1. A January Housing Update We caught an error in the January 2015 MLS data from the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M that we use to produce our monthly reports, so we want to make sure you have updated, accurate information: Houston home sales rose again. Year-over-year sales increased 2.6 percent, with a total of 4,032 single-family units sold. Months of inventory held unchanged at a 2.6-months supply. Housing inventory nationally stands at a 4.4-months supply. The single-family home average price was about $260,000 while the median price was $190,000 – highest levels ever for a January. Rentals of single-family homes dipped 2.1 percent year-over-year while the cost of renting those homes rose 3.0 percent to $1,665. For more detailed information, please visit the HAR Online Newsroom for this and all other HAR news releases.HAR Online Newsroom

2. Apartment Demand Soars Across the U.S. Renters made up the majority of the population in cities at the core of nine of the nation’s 11 largest metro areas in 2013, a sharp change from 2006, when renters were the majority in just five of those cities, according to a new report. The report, by New York University’s Furman Center and Capital One Financial Corp., found a significant shift in the proportion of renters in all major cities—even in lower-density, relatively inexpensive places such as Houston and Dallas. A resulting demand for apartments is rising so fast that it is starting to overwhelm supply in many cities, pushing up housing costs nationwide. Here in Houston, just 41 percent of the population rented in 1970. The rate rose to 51 percent by 2000, then declined slightly during the housing boom before starting to rise again, hitting 54 percent in 2013. The report found that New York City no longer has the largest share of renters of any of the big cities, having been outstripped by Miami. Read more of this Wall Street Journal story here: http://www.wsj.com/articles/renters-are-majority-in-big-u-s-cities-1423432009. http://www.wsj.com/articles/renters-are-majority-in-big-u-s-cities-1423432009 You’ll find more information about the study here: http://bit.ly/1EhNtdM.http://bit.ly/1EhNtdM

3. Houston Market Movements Nationally, housing starts are off to a good start in 2015, with new projects ahead of last year at this time. Before the confetti cannons come out, this doesn't necessarily mean that sellers can start asking more and that buyers will immediately have more to choose from. But this does bode well for increased confidence throughout the residential real estate marketplace. Balance means a lighter ebb and flow of various market metrics rather than astronomical gains and losses. This is positive. In the Houston region, for the week ending February 8: New Listings increased 10.6% to 2,403 Pending Sales increased 21.8% to 1,728 Closed Sales decreased 19.0% to 734

4. Become a Leader Today 2015 Texas REALTORS ® Leadership Program (TRLP) Application Deadline is March 20! Due to its overwhelming success, HAR is once again offering the opportunity to take part in an extensive eight-month leadership program. Each session equips REALTOR ® members with the tools necessary to grow both personally and professionally. Topics Include: Business Planning ∙ Time Management & Life Balance ∙ Spokesperson Training ∙ Leading Across Differences ∙ Understanding Your Leadership Style ∙ Conflict Resolution/Risk Management & Future Planning ∙ Team Building (Overnight Retreat) ∙ Law, Legislature & Leadership (Austin bus trip) Applications for the 2015 TRLP are available at http://bit.ly/1zj7P2Y, below the video player. You may also contact Rita Blevins at (713) 629-1900 ext. 263 or via email at rita@har.com to request an application.http://bit.ly/1zj7P2Yrita@har.com