1. Houston Housing Kicks off 2015 in Positive Territory The January 2015 MLS statistics will be released this Wednesday morning, and here are some highlights of the report: Houston home sales rose again. Year-over-year sales increased 6.1 percent, with a total of 4,032 single-family units sold. Months of inventory reached a 2.6-months supply, comparable to year-ago levels. 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 – both increases, but neither a record. Rentals of single-family homes climbed 2.1 percent year-over-year and the cost of renting those homes rose 3.3 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. Agent Hiring is Broken: What Top Brokerages are Doing About It Hiring a new agent isn’t necessarily the easiest or most enjoyable thing to do. It can be costly, inefficient, require a lot of time. In the end, your decision could amount to nothing more than an educated guess, but it doesn’t have to. In his February 3 Inman Select column, Jay Niblick notes that there are problems with the traditional recruitment model, but that there are also some definitive and relatively easy things you can try to make it much more efficient and effective. The problem with many hiring approaches, he writes, is that they fail to accurately identify the essential characteristics that predict performance. The best agencies correct this by modeling reality, interviewing precisely and losing the clichés. Read more of his suggestions at http://bit.ly/1zDp9TQ.http://bit.ly/1zDp9TQ If you don’t have an Inman Select subscription, remember that it’s free as an HAR member. Sign up today at http://bit.ly/1Ac43g6.http://bit.ly/1Ac43g6

3. Houston Market Movements The U.S. economy continues on its journey upward. Not only have gas prices hit multi- year lows, but wages have experienced gains not seen since 2008. As the year picks up steam, and whether you hang out with the bears or bulls of market recovery prognostication (not Chicago sports teams), one cannot deny that the economy is in a more stable position than it has been in years. In the Houston region, for the week ending February 1: New Listings increased 21.2% to 2,334 Pending Sales increased 21.5% to 1,778 Closed Sales decreased 1.7% to 1,485

4. Questions? 713-629-1900 ext. 6 Prep Your Real Estate Career for Blast-Off HAR REALTOR ® Launch: Your Path to Success HAR announces a new initiative to assist REALTORS ® in their career path to success! This intensive three-day class offers insights into how to handle your transaction from contract to closing. The program will include tools such as: Prospecting - How to Create Business Buyer and Seller Expectations - Understanding your role before, during and after the transaction Insight into the ancillary roles by subject matter experts such as appraisers, inspectors, lenders, title companies, home warranty reps and much more. You will have hands-on, interactive experience to help you with your business before you even have business. A light breakfast and lunch are included in the program. Date: Wed. - Fri., February 18, 19 & 20 Time: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Location: HAR Central Investment: $129 Register at www.har.com/eduwww.har.com/edu