Thanks to local readers Bruce and Sheryl for this month’s question. The plunge in the price of oil in 2015 caused most people to worry about a major negative economic impact for the State of Texas. Many Real Estate Brokers were on the side of this common fear. However, our Highland Lakes Real Estate Market has not been significantly affected. The best way to answer this question is to look at sales.

For the last 12 months, 1214 properties have sold for a total of $396 million. In the 12 months prior to that, 1260 properties sold for a total of $379 million. The small drop may be explained by a lower level of inventory as our market has steadily improved for 2 years plus. Overall, the last 12 months volume of sales represents a less than 4% drop from the previous 12 months..

Another measure is the number of properties pending close on any given day. For most of 2015, that number was around 90. In 2016 we have been averaging well over 100 with the current number of pendings at 144.

My opinion is that the upper end market has suffered somewhat due to the drop in the price of oil. Properties valued at $1 million or more have dropped by 20% in sales volume. In the last 12 months 50 properties have sold for $220 million. In the prior 12 months, 62 properties sold for $203 million. Obviously, the fewer number of units still sold for a greater dollar total.

The takeaway is that our Real Estate Market is quite healthy and we have not suffered a significant change from the past year to the prior year timeframe. Interestingly, an article was published today by the Texas A&M Real Estate Research Center revealing the the real estate market in Midland and Odessa has also weathered the decline in oil and gas quite well.

Stats used in this article based on residential home sales as reported in the Highland Lakes Board of Realtors MLS.

Curious about any local real estate topics? Please submit questions by email at [email protected], or feel free to give me a call on my direct line at 325-248-4369.

Jeff Spears is a Licensed Broker in the State of Texas. Each Office of Keller Williams Realty is Independently Owned and Operated. If you have a contractual relationship with another Broker, this is not a solicitation for your business.