeway/Bee Cave Chapter Fore @ 900 RR 620 S - 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Thursday, March 15 NARI General Membership Meeting Dave and Busters - 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Wednesday, March 21 NAHREP Monthly Luncheon Cool River Café - 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. More at www.myRealtyLine.com