Real Estate Investment Up Down South

Texas, North Carolina and Florida Dominate Year-End Top 10 Real Estate Markets

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Dec 23, 2014, 12:00 ET

DALLAS, Dec. 23, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- It appears that real estate investment has headed south for the winter, this according to year-end data compiled by Local Market Monitor, the national real estate forecaster, and HomeVestors of America (the "We Buy Ugly Houses"® people) with Texas, North Carolina and Florida ending 2014 as sure bets for single-family investment property markets.

"The real estate markets that made the top 10 list for investing were chosen based on population growth and it's near cousin, job growth - both conditions ideal for investing in single family homes," said Ingo Winzer, president and founder of Local Market Monitor. "In all of the top 10 markets, the populations increased by more than double the national average of one percent."

Topping the list were two Texas cities, Austin (1) and Houston (2), with other Southern cities of Raleigh (3), Nashville (4) and Orlando (5) rounding out the top five. Another Texas city, San Antonio (7), also made the list.

"Texas has always been a sweet spot for real estate investing. Its economy is strong, and only getting stronger. This is spurring population and job growth, especially among younger workers looking for work in retail, business and tourism. They are looking to rent, not buy a home," noted David Hicks, HomeVestors co-president.

Charlotte, North Carolina (9) and Sarasota, Florida (10) also made the list while Western cities- Denver (8) and Boise (6), thanks to growing jobs in energy, technology and tourism round out the top 10. Noticeably absent are markets in New England and the Midwest.

Along with job growth and population growth, relatively low home prices is a factor making investments in single-family homes as rental properties a low risk opportunity in some markets. The average home prices in the top 10 markets are under $300,000, although the markets listed among the top 20 range from $166,000 to $844,000.

Despite high home prices, a few California markets made the top 20, including Oakland-Fremont-Hayward (15), San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara (19) and the San Francisco Bay area (20).

"There is definitely opportunity to strike gold in the California market for real estate investing. With some notable exceptions, they're growing again - both in jobs and in population - as is clear by double-digit home price increases," explained HomeVestors co-president Ken Channel. "But investors in these markets are likely to see more of their gain come from price appreciation and less from a long-term rental stream, because most of these markets are no longer under-priced."

The top 20 markets for real estate investing are:

Austin-Round Rock, TX
Houston-Baytown-Sugar Land, TX
Raleigh-Cary, NC
Nashville-Davidson-Murfreesboro, TN
Orlando, FL
Boise City-Nampa, ID
San Antonio, TX
Denver-Aurora, CO
Charlotte-Gastonia-Concord, NC
North Port-Bradenton-Sarasota, FL
Oklahoma City, OK
Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ
Seattle-Bellevue-Everett, WA
Dallas-Plano-Irving, TX
Oakland-Fremont-Hayward, CA
Fort Worth-Arlington, TX
Las Vegas-Paradise, NV
Salt Lake City, UT
San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA
San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City, CA

About the Quarterly Data:

The data identifies markets that will be good rental markets and where home prices are likely to increase at a good rate over the next few years. Criteria include markets where:

The population has been growing at above-average rates (4% or better) with growth coming from people moving there in search of jobs;
The current rate of job growth of 2% or better; and
There is low unemployment, so that new jobs will be filled by people who move there, not by unemployed people who are already there.

Markets are excluded that:

Have a small population because they don't have stable economies.

About HomeVestors of America Inc.

Dallas-based HomeVestors of America, Inc. is the largest professional house buying franchise in the U.S., with over 56,000 houses bought since 1996. HomeVestors recruits, trains and supports its independently owned and operated franchisees that specialize in building businesses based on buying, rehabbing, selling and holding residential properties. Most commonly known as the "We Buy Ugly Houses®" company, HomeVestors strives to make a positive impact in each community. In 2013, for the eighth consecutive year, HomeVestors was among the prestigious Franchise Business Review's "Top 50 Franchises," a distinction awarded to franchisors with the highest level of franchisee satisfaction. For more information, visit www.HomeVestors.com. In 2014 HomeVestors was recognized as the 25^th fastest growing franchise by Entrepreneur Magazine and number 126 in the Franchise 500 by Entrepreneur Magazine.

About Local Market Monitor

Local Market Monitor, the premier real estate forecasting solution, offers investors in homes and home mortgages the local market risk intelligence they need to make informed decisions. Using a proprietary formula called the Equilibrium Home Price, Local Market Monitor determines if markets are currently over or under valued, equipping users with a long-term risk and investment perspective. Covering over 300 local markets, Local Market Monitor also presents key investors with a 12, 24 and 36-month home price forecast. The solution includes sorting capabilities allowing subscribers to view and compare real estate markets along various metrics, including an Investment Suitability Ratings to identify opportunities based on individual investing goals. To learn more, visit www.localmarketmonitor.com or call 800-881-8653.

CONTACT: Susie Lomelino
[email protected]
214.269.2092

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SOURCE HomeVestors of America