The Houston area real estate market has been blowing and going for the last several years. This year, housing inventory, interest rates, inflation and economic uncertainty ended Houston’s seven-year run of record-breaking home sales.
Single-family home sales fell 10.9 percent while sales of all property types totaled was down 10.7 percent from 2021. For the month of December, single-family home sales dropped 32.6 percent.
Single-family homes inventory grew from a 1.4-months supply last year to 2.7 months. Per National Association of Realtors, housing inventory across the U.S. currently stands at a 3.3-months supply. Days on market grew from 48 days in November to 57 in December. This is the highest it is has been since mid-2020.
Per HAR / MLS:
| Category | Jan. 2022 | Feb. 2022 | Mar. 2022 | Apr. 2022 | May 2022 | June 2022 | July 2022 | Aug. 2022 | Sept. 2022 | Oct. 2022 | Nov. 2022 | Dec. 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Property Sales | 8,134 | 9,299 | 12,149 | 11,384 | 11,980 | 11,921 | 10,180 | 10,157 | 9,387 | 8,223 | 7,171 | 7,634 |
| Total Active Listings | 21,643 | 20,620 | 20,923 | 22,475 | 24,301 | 29,344 | 33,711 | 34,458 | 35,694 | 36,751 | 36,434 | 33,776 |
| Single-Family Home Sales | 6,451 | 7,372 | 9,693 | 9,079 | 9,627 | 9,728 | 8,370 | 8,241 | 7,664 | 6,641 | 5,827 | 6,378 |
| Townhome/Condominium Sales | 555 | 652 | 855 | 809 | 821 | 748 | 660 | 683 | 597 | 540 | 436 | 432 |
| Single-Family Months of Inventory | 1.4 | 1.3 | 1.3 | 1.4 | 1.6 | 2.0 | 2.5 | 2.5 | 2.7 | 2.8 | 2.9 | 2.7 |
| Single-Family Pending Sales | 9,271 | 9,301 | 10,616 | 10,201 | 10,353 | 9,181 | 8,330 | 8,520 | 7,324 | 6,666 | 5,937 | 5,493 |
| Days on Market | 39 | 41 | 38 | 33 | 29 | 28 | 26 | 31 | 37 | 43 | 48 | 57 |
| Price Range | Jan. 2022 | Feb. 2022 | Mar. 2022 | Apr. 2022 | May 2022 | June 2022 | July 2022 | Aug. 2022 | Sept. 2022 | Oct. 2022 | Nov. 2022 | Dec. 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| $1 - $99,999 | 41 | 28 | 33 | 34 | 29 | 26 | 22 | 30 | 27 | 27 | 27 | 25 |
| $100,000 - $149,999 | 103 | 118 | 145 | 118 | 110 | 102 | 109 | 120 | 100 | 88 | 89 | 105 |
| $150,000 - $249,999 | 1,248 | 1,081 | 1,437 | 1,112 | 1,100 | 1,059 | 939 | 1,103 | 1,001 | 978 | 824 | 931 |
| $250,000 - $499,999 | 3,121 | 3,733 | 4,740 | 4,351 | 4,615 | 4,907 | 4,190 | 4,128 | 3,833 | 3,357 | 2,918 | 3,091 |
| $500,000 - $749,999 | 551 | 741 | 1,016 | 1,087 | 1,236 | 1,280 | 1,033 | 1,000 | 851 | 703 | 608 | 727 |
| $750,000 and above | 291 | 390 | 583 | 635 | 756 | 720 | 533 | 505 | 485 | 364 | 322 | 381 |
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There’s a basic rule of thumb to follow when choosing paint sheens: The higher the sheen, the higher the shine — and the higher the shine, the more durable it will be.
Flat paint has no shine; high-gloss is all shine. In between are eggshell, satin, and semi-gloss, each with its own practical and decorative job to do.
Here’s how to choose the right paint sheen for your painting job.
Kitchen:
Family Room:
Dining Room:
Bedroom:
High Gloss
The most durable and easiest to clean of all paint sheens, high-gloss paint is hard, ultra-shiny, and light-reflecting. Think appliance-paint tough.
High gloss is a good choice for area that sticky fingers touch — cabinets, trim, and doors. High-gloss, however, is too much shine for interior walls. And like a Spandex dress, high gloss shows every bump and roll, so don’t skimp on prep work.
Semi-Gloss
Good for rooms where moisture, drips, and grease stains challenge walls. Also great for trim work that takes a lot of abuse.
Satin
Has a yummy luster that, despite the name, is often described as velvety. It’s easy to clean, making it excellent for high-traffic areas. Its biggest flaw is it reveals application flaws, such as roller or brush strokes. Touch-ups later can be tricky.
Eggshell
Between satin and flat on the sheen (and durability) scale is eggshell, so named because it’s essentially a flat (no-shine) finish with little luster, like a chicken’s egg. Eggshell covers wall imperfections well and is a great finish for gathering spaces that don’t get a lot of bumps and scuffs.
Flat or Matte
A friend to walls that have something to hide, flat/matte soaks up, rather than reflects, light. It has the most pigment and will provide the most coverage, which translates to time and money savings. However, it’s tough to clean without taking paint off with the grime.
Tips For Choosing the Right Sheen
If your paint color is dark and rich but you don’t want a super shiny effect, step down at least one level on the sheen scale. That’s because the darker and richer the paint color is, the more colorant it has, which boosts sheen. Ditto if you’re painting a large, sun-washed, or imperfect wall. The higher the sheen, the more defects will show.
Adding sheen also adds to the cost, usually an extra dollar or two per gallon as you step up on the sheen scale.
Provided by Pat Curry for HouseLogic.
