USA REAL ESTATE Dana Conway, Realtor Adv. Communications Skills

Industry Overview Construction activity has increased in the recent past due to improving market conditions and positive economic trends. Several large leases have been signed of late by creative firms. Most of the USA markets are in good shape for the construction business with high tenant demand and still-low levels of construction activity. According to a PWC report, as one of the largest “secondary” markets, Houston offers a significant amount of investment opportunities. Investors believe that the energy industry will continue to drive market growth and that will support real estate activity in In total, Houston was ranked number one in both investment and development expectations for next year; housing market expectations are ranked number two, in a recent survey report from PWC. The expectations for Houston real estate are high for all property sectors. Houston is ranked number one in the industrial and retail sectors; the office and multifamily sectors are ranked number two; and the hotel sector is ranked number four. All areas of the real estate industry are interested in investment opportunities in Houston, with institutional investors particularly attracted to the city. Local market participants view the real estate market conditions as excellent in Houston for 2015.

Industry developments Trends in Financing The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) projects originations of commercial and multifamily (C/MF) mortgages will grow to $414 billion in 2015, an increase of 7 percent from 2014, and continue to rise to $430 billion in MBA projects multifamily mortgages originated by mortgage bankers are forecast to increase to $152 billion in In 2013, the country’s homeownership rate stood at an average of 65.1%, down from 65.5% in the previous year and from its peak level of 69% in 2004, based on figures from the U.S. Census Bureau. In the third quarter of 2014, the home ownership rate dropped to 64.3%. Homeownership is expected to increase as the combination of rising rents and low mortgage rates bring potential buyers to the market. Developments Economists polled by Fortune were nearly unanimous in predicting that home values would continue to rise, but even slower than they did this year. That’s because the rebound from the bursting of the housing bubble has just about run out of steam, with Trulia’s Kolko estimating that homes are only 3% undervalued relative to fundamentals nationally. But factors like the “Millennial mismatch” and rising mortgage rates will make the most popular markets unaffordable for the middle class. Barclays projects U.S. home prices to increase by about 5% this year, 3% in 2015 and by another 2% in 2016.

Consumer Market Data Buyers/ Target Customers FIRST-TIME HOME BUYERS IN AGE GROUP (Percent of all Home Buyers)

Competitive Landscape Largest brokers in Houston area and their closed sales volume