READY, SET, GO!

January 17, 2020January 17, 2020Cameron Ansari

The market in River Oaks took off like a shot, even before the starter’s signal marked the beginning of the new year. The week between Christmas and New Year’s Day was not just busy with the usual logjam of closings ahead of the year end, but showings and negotiations were also...

The Market Sleeps Through October

November 15, 2019November 17, 2019Cameron Ansari

The week after Labor Day is the traditional start of the Houston real estate market’s second wind, especially in River Oaks. All was going to plan until Tropical Storm Imelda hit the city in the third week of September. Then the market curled up and went into a deep sleep. A...

Ask the Agents #14: Home Staging Services

November 12, 2019November 17, 2019Cameron Ansari & Teresa Byrne-Dodge

Question: What do home staging services do – and are they worth the money? Answer: The point of staging a home is, simply, to make it more appealing. You know about getting rid of clutter, touching up paint and replacing the dead shrub by the front door. Staging takes that “fluffing”...

New Construction in River Oaks

October 17, 2019October 18, 2019Cameron Ansari

As of the third week of October, there are currently 42 properties in River Oaks owned by speculative builders. Of these, 18 are being actively marketed on the multiple listing system (MLS), including one in a pending contract awaiting completion. What do we know about them? Of the 42 spec properties,...

How to Protect Your Trees from Heavy Rains

September 26, 2019September 26, 2019Katie Dubow

Fall in Texas often means storms and heavy rains that saturate the ground. While trees in the region are accustomed to this amount of rain, too much water threatens trees’ ability to stand tall, strong and steady. Just like most living things, your plants, shrubs and trees can only handle so...

Reading the Tea Leaves

August 13, 2019August 13, 2019Cameron Ansari

Drawing broad conclusions from market anomalies in River Oaks real estate is usually a mistake. There simply aren’t enough data points to extrapolate likely future outcomes. In other words, it’s a thin market, so don’t try to be too clever by predicting what’s going to happen in the next six months...

At the Half-Way Mark: River Oaks Demographics Update

July 29, 2019March 17, 2022Cameron Ansari & Teresa Byrne-Dodge

As we wrap up the mid-year print edition of the River Oaks Market Report, here is a teaser of the demographics in the River Oaks real estate market since January 1. Origin of Buyers The trend of fewer buyers coming from River Oaks itself continues. It fell from 38% in 2017 to 26%...

Take a Look at 2125 Troon Road

May 20, 2019May 20, 2019Teresa Byrne-Dodge

Calling all Houston architecture buffs: We have a new River Oaks listing that just went on MLS earlier this afternoon. It’s not the most expensive or largest home we’ve ever listed. But its pedigree is outstanding. If you like classic American architecture, you will love this house. Winner of the 2011...

And They’re Off … Sort Of

March 12, 2019March 18, 2019Cameron Ansari

Just two months ago, we were trying to catch our breath after the wild record-breaking River Oaks real estate ride of 2018. As we wrote in the River Oaks Market Report ~ 2019 Outlook, 2018 was memorable for the sheer volume of transactions: “more than $300 million of real estate traded...

2018 River Oaks Buyers & Sellers

February 14, 2019February 14, 2019Cameron Ansari

Demographics are a fascinating study, and we always find it satisfying to crunch the data we collect on River Oaks homebuyers and sellers. Some of the results, shown in the pie graphs below, help us to chart the changes in the neighborhood. We run through this exercise every six months and...