Latest news with #TexasHousing
Yahoo
05-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Texas Leads U.S. in New-Home Construction, Census Data Finds
If it feels like new neighborhoods are popping up all over Texas, you're not imagining it. A recent study ranked the Lone Star State as the leader in new residential construction, with more than one in five homes built in just the last 15 years. According to a report by The Steamboat Real Estate Group, 22.5% of currently occupied Texas homes were constructed after 2010 — the highest share of any state in the nation. Top 10 states with highest share of new-build homes, per Steamboat Real Estate Group That figure translates to roughly 2.5 million homes and may signal continued population growth and ongoing demand for housing in Texas' urban and suburban corridors. The report, based on U.S. Census Bureau data, highlights what many Texans have witnessed firsthand: breakneck residential expansion driven by job creation, rising migration, and a still-accessible housing market compared to coastal states. From sprawling master-planned communities around Austin, Dallas, and Houston to compact townhouse developments cropping up in overlooked corners of the state, Texas continues to attract newcomers seeking fresh starts, modern homes, and economic opportunity. Even without mentioning Austin, there's a reason the internet has adopted the phrase: 'Don't California my Texas.' North Dakota came in second on the list, with roughly 21% of its housing stock built since 2010 — a reflection of the state's brief oil boom and infrastructure push. Utah followed close behind, with 20.65% of its homes built after 2010. Other high-growth states such as Idaho, South Carolina, and North Carolina also landed in the top five, each surpassing 18% of homes constructed in the past decade. At the other end of the spectrum, older states in the Northeast recorded the smallest share of new housing. In Rhode Island and Connecticut, for example, fewer than 6% of occupied homes were built after 2010. New York and other high-density states also saw relatively low construction rates over that time. 'Interestingly, states located predominantly in the South or the West ranked highest in the study, with nine of the top states located in either region. What this tells us is that infrastructure is being heavily prioritized in these areas, with homebuyers, particularly first-time buyers being more exposed to affordability when it comes to buying a home as new build schemes often offer lower rates. 'It's important however, to ensure that thorough checks are made on newly built properties, not just for safety but to be financially responsible if you're investing into a property,' a spokesperson from The Steamboat Real Estate Group explained.
Yahoo
15-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
International Buyers Are Trading Pricey Coastal Cities For Texas' Low Cost Of Living As The Lone Star State Sees Overseas Interest Surge
Benzinga and Yahoo Finance LLC may earn commission or revenue on some items through the links below. Texas, home of big hats, big hair, and big boots, is attracting some oversized interest from international homebuyers drawn to its new construction, low cost of living, and business-friendly climate, according to The website's latest International Demand for the U.S. Housing Market report reveals that traffic from international buyers seeking Texas housing has surged recently, placing the Lone Star State second only to Miami in capturing the interest of international buyers looking to relocate to the U.S. Don't Miss: Maker of the $60,000 foldable home has 3 factory buildings, 600+ houses built, and big plans to solve housing — , which provides access to a pool of short-term loans backed by residential real estate with just a $100 minimum. 'Drawn by the state's lower cost of living, lack of state income tax, and pro-business environment, many high-profile firms have expanded or relocated their operations to Texas,' Economic Analyst Jiayi Xu writes in the report. Buyers are particularly drawn to Texas's bustling big cities of Dallas, Houston, Austin, and San Antonio, pulling potential buyers away from California and Las Vegas, which have dropped down in search traffic rankings. Traditionally in high demand from overseas buyers, West Coast tech cities have fallen out of favor due to concerns over affordability and layoffs. The report, which collated views from January to March, registered a 2.1% increase in international buyers searching for homes in Texas. Newly constructed family homes are high on the buyer's search criteria. Trending: Invest Where It Hurts — And Help Millions Heal: 'Economic growth, job creation, infrastructure development, and housing demand, making these markets more appealing to international buyers looking for long-term investment opportunities or relocation prospects,' Xu says. A pro-business environment driven by low taxes has seen many companies relocate to Texas, which in turn has driven employment opportunities. 'Houston is an oil and gas hub, and a home to large international companies, providing for job opportunities and job transfers for expats,' Atif Ahmad, an agent with Brits of Compass, a company specializing in helping British citizens buy real estate in the U.S. According to data, most overseas buyers looking for Texas homes are not investors, but rather first-time homebuyers, second-homebuyers, or parents seeking accommodation for students attending colleges in make up 34.7% of international traffic — the highest group, down from 40.7% last year. Interestingly, buyers from the U.K. (5.7%), Mexico (5.4%), and Germany (3.8%) have all increased. Despite President Donald Trump's tariffs, Mexican buyers were not as perturbed as Canadian buyers, whose interest in 2025 had waned. International buyers looking to relocate to Texas may be in luck, as listings in the state are up, particularly in the markets they are targeting. According to the Texas Association of Realtors, active listings increased by 30.7% in the first quarter of 2025, as reported in its 2025 Q1 Texas Quarterly Housing Report. Also up were homes days on the market — 72 — a one-week increase compared to the same period last year. Houston had 33,374 active listings, the most for any city in the state, a 38% increase. Read Next: Deloitte's fastest-growing software company partners with Amazon, Walmart & Target – This Jeff Bezos-backed startup will allow you to . Image: Shutterstock This article International Buyers Are Trading Pricey Coastal Cities For Texas' Low Cost Of Living As The Lone Star State Sees Overseas Interest Surge originally appeared on Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
01-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Texas lawmakers to allow smaller homes on smaller lots
Texas lawmakers have sent a scaled-back zoning proposal to allow smaller homes on smaller lots to Gov. Greg Abbott's desk — a bid to put a dent in the state's high home prices. Lawmakers in the Texas House and Senate passed Senate Bill 15 this weekend after the proposal to give builders the flexibility to build smaller houses in the state's largest cities kicked up heat from House Democrats, who repeatedly tried to kill the bill. The Senate approved the bill by a unanimous vote Saturday. The bill was more controversial in the House, where lawmakers endorsed the latest version by a slimmer 78-57 vote Sunday. The bill found bipartisan support in the House, where a majority of Democrats and Republicans voted in favor. 'These are homes your employees, your kids and grandkids can afford,' said state Rep. Gary Gates, a Richmond Republican who carried the bill in the House. SB 15's passage caps off a session in which lawmakers passed an array of bills intended to tackle the state's high housing costs, primarily by cutting local regulations and red tape in order to allow more homes to be built. Texas needs hundreds of thousands more homes than it has, according to one estimate. That shortage, housing advocates and experts have argued, played a key role in driving up Texas home prices and rents as the state boomed. This year, state lawmakers sought to mitigate that shortage with a package of bills that would supersede local zoning ordinances and reduce other hurdles to building homes. Among the most far-reaching proposals they sent to Abbott would make it harder for residents to stop new homes from being built and allow apartments and mixed-use developments in more places, like retail and commercial corridors, in the state's largest cities. SB 15, a top priority of Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who runs the Senate, aims to force the state's biggest cities to allow smaller homes on smaller lots in some places. Doing so gives homebuilders more latitude when it comes to the size of homes they're allowed to build. Homes on smaller lots have generally been found to be less expensive than homes on bigger ones, research has shown. The bill bars major cities from requiring homes in new subdivisions to sit on more than 3,000 square feet. That's down from 1,400 square feet, which the Senate initially pitched. The state's biggest cities often require single-family homes to sit on around 5,000 to 7,500 square feet of land, a Texas Tribune analysis found. SB 15 doesn't touch existing neighborhoods, and only would apply in new subdivisions with at least five acres of land. If Abbott signs it, the bill would only apply to cities with at least 150,000 residents in counties with a population of 300,000 or more. Some 19 of the state's largest cities fit that criterion, per a Tribune analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data. It also wouldn't apply in cases in which homeowners association and restrictive covenants prevent smaller lot sizes. The proposal spurred a lot of drama in the last days of the legislative session. The idea of the state telling cities what kinds of homes they can allow didn't sit well with a contingent of House Democrats, who tried repeatedly to kill the bill on procedural grounds or gut it. They and some Republicans argued local residents wouldn't get a chance to weigh in on new development resulting from the bill if it passed. 'Leave it up to the cities that know what's best for their city,' state Rep. Ramon Romero, D-Worth, said. Romero successfully amended the bill on the House floor last week so the bill would only apply if cities adopted a new zoning category that allowed homes to the smaller lot size outlined in the bill. That provision would have effectively rendered the bill useless, the bill's proponents argued. House and Senate lawmakers ripped that amendment out of the bill in negotiations between the two chambers. House Democrats had railed against the bill — taking seemingly contradictory approaches. Romero argued that homes built on smaller lots wouldn't necessarily be cheaper. Meanwhile, state Rep. Barbara Gervin-Hawkins, D-San Antonio, questioned Gates last week about whether the bill would create 'future ghettos.' Some Republicans, too, objected. State Rep. Tony Tinderholt, an Arlington Republican considered one of the House's most conservative members, argued the bill would eventually lead to higher crime in places that saw homes on smaller lots. Other bills lawmakers sent to Abbott aimed to make it easier to convert vacant office buildings into residences and would force cities to allow manufactured homes. They also relaxed local rules in college towns that say how many unrelated adults can live in a home. Other ideas to allow more homes died quietly this session. A proposal to make it easier to build additional dwelling units in the backyards of single-family homes, which died in the House two years ago, missed a key deadline last week and died before it could come up for a vote. Another idea to allow houses of worship to build homes on their land never made it to the House or Senate floor. First round of TribFest speakers announced! Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist Maureen Dowd; U.S. Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-San Antonio; Fort Worth Mayor Mattie Parker; U.S. Sen. Adam Schiff, D-California; and U.S. Rep. Jasmine Crockett, D-Dallas are taking the stage Nov. 13–15 in Austin. Get your tickets today!
