Park Cities Home Sales Soar 21 Percent in December

There are more signs that the local housing market is picking up steam. Home sales in the Park Cities and vicinity were up 21 percent in December from a year earlier, according to a new report released by the Real Estate Center at Texas A & M University and the North Texas Real Estate Information System. Transactions in the area were up 56 percent during the same time period.

In his 2010 outlook, the Real Estate Center’s research economist Dr. Jim Gaines says he expects housing to do “fairly well” in the first quarter of 2010. Activity for the remainder of the year will depend on how well the market can sustain itself without federal government support, he added. Gaines also expects the Texas home market to continue to fare relatively better than other markets provided that job losses abate and home prices stabilize.