Retail Follows Rooftops

We don't usually cover residential housing, so it's always titillating to take a peek. (We won't tell if you don't.) Across Texas, the revitalization of residential homebuilding is feeding the economy a generous helping of vitality—with a side of caution. Data from Realtor.com shows an 8.1% increase in home prices in December 2013 from December 2012. While that's good news, there's still a lack of inventory across Texas, and that's problematic because the demand will drive home prices up, says Premier Nationwide Lending production manager John Hudson (also the former government affairs chair from NAMB, here with the head of affairs and naps in his house, Isabella Francesca).

In San Antonio, there is only four months of inventory, and Austin has less than that, John says. He tells us housing affordability has strengthened our economy, and a lack of supply will hurt the state’s affordability, which is something that attracts out-of-state companies to relocate here. 

But all the homes that have delivered so far have positively impacted retail, according to Keller Williams commercial agent Jim Young. (There's an old complicated real estate algorithm: houses need stuff.) Bee Cave has as many new retail projects as new home starts, he says. There have been several new retail and office projects including two HEB centers, which have been announced in Lakeway, near the entrance to the Sweetwater residential neighborhood. In south Austin, HEB also just announced a new center at Slaughter and I-35, just north of Southpark Meadows (which has thousands of recently delivered single-family homes and apartments). And a similar center is coming to Buda at the intersection of FM 1626 /FM 967.