2006 YTD Review of the Market for Houston and surrounding areas:

Houston Overall Statistics YTD February 2006
> Single-family home sales are up by 13% in sold units over February YTD 2005 sales with 8,276 MLS recorded sold units,
> Dollar volume sold in MLS through February YTD 2006 is $1,540,532,320 which is a 21% increase in dollar volume sold over last year.
> Average sales price YTD is $186,145 or 6% greater than this time last year.
> Active listings are down by 2% with 28,535 single-family homes on the market.
> Contracts written, which represent February YTD buyer demand in Houston are up 17% over this time last year with 7,172 homes that have gone under contract.
> Average sales price per square foot is $83, which is 5% greater than last year.
> Days on the Market, a statistic that is good if it is declining, has gone down by 3% since last year and the average time to sell a home in Houston is 88 days.
> With sales and contracts pending on the upswing in the first two months of the year, and active listings and days on the market on the decline, home price appreciation, even in single digit denominations, is a high probability.


Bear Creek – Area 8

· Sales have experienced a healthy increase in the Bear Creek Market area over YTD February 2005 by 18% with 342 MLS recorded home sales!
· Listings are DOWN in the Bear Creek Market area by 10% over this time last year with 1,070 homes listed and on the market.
· Contracts pending are up by 40 units with 283 homes receiving contracts YTD through February 2006. Contracts February YTD last year registered at 243.
· Average sales price is also higher than last years’ average sales price and currently stands at $164,329, an increase of 9%. Last year, average sales price was $150,432..
· The Bear Creek Market area currently has 4.6 months of inventory, which is a considerable improvement in supply. Last year, the Bear Creek Market had 5.4 months of inventory,
· In February 2006, 14% of all listings in the Bear Creek area received a contract during the month, according to the Houston Hotness Index!


Clear Lake Area 7

> Clear Lake single-family home sales have declined by 8 units over February YTD 2005 with 288 homes sold in 2006 as compared to 296 last year.
> Contracts written and pending to close year-to-date are 10 units ahead of last year for a total of 227 MLS recorded pending sales.
> Homes listed and on the market in Clear Lake are up by 3% from this time last year with 759 single-family homes on the market today as compared to 737 last year.
> Clear Lake’s Average sales price is up by 1.7% and currently stands at $170,473, as compared to $167,644 last year during the same time frame.
> Days on the market register at 87, which represents an increase of 6-days longer on the market to sell a home than last year.
> Clear Lake was ranked #9 on the February Houston Hotness Index because 14.9% of all its’ listings went under contract during that one month!


Champions / Spring Area 13

· Sales have increased dramatically in the Champions / Spring Market area over YTD February 2005 by 38% with 420 MLS recorded home sales!
· Listings are DOWN in the Champions / Spring Market area by 13% over this time last year with 1,386 homes listed and on the market.
· Contracts pending are up by 8% with 365 homes receiving contracts YTD through February 2006. Contracts pending YTD February last year registered at 337.
· Average sales price is also higher than last years’ average sales price and currently stands at $166,813 representing an increase of 3.6% Last year, average sales price was $161,045.
· The Champions Market area currently has 5 months of inventory. Last year, the Champions Market had 6.6 months of inventory, which is a considerable improvement in supply.
· In February 2006, 13% of all listings in the Champions area received a contract during the month, according to the Houston Hotness Index!


Conroe – Montgomery County NW – Area 39

· Sales are up by 23% in NW Montgomery County from this time last year over February 2006 with 175 homes sales recorded in MLS as compared to 142 last year.
· Contracts written year-to-date are up 33% with 164 recorded pending contracts year-to-date as opposed to 123 last year.
· Listings are down over this time last year by 3.6%. There are currently 912 homes on the market in the area.
· Average sales price is up over last year [20%] and currently stands at $229,017.
· The area has 7.7 months of inventory as compared to 8.8 last year, which is an improvement in home supply. The average price per square foot is $96 and days to sell a home are 116, which is down from last years’ 137.
· The Houston Hotness Index indicates that the Conroe area sold 9.3% of its supply in the month of February.

East / Woodforest Area 2

· Sales are up in the East by 10% over February 2006 with 306 homes sales recorded in MLS as compared to 278 last year.
· Contracts written year-to-date are up by 7% or a total of 308 units recorded in MLS as pending contracts in YTD February 2006 as opposed to 287 last year.
· Listings are up over this time last year by 29 units or 3.2%. There are currently 1,077 homes on the market in the area.
· Average sales price is up over last year [3%] and currently stands at $94,542.
· The area has 5.6 months of inventory, the same as last year. The average price per square foot is $57 and days on market to sell a home are 86, which is down from last years’ 85.


Fort Bend Sugar Land Z 29

> Sugar Land has experienced a 15% increase in single-family home sales over YTD February 2005 with 243 home sales as compared to 211 home sales last year.
> Contracts written in Sugar Land are down by 1 unit with 170 units pending to close.
> Sugar Land’s average sales price is up by 7% over February 2005 and now stands at $216,123 as compared to last year’s $202,251.
> Sugar Land homes on the market are down by 31% with 526 homes on the market as compared to last year’s 687.
> There are 3.1 months of inventory in Sugar Land as compared to last year’s 4 months of inventory, and that makes for a very healthy seller’s market. It takes 69 days on average to sell a home in Sugar Land whereas last year, it took 72.
> Sugar Land area [Z29] ranked Number 8 on the Houston Hotness Index in February, with 15.4% of its listings receiving a contract during the month.
> Sugar Land will continue to heat up throughout the Spring and Summer! It is a great time to sell your home in Sugar Land with increased average sales price, higher home sales and a higher average sales price! The year 2006 may prove to be Sugar Land’s grandest year in single-family home sales!

Fort Bend Missouri City Z 38

> Missouri City has experienced the exact same number of home sales YTD February 2006 as it did in 2005 with 230 home sales recorded in the Houston Association of Realtors® Multiple Listing Service.
> Contracts written in Missouri City are up by 26 units in comparison to YTD February 2005 with 210 units pending to close.
> Missouri City’s average sales price jumped up 16% over year-to-date February 2005 and now stands at $169,400 as compared to last year’s $145,634.
> Missouri City homes on the market are up by 9% with 800 homes on the market as compared to last year’s 736.
> There are 5.4 months of inventory in Missouri City as compared to last year’s 5.0, and that still makes a healthy seller’s market. It takes 80 days on average to sell a home in Missouri City whereas last year, it took 83.
> According to the February Houston Hotness Index, the Missouri City area [Z38] had 14.5% of all listings receive contracts during the month.
> With Missouri City’s increase in contracts pending YTD through February, and its jump in average sales price, you can expect the market to outpace last year’s market and last year was a very good year.

Fort Bend West Area 37

> Single family home sales in the West Fort Bend area are up by 21% over YTD February 2005, with 245 recorded home sales YTD.
> Contracts initiated YTD February 2006 are also up by 13%, or 204 units and that indicates that demand is rising for the area.
> Listings are down by 3.4% in the Fort Bend West area with 788 listings currently on the market in comparison to 815 last year.
> Average sales price for the Fort Bend West area has risen by 2.5% over YTD February 2005 and is currently $172,598.
> The Fort Bend West area currently has 4.6 Months of Inventory, meaning if no other listings were taken, it would take 4.6 months to deplete the current supply of homes. Last year, there was 6 months of inventory, so the speed of sales and supply of inventory is far more in synchronization with a seller’s market.
> According to the MLS Houston Hotness Index for February, Fort Bend West had 13.9% of all of its inventory go under contract during the month. The list price/sales price ratio of homes in the area is 98% [meaning that on average, a seller could expect a reasonably priced home to sell for 98% of the list price]. Average price per square foot in the area is $72.


Fort Bend Southwest Area 30

> Single family home sales in the Southwest Fort Bend area are up by 18% over YTD February 2005, with 167 recorded home sales YTD.
> Contracts initiated YTD February 2006 are also up by 11%, or 129 units and that indicates that demand is rising for the area.
> Listings are down by 4.5% in the Fort Bend Southwest area with 546 listings currently on the market in comparison to 571 last year.
> Average sales price for the Fort Bend Southwest area is down only slightly by 2% over YTD February 2005 and is currently $187,507.
> The Fort Bend Southwest area currently has 5.1 Months of Inventory, meaning if no other listings were taken, it would take 5.1 months to deplete the current supply of homes. Last year, there were 5.8 months of inventory, so the speed of sales and dwindling supply of inventory is far more in synchronization with a seller’s market.
> According to the MLS Houston Hotness Index for February, Fort Bend Southwest had 14.4% of all inventory go under contract during the month of February.
> The list price/sales price ratio of homes in the area is 97% [meaning a seller could expect a reasonably priced home to sell for 97% of the list price]. Average price per square foot in the area is $74.

Katy / Cinco Ranch Area 36
• The Katy/Cinco Ranch Area was Number 1 on the Houston Hotness Index for February 2006! 20.1% of all active listings went under contract.
• The area has experienced 329 homes sales YTD or a 15.4% increase over Feb. YTD 2005.
• There has been a 13.6% increase in average sales price, which currently stands at $226,527.
• The Katy / Cinco Ranch area has experienced an 11.9% increase in pending sales for a total of 271 YTD.
• There is a rather large shortage of homes on the market as the area experienced a 25% decline in homes on the market. There are currently 766 homes on the market.
• The market has 3.2 months supply of inventory, which indicates an appreciating market, as opposed to 5.1 months of inventory last year.
• Real estate markets don’t get any better than this in Houston!

Galveston County Area 33

> Single-family home sales in Galveston County were up 17% in February 2006 over the previous February with 476 home sales recorded in the Houston MLS year to date. There were 403 closed home sales last year during the same time frame.
> Pending contracts recorded YTD February 2006 were up by 18% compared to last year. Pending units recorded year-to-date currently stand at 411 units whereas last year, pending units were 352.
> Galveston Homes on the Market reached the 2,018 mark in February 2006 and are up by 27% over last year, where inventory was 1590.
> Galveston County’s average sales price is $165,289 and that figure is up by 11% over last year.
> Galveston County currently has 6.8 months of inventory. Last year, Months of inventory was 5.9. Days on the market [DOM] to sell a home in Galveston County is currently 78 and that is less than last year’s 88 DOM.
> While Galveston County has experienced a great market, a 27% rise in inventory with an 18% increase in sales, indicates that listings should be precision priced at its current 97% list price/sales price ratio or higher.

Hempstead East Area 10

> Single-family home sales are down by only 2 units in the East Hempstead area over YTD February 2005 with 310 home sales recorded in MLS year to date. There were 312 single-family home sales last year during the same time frame.
> Pending contracts displayed an increase over YTD February 2005 by 5.5%. Pending units recorded year-to-date currently stand at 251 whereas last year, pending units were at 238.
> Hempstead East Homes on the Market are down by 14% over last year. There are currently 1,006 homes on the market as compared to 1,148 last year.
> The average sales price is $177,948 and that figure is just slightly higher than last year’s $177,867.
> The area is mirroring a seller’s market with 4.5 months of inventory. Last year, Months of inventory was still indicative of a sellers’ market with 5.3 months of inventory. Days on the market to sell a home in the Hempstead East area are currently 94, and last year, it was 93.
> In February 2006, the Hempstead East area made the Houston Hotness Index because 11.8% of all listings went under contract during the month of February.


Kingwood Area 32

> Single-family home sales are up in Kingwood over February 2005 by 42 units or 34% with 165 home sales recorded in MLS year to date compared to 123 closed last year during the same time frame.
> Pending contracts really displayed an increase over February 2005 by experiencing a 55% increase in February 2006. Pending units recorded year-to-date currently stand at 141 whereas last year, pending units were at 91.
> Kingwood Homes on the Market are down by 28% over last year. There are currently 413 homes on the market in Kingwood as compared to 529 last year.
> Kingwood average sales price is $208,823 and that figure is up by 8% over last year.
> Kingwood represents a seller’s market with 3.8 months of inventory. Last year, Months of inventory were 5.5. Days on the market to sell a home in Kingwood are currently at 81 days, and last year, it was 101.
> In February 2006, Kingwood was #2 on the Houston Hotness Index because it experienced 17.4% of all listings go under contract during that one month.

Southwest Inner Loop Z 17

> Single-family home sales have declined in the Inner Loop from YTD February 2005 by 4 units with 126 homes sales recorded in Houston MLS February 2006.
> Pending contracts, which represent buyer demand year-to-date, has experienced a decline of 10 units. Pending contracts currently stand at 73 pending sales and last year, it experienced 83 pending contracts.
> Listings have declined from this time last year by 5% and the current inventory stands at 436 homes on the market.
> Average sales price has risen by 6% since this time last year and average sales price is currently $537,472.
> The average price per square foot in the SW Inner Loop is $189 and last year the average was $178.
> Homes listed in the SW Inner Loop can expect to net 98% of the list price on average and sell on average after 87 days on the market.

Tomball Area 35

> Single-family home sales have increased in Tomball from February YTD 2005 by 12 units with 135 homes sales recorded in Houston MLS February 2006.
> Pending contracts, which represent buyer demand year-to-date, has experienced an increase of 10 units. Pending contracts currently stand at 137 pending sales and last year, it experienced 127 pending contracts. This represents an increase of 8%.
> Listings have declined from this time last year by 6% and the current inventory stands at 593 homes on the market.
> Average sales price has risen by 10% since this time last year and is currently $192,028.
The average price per square foot in the Tomball area is $75 and last year the average was $69.
Homes listed in the Tomball area can expect to net 97% of the list price on average and sell on average after 87 days on the market.
> The Tomball market is increasing in sales and tightening in supply of homes. With the average days on the market being reduced so dramatically, from 107 days in February 2005 to 87 in February 2006, the pendulum has swung to a sellers’ market.


West Center Inner Loop Area 16

> Sales are up in the West Center Inner Loop from February YTD 2005 over February YTD 2006 and currently 110 homes have been sold as compared to 93 last year.
> Contracts written, a better indicator of buyer demand, are up by 17% from this time last year with 70 homes receiving contracts year-to-date.
> Listings in the West Center Inner Loop currently stand at 457 units and that figure is up from February 2005 by 32 units, or 7.5%.
> Average sales price is down by 8.6% from this time last year and is currently $449,711.
> Homes in the West Center Inner Loop sell on the average of $191 a sq. ft and last year that figure was the same. Homes that sell in the area can expect to render an average of 96% of the selling price and take approximately 75 days to sell.
> There are 7.1 months of inventory in the area. The West Center Inner Loop Area is a balanced market leaning more favorably toward the buyer.

The Woodlands Area 15


> Single-family home sales in The Woodlands are up by 38 units from this time last year or 9% with 477 home sales recorded.
> Contracts written, a better indicator of “future demand”, show 432 pending sales have been written year-to-date. That is a 58-unit increase over that which was written in February YTD 2005.
> Listings in The Woodlands are down by 24.4% with 1,508 homes on the market registered in February 2006 as compared to 1,876 in February 2005.
> Average sales price in The Woodlands is $246,956, which is 12.5% greater than February YTD 2005, which averaged $219,486.
> The Woodlands has a 4.4-month supply of inventory, which indicates the area is in a seller’s market. Days on the market to sell a home has declined in The Woodlands from this time last year from 94 DOM in February 2005 to 89 DOM in February 2006.


West Memorial Area 23

Single-family home sales in the West Memorial area have increased by 23.6% in February 2006 over February YTD 2005 and currently register 89 units sold.
Contracts written are up from this time last year by 89% and there are currently 51 units recorded pending YTD as opposed to 27 last year. This type of steep increase is indicative of an even more hot market beginning in the Spring.
Listings are down by 21.5% from this time last year with 283 homes on the market.
Average sales price YTD in the West Memorial area is $648,212 and that is 7% more than February’s 2005 YTD average sales price of $605,344.
Homes in the West Memorial area sell at an average sales price of $181 a sq. ft. A seller can expect to sell his home for an average of 95% of the list price and take an average of 98 days on the market to sell. Months of Inventory currently stand at 4.3, representing a seller’s market.
West Memorial was registered on the Houston Hotness Index in February because 12.1% of all current inventory went under contract during that one month.
The steep increase YTD of contracts initiated, [representing buyer demand] with a concurrent decline of listings, indicate that it is a seller’s market. The market should continue on this trend at least throughout the Spring. If ever there was a time to sell a home in Memorial, it is now.
Why? A seller could expect to derive more from the sale of their home in a market displaying high demand, rising sales prices and much less competition than found this time last year.