1. In This Week’s “The EDGE”
• Houston Housing Rebounds in April
• Houston Market Movements
• Investors Snap Up Harvey-Flooded Homes
• Early Voting in Primary Runoffs Begins Today
• Secure a New Designation for Yourself
“The Edge” is a weekly tool for managers to use to inform their agents and stay current and up-to-date with important real estate industry issues.
Brought to you by the HAR Communications Department.

2. Houston Housing Rebounds in April
HAR released April 2018 MLS statistics last week. Here is a look at some of the key takeaways, in case you missed our latest report:
After a sluggish March, the Houston real estate market rebounded in April with a nearly seven percent jump in home sales and the highest average and median prices of all time.
7,070 single-family homes sold in April compared to 6,611 a year earlier.
The single-family home median price rose 5.3 percent to a record-setting $240,000; the average price increased 5.2 percent to an all-time high of $305,092.
Inventory narrowed from a 3.8-months supply to 3.6 months, matching the national level reported by NAR.
April leases of single-family homes rose 2.0 percent year-over-year while leases of townhomes and condominiums jumped 8.6 percent.
For more detailed information, please visit the HAR Online Newsroom for this and all other HAR news releases.

3. Houston Market Movements In the Houston region, for the week
Year-over-year percentage changes for housing metrics like inventory, median sales price and days on market have sometimes looked dramatic over the past few years in most markets across the country not named Houston. But as faster sales and higher prices persist, another trend is beginning to emerge: reliability. Although more market balance is preferred, the current situation has proven to be surprisingly sustainable, at least for the time being.
In the Houston region, for the week
ending May 6:
• New Listings decreased 0.6% to 3,510
• Pending Sales increased 26.0% to 2,550
• Closed Sales increased 36.0% to 2,153

4. Investors Snap Up Harvey-Flooded Homes
Investors continue to snap up thousands of properties flooded by Hurricane Harvey.
From billion-dollar Wall Street funds to mom-and-pop flippers, they've already purchased at least 5,500 flooded homes, often for dimes on the dollar, according to the Houston Chronicle.
In the process, these investors are transforming some Houston neighborhoods into block after block of rentals. They're interrupting county plans to buy out flood-prone properties. And they're leaning on the taxpayer-funded National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) to protect them from future floods.
Small and mid-sized private companies have dominated the post-Harvey market so far, some sending in executives from California, Colorado and Las Vegas. But now institutional funds, which woo wealthy investors with promises of double-digit returns, are dipping their toes in the water, too.
You may read the complete Chronicle story online HERE.

5. Early Voting in Primary Runoffs Begins Today
Tuesday, May 22 – Primary Runoff
Early Voting Monday, May 14 - Friday, May 18
HAR Recommended Candidates
Montgomery County Commissioners:
Charlie Riley (Pct 2)
Jim Clark (Pct 4)
HAR is not involved in these races:
Congressional District 2
Rep. Kevin Roberts
Dan Crenshaw
Congressional District 7
Laura Moser
Lizzie Pannill Fletcher
Commissioner Charlie Riley
Commissioner Jim Clark

6. Secure a New Designation for Yourself
Graduate REALTOR® Institute (GRI) Marketing
HAR presents the Graduate REALTOR® Institute (GRI) Real Estate Marketing class. GRI is the most widely recognized of the national real estate designations. Topics include seller and buyer services, technology, environment and green building. Classes may be taken in any order and satisfy 10 hours of elective CE or 30 hours of SAE. Please confirm your eligibility and review the requirements necessary to earn this designation by visiting the designation holder’s site or contacting the HAR Professional Development department.
Date: May 21, 22, 23 & 24
Time: 8:15 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Location: HAR Central
Investment: $295
Register HERE today! Questions? Please call ext. 6