Healthiest Housing Markets 2009: Fall Update

#2 San Antonio, Texas
Market Health Indicator: 41.2

The recession arrived in San Antonio earlier this year, when employment finally turned negative due to weakness in the manufacturing sector. But with military bases as three of its top four employers, this Texas city may see better employment numbers next year, potentially fueling housing growth.

Housing here remains affordable at a median of $148,000, with prices declining a mere 1.6% during 2009. In addition, San Antonio routinely ranks among the best cities for relocation, and has been gaining population at a rate of 2.8% annually, a trend that continued even this year.

Despite favorable trends, though, San Antonio housing permits have fallen 54% so far this year, and comparisons may wind up even lower before the year is over. A full 72%of the action is in single-family rather than multifamily permits.

Courtesy: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence.

The Healthiest Housing Markets for 2009

4. San Antonio, Texas

2008 total building permits: 10,261

San Antonio is another Texas market that is still adding jobs, about 15,000 last year. A city of more than 2 million people now, its population is also growing, at a 2.8 percent annual clip through the third quarter of last year. Existing home prices are barely declining in San Antonio, down only 1.8 percent in the last year, leaving the median price of an existing single-family home at an affordable $154,400, 25 percent below the national average of $200,500, according to the National Association of Realtors. The upper end of the housing market was hurt recently when AT&T announced it would be moving its corporate headquarters to Dallas.

To read the full report please go to:

http://www.builderonline.com/find-articles.aspx?byline=Boyce%20Thompson