Dallas: DFW pre-owned homes and prices hit record highs in June with no signs of a slowdown. In June, 11,638 pre-owned homes were sold – the most in a single month. The median sale price of $256,000 is up 8% from a year ago. June saw 8,812 new home starts, the most since the fourth quarter of 2006. In second quarter, 8,244 new homes were sold, up 13% over the year and the most since summer, 2007. MLS data show 51,627 homes sold in the first half of 2017, up 5% over last year. 874 $1 million-plus properties have traded, up 37% from last year.

 

Dallas: More than 3 million square feet of retail and restaurant projects are being built in North Texas, the most since 2008. Construction of supermarkets, big box stores and entertainment facilities account for a big portion of the retail. Some of the biggest concentrations are in Legacy West in Plano, the Star in Frisco and the Shops at Clearfork in Ft. Worth.

 

Dallas: DFW topped the country in office leasing for the second quarter. With a growing economy, DFW net office leasing totaled 1.4 million square feet, and leading indicators such as job openings suggest business expansion will stay healthy. DFW led the US for employment growth in May, with almost 116,000 more jobs than 2016. At midyear, DFW is second only to New York in total office building.

 

Dallas: Around 40% of DFW homes sold last year went to house flippers, investors, developers and builders, reports the Dallas Morning News. The normal average for Dallas is about 25%, and nationwide around one-third. DFW is not a good market for flippers, with price appreciation and tight inventory. Last year the neighborhoods with the most flips were South Oak Cliff (75224; 17.4%), South Dallas (75216; 15.3%), southeast Dallas (75241; 14.8%), southwest Dallas (75232; 14.1%). A flip generally is a buy/sell in a 12 month period.

 

NYC: According to Brand Finance, Texas had 48 of America’s most valuable brands, 8.4% of the total value of the nation’s top 500 brands, making Texas the third most valuable state behind California and New York. 

 

Oil and gas were represented by ExxonMobil and Schlumberger. Dallas based AT&T, Texas’ most valuable brand, overtook Verizon as the world’s #1 telecom brand. Southwest and American Airlines both rose, while American Airlines overtook Emirates as the world’s most valuable airline brand. The top five are Google, Apple, Amazon, AT&T and Microsoft.