What makes for a hot housing market?
With gloom and doom all over the business airwaves, it's hard to imagine there's anywhere left where there might be a strong housing economy. But the truth is that a number of places are booming, while everyone else is concerned about the sky falling. Where are these strong home sales, and why? Consider the following examples.
Midland, TX - With oil prices near historic highs, energy-rich towns like Midland are bursting at the seams. Workers in the oil and gas industry are actually bringing in trailers to live in because there's such a housing shortage.
Columbia Town Center, MD - Some downtown areas are seeing plenty of investment capital flow their way as city planners revitalize their inner city with new, multi-million dollar urban design master plans. One example of this kind hot commodity is a new $700 million urban center in Houston, and another in Columbia Town Center, Maryland, complete with condos, retail, transportation and entertainment, all in one easy-to-access area. Rather than the traditional suburban sprawl we've seen in many communities before, it seems the new trend is the high-density urban lifestyle.
Charlotte, NC - So why is the traditionally blue collar community of Charlotte weathering the economic storm so well? Part of their economic health is because of their slow-and-steady expansion during the boom times. Another reason for the strength in housing there is that the placement of several large business headquarters there has brought in a fresh infusion of financial and intellectual capital. Keep in mind, though, that many of these businesses are banks, which may not be the most promising industry for expansion in the immediate future.
Portland, OR - The tech-heavy Pacific Northwest has fared relatively well in the past couple of years, and Portland's strength can be attributed at least in part to the hi-tech manufacturing giant, Intel. Also, very strict land use regulations in the area have kept rampant development under control, maintaining a reasonable demand for property even as some of the buying fervor has died down.
Until next time,
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