As I've been telling anyone who will listen over the past 8 months, some cities are not drowning in falling home prices and/or rising unemployment. The "mortgage meltdown" 2007 didn't crush the real estate market nationwide. Despite the national trends, several major markets are doing just fine.

To identify the healthiest real estate markets, Forbes magazine recently examined the country’s 50 largest metropolitan areas. The magazine studied key factors such as unemployment and job-growth data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, home price data from the National Association of REALTORS®, and information on gross metropolitan product growth provided by the U.S. Conference of Mayors. After all that research, what did they find? They were able to compile a list of 10 cities that Forbes sees as "practically recession-proof". They are listed below along with the percentage of growth for median-priced homes in the past year.

Oklahoma City, Okla. Median home price: +8.2 percent
San Antonio, Texas +7.9 percent
Austin, Texas +6.4 percent
San Jose, Calif. +11.2 percent
Raleigh, N.C. +4 percent
Salt Lake City, Utah +2.5 percent
Houston, Texas +1.1 percent
Seattle, Wash. +1.2 percent
Charlotte, N.C. +3.3 percent
Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas +.5 percent

Notice a trend? That's right... Texas is quite obviously the "most recession proof" state with 40% of the nation's top 10 metro areas (North Carolina is the only other state with more than one city on the list). I've heard experts say that that this is due to our state's low unemployment and continually high job growth (thanks in large part to the rebound of the tech sector). So, Texas is still the place for low, stable home prices with slow & steady gains. It's a fantastic place to be buying or selling real estate!

Ryan Cave, The "Caveman"
Truth, Honor & Personal Integrity
214-789-9366
www.CaveRealty.com