25 March 2013
Wealthy Mexican nationals make their home in Sonterrey
Propelled north by cartel violence, wealthy Mexican immigrants have regrouped in gated developments in several Texas cities, where their growing influence has been compared to the impact of well-heeled Cuban refugees arriving in Miami decades ago. Nowhere is the evidence more striking than in San Antonio, Texas' second-largest city and a short private jet hop from Monterrey, where many of the new immigrants built their wealth.
Wealthy, business-savvy Mexican immigrants transform Texas city
SAN ANTONIO — The Mexican businessmen in Rolexes and Burberry ties meet on the north side of town, at Cielito Lindo Restaurant, or at new neighboring country clubs. Their wives frequent Neiman Marcus, Tiffany's and Brooks Brothers at the nearby mall. Their children park Porsches with Mexican license plates in the student lots at Reagan High School.
They are part of a wave of legal Mexican immigrants who have been overlooked in the national debate over how to deal with their largely impoverished illegal compatriots. Propelled north by drug cartel violence, they paid thousands of dollars to hire attorneys and obtain investors' visas for themselves and their families (including maids). They have regrouped in gated developments in several Texas cities, where their growing influence has been compared to the impact of well-heeled Cuban refugees who arrived in Miami decades ago.
Nowhere is the evidence more striking than in San Antonio, Texas' second-largest city and a short private-jet hop from Monterrey, Mexico, where many of the new immigrants built their wealth. They have poured into developments with names like the Dominion, Stone Oak and Sonterra that were cut into the rocky hills and oak groves north of the Loop 1604 highway that rings the city.
More than 50,000 Mexican nationals now live permanently in San Antonio, city officials say, turning an upscale enclave known as "Sonterrey" or "Little Monterrey" into the city's second-fastest growing ZIP code.
Real estate agent Ana Sarabia caters to the new arrivals — finding them immigration lawyers, new schools, banks and office space — and sees them reshaping her hometown.
"I can see it transitioning," said Sarabia, 45, who lived for a time in Mexico City. "This has always been a bicultural city. Parts of it have now become a new Mexico."
There's Lorena Canales, 40, who moved from Monterrey with her two youngest children two and a half years ago to start a bilingual day care after witnessing a gun battle outside her local Wal-Mart.
Uriel Arnaiz, 40, relocated with his wife and 3-year-old son from Mexico City four years ago to open a high-end tequila import business after some of his son's friends were kidnapped.
José Ramos, 55, moved two years ago from Monterrey to open a restaurant, Vida Mia, after a relative was kidnapped and killed.
It's not clear whether new immigration policies being contemplated in Washington would affect this group of wealthy immigrants, who skip long immigration lines by hiring attorneys in Mexico to apply for business-related visas at U.S. consulates.
Most had to prove they were either employed by a multinational company or had a valid business plan and enough money to start their own. Some had to show American investments worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. Many moved in a matter of weeks, though some said the process had become more difficult in recent years, with tougher screening by U.S. consulates.
Costs vary depending on the type of visa. In many cases, it is cheaper than what a smuggler would charge for an illegal crossing. Attorney fees can range from $1,500 to $6,500, compared with coyote payments of $6,000 or more.
Arnaiz's initial visa allowed him to stay in the U.S. for up to a year. He was able to renew the visa, which is required every two years for up to seven years if he wants to stay. His wife and son were eligible for visas for the same time period (children under age 21 are eligible). While staying in the U.S. on those visas, they were allowed to pursue permanent residency, or green cards, which they got in recent months.
"There's a lot of requirements," Arnaiz said. "You need to have a real, sustainable project."
The visa for professions listed in the North American Free Trade Agreement is relatively quick and cheap to obtain, some said, with attorney fees ranging from $1,500 to $3,000.
During the last decade, the number of such visas issued to Mexicans annually skyrocketed from 686 to 7,601, according to the State Department.
The newcomers — nicknamed "migrantes fresas," or rich migrants — are conspicuous even in this largely Latino city. Sociologists compare the "Mexodus" of professionals to the wave of exiles who fled to Texas after the Mexican Revolution in 1910, or wealthy Cubans who decamped to South Florida after the revolution in 1959.
Former San Antonio Mayor and Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Henry Cisneros, whose grandfather was exiled to San Antonio during the Mexican Revolution, calls them a "new diaspora with the potential to rival the impact Cubans had on Miami."
Harriett Romo, a sociology professor and director of the Mexico Center at the University of Texas at San Antonio, has been studying a dozen Mexican families who immigrated through investor visas.
"What we're seeing is that they move into kind of a new Mexican enclave — it's not a barrio like you would see on the east side of L.A. or west side of San Antonio. It's an upscale Mexican neighborhood with parties at the country club," she said.
Romo found that the new residents don't mix much with lower-income Mexican immigrants or with Mexican Americans, the Tejanos who helped build San Antonio. They are focused instead on "changing the image of the immigrant," she said. "They see themselves as having a very different experience because they come with official visas and more resources."
Writer Sandra Cisneros, a Chicago native who has lived in San Antonio for almost 30 years, says the flow of wealthy immigrants "constantly refreshing the ties" to Mexico has changed the character of the city, which long had the feel of a small town and now has a population of about 1.4 million.
San Antonio Mayor Julian Castro, a Mexican American and a rising star in the Democratic Party who has traveled south of the border to recruit businesses, says he hopes the newcomers stay.
"My hope is that they are planting firm roots and will become American citizens and fully participate in the community," he said.
The number of international passengers traveling to San Antonio International Airport increased 132% last year from the year before, and the airport added two new carriers to Mexico.
Flight schools are struggling to meet the demand for pilots to fly Mexicans whose private jets fill the runways of southern Texas.
Pepe Hurtado says many of the clients at his San Antonio luxury car business store their cars in hangars at the airport when they jet back to Mexico.
Cars with plates from the Mexican states of Nuevo Leon and Coahuila also fill the parking lots of the north side's Life Time Fitness, Holy Trinity Catholic Church and HEB grocery.
"You can definitely see it and feel it. There are times I go to HEB and I only hear Spanish," said Sylvia Orduna, 33, who works at a high-end cosmetics company that has seen steady business from new Mexican residents.
Pamela Gardner, 61, has lived at the Sonterra housing development for a decade and has noticed many new Mexican neighbors in the last few years.
"It does put a strain on the schools," Gardner said, noting that some schools have been "capped," turning away new students. She said her daughter, a vice principal at a local school, had to add classes in English as a second language because so many students speak only Spanish.
"You feel bad for the husbands because they're down there during the week and they come on the weekends and have to go back. It's sad," she said of those who commute to work in Mexico.
Newcomers settle in Sonterrey because they hear from friends that the local public schools are highly rated, they have business connections in the area and see billboards in Mexico advertising the gated communities. Some have difficulty adjusting, particularly wives and children accustomed to cooks and chauffeurs.
"We are used to being served and surrounded by help," said Arnaiz, whose wife traded two live-in maids for a Mexican American housekeeper who comes twice a week.
"That's why you see a lot of Mexican nationals here with their maids," he said. "Being here without domestic help, the inside dynamic of the family is different."
Canales, the mother from Monterrey, says her children had to adjust to life without a maid and their father during the week. But she says the trade-off is they can bicycle and hear other kids playing outside — a joyful noise they had not heard for years in Monterrey, where they lived behind high walls and barred windows.
"We had neighbors whose children were kidnapped and never came back," she said.
But in Sonterrey, as in Mexico, gates don't guarantee protection from the cartels.
Last year, one of Arnaiz's neighbors, fellow newcomer Fernando Alejandro Cano Martinez, was charged with laundering money for the Gulf cartel. Two brothers from Guadalajara were charged with using north side homes and businesses as a front for cartel money, which financed their Learjet, an Italian restaurant and other investments.
"We're seeing 'Miami Vice'-type money laundering — shipments of currency and wire transfers from international organizations," said Michael Lemoine, a special agent with the Internal Revenue Service in San Antonio.
It's not clear how permanent the new enclave and its problems are. Many residents are watching to see if the newly elected Mexican president can curb cartel violence enough for them to feel safe moving back to Mexico.
Ramos, the restaurant owner, is among those who have debated returning to Mexico. His daughter Mayela at first struggled with the transition. But when he decided to stay, she agreed.
"All my friends ask me, 'When are you coming back?'" Mayela Ramos, 26, said during the lunchtime rush at the restaurant, as Mexican ladies with designer handbags nibbled fideo, a Mexican pasta, and chatted in Spanish. "But our life is here now."
13 May 2011
TEXAS BOASTS 3 OF THE NATION’S CITIES WITH THE BEST JOB GROWTH
Job growth is slowly on the rise according to analysts. Recently the annual list of “Best Cities for Jobs” was release with some surprising results. Last year the reports showed a gloomy outlook when only 13 of 397 metropolitan areas experienced any growth. For this year's list, which measured job growth in the period between January 2010 and January 2011, most of the best-performing areas experienced increases in employment increases.
Almost 400 metropolitan statistical areas are ranked based on employment data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported from November 1999 to January 2011. Rankings are based on recent growth trends, mid-term growth and long-term growth and momentum. The locations are also broke down by size, small, medium and large, because regional economies differ markedly due to their scale.
Reflecting the importance of the war effort in stimulating local economies, command of this year's best place for jobs was handed to the Army from the Marines. Killeen-Temple-Fort Hood, Texas, shot up to #1 from #4, while the military-based Jacksonville, N.C., last year's first-place winner dropped to 19th place.
Once again the best places for jobs tended to be smaller communities where small improvements can have a relatively large impact. Eighteen of the top 20 cities were either small (under 150,000 nonfarm jobs) or mid-sized areas (less than 450,000 jobs).
Texas, however, dominated the three size categories, with the #1 mid-sized city, El Paso (#3 overall, up 22 places from last year) and #1 large metropolitan area Austin (#6 overall), joining Killeen-Temple-Fort Hood (the #1 small city) atop their respective lists.
Texas also produced three other of the top 10 smallest regions, including energy-dominated #4 Midland, which gained 41 places overall, and #10 Odessa, whose economy jumped a remarkable 57 places. It also added two other mid-size cities to the list with #2 Corpus Christi and #4 McAllen-Edinburgh-Mission. With all this moving there has also been an increase in Truck Bed Liners.
California experience a miserable year with having zero regions in the top 150. This led to a group of California officials to Texas to learn possible lessons about what drives job creation. Gov. Jerry Brown and others in California's hierarchy have a lot to learn as, the fact is, that the city Brown formerly ran, Oakland, ranked absolute last (#65), among the big metros in the report. This is two places behind perennial also-ran #63 Detroit-Livonia-Dearborn, Mich.
One lesson that green-centric California may have trouble learning is that, however attractive the long-term promise of alternative energy, fossil fuels pay the bills and create strong economies, at least for now. Even outside of Texas, oil capitals did well across the board, not surprising given the surging price of gas. The #2 small metro, Bismarck, N.D., which also is #2 overall, is the emerging capital of the expanding Dakota energy belt. Also faring well are Alaska's two oil-fire cities, Fairbanks (#10 on the small list) and Anchorage (#3 on the medium-sized list).
There were some great improvements as well. Most welcome are signs of revival from New Orleans-Metarie, La., which moved up a stunning 46 places to capture the #2 slot among large metros. The region lost 11% of its population and nearly 16% of its jobs during the last decade. But now the Big Easy seems to be finding its place again among America's great cities. Jobs, up 3.5% since 2006, have been created by rebuilding, a resurgence of tourism and a growing immigrant population. This region’s Hispanic population grew by 35,000 over the past decade.
There were other inspirational improvements this year. Sparked by a revival in manufacturing, a host of former gloomy areas in parts of the Midwest are showing signs of definite improvement. Niles-Benton Harbor, Mich., a long-time sleeper at the bottom of the list, shot up a remarkable 242 places this year to a respectable #121. Another old industrial city, Kokomo, Ind., ascended 177 places to #215, while Holland-Grand Haven, Mich., improved by 172 places to #221 and Grand Rapids, Mich., rose 167 places to #183. Milwaukee, a long-time loser among the largest metros, moved up by a healthy 163 places overall to a better-than-average #143.
The Northeast Corridor has also made strong progress. The stimulus has been particularly good for the vibrant economies surrounding the ever-expanding federal leviathan. Among the large metros, Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, Va., did best of all the cities outside the South, repeating its #6 ranking among large metro areas. Right behind, at #7 on the large city list, sits the primarily suburban Northern Virginia metro area, while Bethesda-Rockville-Frederick, Md., ranks 12th.
The other big East Coast winners are the financial and university-oriented economies, which have reaped huge benefits from the TARP bailout and the Obama administration's college-centric stimulus plan. After the Texas cities and the imperial center, most of the best performing big metros are located in financial and university centers, including #9 New York City, #10 Philadelphia, #11 Pittsburgh, #13 Boston and #15 Raleigh-Cary, N.C, which is good news for Raleigh Real Estate.
Outside of Oakland and the big Southern California metros the biggest losers including #60 Los Angeles, #59 Sacramento, #58 Riverside-San Bernardino and #50 Santa Ana-Anaheim-Irvine. The bottom tier consisted of a motley crew of mid-South cities like Memphis (#64 on the big city list) and still-struggling, former big Sunbelt boomtowns Las Vegas (#62), West Palm Beach-Boynton Beach-Boca Raton, Fla. (#56), Ft. Lauderdale-Pompano Beach-Boynton Beach, Fla. (#54), Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale, Ariz. (#53), Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, Ga. (#52) and Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Fla. (#51) which are leaving people asking who can Ship My Car?
For the most part, these areas rose with the housing bubble and will not fully recover until the economy diversifies beyond real estate speculation. Already some of the bubble victims are showing signs of life, including #155 Merced, Calif., up 134 places, and #167 Orlando, Fla., which rode a revived interest in tourism to jump 89 places since last year.
While energy, America's three wars, the recovering financial markets and real estate problems have played the lead role in setting the stage for the best places to do business, the Intermountain West has shown resilience with Salt Lake City, at #20 among large cities; Provo-Orem, Utah, Ogden-Clearfield, Utah, and Boulder, Colo., at Nos. 10, 25 and 26, respectively, among mid-sized cities; and Logan, Utah, and Fort Collins, Colo., at Nos. 9 and 38 among small cities.
The weak economy continues to reek havoc on new jobs, however, small increases are a good sign. California, Florida, and Nevada have had a bleak year, but improvement can still be noted. Hope is given to all with a city like New Orleans making huge strides. The next surge is expected to be in old industrial areas with newer infrastructure and appealing climates.
Almost 400 metropolitan statistical areas are ranked based on employment data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported from November 1999 to January 2011. Rankings are based on recent growth trends, mid-term growth and long-term growth and momentum. The locations are also broke down by size, small, medium and large, because regional economies differ markedly due to their scale.
Reflecting the importance of the war effort in stimulating local economies, command of this year's best place for jobs was handed to the Army from the Marines. Killeen-Temple-Fort Hood, Texas, shot up to #1 from #4, while the military-based Jacksonville, N.C., last year's first-place winner dropped to 19th place.
Once again the best places for jobs tended to be smaller communities where small improvements can have a relatively large impact. Eighteen of the top 20 cities were either small (under 150,000 nonfarm jobs) or mid-sized areas (less than 450,000 jobs).
Texas, however, dominated the three size categories, with the #1 mid-sized city, El Paso (#3 overall, up 22 places from last year) and #1 large metropolitan area Austin (#6 overall), joining Killeen-Temple-Fort Hood (the #1 small city) atop their respective lists.
Texas also produced three other of the top 10 smallest regions, including energy-dominated #4 Midland, which gained 41 places overall, and #10 Odessa, whose economy jumped a remarkable 57 places. It also added two other mid-size cities to the list with #2 Corpus Christi and #4 McAllen-Edinburgh-Mission. With all this moving there has also been an increase in Truck Bed Liners.
California experience a miserable year with having zero regions in the top 150. This led to a group of California officials to Texas to learn possible lessons about what drives job creation. Gov. Jerry Brown and others in California's hierarchy have a lot to learn as, the fact is, that the city Brown formerly ran, Oakland, ranked absolute last (#65), among the big metros in the report. This is two places behind perennial also-ran #63 Detroit-Livonia-Dearborn, Mich.
One lesson that green-centric California may have trouble learning is that, however attractive the long-term promise of alternative energy, fossil fuels pay the bills and create strong economies, at least for now. Even outside of Texas, oil capitals did well across the board, not surprising given the surging price of gas. The #2 small metro, Bismarck, N.D., which also is #2 overall, is the emerging capital of the expanding Dakota energy belt. Also faring well are Alaska's two oil-fire cities, Fairbanks (#10 on the small list) and Anchorage (#3 on the medium-sized list).
There were some great improvements as well. Most welcome are signs of revival from New Orleans-Metarie, La., which moved up a stunning 46 places to capture the #2 slot among large metros. The region lost 11% of its population and nearly 16% of its jobs during the last decade. But now the Big Easy seems to be finding its place again among America's great cities. Jobs, up 3.5% since 2006, have been created by rebuilding, a resurgence of tourism and a growing immigrant population. This region’s Hispanic population grew by 35,000 over the past decade.
There were other inspirational improvements this year. Sparked by a revival in manufacturing, a host of former gloomy areas in parts of the Midwest are showing signs of definite improvement. Niles-Benton Harbor, Mich., a long-time sleeper at the bottom of the list, shot up a remarkable 242 places this year to a respectable #121. Another old industrial city, Kokomo, Ind., ascended 177 places to #215, while Holland-Grand Haven, Mich., improved by 172 places to #221 and Grand Rapids, Mich., rose 167 places to #183. Milwaukee, a long-time loser among the largest metros, moved up by a healthy 163 places overall to a better-than-average #143.
The Northeast Corridor has also made strong progress. The stimulus has been particularly good for the vibrant economies surrounding the ever-expanding federal leviathan. Among the large metros, Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, Va., did best of all the cities outside the South, repeating its #6 ranking among large metro areas. Right behind, at #7 on the large city list, sits the primarily suburban Northern Virginia metro area, while Bethesda-Rockville-Frederick, Md., ranks 12th.
The other big East Coast winners are the financial and university-oriented economies, which have reaped huge benefits from the TARP bailout and the Obama administration's college-centric stimulus plan. After the Texas cities and the imperial center, most of the best performing big metros are located in financial and university centers, including #9 New York City, #10 Philadelphia, #11 Pittsburgh, #13 Boston and #15 Raleigh-Cary, N.C, which is good news for Raleigh Real Estate.
Outside of Oakland and the big Southern California metros the biggest losers including #60 Los Angeles, #59 Sacramento, #58 Riverside-San Bernardino and #50 Santa Ana-Anaheim-Irvine. The bottom tier consisted of a motley crew of mid-South cities like Memphis (#64 on the big city list) and still-struggling, former big Sunbelt boomtowns Las Vegas (#62), West Palm Beach-Boynton Beach-Boca Raton, Fla. (#56), Ft. Lauderdale-Pompano Beach-Boynton Beach, Fla. (#54), Phoenix-Mesa-Glendale, Ariz. (#53), Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Marietta, Ga. (#52) and Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Fla. (#51) which are leaving people asking who can Ship My Car?
For the most part, these areas rose with the housing bubble and will not fully recover until the economy diversifies beyond real estate speculation. Already some of the bubble victims are showing signs of life, including #155 Merced, Calif., up 134 places, and #167 Orlando, Fla., which rode a revived interest in tourism to jump 89 places since last year.
While energy, America's three wars, the recovering financial markets and real estate problems have played the lead role in setting the stage for the best places to do business, the Intermountain West has shown resilience with Salt Lake City, at #20 among large cities; Provo-Orem, Utah, Ogden-Clearfield, Utah, and Boulder, Colo., at Nos. 10, 25 and 26, respectively, among mid-sized cities; and Logan, Utah, and Fort Collins, Colo., at Nos. 9 and 38 among small cities.
The weak economy continues to reek havoc on new jobs, however, small increases are a good sign. California, Florida, and Nevada have had a bleak year, but improvement can still be noted. Hope is given to all with a city like New Orleans making huge strides. The next surge is expected to be in old industrial areas with newer infrastructure and appealing climates.
09 November 2010
Dallas-Fort Worth Home Sales drop 30 Percent in October
Star-Telegram
Existing home sales in North Texas plummeted 30 percent in October, a drop that market economists expected.
In the 29-county North Texas region, 4,413 homes were sold last month, according to the latest report from Texas A&M University's Real Estate Center.
It was the fifth straight month of declines compared with figures from a year earlier. Sales for the first 10 months were down 5 percent, the report said.
Only two Tarrant County submarkets saw increases in sales in October, and two remained unchanged.
The central west area of Fort Worth saw sales climb 24 percent from a year earlier, and Colleyville had a 19 percent increase. Sales in Kennedale and Southlake were the same as last year.
The largest decline in sales, 60 percent, was in northeast Arlington.
Sales of condos and townhomes in downtown Fort Worth were up 500 percent, with six sales. In the third quarter, buyers were paying 96 percent of the listing price on downtown condos and townhomes, according to a Downtown Fort Worth Inc. residential report.
Economists had expected the numbers to be way down in October and again in November, because home sales spiked this time last year when the first round of first-time home buyer federal tax credits were issued. Sales of homes bought using a tax credit needed to be closed by Sept. 30.
The median sales price in October was $146,000, a 3 percent increase from a year ago. The median sales price for this year is $147,000, a 1 percent increase.
In the 29-county North Texas region, 4,413 homes were sold last month, according to the latest report from Texas A&M University's Real Estate Center.
It was the fifth straight month of declines compared with figures from a year earlier. Sales for the first 10 months were down 5 percent, the report said.
Only two Tarrant County submarkets saw increases in sales in October, and two remained unchanged.
The central west area of Fort Worth saw sales climb 24 percent from a year earlier, and Colleyville had a 19 percent increase. Sales in Kennedale and Southlake were the same as last year.
The largest decline in sales, 60 percent, was in northeast Arlington.
Sales of condos and townhomes in downtown Fort Worth were up 500 percent, with six sales. In the third quarter, buyers were paying 96 percent of the listing price on downtown condos and townhomes, according to a Downtown Fort Worth Inc. residential report.
Economists had expected the numbers to be way down in October and again in November, because home sales spiked this time last year when the first round of first-time home buyer federal tax credits were issued. Sales of homes bought using a tax credit needed to be closed by Sept. 30.
The median sales price in October was $146,000, a 3 percent increase from a year ago. The median sales price for this year is $147,000, a 1 percent increase.
20 October 2010
Dallas Area ranks 12th in Commercial Real Estate Forecast
Dallas Morning News
Dallas-Fort Worth gets middling marks in the latest commercial real estate market forecast.
The closely watched "Emerging Trends in Real Estate" report usually favors coastal and Northeastern markets, and this year is no exception.
Washington, D.C., New York, Boston , San Francisco and San Jose, Calif., were on the top 10 list of U.S. markets to watch for commercial property investment opportunities.
Some Texas cities also did well. Austin ranked fourth, and Houston was eighth in the annual list.
Although D-FW significantly outpaces other Texas cities and most U.S. markets in economic growth, the area was rated 12th out of more than 50 U.S. markets in the 2011 forecast
The D-FW area got an even lower rating for development prospects in the year ahead.
The survey showed that industry executives across the country are optimistic that 2011 with be a turnaround year.
"Investors with cash could have excellent opportunities to seize market bottom plays by recapitalizing cash-starved owners or buying foreclosed assets," said Stephen Blank, a senior fellow with the Urban Land Institute, which sponsored the study with accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers.
The report gives D-FW high marks for stable housing prices and low business costs.
But North Texas was slammed for its persistently high office vacancy rates and the ease of building new projects here.
The D-FW area was second only to Los Angeles as one of the best places to buy industrial properties.
The closely watched "Emerging Trends in Real Estate" report usually favors coastal and Northeastern markets, and this year is no exception.
Washington, D.C., New York, Boston , San Francisco and San Jose, Calif., were on the top 10 list of U.S. markets to watch for commercial property investment opportunities.
Some Texas cities also did well. Austin ranked fourth, and Houston was eighth in the annual list.
Although D-FW significantly outpaces other Texas cities and most U.S. markets in economic growth, the area was rated 12th out of more than 50 U.S. markets in the 2011 forecast
The D-FW area got an even lower rating for development prospects in the year ahead.
The survey showed that industry executives across the country are optimistic that 2011 with be a turnaround year.
"Investors with cash could have excellent opportunities to seize market bottom plays by recapitalizing cash-starved owners or buying foreclosed assets," said Stephen Blank, a senior fellow with the Urban Land Institute, which sponsored the study with accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers.
The report gives D-FW high marks for stable housing prices and low business costs.
But North Texas was slammed for its persistently high office vacancy rates and the ease of building new projects here.
The D-FW area was second only to Los Angeles as one of the best places to buy industrial properties.
11 October 2010
Foreclosure Halt may only Delay the Inevitable
Houston Chronicle
A possible moratorium on foreclosures may help some distressed borrowers, but for the overall housing market, it will just delay the loss of homes for some Texans, real estate experts say.
Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott asked 30 lenders this week to put foreclosures and sales of foreclosured properties on hold and to review the way they document repossessed properties.
The request came after lenders halted some foreclosures in 23 other states amid allegations of "robosigning" — processing documents without proper review and notarization. The federal government is now looking into the allegations.
"The AG demand, especially if he sues in court, will only cause a substantial delay in getting this default backlog cleared out, therefore extending the high volume on into 2011," said Amanda LeCureux, managing partner of The Woodlands-based Foreclosure Information & Listing Service.
Government programs to help borrowers stay in their homes have already delayed large numbers of foreclosures, said Kevin Riles, a Houston-area real estate agent who specializes in foreclosures.
A moratorium may only prolong the pain.
"I'm starting to be of the opinion that we need to go ahead and release some of these properties to the market so we can move forward," Riles said.
In addition to suspending foreclosures, the attorney general asked lenders to halt the sales of properties previously foreclosed on and the evictions of people living in those properties.
Stopping sales and foreclosures will "throw a monkey wrench in the housing market" by creating a backlog of properties for sale, said Jim Gaines, an economist with the Texas A&M Real Estate Center.
"It will take the market a long time to work through and will play havoc on prices," he said.
On the other hand, some distressed borrowers might benefit from a moratorium by getting extra time to pay their mortgages or look for jobs if they're unemployed.
"I think it's going to be a great thing, because it's going to pull the tide of foreclosures from hitting the market," real estate agent Paul Silverman said.
While Houston hasn't been hit as hard by defaults as other parts of the country, foreclosures have affected home values because those houses typically sell for less than comparable properties that aren't in foreclosure.
Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott asked 30 lenders this week to put foreclosures and sales of foreclosured properties on hold and to review the way they document repossessed properties.
The request came after lenders halted some foreclosures in 23 other states amid allegations of "robosigning" — processing documents without proper review and notarization. The federal government is now looking into the allegations.
"The AG demand, especially if he sues in court, will only cause a substantial delay in getting this default backlog cleared out, therefore extending the high volume on into 2011," said Amanda LeCureux, managing partner of The Woodlands-based Foreclosure Information & Listing Service.
Government programs to help borrowers stay in their homes have already delayed large numbers of foreclosures, said Kevin Riles, a Houston-area real estate agent who specializes in foreclosures.
A moratorium may only prolong the pain.
"I'm starting to be of the opinion that we need to go ahead and release some of these properties to the market so we can move forward," Riles said.
In addition to suspending foreclosures, the attorney general asked lenders to halt the sales of properties previously foreclosed on and the evictions of people living in those properties.
Stopping sales and foreclosures will "throw a monkey wrench in the housing market" by creating a backlog of properties for sale, said Jim Gaines, an economist with the Texas A&M Real Estate Center.
"It will take the market a long time to work through and will play havoc on prices," he said.
On the other hand, some distressed borrowers might benefit from a moratorium by getting extra time to pay their mortgages or look for jobs if they're unemployed.
"I think it's going to be a great thing, because it's going to pull the tide of foreclosures from hitting the market," real estate agent Paul Silverman said.
While Houston hasn't been hit as hard by defaults as other parts of the country, foreclosures have affected home values because those houses typically sell for less than comparable properties that aren't in foreclosure.
Restraining orders
Consumer advocates were cautious in assessing Abbott's actions.
Attorney Natasha Gransberry has sought temporary restraining orders on behalf of clients who were being foreclosed on despite having modified loans.
She described cases in which loans were sold to new servicers that moved ahead with foreclosures because they didn't know the borrower had a modification in place.
She's urging clients not to rely on Abbott's actions to keep them in their homes.
Richard Tomlinson, director of litigation at Lone Star Legal Aid, said he was happy to see the attorney general take action but isn't sure how much it will help consumers since compliance with the moratorium is voluntary.
"The proof's in the pudding. Based on what he learns, it will be interesting to see what Abbott does," Tomlinson said.
He urged struggling borrowers to seek help from Lone Star or get other legal counsel to stave off foreclosure before their homes are set for sale at auction. Before a foreclosure is complete, an attorney can help qualified homeowners file for bankruptcy or look for legal violations in the foreclosure that could thwart it, Tomlinson said.
Consumer advocates were cautious in assessing Abbott's actions.
Attorney Natasha Gransberry has sought temporary restraining orders on behalf of clients who were being foreclosed on despite having modified loans.
She described cases in which loans were sold to new servicers that moved ahead with foreclosures because they didn't know the borrower had a modification in place.
She's urging clients not to rely on Abbott's actions to keep them in their homes.
Richard Tomlinson, director of litigation at Lone Star Legal Aid, said he was happy to see the attorney general take action but isn't sure how much it will help consumers since compliance with the moratorium is voluntary.
"The proof's in the pudding. Based on what he learns, it will be interesting to see what Abbott does," Tomlinson said.
He urged struggling borrowers to seek help from Lone Star or get other legal counsel to stave off foreclosure before their homes are set for sale at auction. Before a foreclosure is complete, an attorney can help qualified homeowners file for bankruptcy or look for legal violations in the foreclosure that could thwart it, Tomlinson said.
Business as usual
So far, just one lender, Ally Financial, has agreed to suspend foreclosures in Texas. Disclosures several weeks ago that an Ally employee rushed documents without reviewing them triggered the nationwide attention on robosigning.
Wells Fargo said it isn't planning a moratorium. JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America have declined to comment on the request.
On Tuesday, the day after Abbott's action, the monthly foreclosure auction in Harris County went off as usual.
There were 4,035 properties posted for auction and 1,268 that were actually foreclosed.
"That's about average," LeCureux said. "It looks like they foreclosed the same number they would have any other month."
Postings in September totaled 4,691 - the highest since October 1987, when 4,773 properties were posted.
September totals were up because of the sluggish economy as well as a five-week posting period that gave lenders an extra week to post properties for sale.
"Since the downturn started in late 2008, more and more Houston homeowners have been affected, and as more time passes and with the recovery so anemic, the numbers of late payers are starting to pile up, even in Houston apartments," LeCureux said.
So far, just one lender, Ally Financial, has agreed to suspend foreclosures in Texas. Disclosures several weeks ago that an Ally employee rushed documents without reviewing them triggered the nationwide attention on robosigning.
Wells Fargo said it isn't planning a moratorium. JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America have declined to comment on the request.
On Tuesday, the day after Abbott's action, the monthly foreclosure auction in Harris County went off as usual.
There were 4,035 properties posted for auction and 1,268 that were actually foreclosed.
"That's about average," LeCureux said. "It looks like they foreclosed the same number they would have any other month."
Postings in September totaled 4,691 - the highest since October 1987, when 4,773 properties were posted.
September totals were up because of the sluggish economy as well as a five-week posting period that gave lenders an extra week to post properties for sale.
"Since the downturn started in late 2008, more and more Houston homeowners have been affected, and as more time passes and with the recovery so anemic, the numbers of late payers are starting to pile up, even in Houston apartments," LeCureux said.
27 September 2010
Austin is at the Center of ARM's Rising Challenge to Intel
Austin American-Statesman
On a warm Friday afternoon in early September, many of the workers at ARM Holdings' chip design center on South MoPac Boulevard convened on the roof of the nearest parking garage to celebrate.
They put on their company T-shirts, drank beer or margaritas and hung out under shade canopies while listening to rock music.
They weren't exactly kicking out the jams, but they were celebrating a job well done: the completion of a major new chip project.
ARM had announced the completion of "Eagle" — officially called the Cortex A-15 processor — a few days before. The new design, which probably won't show up in products until 2012, dramatically expands the capabilities of ARM's product line and the kinds of markets it can serve.
The Eagle had landed right in the middle of a computer market dominated by Intel Corp., the biggest and toughest chip company in the world.
Although ARM is based nearly 4,900 miles away in Cambridge, England, Austin is becoming an important focal point for the company. Four years ago, the Austin team designed the Cortex A-8, which these days is being used in smart phones and tablet computers, including Apple Inc.'s popular iPad. The A-15 could extend ARM's reach into energy-efficient computing, wireless base stations and power-efficient Web servers.
"Our team is square in the middle of ARM's strategy," said Ken Reimer, ARM's design center manager in Austin. "For me, there is no better place to do processor design."
ARM, with about 1,700 workers worldwide, is a smallish chip company that punches far above its weight. That's partly because it licenses many of its designs to some of the biggest chipmakers in the world, including Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd., Texas Instruments Inc. and STMicroelectronics NV.
Analysts say TI and Samsung probably paid millions of dollars to be partners in the Eagle project, taking part in detailed discussions about the processor as it was being designed. Not only could they influence the design that evolved, but their engineering teams also got an early look at the technical characteristics of the new processor, so they could plan their own specialized versions of it in the years ahead. (ARM says the licensing fees and other payments it receives from its partners are confidential.)
"On Eagle, we are all over it," said Keith Hawkins, who heads Samsung's newly created processor design team in Austin. "It is a big part of our future."
Samsung is intent on passing Intel to become the world's largest chipmaker, and expanding its production and sales of low-power processors is a big part of its expansion plans.
In Austin, ARM's team has grown to more than 190 people, including chip designers, sales, marketing and support workers, who work with ARM's many partners. Those customer companies turn ARM designs into about 4 billion chips a year, used in everything from smart phones to computer disk drives and industrial control equipment.
Ahead of the power curve
From its earliest days, ARM has focused on chip designs that minimize electrical consumption. Chips that use less power can be used in more products and require fewer engineering steps to keep them running cool.
Whereas many personal computers use chips that consume as much power as a 100-watt light bulb, ARM chips typically use a fraction of a watt. That miserly power usage makes ARM chips a natural for battery-powered mobile devices and for other products for which power savings are crucial.
In Austin, the company has built an engineering team from veterans of other companies, including Texas Instruments, IBM Corp., Advanced Micro Devices Inc. and Freescale Semiconductor Inc.
Newcomers pick up quickly on the company's relentless focus on reducing power consumption. Every thousandth of a watt counts.
They also tune in to the company's collaborative style. New ideas count, but they are frequently challenged and must be proved to be superior.
"Ideas, no matter where they come from, are openly challenged at all levels," said Kerry McGuire, ARM's manager of strategic alliances in Austin. "There is the sense that if you believe in your idea, you will pursue it, and if it is a good idea, it will survive."
ARM focused on power consumption before the rest of the electronics industry realized how important low-power design would become. Now the entire industry is power-aware.
The industry once focused on performance for PCs and servers, but "the entire industry is now driven by mobile devices," said analyst Jim McGregor with technology research firm In-Stat. "Power efficiency is a key factor in all they are working on — even at the server level. It's a dramatic change, and it brings the whole industry around toward ARM."
Squaring up against an industry heavyweight
Intel, formerly an ARM partner, has morphed into a competitor. Intel acquired an Austin-based ARM design effort in 1998 and later sold the business to Marvell Technology Group in 2006.
While it was selling off that business, Intel was stepping up its effort on a new family of low-power Windows-compatible chips called Atom aimed at mobile products. Atom has become a big seller for Intel, especially in the emerging category of smaller, power-efficient subnotebook computers.
While Intel attempts to stretch toward low-power applications, the company dominates the market for processors that go into servers, the workhorse computers that do the heavy lifting involved in running the Internet and much of the world's business and technical computing.
It's a market where ARM had never openly challenged Intel — until now. One of the potential markets for the Eagle chip is seen as low-power Internet servers that do the repetitive work of fetching information for Web users.
To underscore its new interest in the server market, ARM is one of the investors in Smooth-Stone Inc., an Austin startup that aims to create complex server chips from a basic ARM design. Smooth-Stone thinks there is an important market developing among Web companies that want to buy large quantities of low-power servers to handle their sites.
Analyst Joe Byrne sees the coming rivalry between ARM and Intel as a contrast between two companies with different histories and very different business models. Intel, with its enormous revenue and profit, controls everything about its chips — from the engineering design to the manufacturing and the marketing and sales.
But ARM is a much smaller company that gets by with a lot of help from its friends. It had $489 million in revenue last year, compared with Intel's $35 billion.
ARM licenses its basic chip designs to a wide variety of partners that turn them into more specialized commercial products. ARM makes far less profit from the chips it designs, but it works with many customers, each of which takes its own risks on making and selling its end products.
"The fact that they spread their bets is very good for them," Byrne said. "They don't care if TI loses to Qualcomm Inc. because they supply designs to both companies. They have a lot of horses in the race."
ARM's top executives downplay the budding rivalry with Intel. "People want there to be this David-and-Goliath struggle between us and Intel," CEO Warren East told The New York Times recently. "It just isn't that way."
But in Austin, ARM managers know their new chips are starting to tread on Intel's turf.
"In Austin, we have Intel squarely in our view," McGuire said. "We want to defend our place in the mobile market and go after Intel's stronghold in computing and servers."
20 August 2010
Austin Apartment Complex Gets $1M for Green Upgrade
Austin Biz Journal
The 60-unit St. George's Court affordable housing complex has qualified for more than $1 million to fund energy-efficiency upgrades.
The property is one of four Texas apartments splitting a $7.2 million award from the U.S. Housing and Urban Development. The agency portioned the grants from a $100 million federal stimulus act program meant to create jobs and save money for low income residents. In total, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act allotted $13.61 billion for HUD-administered programs.
St. George's is the only Austin apartments property receiving funds. The complex, which offers an on-site food pantry, is owned and operated by an affiliate of St. George's Episcopal Church and was built partially with HUD funds. Residents are primarily low-income seniors.
Other Texas properties receiving funding through the grant include: Coolwood Oaks in Houston, 168 units; Country Club Village San Antonio Apartments, 82 units; and Fox Run Apartments in Victoria (loan), 150 units.
The program is part of HUD's green retrofit program, which pays for upgrades that save energy, cut water use and improve air quality.
The property is one of four Texas apartments splitting a $7.2 million award from the U.S. Housing and Urban Development. The agency portioned the grants from a $100 million federal stimulus act program meant to create jobs and save money for low income residents. In total, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act allotted $13.61 billion for HUD-administered programs.
St. George's is the only Austin apartments property receiving funds. The complex, which offers an on-site food pantry, is owned and operated by an affiliate of St. George's Episcopal Church and was built partially with HUD funds. Residents are primarily low-income seniors.
Other Texas properties receiving funding through the grant include: Coolwood Oaks in Houston, 168 units; Country Club Village San Antonio Apartments, 82 units; and Fox Run Apartments in Victoria (loan), 150 units.
The program is part of HUD's green retrofit program, which pays for upgrades that save energy, cut water use and improve air quality.
29 July 2010
Senior Targeted Apartments Open Doors for First Tenants
San Angelo Standard-Times
SAN ANGELO, Texas — River Place Apartments, San Angelo’s first apartment complex solely for low-income seniors, is opening its doors to its first tenants off Rio Concho Drive.
The 120-unit complex is about halfway complete, the developer, Granger MacDonald of Kerrville-based MacDonald Companies, said during a ribbon-cutting Tuesday.
“This is a start,” MacDonald said. “There were no affordable senior properties. There are lots of wonderful senior properties here but not for low-income seniors.”
MacDonald Companies has built 27 similar properties across the state, he said.
This is also not the developer’s first project in San Angelo. MacDonald built Bent Tree Apartments on Sunset Drive in 1997 for low-income families.
“He’s been a pacesetter, not only in Texas but nationally, building safe and decent places for people to live,” said Michael G. Gerber, executive director of the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs.
The TDHCA is the state agency that backs projects like River Place, and Gerber presented MacDonald with a check for $980,345, the total in tax credits the developer was due.
“This is just a beautiful property that serves a critical need,” Gerber said.
The tax credits are what make the deal viable, he said.
“This has been about as tough a year for housing development as we’ve seen,” Gerber said. “The builder is getting tax benefits, but at the same time the return is to build a property that benefits the people it is supposed to benefit.”
MacDonald said the one- and two-bedroom apartments are designed to compare favorably to any apartment complex. Ten percent of the units are equipped for people with disabilities, including the blind or deaf. All the units were built to be easily and quickly converted for accessibility.
The complex, which will be owned by MacDonald Properties and managed by Orion Real Estate Services, includes a clubhouse and a swimming pool.
“The first thing we learned building senior complexes was you’ve got to have lots of tables and chairs for all the potlucks and things residents are going to have,” MacDonald said.
Robert Salas, the city’s assistant director of development services, said the Texas apartment complex was part of the city’s five-year revitalization plan.
“Government cannot solve the problem long-term,” he said. “It takes all stakeholders, especially the private sector.”
Gerber credited state Rep. Drew Darby with helping to get the project for San Angelo.
“We always talk about providing opportunities to people who need a little leg up,” Darby said. “This is a wonderful example of state and federal and private property interests coming together to build this project.”
The 120-unit complex is about halfway complete, the developer, Granger MacDonald of Kerrville-based MacDonald Companies, said during a ribbon-cutting Tuesday.
“This is a start,” MacDonald said. “There were no affordable senior properties. There are lots of wonderful senior properties here but not for low-income seniors.”
MacDonald Companies has built 27 similar properties across the state, he said.
This is also not the developer’s first project in San Angelo. MacDonald built Bent Tree Apartments on Sunset Drive in 1997 for low-income families.
“He’s been a pacesetter, not only in Texas but nationally, building safe and decent places for people to live,” said Michael G. Gerber, executive director of the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs.
The TDHCA is the state agency that backs projects like River Place, and Gerber presented MacDonald with a check for $980,345, the total in tax credits the developer was due.
“This is just a beautiful property that serves a critical need,” Gerber said.
The tax credits are what make the deal viable, he said.
“This has been about as tough a year for housing development as we’ve seen,” Gerber said. “The builder is getting tax benefits, but at the same time the return is to build a property that benefits the people it is supposed to benefit.”
MacDonald said the one- and two-bedroom apartments are designed to compare favorably to any apartment complex. Ten percent of the units are equipped for people with disabilities, including the blind or deaf. All the units were built to be easily and quickly converted for accessibility.
The complex, which will be owned by MacDonald Properties and managed by Orion Real Estate Services, includes a clubhouse and a swimming pool.
“The first thing we learned building senior complexes was you’ve got to have lots of tables and chairs for all the potlucks and things residents are going to have,” MacDonald said.
Robert Salas, the city’s assistant director of development services, said the Texas apartment complex was part of the city’s five-year revitalization plan.
“Government cannot solve the problem long-term,” he said. “It takes all stakeholders, especially the private sector.”
Gerber credited state Rep. Drew Darby with helping to get the project for San Angelo.
“We always talk about providing opportunities to people who need a little leg up,” Darby said. “This is a wonderful example of state and federal and private property interests coming together to build this project.”
26 July 2010
Clear Lake Shores ordinance on Ike housing
Houston Chronicle
CLEAR LAKE SHORES, Texas — Residents of a Galveston-area community damaged by 2008's Hurricane Ike will have three months to repair their boarded-up homes or tear them down.
Clear Lake Shores City Administrator Paul Shelley says a previous ordinance allowed boarded-up structures if they were secure. The new ordinance, approved last week, requires businesses or homeowners to repair or demolish residences damaged by the Sept. 13, 2008, hurricane, including these south Houston apartments.
Property owners, after receiving notice, will have 90 days to inform the city of their plans to repair, demolish or appeal the order. Clear Lake Shores will tear down a structure and place a lien on the property if the owner does not respond to the notice, which also applies to storage sheds and rental units.
Clear Lake Shores is 25 miles northwest of Galveston.
Clear Lake Shores City Administrator Paul Shelley says a previous ordinance allowed boarded-up structures if they were secure. The new ordinance, approved last week, requires businesses or homeowners to repair or demolish residences damaged by the Sept. 13, 2008, hurricane, including these south Houston apartments.
Property owners, after receiving notice, will have 90 days to inform the city of their plans to repair, demolish or appeal the order. Clear Lake Shores will tear down a structure and place a lien on the property if the owner does not respond to the notice, which also applies to storage sheds and rental units.
Clear Lake Shores is 25 miles northwest of Galveston.
14 July 2010
Another Look at Recycling Apartment Complexes
Fort Worth Star-Telegram
NORTH RICHLAND HILLS -- Apartment dwellers have been increasingly calling the city, concerned that their plastic bottles, magazines and soup cans are ending up in the trash instead of a recycling bin.
"I receive calls from apartment managers too, wanting to know what they can offer their residents because they're getting the same requests," said Debbie York, neighborhood services manager for North Richland Hills. "We really don't have anything for them."
It's a common and years-old refrain across Tarrant County, where few apartment complexes offer any kind of recycling. No one has been able to keep the cost and contamination low enough to make recycling possible for a significant number of North Texans.
But North Richland Hills apartments, which has offered curbside recycling for single-family homes since the early 1990s, is making another run at recycling on multifamily properties. The city has applied for $43,665 in grant money from the North Central Texas Council of Governments to start a pilot program at four apartment complexes.
City leaders will find out July 15 whether they can launch the program.
The complexes have not been chosen, but York said the city is leaning toward one with more than 800 units and three smaller ones. All told, she said, officials hope to try it with about 1,600 units, about 23 percent of the city's apartments.
"We've had people move here from other cities and states where they are able to recycle, and they are really appalled that they can't," York said. "We also have people who have lost their homes or haven't lived in apartments in years, and they're used to recycling. They want that same opportunity in apartments."
Recycling, in and of itself, doesn't provide much of a revenue stream. Prices for recycling have been quite low in recent years, and most cities consider it a victory to break even. But diverting all that material saves money by making a landfill last longer.
Apartment recycling has been a challenge for many cities and North Texas apartment buildings, said Perry Pillow, director of government affairs for the Apartment Association of Tarrant County, which represents the interests of the owners and managers of hundreds of complexes.
Many pilot programs have never advanced beyond that stage, and numerous studies have been commissioned, he said. He has worked for years with officials in Fort Worth and Arlington, but he said that contamination of recycling receptacles with regular trash makes it unworkable for complexes and haulers.
"Everybody wants to do it, and everybody knows we need to do it," Pillow said. "But it's been a hard nut to crack -- how do you get apartment residents to recycle? The challenge is contamination. You can't control what goes in."
In the vast majority of cases, Fort Worth apartment complexes contract with private companies to dispose of their garbage, so cities are left with only the power of encouragement.
Contamination isn't the only reason it isn't more widespread in North Texas, said Kim Mote, Fort Worth's assistant director for environmental management. He said cost is another major factor in the highly competitive apartment market. Offering on-site recycling would increase disposal costs for the complex, he said.
"We took a survey about five years ago to see what the climate was, and we found out that the managers did not want to add any costs and a majority of the residents did not want to pay more for rent to be able to recycle," Mote said.
York said educating residents will be a major part of the pilot program, provided that the council of governments approves the grant.
"There is a lot of continuous education because people move in and out of these Fort Worth apartments," she said. At the end of nine months, "We'll be giving the City Council a report -- how many Dumpsters were used, what was the contamination rate, how much was collected, what was the opinion of the apartment managers."
"I receive calls from apartment managers too, wanting to know what they can offer their residents because they're getting the same requests," said Debbie York, neighborhood services manager for North Richland Hills. "We really don't have anything for them."
It's a common and years-old refrain across Tarrant County, where few apartment complexes offer any kind of recycling. No one has been able to keep the cost and contamination low enough to make recycling possible for a significant number of North Texans.
But North Richland Hills apartments, which has offered curbside recycling for single-family homes since the early 1990s, is making another run at recycling on multifamily properties. The city has applied for $43,665 in grant money from the North Central Texas Council of Governments to start a pilot program at four apartment complexes.
City leaders will find out July 15 whether they can launch the program.
The complexes have not been chosen, but York said the city is leaning toward one with more than 800 units and three smaller ones. All told, she said, officials hope to try it with about 1,600 units, about 23 percent of the city's apartments.
"We've had people move here from other cities and states where they are able to recycle, and they are really appalled that they can't," York said. "We also have people who have lost their homes or haven't lived in apartments in years, and they're used to recycling. They want that same opportunity in apartments."
Recycling, in and of itself, doesn't provide much of a revenue stream. Prices for recycling have been quite low in recent years, and most cities consider it a victory to break even. But diverting all that material saves money by making a landfill last longer.
Apartment recycling has been a challenge for many cities and North Texas apartment buildings, said Perry Pillow, director of government affairs for the Apartment Association of Tarrant County, which represents the interests of the owners and managers of hundreds of complexes.
Many pilot programs have never advanced beyond that stage, and numerous studies have been commissioned, he said. He has worked for years with officials in Fort Worth and Arlington, but he said that contamination of recycling receptacles with regular trash makes it unworkable for complexes and haulers.
"Everybody wants to do it, and everybody knows we need to do it," Pillow said. "But it's been a hard nut to crack -- how do you get apartment residents to recycle? The challenge is contamination. You can't control what goes in."
In the vast majority of cases, Fort Worth apartment complexes contract with private companies to dispose of their garbage, so cities are left with only the power of encouragement.
Contamination isn't the only reason it isn't more widespread in North Texas, said Kim Mote, Fort Worth's assistant director for environmental management. He said cost is another major factor in the highly competitive apartment market. Offering on-site recycling would increase disposal costs for the complex, he said.
"We took a survey about five years ago to see what the climate was, and we found out that the managers did not want to add any costs and a majority of the residents did not want to pay more for rent to be able to recycle," Mote said.
York said educating residents will be a major part of the pilot program, provided that the council of governments approves the grant.
"There is a lot of continuous education because people move in and out of these Fort Worth apartments," she said. At the end of nine months, "We'll be giving the City Council a report -- how many Dumpsters were used, what was the contamination rate, how much was collected, what was the opinion of the apartment managers."
09 July 2010
City Celebrates Two New Housing Projects in Dallas
Dallas-Fort Worth News
DALLAS — District 11 Councilmember Linda Koop recently joined other elected officials and dignitaries to celebrate completion of the Willow Falls Townhomes, 13890 Brookgreen Drive. The 319 unit development of medium priced homes on 46 acres is a housing leader in the North Dallas High Five Corridor.
“The entire project cost $7.5 million, which was a big reinvestment boost for the community,” said Koop. A fundamental part of the revitalization project was a focus on crime prevention, Koop said, which included formation of a citizen’s patrol to work with law enforcement. As a result, crime has dropped significantly.
Funding was obtained through Community Banc of Arizona and paid for by the homeowners association through an HOA fee increase and no special assefee adjustment with no special assessment.
Each year since in the mid 1980s, residents have organized an appreciation luncheon for police officers and firefighters in their community. The event has grown over the years to include city, county, and state officials as well as local merchants and school principals.
In addition to a more updated and appealing structure, the revitalization has changed resident’s attitudes. Brett Ferguson, a resident who served as financial treasurer and construction chairman, said, “the otherwise busy owners have turned into friendly neighbors where they view the neighborhood not as a place to live but where they do their living.”
Another Dalls apartments project adjacent to Willow Falls is gaining praise too. Built in 1968, the former Woodside Terrace apartment complex has been in poor condition for years. In February, Knightvest Capital acquired the property which is now called Las Terrazas. Over the past several months, a $1.1 million renovation project has been underway at the 230 unit complex and is nearly complete. Renovations include upgraded interior units, a remodeled pool, exterior paint, new playground, exterior lighting, and new security gates.
“The complex has gone from 57% occupancy to over 80% since the renovation and we have experienced a decline in criminal activity,” said KC Kronbach with Knightvest Capital. “Our goal with this project was to take the worst property in the submarket and make it a safe, clean and inviting place for residents to call home.”
“This property was nearly uninhabitable and on the watch list with the City Attorney’s Office,” said Koop. “These revitalization projects will go a long way to bring economic vibrancy back to this area.”
“The entire project cost $7.5 million, which was a big reinvestment boost for the community,” said Koop. A fundamental part of the revitalization project was a focus on crime prevention, Koop said, which included formation of a citizen’s patrol to work with law enforcement. As a result, crime has dropped significantly.
Funding was obtained through Community Banc of Arizona and paid for by the homeowners association through an HOA fee increase and no special assefee adjustment with no special assessment.
Each year since in the mid 1980s, residents have organized an appreciation luncheon for police officers and firefighters in their community. The event has grown over the years to include city, county, and state officials as well as local merchants and school principals.
In addition to a more updated and appealing structure, the revitalization has changed resident’s attitudes. Brett Ferguson, a resident who served as financial treasurer and construction chairman, said, “the otherwise busy owners have turned into friendly neighbors where they view the neighborhood not as a place to live but where they do their living.”
Another Dalls apartments project adjacent to Willow Falls is gaining praise too. Built in 1968, the former Woodside Terrace apartment complex has been in poor condition for years. In February, Knightvest Capital acquired the property which is now called Las Terrazas. Over the past several months, a $1.1 million renovation project has been underway at the 230 unit complex and is nearly complete. Renovations include upgraded interior units, a remodeled pool, exterior paint, new playground, exterior lighting, and new security gates.
“The complex has gone from 57% occupancy to over 80% since the renovation and we have experienced a decline in criminal activity,” said KC Kronbach with Knightvest Capital. “Our goal with this project was to take the worst property in the submarket and make it a safe, clean and inviting place for residents to call home.”
“This property was nearly uninhabitable and on the watch list with the City Attorney’s Office,” said Koop. “These revitalization projects will go a long way to bring economic vibrancy back to this area.”
06 July 2010
Notorious Houston Apartment Complex to be Razed
Houston Chronicle
A blighted Houston apartment complex that has been vacant for 20 years is scheduled to be demolished at 9 a.m. today.
"This is one of the worst examples of neglectful ownership that I have seen," Mayor Annise Parker said in a statement today, adding that the owner of the property had failed to improve its condition despite receiving numerous chances. "The property is a neighborhood eyesore and a public safety risk."
The 43-unit complex, located at 7410 Park Place Blvd., was the subject of an extended story in the Houston Chronicle in February that showed the apartment in Houston to be a magnet for crimes involving drugs and prostitution. It is one of thousands of abandoned properties all over Houston that city officials and police have found to be dangerous and in need of demolition.
Since 2005, the city has demolished more than 3,000 such Houston apartments, but nearly three times that remain, despite the hiring in recent years of additional inspectors who can issue citations and begin the process of establishing evidence of abandonment that can be used in court to justify demolition.
More than 800 Houston apartment buildings the city has deemed "unsafe" have been demolished in the past 12 months, a record set largely through the use of "Demolition Day" in May, when 185 structures were torn down in one day with the help of private contractors.
"This is one of the worst examples of neglectful ownership that I have seen," Mayor Annise Parker said in a statement today, adding that the owner of the property had failed to improve its condition despite receiving numerous chances. "The property is a neighborhood eyesore and a public safety risk."
The 43-unit complex, located at 7410 Park Place Blvd., was the subject of an extended story in the Houston Chronicle in February that showed the apartment in Houston to be a magnet for crimes involving drugs and prostitution. It is one of thousands of abandoned properties all over Houston that city officials and police have found to be dangerous and in need of demolition.
Since 2005, the city has demolished more than 3,000 such Houston apartments, but nearly three times that remain, despite the hiring in recent years of additional inspectors who can issue citations and begin the process of establishing evidence of abandonment that can be used in court to justify demolition.
More than 800 Houston apartment buildings the city has deemed "unsafe" have been demolished in the past 12 months, a record set largely through the use of "Demolition Day" in May, when 185 structures were torn down in one day with the help of private contractors.
Group Seeks to Stop Oak Cliff Apartments for Homeless
The Dallas News
Opponents of the Dallas Housing Authority's plan to rent apartments to chronically homeless people at an Oak Cliff high-rise have taken their fight to City Hall.
The fact that such tenants at the housing agency's Cliff Manor building on Fort Worth Avenue probably would have battled addictions or mental illness troubles some neighbors. It concerns the Fort Worth Avenue Development Group, which has been leading a turnaround of the corridor.
Specific-use permit
The development group has called on the city to require a City Council-approved specific-use permit for the project, arguing that the property isn't properly zoned for what the housing authority has in mind.
And on Wednesday, Randall White, a founder of the group and neighborhood resident, told the council that Cliff Manor neighbors were shocked to learn about the homeless housing plan.
"Help. Help. Help," he urged the council.
MaryAnn Russ, housing authority president, has said her agency has the necessary zoning and doesn't need the city's permission to proceed. And Wednesday she rejected talk of a city permit.
"The legal opinion we have is it continues the use we've had there all along – low-income rental housing," she said.
Last month, Russ said her agency would target women and older residents in setting aside 100 of the building's 180 units for "vulnerable" people who had been stabilized. Mental health services would be offered, and staffing would be increased, she said, with the possibility of a physical health clinic.
"We are an agency that's supposed to do this sort of work," she said. "The solution to homelessness is housing."
Mike Faenza, president of the Metro Dallas Homeless Alliance, said Wednesday that people now served through The Bridge, the city's homeless center, would be screened and referred by his group to Cliff Manor. They will have "worked hard to be ready for permanent housing and to assimilate into the community" and will have continued support after their arrival, he said.
"Health and human services are part and parcel of permanent supportive housing," he said.
In a letter to City Council member David Neumann, whose district includes Fort Worth Avenue, Scott Griggs, development group president, said the organization is "committed to our social responsibility to aid the longtime homeless with mental illness and addictions."
Yet he wrote that the housing agency needs a use permit from the city to provide medical and "social/psychological services" at Cliff Manor.
And, in his letter, Griggs asked for a decision from the city by Wednesday. City building official, Betty Antebi-Taylor, is considering the request and has given the housing authority until June 16 to respond to questions about its plans for Cliff Manor.
Neumann has said he favors the concept of permanent supportive housing. But the Cliff Manor project should have been discussed with neighbors before its announcement two weeks ago, he said.
'Show of indifference'
At the council hearing Wednesday morning, Neumann lashed out at the proposal.
"I have grave concerns about some of the decisions by the Dallas Housing Authority and the Metro Dallas Homeless Alliance and their show of indifference to the surrounding 12 neighborhoods," he said.
"The neighbors in this area are very concerned about this unilateral action," Neumann said.
Scott Batson, a resident of Stevens Park Village north of the Dallas apartment building, is one of those neighbors.
"The biggest issue for me is that Cliff Manor stands within yards of Stevens Park Elementary and Raul Quintanilla Sr. Middle schools," he wrote in an e-mail. "How can DHA justify housing such an unstable population such as this when we don't even allow registered sex offenders this close to schools?"
Myla Johnson asked in an e-mail: "What happens when an area resident is attacked? The Bridge has a history of violence and crime which could be funneled into the residential family neighborhoods in North Oak Cliff."
Faenza said such concerns are unwarranted. "I am very confident that the people [who are referred to Cliff Manor] will be some of the most positive residents in the neighborhood," he said.
Why? There's no evidence that people living in permanent supportive housing are a neighborhood blight, he said. "We're getting better and better" at placing residents, he said. And with Cliff Manor, "the plan of success is strong."
Faenza said he hopes the move-ins at Cliff Manor begin about July 7. That would give his group and the housing authority time to meet with neighbors, answer their questions and work with them to develop a system for measuring the Dallas apartments effect on its surroundings, he said.
"Words are cheap. We need to develop performance indicators," he said, such as Cliff Manor residents' impact on neighborhood crime and vagrancy.
"It's a business," Faenza said, "and we need to be held accountable."
The fact that such tenants at the housing agency's Cliff Manor building on Fort Worth Avenue probably would have battled addictions or mental illness troubles some neighbors. It concerns the Fort Worth Avenue Development Group, which has been leading a turnaround of the corridor.
Specific-use permit
The development group has called on the city to require a City Council-approved specific-use permit for the project, arguing that the property isn't properly zoned for what the housing authority has in mind.
And on Wednesday, Randall White, a founder of the group and neighborhood resident, told the council that Cliff Manor neighbors were shocked to learn about the homeless housing plan.
"Help. Help. Help," he urged the council.
MaryAnn Russ, housing authority president, has said her agency has the necessary zoning and doesn't need the city's permission to proceed. And Wednesday she rejected talk of a city permit.
"The legal opinion we have is it continues the use we've had there all along – low-income rental housing," she said.
Last month, Russ said her agency would target women and older residents in setting aside 100 of the building's 180 units for "vulnerable" people who had been stabilized. Mental health services would be offered, and staffing would be increased, she said, with the possibility of a physical health clinic.
"We are an agency that's supposed to do this sort of work," she said. "The solution to homelessness is housing."
Mike Faenza, president of the Metro Dallas Homeless Alliance, said Wednesday that people now served through The Bridge, the city's homeless center, would be screened and referred by his group to Cliff Manor. They will have "worked hard to be ready for permanent housing and to assimilate into the community" and will have continued support after their arrival, he said.
"Health and human services are part and parcel of permanent supportive housing," he said.
In a letter to City Council member David Neumann, whose district includes Fort Worth Avenue, Scott Griggs, development group president, said the organization is "committed to our social responsibility to aid the longtime homeless with mental illness and addictions."
Yet he wrote that the housing agency needs a use permit from the city to provide medical and "social/psychological services" at Cliff Manor.
And, in his letter, Griggs asked for a decision from the city by Wednesday. City building official, Betty Antebi-Taylor, is considering the request and has given the housing authority until June 16 to respond to questions about its plans for Cliff Manor.
Neumann has said he favors the concept of permanent supportive housing. But the Cliff Manor project should have been discussed with neighbors before its announcement two weeks ago, he said.
'Show of indifference'
At the council hearing Wednesday morning, Neumann lashed out at the proposal.
"I have grave concerns about some of the decisions by the Dallas Housing Authority and the Metro Dallas Homeless Alliance and their show of indifference to the surrounding 12 neighborhoods," he said.
"The neighbors in this area are very concerned about this unilateral action," Neumann said.
Scott Batson, a resident of Stevens Park Village north of the Dallas apartment building, is one of those neighbors.
"The biggest issue for me is that Cliff Manor stands within yards of Stevens Park Elementary and Raul Quintanilla Sr. Middle schools," he wrote in an e-mail. "How can DHA justify housing such an unstable population such as this when we don't even allow registered sex offenders this close to schools?"
Myla Johnson asked in an e-mail: "What happens when an area resident is attacked? The Bridge has a history of violence and crime which could be funneled into the residential family neighborhoods in North Oak Cliff."
Faenza said such concerns are unwarranted. "I am very confident that the people [who are referred to Cliff Manor] will be some of the most positive residents in the neighborhood," he said.
Why? There's no evidence that people living in permanent supportive housing are a neighborhood blight, he said. "We're getting better and better" at placing residents, he said. And with Cliff Manor, "the plan of success is strong."
Faenza said he hopes the move-ins at Cliff Manor begin about July 7. That would give his group and the housing authority time to meet with neighbors, answer their questions and work with them to develop a system for measuring the Dallas apartments effect on its surroundings, he said.
"Words are cheap. We need to develop performance indicators," he said, such as Cliff Manor residents' impact on neighborhood crime and vagrancy.
"It's a business," Faenza said, "and we need to be held accountable."
18 June 2010
Obit: M. Tom Lardner
The Dallas News
Dallas developer turned blighted area into Uptown
M. Tom Lardner had the inspiration for Dallas' Uptown neighborhood more than 30 years ago – when it was just a blighted area north of the central business district.
He was running a Chicago-based real estate investment firm when he first saw the potential of a high-density residential and commercial development here. In 1978, he moved to Dallas.
After nearly a dozen years of advocacy and many land transactions, he began to see his dream take shape with the construction of a 130-unit luxury apartment building, the first of many.
Mr. Lardner, 67, died May 24 of a heart attack while visiting Positano, Italy.
Visitation will be from 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday at Sparkman/Hillcrest Funeral Home in Dallas.
A Mass will be celebrated for Mr. Lardner at 10 a.m. Friday at the Cathedral Shrine of the Virgin of Guadalupe in downtown Dallas.
Mr. Lardner was what a good developer ought to be, said Trammell Crow Jr.
"He had a vision, not just for a profitable, long-term real estate project, but he really knew what he was doing," Mr. Crow said. "He knew full well that it would transform the central business district."
Mr. Lardner purchased much of the land roughly bounded by McKinney Avenue, Pearl Street, Hall Street, Woodall Rodgers Freeway and North Central Expressway. He also worked with city officials to create a tax increment financing district that paid for street and other infrastructure improvements.
The State-Thomas area of Dallas, where the Uptown development started, is now the most densely populated part of the city, officials said.
Mr. Lardner "was a serious, caring man who enjoyed life," Mr. Crow said.
Roger Staubach was a partner with Mr. Lardner in Uptown's first luxury apartment development, the Meridian building, which started in 1990.
"Tom will be missed – he was a great visionary," Mr. Staubach said.
Although Mr. Lardner is best-known for the role he played in Uptown, he remained civic-minded, through efforts that included his support of Texas Business for Clean Air, Mr. Crow said.
"TXU was trying to get permits for 11 coal-fired plants all at one time," Mr. Crow said.
Mr. Lardner was one of the first of about 10 major Dallas business leaders who opposed the fast-tracking of the coal-fired plants, Mr. Crow said. The group was concerned that the electric-generating plants would hurt North Texas' air quality.
"Perhaps more than any other member, he helped us with strategy, with contacts in Austin and with other business people," Mr. Crow said.
Mr. Lardner was born in Port Huron, Mich., and graduated from Barbour Hall Junior Military Academy in Kalamazoo, Mich., and Campion Jesuit High School in Prairie du Chien, Wis.
He attended the University of Detroit, now the University of Detroit Mercy, on a football scholarship. He received a bachelor's degree in business from Michigan State University, which he attended after the University of Detroit ended its football program.
Mr. Lardner later earned a master's degree in education from Michigan State.
He was a football coach and history teacher at St. Gabriel High School in East Lansing, Mich., before beginning his real estate career.
Mr. Lardner founded Lehndorff USA in Chicago and later moved the real estate investment and management company to Dallas, where it grew to have 700 employees while managing more than $3.8 billion of property.
The Meridian was the first test case in Uptown.
"That was to prove there was a market," said his son Colin Lardner, who followed in his father's real estate footsteps. "People were afraid at that time to do any investment, because of what had happened in the '80s."
In addition to his son, Mr. Lardner is survived by his wife, Ann Lardner of Dallas; another son, Eric Lardner of Dallas; and two brothers, Patrick Lardner of Port Huron, Mich., and Jim Lardner of Washington, D.C.
He was running a Chicago-based real estate investment firm when he first saw the potential of a high-density residential and commercial development here. In 1978, he moved to Dallas.
After nearly a dozen years of advocacy and many land transactions, he began to see his dream take shape with the construction of a 130-unit luxury apartment building, the first of many.
Mr. Lardner, 67, died May 24 of a heart attack while visiting Positano, Italy.
Visitation will be from 6 to 9 p.m. Thursday at Sparkman/Hillcrest Funeral Home in Dallas.
A Mass will be celebrated for Mr. Lardner at 10 a.m. Friday at the Cathedral Shrine of the Virgin of Guadalupe in downtown Dallas.
Mr. Lardner was what a good developer ought to be, said Trammell Crow Jr.
"He had a vision, not just for a profitable, long-term real estate project, but he really knew what he was doing," Mr. Crow said. "He knew full well that it would transform the central business district."
Mr. Lardner purchased much of the land roughly bounded by McKinney Avenue, Pearl Street, Hall Street, Woodall Rodgers Freeway and North Central Expressway. He also worked with city officials to create a tax increment financing district that paid for street and other infrastructure improvements.
The State-Thomas area of Dallas, where the Uptown development started, is now the most densely populated part of the city, officials said.
Mr. Lardner "was a serious, caring man who enjoyed life," Mr. Crow said.
Roger Staubach was a partner with Mr. Lardner in Uptown's first luxury apartment development, the Meridian building, which started in 1990.
"Tom will be missed – he was a great visionary," Mr. Staubach said.
Although Mr. Lardner is best-known for the role he played in Uptown, he remained civic-minded, through efforts that included his support of Texas Business for Clean Air, Mr. Crow said.
"TXU was trying to get permits for 11 coal-fired plants all at one time," Mr. Crow said.
Mr. Lardner was one of the first of about 10 major Dallas business leaders who opposed the fast-tracking of the coal-fired plants, Mr. Crow said. The group was concerned that the electric-generating plants would hurt North Texas' air quality.
"Perhaps more than any other member, he helped us with strategy, with contacts in Austin and with other business people," Mr. Crow said.
Mr. Lardner was born in Port Huron, Mich., and graduated from Barbour Hall Junior Military Academy in Kalamazoo, Mich., and Campion Jesuit High School in Prairie du Chien, Wis.
He attended the University of Detroit, now the University of Detroit Mercy, on a football scholarship. He received a bachelor's degree in business from Michigan State University, which he attended after the University of Detroit ended its football program.
Mr. Lardner later earned a master's degree in education from Michigan State.
He was a football coach and history teacher at St. Gabriel High School in East Lansing, Mich., before beginning his real estate career.
Mr. Lardner founded Lehndorff USA in Chicago and later moved the real estate investment and management company to Dallas, where it grew to have 700 employees while managing more than $3.8 billion of property.
The Meridian was the first test case in Uptown.
"That was to prove there was a market," said his son Colin Lardner, who followed in his father's real estate footsteps. "People were afraid at that time to do any investment, because of what had happened in the '80s."
In addition to his son, Mr. Lardner is survived by his wife, Ann Lardner of Dallas; another son, Eric Lardner of Dallas; and two brothers, Patrick Lardner of Port Huron, Mich., and Jim Lardner of Washington, D.C.
08 June 2010
Relocating to Dallas: High Value Real Estate, High Quality Living
Stock Markets Review
People who decide to relocate to Dallas will be buying a home or renting a home in a major metropolitan area where real estate values have remained stable. Both the cost of living and the unemployment rate are well below the national averages.
** Major Population Center in North Texas **
With a population of 1,240,499 in 2009, Dallas ranks as the ninth largest city in the United States and the third largest in Texas. Although separated from neighboring Fort Worth by 32 miles, the two cities, forming the DFW Metroplex, comprise the 12th largest metro economy in the world with the fourth largest labor force in the United States.
Fort Worth has a population of 600,000 and is the 19th largest city in the nation and one of “America’s Most Livable Communities.” Whereas Fort Worth cherishes its western tradition and “Cow Town” image, Dallas fully embraces its role as a modern, 21st century, urban leader, proudly designated as one of the country’s “Most Ethnically Diverse Communities.”
** Diverse Population, Stable Economy, Strong Real Estate **
Together Dallas and Fort Worth apartments form one of most vibrant and compelling population centers in the United States. The area’s healthy economy is a significant draw for young professionals and families seeking to relocate to Dallas.
The cost of living index in the city is 7.06% lower than the rest of the nation (aided in part by the fact that Texas has no state income tax.) Dallas has grown at a rate of 3.73% since 2000 with a population of 50.4% males to 49.6% females. The median age is 30.5 years.
In May 2010, unemployment in Dallas stands at roughly 8% compared to the national average of around 10%. In recent years tech industries have made strong inroads in the metroplex. The city now has more than 233,000 tech workers, more than Austin and Houston combined, and is home to major companies including Research in Motion (the maker of BlackBerry smartphones), AT&T, Raytheon, and Lockheed Martin.
Real estate values in Dallas have weathered the recession well, remaining relatively stable with fewer of the wild price swings that have plagued other parts of the country. Currently median home prices stand at approximately $115,850, although they vary widely by neighborhoods within the city.
Anyone who is going to relocate to Dallas apartments should work with a knowledgeable real estate professional who can apprise them of all the implications of any location in the immediate city or surrounding suburbs. Dallas is a diverse urban area providing a wide variety of choices for anyone buying or renting a home.
** Education, Health Care, Culture, Access **
The region is especially strong in the terms of education and health care:
– The Dallas Independent School District serves more than 160,000 students.
– Overall, the DFW Metroplex is home to 17 two-year technical/trade colleges.
– There are 7 private colleges and universities, and six public four-year colleges and universities.
** Major Population Center in North Texas **
With a population of 1,240,499 in 2009, Dallas ranks as the ninth largest city in the United States and the third largest in Texas. Although separated from neighboring Fort Worth by 32 miles, the two cities, forming the DFW Metroplex, comprise the 12th largest metro economy in the world with the fourth largest labor force in the United States.
Fort Worth has a population of 600,000 and is the 19th largest city in the nation and one of “America’s Most Livable Communities.” Whereas Fort Worth cherishes its western tradition and “Cow Town” image, Dallas fully embraces its role as a modern, 21st century, urban leader, proudly designated as one of the country’s “Most Ethnically Diverse Communities.”
** Diverse Population, Stable Economy, Strong Real Estate **
Together Dallas and Fort Worth apartments form one of most vibrant and compelling population centers in the United States. The area’s healthy economy is a significant draw for young professionals and families seeking to relocate to Dallas.
The cost of living index in the city is 7.06% lower than the rest of the nation (aided in part by the fact that Texas has no state income tax.) Dallas has grown at a rate of 3.73% since 2000 with a population of 50.4% males to 49.6% females. The median age is 30.5 years.
In May 2010, unemployment in Dallas stands at roughly 8% compared to the national average of around 10%. In recent years tech industries have made strong inroads in the metroplex. The city now has more than 233,000 tech workers, more than Austin and Houston combined, and is home to major companies including Research in Motion (the maker of BlackBerry smartphones), AT&T, Raytheon, and Lockheed Martin.
Real estate values in Dallas have weathered the recession well, remaining relatively stable with fewer of the wild price swings that have plagued other parts of the country. Currently median home prices stand at approximately $115,850, although they vary widely by neighborhoods within the city.
Anyone who is going to relocate to Dallas apartments should work with a knowledgeable real estate professional who can apprise them of all the implications of any location in the immediate city or surrounding suburbs. Dallas is a diverse urban area providing a wide variety of choices for anyone buying or renting a home.
** Education, Health Care, Culture, Access **
The region is especially strong in the terms of education and health care:
– The Dallas Independent School District serves more than 160,000 students.
– Overall, the DFW Metroplex is home to 17 two-year technical/trade colleges.
– There are 7 private colleges and universities, and six public four-year colleges and universities.
19 May 2010
Timing the Housing Market in Houston
The Wall Street Journal / June Fletcher
Q. My husband will retire in December. Our plan is to sell our family home, which we've owned for 19 years and is almost paid off, and move to a retirement community near our daughter in Atlanta. Because it takes a long time to sell homes these days, we figure we should put our house on the market now if we want to have it sold by Christmas. But we read that real estate prices may start improving next year, so we wonder whether it would be better to wait until next spring's selling season. What should we do?
—Houston
A. Normally I'd suggest that you not try to time the real estate market or let its cycles dictate when you move. But since you don't seem to be under any compelling financial pressure to relocate, I recommend that you wait.
I wouldn't necessarily give this same advice to everyone: Overall, the expiration of tax credits for home purchases, coupled with an expected rise in foreclosures and short sales and higher mortgage interest rates, is likely to keep home prices weak over the coming year. So for most people who want to sell, there isn't much to be gained from holding out for more favorable market conditions.
—Houston
A. Normally I'd suggest that you not try to time the real estate market or let its cycles dictate when you move. But since you don't seem to be under any compelling financial pressure to relocate, I recommend that you wait.
I wouldn't necessarily give this same advice to everyone: Overall, the expiration of tax credits for home purchases, coupled with an expected rise in foreclosures and short sales and higher mortgage interest rates, is likely to keep home prices weak over the coming year. So for most people who want to sell, there isn't much to be gained from holding out for more favorable market conditions.
But given where you live, and where you want to move, procrastination is likely to pay off for you. According to FirstAmerican Core Logic, which forecasts home price trends based on a repeat sales index that tracks prices of the same homes over time, Houston apartment and home values have been rising—they were up 4% in February from a year earlier, and are expected to rise an additional 3% by February 2011. Meanwhile, prices in Atlanta, where you're headed, dropped 2.3% in the year ending in February and are expected to fall an additional 4.5% over the next year.
Moreover, it may not take as long to sell your home as you expect. According to Altos Research and Real IQ, the average time a home takes to sell in Houston has been shrinking: Down 10.9 %, to 122 days, from January to March. If you put your house on the market now and it sold in four months time, and closed a month later, you'd have to find another place to live for at least three months before your husband retires. According to ads on Craigslist, furnished one-bedroom apartments in extended-stay hotels can easily run upwards of $2,000 a month in Houston; add to that the cost of keeping your belongings in storage. Then there's the incalculable cost of living in limbo, a state of anxiety that puts pressure on you to find a new house in a new neighborhood quickly, even if it isn't quite what you wanted.
There just doesn't seem to be any upside to your listing your home now. You'll be better off if you use the time before your husband's retirement for de-cluttering, landscaping and prettying-up your home so that it draws top dollar next spring.
05 May 2010
Fort Worth Fastest-Growing North Texas City in 2009
Star-Telegram
Bolstered by continued growth in the Alliance Corridor and in-fill housing completions in established areas like the Seventh Street district, Fort Worth was the fastest-growing city in North Texas last year.
But the lingering effects of the recession are still slowing down the regional housing market. The level of new single-family housing units and Fort Worth apartments was the lowest since 1989, according to figures released Thursday by the North Central Texas Council of Governments.
Fort Worth added 15,950 people for a total of 736,200, a sizeable step ahead of second-place Dallas, which added 10,000 people for a total of 1,316,350. Third on the list was Frisco at 6,250.
"The story is we are growing during a recession. It's very positive in this environment," said Tim Barbee, director of research and information services for the council.
For Fort Worth, "the story is the same as last year," when the city added 17,400 people, he said. "The growth has been surprisingly consistent, especially considering the downturn," Barbee said.
But the totals are slim compared with pre-recession numbers. In 2006, Fort Worth added 37,000 residents.
Tarrant County grew by 21,650 last year for a total of 1,829,400, an increase of 1.18 percent. At 2.87 percent, Crowley notched the fastest rate in the county, growing by 350 for a total of 12,550. By comparison, Arlington (370,650) was essentially flat, adding 200 people for a rate of 0.05 percent.
The 16-county North Texas region grew by 89,770 people to 6,729,400. In 2005, it was 6,075,000, up from 5,309,277 in 2000.
Among smaller cities in the region, Prosper in Collin County notched a one-year hike of 31.69 percent, adding 2,250 for a total of 9,350. In 1970, it had 501 residents. Roanoke in Denton County added 550 residents, an 8 percent increase to 7,500.
The council's population estimates are based on building permits, occupancy factors and household size factors.
For the first time in a decade, new single-family housing completions fell below 20,000, said Donna Coggeshall, research manager for the council. The region added 18,840 homes in 2009, compared with 27,300 in 2008. It's the lowest rate since 1989, when the region added 15,250 units, she said.
Despite the slowdown in new home construction, 2009 single-family occupancy rates were similar to 2008's, she said.
Fort Worth added 3,891 new single-family units and 3,452 multifamily completions.
"Compared to Dallas, Fort Worth still has room to grow," Coggeshall noted. "Most of that came in the Alliance Corridor, but there was also in-fill additions in areas like Seventh Street, where condos, town homes and apartments in Fort Worth were completed."
There was a small rebound in the number of new multifamily units (15,200) added to the regional housing stock, she said. In 2008, 13,400 multifamily units were completed.
"Multifamily developments that have been stalled by the economy are now being finished up in response to demand for rentals," she said. "Occupancy rates are up slightly this year."
Considering the economic climate across the country, Barbee said, North Texas is faring well.
"Other areas are flat or declining, and we're still growing. It has slowed down, but it is still happening. Compare that to places like Las Vegas," he said. "A lot of places would be happy to have these numbers."
By his own personal economic barometer, things appear to be looking up, Barbee said.
Two years ago, when the recession bared its teeth, the amount of traffic noticeably slowed on his commute to work at the council's office near Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington.
"In the past few months, it has picked back up," he said.
But the lingering effects of the recession are still slowing down the regional housing market. The level of new single-family housing units and Fort Worth apartments was the lowest since 1989, according to figures released Thursday by the North Central Texas Council of Governments.
Fort Worth added 15,950 people for a total of 736,200, a sizeable step ahead of second-place Dallas, which added 10,000 people for a total of 1,316,350. Third on the list was Frisco at 6,250.
"The story is we are growing during a recession. It's very positive in this environment," said Tim Barbee, director of research and information services for the council.
For Fort Worth, "the story is the same as last year," when the city added 17,400 people, he said. "The growth has been surprisingly consistent, especially considering the downturn," Barbee said.
But the totals are slim compared with pre-recession numbers. In 2006, Fort Worth added 37,000 residents.
Tarrant County grew by 21,650 last year for a total of 1,829,400, an increase of 1.18 percent. At 2.87 percent, Crowley notched the fastest rate in the county, growing by 350 for a total of 12,550. By comparison, Arlington (370,650) was essentially flat, adding 200 people for a rate of 0.05 percent.
The 16-county North Texas region grew by 89,770 people to 6,729,400. In 2005, it was 6,075,000, up from 5,309,277 in 2000.
Among smaller cities in the region, Prosper in Collin County notched a one-year hike of 31.69 percent, adding 2,250 for a total of 9,350. In 1970, it had 501 residents. Roanoke in Denton County added 550 residents, an 8 percent increase to 7,500.
The council's population estimates are based on building permits, occupancy factors and household size factors.
For the first time in a decade, new single-family housing completions fell below 20,000, said Donna Coggeshall, research manager for the council. The region added 18,840 homes in 2009, compared with 27,300 in 2008. It's the lowest rate since 1989, when the region added 15,250 units, she said.
Despite the slowdown in new home construction, 2009 single-family occupancy rates were similar to 2008's, she said.
Fort Worth added 3,891 new single-family units and 3,452 multifamily completions.
"Compared to Dallas, Fort Worth still has room to grow," Coggeshall noted. "Most of that came in the Alliance Corridor, but there was also in-fill additions in areas like Seventh Street, where condos, town homes and apartments in Fort Worth were completed."
There was a small rebound in the number of new multifamily units (15,200) added to the regional housing stock, she said. In 2008, 13,400 multifamily units were completed.
"Multifamily developments that have been stalled by the economy are now being finished up in response to demand for rentals," she said. "Occupancy rates are up slightly this year."
Considering the economic climate across the country, Barbee said, North Texas is faring well.
"Other areas are flat or declining, and we're still growing. It has slowed down, but it is still happening. Compare that to places like Las Vegas," he said. "A lot of places would be happy to have these numbers."
By his own personal economic barometer, things appear to be looking up, Barbee said.
Two years ago, when the recession bared its teeth, the amount of traffic noticeably slowed on his commute to work at the council's office near Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington.
"In the past few months, it has picked back up," he said.
03 May 2010
Night Construction Speeds Dallas Convention Hotel
WFAA
DALLAS — As the city winds down every day, one of its highest profile construction projects revs up.
"We're about a third of the way down with the building structure right now," said Michael Hite, general superintendent of the new Dallas convention center hotel.
Three days a week, while the city is asleep, cranes spin, trucks arrive and concrete construction crews go to work on the site just north of the Dallas Convention Center.
It's not at the crack of dawn, but in the middle of the night. The main reason is to pour concrete.
Texas concrete contractors have quietly been adding one new floor every week — often before the city wakes up.
"Logistically, we don't have to deal with rush hour traffic in the morning," Hite explained. "We're able to be not so much of a burden with the City of Dallas, especially on a downtown project where you have concrete trucks staged for literally five, six, seven hours at a time. We're less of an impact to them."
What's most remarkable about the overnight work is how fast special additives help the concrete harden. Twelve hours after it's poured, workers can walk on it.
They've built up to the eighth floor now, which is one-third of the 23-story structure.
The 1,000 room hotel is set to open in about two years. It's estimated to cost $550 million.
28 April 2010
Are Houston Apartment Dwellers Getting the (Water) Shaft?
CultureMap Houston
Calling "halfsies" isn't always such a good deal. For people living in apartments in Houston, it looks like there will be a 50-percent increase in water rates for those who call multi-unit digs home. The hike stands in sharp contrast to the projected slight increase of 12 percent for single-family customers.
According to City Councilman Ed Gonzalez, the jump is the result of a $100 million deficit in the city's water and sewage budget, and renters are going to have to pay. Andy Icken, deputy director of Houston Public Works Department has suggested that research states that single-family homes conserve more water than multi-family units.
"They have a big study that hasn't been released yet," Houston Apartment Association (HAA) executive vice president Jeff Hall told CultureMap. "There's an executive summary from their consulting firm, but that doesn't tell much." Icken did not respond to phone calls inquiring about the research.
HAA feels the increase unfairly punishes apartment renters, many of whom cannot afford to take on a ballooning bill. Hall argues that apartments are cheaper for the city to maintain, and that the cost is lower to provide water and sewage utilities to an apartment complex than to an equal number of single family homes.
This isn't the first proposed infrastructure change under new mayor Annise Parker, who has questioned the financing of two Metro light rail lines and overseen the weekend closure of neighborhood libraries — making residents wonder if basic city amenities are going down the drain. Parker has been frank in saying how the city's current budget crisis is going to cause hard cuts and tough times for Houstonians. Rather than try to sugarcoat the projected $140 million budget shortfall with a typical politician's sweet talk, Parker said, "The pressure is going to be immense" in her first state of the city address on April 8.
Hall argues that putting an extra burden on apartment renters is not the way to go to meet shortfalls. When asked if this method has been tried in other cities, Hall responded, "No, we're dealing with a local issue here."
City Council is set to announce a final, revised proposal next week. Until then, foreclosed McMansions are looking more and more practical.
According to City Councilman Ed Gonzalez, the jump is the result of a $100 million deficit in the city's water and sewage budget, and renters are going to have to pay. Andy Icken, deputy director of Houston Public Works Department has suggested that research states that single-family homes conserve more water than multi-family units.
"They have a big study that hasn't been released yet," Houston Apartment Association (HAA) executive vice president Jeff Hall told CultureMap. "There's an executive summary from their consulting firm, but that doesn't tell much." Icken did not respond to phone calls inquiring about the research.
HAA feels the increase unfairly punishes apartment renters, many of whom cannot afford to take on a ballooning bill. Hall argues that apartments are cheaper for the city to maintain, and that the cost is lower to provide water and sewage utilities to an apartment complex than to an equal number of single family homes.
This isn't the first proposed infrastructure change under new mayor Annise Parker, who has questioned the financing of two Metro light rail lines and overseen the weekend closure of neighborhood libraries — making residents wonder if basic city amenities are going down the drain. Parker has been frank in saying how the city's current budget crisis is going to cause hard cuts and tough times for Houstonians. Rather than try to sugarcoat the projected $140 million budget shortfall with a typical politician's sweet talk, Parker said, "The pressure is going to be immense" in her first state of the city address on April 8.
Hall argues that putting an extra burden on apartment renters is not the way to go to meet shortfalls. When asked if this method has been tried in other cities, Hall responded, "No, we're dealing with a local issue here."
City Council is set to announce a final, revised proposal next week. Until then, foreclosed McMansions are looking more and more practical.
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