Friday, February 3, 2012

This Week in Dallas Real Estate. What Housing Glut, and Mortgage Rates Fall.

By Troy Corman, t2realestate.com

Dallas Homes Listed For Sale Now at 2001 Levels.
Steve Brown, real estate reporter for the Dallas Morning News reported this morning that contrary to popular belief, Dallas-Fort Worth home for sale inventory is now under a 5 months' supply. Below 6 months is considered a seller's market.

And, there's very little new home inventory as well. There are only about 3,000 vacant new homes in the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex, or about 25% of 2007 levels. Builders say that most of the homes being built are already sold. I guess that's why I'm getting more home builders calling me looking for lots in the Dallas Lakewood and lower Greenville areas.

Mortgage Rate Lows Break Another Record.
Freddie Mac reported that 30-year fixed rate loans dropped to 3.87%. That marks another new record, just below the 3.88% level recorded a couple of weeks ago. The 15-year fixed rate mortgage fell to 3.14%, which was also a record low.

"The House" In Victory Park Goes In To Foreclosure.
Also reported by Steve Brown, Victory Park's House condo tower is now in foreclosure. Built in 2007, the 28-story tower featured interiors designed by Philip Stark. Only 20 of the 132 units have sold, which started at price points just under $400K for a one bedroom, and up to $2 mil for a penthouse. Originally developed by Ross Perot Jr's. Hillwood and London's Yoo Ltd., German investor's eventually took over ownership and management when the recession severely slowed any Victory Park momentum.

Lender HSH Nordbank AG wants repayment on $79.8 million in debt from Block J LP, the House condo tower's owner. It will be interesting to see if prices drop substantially for the remaining units.

Dallas Considered a Commercial Real Estate Hot Spot.
More than $1 billion in commercial real estate sales have occurred in Dallas-Fort Worth in the last few months. Williams Square in Los Colinas changed hands ($230 million), as did Trammell Crow Center, Fountain Place and Crescent office landmarks for close to $700 million. According to some Dallas commercial real estate brokers, Dallas office property investments are now considered among the top five favorite locations and mentioned in the same breadth with New York, Boston and San Francisco.

Addison's Behringer Harvard In Default on Frisco Square.
A payment for six tracts of land in or near Frisco Square, was missed by Behringer Harvard on January 28. The Behringer Harvard Opportunity REIT I Inc. reported to the SEC that it missed the payment, financed by Bank of America, to the tune of $44.1 million. Behringer Harvard has interests in office, retail, apartment building and a now in default move theater at Frisco's Main Street and Dallas North Tolloway location. The Dallas area real estate investment company says that 95% of the apartment and 90% of the office space in Frisco Square is leased. They are fighting to retain control of their ownership stake but they've also reported that they missed a $3 million payment on a Dallas high-rise residential building, which is most likely the Hotel Palomar condominium building at Mockingbird and Central Expressway. Behringer Harvard said lenders may take over the unsold condos.

Troy Corman is the founder of t2 Real Estate LLC, a Dallas real estate firm providing specialized knowledge with a hands-on approach. Specialties include residential real estate brokerage, land and acreage, and commercial real estate services. Contact us today at 214.827.1200 if you need to sell, buy or get your DFW property leased.
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