Oil Prices
By Ryan Casey Stephens, FPQP®Special Contributor Happy birthday, America! Two hundred and forty-seven years ago this week, our founding fathers took a major step in the war against the crown when they ratified the Declaration of Independence. They set in motion a long, complex history that led to each of us living here today. The…
Read MoreTheir clothing and shoes (and jewelry! yes jewelry!) make us happy, but a little doom and gloom is hanging over Neiman Marcus after the retailer’s Tuesday morning earnings call this week. And if you are in the business of pushing luxury products, like million dollar homes or vacation homes, you pay attention. The take-aways: it’s…
Read MoreIn Texas, it’s all about jobs, jobs, jobs. A new report from the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University says that the Texas economy gained 276,400 nonagricultural jobs from June 2014 to June 2015, an annual growth rate of 2.4 percent, compared with 2.1 percent for the United States. Many of the major metropolitan areas in…
Read MoreThe Lone Star State isn’t the same place as it was during the big 1980s oil bust, and is better weathering falling oil prices, but further price plunges and worker layoffs could negatively impact home sales and construction. This is according to new research by Texas A&M Real Estate Center research economist James Gaines, who…
Read MoreWith Western Texas Intermediate oil hovering around $45 a barrel, folks have been speculating about new home construction in Midland-Odessa and how layoffs and budget cuts might affect the spectacular boom of the past few years. But while economists might raise a red flag, local homebuilders say pent-up demand and a more diversified economy are…
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