What a difference a day can make.

I've been in sales for a very long time now. I remember my first sales job was a very grueling one. During the first few months, I really worked very hard trying to get things going. It seemed like I was never going to get anywhere but I wouldn't give up. And then, one day something gave and orders started coming in. I'll never forget my sales manager looking at me and saying, "See what a difference a day can make"?

Houston was beginning to shift into a buyer's market. Some areas, mostly outside of the loop, were feeling it the most. The innerloop was getting it but not as much. And homes over $500K seemed to be doing the best.

It looks like Hurricane Ike is going to change all that. It will take a few days for Realtors to be able to assess their inventory and determine which homes are still in tact and which ones aren't. And as we wait for power to come on some Realtors are out of commission.

More significantly, some of Houston's available inventory has been damaged and will have to be taken off the market. That definitely lowers the supply of housing. I've received a few calls from displaced home owners needing housing in Houston.

If you are a buyer, don't wait too long to get started, you don't want to find yourself in a bidding war over property.

Houston after Hurricane Ike

Well, it finally happened. Houston's luck ran out and we got hit by a hurricane. Luckily, I suffered no damage to my home and I have power.

As Houston begins to dust itself off and continue moving on, neighbors to the southeast are not so lucky. Many of them have lost their homes and are displaced. This is going to change Houston's housing market and I predict housing demand will increase. I suspect the area the most stressed will be the inner loop area close to downtown or close to freeways. Displaced homeowners still need to commute and will want to be close to freeways.

Add this to the existing demand from people transferring into Houston and I believe we are very well heading towards a seller's market. I remember hearing reports after Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans that bidding wars took place for houses in Baton Rouge. It is quite possible that Houston can see similar activity. However, due to the massive size of Houston, I believe we will see this type of activity in pockets of Houston.

It never ceases to amaze me how things can change in Real Estate in just a matter of 24 hours.

Houston - An Investor's Paradise

Houston is in a very unique position right now. Perhaps this is the case throughout the U.S. but since I practice Real Estate here in Houston, I can speak only for Houston.

We're running low on rental property.

In recent years, out of town investors were lured to our fair city and encouraged to pay astronomical prices for property only to discover that the lease revenue they were promised didn't deliver. What was the problem?

The problem was that it was a seller's market. The demand for property was high and the number of qualified buyers was high. Everyone qualified to buy, so if a lessee felt the asking lease price of a property was too high, they negotiated the price down. The landlords had no choice but to comply.

The tables are turned now. Fewer people are being qualified for loans and there is some uncertainty regarding how the economic woes this nation is facing will affect Houston. So, that means we have a greater number of people needing to lease property. And since these lessees no longer have that buying power, they no longer have negotiating leverage. Additionally, there isn't enough rental property to meet the demand. This is especially the case in the inner loop area.

There is another goody in it for the today's investor. Since we have fewer qualified buyers chasing a high volume of available property, it's a buyer's market. So, not only can an investor get a piece of property at a really good price right now, one can lease it and expect top dollar for it.

There are still very nice affordable neighborhoods inside Houston's inner loop that are worth exploring. An effective strategy would be to purchase a few homes, invest for minor upgrades, lease for a few years and then sell when the economy picks up.