According to the business-cycle index produced by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, economic activity in the Houston metropolitan area grew at an annualized rate of 5.57 percent in May. This robust figure was accompanied by an upward revision of the April growth rate to 7.3 percent. It is believed that transitory factors are responsible for recent softening of some local and national data, but robust employment numbers in Houston continue unabated. The outlook for Houston remains positive. Nonfarm payroll employment grew at an annualized rate of more than 3.2 percent in May to more than 2.57 million jobs. This brings the number of jobs added since the trough of Houston’s business cycle to more than 81,600. Year-to-date, the average annualized monthly growth rate was 3.3 percent. Should that pace continue in the second half of 2011, Houston will have added nearly 84,000 jobs this year. The unemployment rate improved slightly to 8.4 percent, while the U.S. clocked in at 9.1 percent. The Gulf Coast Workforce Development Area initial claims for unemployment insurance grew 2.8 percent in May but remains in a downward trend. Federal Reserve’s Houston Economic Update

Two high profile columns were published this week about the real estate market. In a piece titled “A Home is a Lousy Investment” in The Wall Street Journal, Prof. Robert Bridges from the USC School of Business analyzes historical real estate data from California as the basis for his argument that homeownership should not be considered the “cornerstone of personal finance.”“A Home is a Lousy Investment” Time magazine also published an article titled “Why Real Estate May Be The Buying Opportunity of the Decade” by contributor Michael Sivy, which talks about the long- term benefits of homeownership and the opportunity that currently exists. He outlines the alignment of three different trends that indicate, according to him, a coming “major home price boom.”“Why Real Estate May Be The Buying Opportunity of the Decade” Obviously, both these columns are based on national real estate figures, and as we know, every market is different so make sure you read them with that in mind. (You may click above on either of the article titles to read them.) Who’s Right? The Wall Street Journal or Time?

Weekly HAR Market Stat More buyers entered into purchase agreements than during the same week in 2010, though sellers did not exceed their year-ago activity levels. Increased sales and slowed listings could draw down the active supply of homes. Be sure to watch for higher-level trends and keep an eye on other notable indicators as they can sometimes shed light where listings, sales and even prices fall short. In the Houston region, for the week ending July 3: New listings decreased 6.5% to 2,118 Pending sales increased 32.3% to 1,299 Closed sales increased 10.2% to 1,619

Register Online at Questions? ext. 6 Are You Certifiable? Certified International Property Specialist Date: Monday, July 18 – Friday, July 22 Time: 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. (each day) Location: HAR Central Investment: $650 The CIPS Institute is a five-day session consisting of five classes: Global Real Estate: Local Markets Europe & International Real Estate The Americas & International Real Estate Asia / Pacific & International Real Estate Global Real Estate: Transaction Tools