A new ranking by Niche has these 12 school districts among the state's bests

There are 1,029 school districts in Texas – yes, 1,039!   Therefore, to be in the Top 25 school districts in the state is a tremendous accomplishment.  Well, let's congratulate 12 suburban Dallas area school districts.  Niche regularly analyzes and rates schools based on test scores, graduation rates and several other data information.

Here are the 12 districts in North Texas that placed in the Top 25 for school year 2020-2021:

• No. 2: Southlake Carroll ISD
• No. 4: Highland Park ISD
• No. 5: Lovejoy ISD
• No. 6: Coppell ISD
• No. 7: Frisco ISD
• No. 8: Grapevine-Colleyville ISD
• No. 9: Allen ISD
• No. 12: Plano ISD
• No. 13: Argyle ISD
• No. 14: Prosper ISD
• No. 18: Sunnyvale ISD
• No. 25: Wylie ISD

• Dallas Morning News (excerpts), December 10, 2020

Collin and Denton counties broke all records in November

Two counties north of Dallas saw some of the biggest home sales spikes in November, based on nationwide figures.  Sales of single-family homes were up by 30% in both Collin and Denton counties, according to figures from the MetroTex Association of Realtors.  Overall, home sales were up 23 % throughout North Texas.  All of the North Texas counties continued to have a sizable decrease in number of homes in inventory.  The greatest inventory drops from 2019 levels were in Collin County – down 58.3% and Rockwall County, which had a 57.7% drop in the number of houses for sale compared to one year ago.

• Dallas Morning News (excerpts), December 16, 2020

The housing market continued its extraordinary half-year run of high activity, with November 2020 home sales up almost 20% over November 2019 – establishing a new high for the month in the 13-year history of the report.

November did experience the normal seasonal decline from October, with home sales decreasing 14.5% month-to-month, but that drop was in line with the 12% average of the past five years. In fact, November 2020 broke several records for the RE/MAX National Housing Report, and inventory reached its lowest point since the report debuted in 2008.

In addition to Home Sales that eclipsed the previous high for November, set in 2017, new November records reflecting averages across 52 U.S. markets included:

• The Median Sales Price of $292,000 was up 13.8% from November 2019
• Days on Market was a mere 36 – down nearly two weeks from last year's 49
• Months Supply of Inventory totaled 1.8 – only slightly more than the report record low of 1.7 set in August

"The nearly 20% year-over-year gain in sales is another sign of the housing market's enduring strength and appeal. People are on the move, and we anticipate buyer demand staying high into next year," said Adam Contos, CEO of RE/MAX Holdings, Inc. "The low interest rate environment is driving opportunities for both buyers and sellers, so the upticks in price aren't slowing things down much at all. The primary headwind continues to be the severe lack of available inventory across the country."

"Eventually, generational factors, lifestyle choices and workplace flexibility should bring more sellers into the market, addressing the current imbalance. If that happens next year, 2021 could be one for the record books."

Home sales continued to far outnumber new listings. November was the fourth consecutive month of 2020 to set a new report record for fewest listings.

Highlights and the local markets leading various metrics include:

Closed Transactions 
Of the 52 metro areas surveyed in November 2020, the overall average number of home sales is up 19.7% compared to November 2019, and down 14.5% compared to October 2020.  Leading the year-over-year sales percentage increases were Little Rock, AR at +36.5%, Chicago, IL at +32.3%, and Hartford, CT at +30.6%.

Median Sales Price – Median of 52 metro median prices
In November 2020, the median of all 52 metro Median Sales Prices was $292,000, up 13.8% from November 2019 and down 1.0% from October 2020. No metro area saw a year-over-year decrease in Median Sales Price. Thirty-nine metro areas increased year-over-year by double-digit percentages, led by Augusta, ME at +26.4%, Tulsa, OK at +20.7%, and Boise, ID at +19.2%.

Days on Market – Average of 52 metro areas
The average Days on Market for homes sold in November 2020 was 36, down 13 days from the average in November 2019, and down one day from the average in October 2020. The metro areas with the lowest Days on Market were Omaha, NE at 16, Cincinnati, OH at 18, and Boise, ID at 19. The highest Days on Market averages were in Des Moines, IA at 91, Miami, FL at 83, and New York, NY at 74. Days on Market is the number of days between when a home is first listed in an MLS and a sales contract is signed.

Months Supply of Inventory – Average of 52 metro areas
The number of homes for sale in November 2020 was down 31.8% from November 2019 and down 13.3% from October 2020. Based on the rate of home sales in November 2020, the Months Supply of Inventory was flat at 1.8 compared to October 2020, and decreased compared to 3.7 in November 2019. In November 2020, of the 52 metro areas surveyed, only two metro areas reported a months supply at or over six, which is typically considered a buyer's market. Those markets were Miami, FL at 6.7 and Indianapolis, IN at 6.2. The markets with the lowest Months Supply of Inventory were Boise, ID at 0.6, and a three-way tie among Albuquerque, NM, Denver, CO, and Manchester, NH at 0.8.

For specific data in this report or to request an interview, please contact mediarelations@remax.com.

DFW Expected to Have 11.3% Increase in Home Sales

The housing boom that has flown in the face of a pandemic will continue into 2021, and Dallas-Ft Worth is forecast to see the larges sales increases in the nation.   With home sales and prices surging in many parts of the country – especially in North Texas – top housing economists sat they expect even more property purchase in the year ahead.

"2021 will be a break-out year, assuming the home sales remain at the second-half level of 2020," said Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the National Association of Realtors.  "Because of the strong home sales and home prices rising, people's housing activity is at an all-time high.   "At least during the spring season of 2021, things should be very robust in terms of home sales activity," Yun said Thursday during a special economic forecast for the National Association of Real Estate Editors.

The Realtors' top economist predicts a 9% rise in nationwide home sales in 2021.  Home purchases have spiked in the past six months after steep declines early in the COVID-19 pandemic.  "The reason why home sales are surging during the pandemic with high unemployment is simply because the mortgage rates are at an all-time low," Yun said. "The housing market is very sensitive to changes in mortgage rates.  "It has a bigger impact than the overall job market conditions. Even in a bad economy, people with good, secure employment, they just look at the mortgage rates to make their decisions."  Home loan rates in the past few months have fallen below 3% for long-term financing. The lower finance costs have softened the impact of the much higher home costs in many metro areas.

Home prices are up about 6% this year nationwide and are 9% higher in North Texas than during the first 11 months of 2019.  Yun is forecasting continued home price gains for most of the nation in 2021, even with the pandemic-induced recession. "Home prices are in no danger of a decline," he said. "I just hope home price increases moderate so that affordability conditions do not get out of hand."

A sharp rise in prices in many areas is fueled by a lack of properties on the market.  "Price increases are due to what everyone knows — lack of inventory," Yun said. "Simply not enough homes are for sale."  Nationwide, there is only a 2.5-month supply of houses listed for sale, an all-time low.  Inventories are even tighter in North Texas, with only a 1.1-month supply of single-family homes listed for sale with real estate agents in November.  Even with the shortage of houses on the market, Dallas-Fort Worth is expected to see the largest 2021 home sales increases among major metro areas — up 11.3% in 2021, according

There are about 500,000 fewer homes on the market for sale nationwide this November compared to a year ago.  That inventory shortage environment continues to persist and helps home prices continue to grow.

Realtor.com is forecasting a 5.7% rise in U.S. home prices next year and expects home sales to grow an additional 7%. Some metro areas will see an even stronger performance.  CoreLogic is forecasting nationwide home prices will rise 4.1% in 2021, down from 2020′s 7.3% price increase. "It is a pretty healthy increase, and it's faster than inflation," Nothaft said.  Prices of low- and moderate-cost homes are going up at an even faster rate. CoreLogic estimates houses at the median cost or less have gained more than 9% in price during the past 12 months.

• Dallas Morning News, December 12, 2021