What’s Different About February 2022?

February 15, 2022February 15, 2022Cameron Ansari

One sensed a pause in the action as February 2022 got underway. By mid-January, showing activity in the River Oaks area – the earliest indicator of future sales – was disappointing despite a hectic week at the very start of the year. Subsequently, there were only eight newly pending contracts by...

Hospitality in Early Houston

February 15, 2022February 19, 2022Teresa Byrne-Dodge

Recently spotted on eBay: a vintage cookbook titled Harris County Heritage Society Cook Book published by Houston’s own Gulf Printing Company in 1964. As a former food/wine writer, I was keen to order it immediately. This little 144-page treasure does not disappoint. The recipes are all from ladies with well-known Houston...

Too Few Under Two

January 20, 2022January 20, 2022Cameron Ansari

Our River Oaks Market Report ~ 2022 Outlook is at the printer this week and will soon be in subscribers’ mailboxes. In the meantime, we have a sneak peak at one of the categories that we always cover – the under-served Under $2 Million – that we have fleshed out with...

Secrets of Glenwood Cemetery

January 13, 2022January 20, 2022Teresa Byrne-Dodge

In Houston’s fervent embrace of the new and shiny, there’s not much in our city that dates from 1871. A notable exception is Glenwood Cemetery, which last year celebrated 150 years of providing a burial place for Houstonians. Located at 2525 Washington Avenue just west of Sawyer Street, Glenwood is an...

Market Demographics so Far in 2021

November 19, 2021November 19, 2021Cameron Ansari

Areas in the Neighborhood In past years, and especially since the great oil and gas shakedown of the 1980s, the presumption has been that prize properties in the Country Club section of River Oaks rarely changed hands (except perhaps the smaller ones or those on the periphery). And yet we have...

The All-Important Inspection

November 19, 2021November 19, 2021Teresa Byrne-Dodge

If you are a home-buyer, the very first thing you will do after the seller has accepted your offer and everyone has signed the purchase agreement is book an inspector to check the systems of your new house. This is not the same as an appraisal. A home appraisal is an...

So How’s the Real Estate Market?

October 19, 2021October 20, 2021Cameron Ansari

The most popular topic of conversation at any social gathering is always food and restaurants. But the second most popular topic is certainly real estate. We find people are endlessly interested in real estate, even if they are not personally in the market. Here are seven questions we hear often, especially...

Universal Design for All

October 19, 2021October 20, 2021Teresa Byrne-Dodge

Let’s say your spouse’s elderly mother is moving in with you. What kinds of accommodations should you make for her? The answer is the same whether you plan to age in your own home or simply want to add features to make your property safer and more accessible for others. In...

Playing with the Big Boys

September 16, 2021January 2, 2022Cameron Ansari

The Language of Dress as Practiced by Four Current World Leaders Click images for source It’s a game that my wife and I play after work. As we settle down to watch the evening news, unsolicited I make observations about the dress of male newscasters or the pundits being interviewed. Something...

Kitchen Perfection

September 16, 2021September 16, 2021Teresa Byrne-Dodge

If Cameron and I were to poll homebuyers as to what single room can make or break a home purchase, the winner would be the kitchen. (Duh!) The kitchen is the source of food and drink, comfort and relaxation. And even if you don’t cook much, you probably find that the...