Dallas Fed Reports On Economy, TREC Names New Leaders

The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas issued its report on the Dallas-Fort Worth economy, The Real Estate Council named its new leaders for 2019, and the Zweig Group tapped a new COO, all in this week’s roundup of real estate news.

HOME PRICES UP, HOME SALES DIP IN DFW, DALLAS FED SAYS

The Dallas-Fort Worth economy expanded at a modest pace, while jobs growth was subdued in November, the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas reported on New Year’s Eve.

“Overall, the DFW economy remains solid, with 2 percent annualized job growth year to date (nearly 68,000 jobs),” the report said. “Home sales fell for the second straight month in November, and inventory ticked up but remains tight. House price appreciation has moderated, particularly in Dallas.”

DFW jobs lag behind last year’s rate by 0.5 points, coming in at a year-to-date employment growth of two percent, and growing by 1,560 jobs in November.

“The November softening in job growth reflects weakness in the service sector,” the report said. “Employment in professional and business services saw a steep decline of 10.7 percent (annualized). Other sectors that fell less sharply in the month were leisure and hospitality, education and health services, and other services.”

Area home prices were up in the 2018 3Q, with new jobs and tight inventories continuing to increase prices.

 

“Prices rose 0.4 percent in Dallas and 0.3 percent in Fort Worth in the third quarter, but gains lagged the state’s 1.1 percent and nation’s 1.3 percent increase, according to the Federal Housing Finance Agency’s house price purchase-only index,” the report said.

Prices were up 4.8 percent in Dallas YOY, behind the state rate of 5.7 percent and the national average of 6.3 percent.

“Conversely, an annual increase of 7.0 percent in Fort Worth is ahead of both the state and national figures,” the Dallas Fed reported.

Existing home sales were down for the second straight month in November, with the three-month moving average also showing a steady decline in existing home sales in the DFW area since the middle of last year.

“Through November, total home sales are trailing those for the same period in 2017 by 2.2 percent, while statewide sales are up 1.8 percent,” the report said. “Rising home prices and higher mortgage rates are likely affecting affordability, and hence, sales activity.”

Homes priced below $200,000 continue to be a hot commodity, and the dearth of them has contributed to a nearly five-year decline in their sales. Inventories in that price range continue to hover around one-and-a-half months.

And tight inventory continues to hamstring home sales in DFW — the region is well below the six month supply that experts say is the hallmark of a balanced market.

“In November, overall inventories edged up to 3.1 months in Dallas and 2.4 months in Fort Worth but remained below the U.S. and Texas levels,” the report said. “Inventories of mid-priced homes ($300,000–$499,999) are also low at 3.7 months but have been gradually moving up since earlier in the year.”

TREC ANNOUNCES NEW SLATE OFFICERS, NEW BOARD MEMBERS

A new slate of officers took the reins at The Real Estate Council in 2019, the organization said last week.

“We appreciate the hard work and dedication of our 2018 leaders throughout the last year and look forward to continuing their efforts in 2019 with our new boards and committees,” the announcement said.

The Executive Committee is led by Chairman Jim Knight, with Stantec. Other officers include:

Past Chairman: Ran Holman, Cushman & Wakefield; Chairman-Elect: Bill Cawley, Cawley Partners; Treasurer: Danny Hertel, KPMG; Secretary: Michael A. Krywucki, Munsch Hardt Kopf & Harr; FightNight Chair: Moody D. Younger, Younger Partners LLC; Giving Gala Chair: Beth Lambert, Cushman & Wakefield; Public Policy Chair: Gerald Dunn, Benchmark Title; PAC Chair: Kevin Bryant, Crow Holdings Capital Partners; Community Fund Chair: Kate Cavanaugh, Stewart Title; Membership Chair: Chad Schieber, The Beck Group; Programs Chair: Brant Brown, Westmount Realty Capital, LLC; Leadership Development Chair: Scott Rohrman, 42 Real Estate, LLC; ALC Chair 2019: John Riggins, Talley-Riggins Construction Group; ALC Chair 2020: Matt Ballard, CBRE; Dallas Catalyst Project Chair: Mike Geisler, Venture Commercial Real Estate, LLC; Leadership Alumni Chair: Emily Henry, Studio Outside; ALC Class Representative: Allison Johnston, Gaedeke Group LLC; and Young Guns Chair: Teddy Leatherman, HFF.
TREC board members include: Joel Behrens, Trammell Crow Company; Katie Bloom, Goldman Sachs; Bill Brokaw, Hillwood Urban; Mike D. Bryant, CBRE; Tom Burns, Deutsche Bank; Lucy P. Burns, Billingsley Company; Mark Buskuhl, HKS; Brian Cramer, Newland Communities; Steve T. Crosson, Integra Realty Resources; Bill Dahlstrom, Jackson Walker L.L.P.; James Dunn, ORIX Real Estate Americas; Colin Fitzgibbons, KDC; Gilbert Gerst, Bank of Texas; Vicky P. Gunning, Locke Lord LLP; Sarah Hinkley, Thirty-Four Commercial, Inc.
Todd C. Howard, t. howard and associates architects, inc.; Dallas Lucas, TIER REIT, Inc.; Ramsey March, Stream Realty Partners; Matt McDonald, Corgan; Geoff A. Meyer, VanTrust Real Estate, LLC; Frank Mihalopoulos, Corinth Properties; Ron Miller, Invesco Real Estate; Jeff Montgomery, Republic Title of Texas, Inc.; Trey Morsbach, HFF; Kevin W. Murry, Regions Bank; Jonathan Napper, Cushman & Wakefield; Doug Nash, The Retail Connection; Courtney Naudo, Deloitte; Rick Perdue, Rosewood Property Company; Peter Read, DPR Construction; Jon Ruff, Spire Realty Group; King Scovell, Woodbine Development Corporation; Jason L. Signor, Caddis Partners; Katy Slade, Mintwood Real Estate; Mary Stoner-Yost, Colliers International; Tobin Swope, Winstead PC; Yelda D. Tuz, Bank of America Merrill Lynch; Todd Watson, Hunt Realty Investments, Inc.; and Paul Wittorf, Transwestern.

For the full slate of new leadership, click here.

ZWEIG GROUP ANNOUNCES COO, OPENING OF SECOND HOUSTON OFFICE

Just three months after opening a Dallas office, architecture, engineering, and construction consultant firm Zweig Group announced that it would open a second Houston office, and that Doug Parker would join the firm as chief operating officer, and would helm that office.

“With the rapid growth of our consulting business, Texas offers a great hiring base for talent and quicker access to our clients across North America from their great airport system,” said Zweig Group president and CEO Chad Clinehens. “Houston is home to a tremendous number of world class AEC design firms and we look forward to developing that network with Doug.”

Parker as worked in the AEC industry for more than 20 years, including stints with the Society for Marketing Professional Services. At Zweig, he will join the ownership team and will also serve on the company’s board of directors.

“I am excited to join Zweig Group and have respected the firm for years as the leading provider of management and marketing resources to the built environment,” said Parker. “Our new mission to elevate the industry is something I am confident this team can do, and I am delighted to be a part of a company that has such high aspirations.”

“Doug has a tremendous network, especially in the marketing realm of the industry, something we place high value on at Zweig Group,” said Clinehens. “Our new mission calls upon us to elevate marketing in the AEC industry and Doug will help us advance this tenet of the mission.”