TEXAS’ EXISTING HOME SALES DOWN, PRICES UP IN FEBRUARY

TEXAS (Real Estate Center, Reuters, CNNMoney.com) – A total of 13,064 existing single-family homes were sold in Texas last month, a 2 percent drop from February 2009, according to MLS data compiled by the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M University.

The median price was up 2 percent to $141,100 during the same period, and the state finished the month with a 6.9-month inventory of existing homes.

Here is how select Texas cities fared in February (data current as of March 25, 2010):

	Sales	Change from Last Year	Median Price	Change from Last Year	Months’ Inventory
Austin	1,276	up 7%	$182,000	down 3%	6.2
Dallas	2,707	down 9%	$149,200	up 1%	6.1
Fort Bend	510	down 7%	$188,700	up 8%	4.8
Fort Worth	538	up 5%	$106,000	down 3%	6.5
Houston	3,615	down 4%	$146,600	up 6%	6.6
Longview-Marshall	116	down 12%	$120,000	up 1%	8.9
Odessa	67	up 26%	$123,100	down 5%	5.8
San Antonio	1,239	up 7%	$140,700	down 1%	7.8
Temple-Belton	94	down 10%	$110,800	down 11%	6.7
Victoria	61	up 33%	$109,200	down 23%	6.6
Texas	13,064	down 2%	$141,100	up 2%	6.9

Additional home sales data for these and other major Texas cities are available on the Center’s website.

Upcoming Seminar: Ask The Experts: Austin Home Values 2010

Our UFCU appraisers and real estate experts will be on hand to talk about the Austin market and current trends in home valuations.

Date:	March 23, 2010
Time:	6:00 PM
Location:	UFCU Steck Branch 3305 Steck Ave Austin, TX 78757

Communication and Common Sense Decisions

Jeff Swensen for The Wall Street Journal

In a world where bigger has been too long equated with better, common sense business decision making has been lost.  The Wall Street Journal on Thursday, March 11, 2010, reported a story about a large bank whose contractor entered the home of a mortgage borrower while she was away, stopped the utilities, “winterized” the home, padlocked the door and repossessed her pet parrot.  A bank employee incorrectly believed the house was vacant and the borrower delinquent, and sent the contractor to secure the property.

When she called the bank numerous times to complain and regain possession of her pet, the bank staff first denied the event, then told her that they were “tired” of hearing from her and suggested the police might be able to help.  Once she filed a lawsuit, the bank rapidly located her parrot and agreed to “quickly review the actual events and consider any hardships that resulted.”

There were so many points in this story where common sense and local decision-making could have stopped the unfortunate sequence of events.  The contractor could have been working with a set of procedures that said “if the home is clearly occupied, to include a pet, STOP, and call to determine the correct action”.  Better trained employees who are empowered to say “We made a mistake; we are sorry; let us make it right” could have mitigated the ill will and the law suit.  Being able to find and communicate with a local decision maker at the bank could have turned a week-long battle into a one-and-done solution.

At UFCU we remain committed to local leadership and decision making.  We believe in owning our errors and correcting them.  Consider doing your banking with a local bank or credit union where you can talk to someone in charge, someone can solve problems before your parrot learns new words while hanging out with strangers.

Top 30 Reasons Austin is a Great Place to Live

Click here to read the top 30 reasons why
Austin is a great place to live