The Old and the New

December 21, 2022December 21, 2022Cameron Ansari

We’ve dusted off this old graph from mid-2021. Regular readers will recall that we used it in August 2021 to explain why sales in that year were occurring at twice the typical rate and what that meant for the market for the final months of 2021, as well as the outlook...

November Turkey, December Feast

November 23, 2022November 23, 2022Cameron Ansari

Since mid-October the River Oaks real estate market, and several other of Houston’s pricier areas, have been moribund. And there has been absolutely no new activity whatsoever relating to the speculative new construction market – neither new contracts for the finished product nor purchases of land for future speculative development. It...

Talk of the Town

October 19, 2022October 27, 2022Cameron Ansari

This month I had wanted to write something typically esoteric about the River Oaks real estate market, like the current pricing sweet-spot or how a few iconic properties have “quietly” changed hands for eye-watering sums of money. But it’s hard not to be drawn back to the subjects on everyone’s lips,...

A Loud Call for Truly New Fresh Inventory

September 20, 2022October 1, 2022Cameron Ansari

River Oaks is predominantly a supply-driven market. Activity rises and falls based on available inventory, rather than the motivation of prospective buyers. Regional macro-economic conditions affect River Oaks indirectly: They inform buyer and seller psychology rather than act on the more typical forces of actual affordability and economic necessity that we...

A Mid-Year Snapshot

August 10, 2022August 10, 2022Cameron Ansari

Our mid-year River Oaks Market Report is now out, and we hope you’ve had a chance to take a look. Like you, we have read the national and local headlines about sky-high housing prices. (We’re looking at you, Austin.) We’ve taken note of sales activity slumping now as summer takes the...

Back to Normal

July 17, 2022July 18, 2022Cameron Ansari

With our mid-2022 River Oaks Market Report heading to the printer this week and to the post office the week following, we take a look back at the year so far. For that purpose, we thought it would be instructive to see how things turned out following our prediction in an...

Preview of River Oaks Demographics

June 16, 2022June 16, 2022Cameron Ansari

Ahead of the publication of our River Oaks Market Report Mid-2022 printed edition, here’s a snapshot of buyer demographics for the first six months of 2022 compared with the numbers for all of 2021. Areas of the neighborhood In 2021 the Country Club Estates area predominated sales. The area east of...

A Survey of New Construction in River Oaks

May 22, 2022May 22, 2022Cameron Ansari

This month we’re taking a look back at new construction sales in River Oaks, all the way back to the start of 2021. You may well ask, why not just look at the sales so far in 2022? The startling answer is that there have only been four new-construction sales this...

Market Peak?

April 21, 2022April 22, 2022Cameron Ansari

It may come as a surprise to buyers today who are angling for a house in River Oaks at a civilized price-point (they are hard to come by), that — breaking news! — the River Oaks real estate market peaked in February 2021. That is not a typo. If you’re getting...

Who Pays for What?

April 21, 2022April 21, 2022Teresa Byrne-Dodge

It’s exhilarating to buy – or sell – a home. But sometimes that excitement is mitigated by the slew of closing costs added to the transaction. By the time you’re at the closing table, they can really add up. This is true for both sellers and buyers. The good news is...