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​​​​​​​​​AUSTIN – ​​Texas’ seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell to 3.8 percent in September, setting a new record for the lowest unemployment rate recorded in four decades.

According to data from the Texas Workforce Commission, the state’s seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell from 3.9 percent in August 2018.​​​​

The Texas economy added 15,600 seasonally adjusted nonfarm jobs last month, marking 27​​​ consecutive months of growth.

​Over the year, the state added 402,500 jobs for an annual employment growth rate of 3.3 percent.

​​​​​AUSTIN – The Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs (TDHCA) has entered into a $12 million syndicated loan agreement with three banks to offer qualified homebuyers low-cost assistance​.

Woodforest National Bank, Tolleson Private Bank, and Hancock Whitney are party to the agreement. 

These funds are in addition to a ​2016 $10 million loan agreement with Woodforest that helped create over 1,500 new homeowners throughout Texas.

TDHCA’s My First Texas Home program is structured to address the most significant obstacles to homeownership faced by low- and moderate-income homebuyers: lack of funds for down payment and closing cost assistance and overall mortgage affordability. The agreement is expected to assist over 2,000 first-time hombuyers and enable $350 million of mortgages to be originated. 

​​FREDERICKSBURG – The Texas Alliance of Land Brokers (TALB) is offering a​ course on advanced farm and ranch practices for Texas agents.

Licensees will receive an in-depth examination of the laws and regulations in Texas that impact farm and ranch brokerage. The course will also cover the fiduciary duties of agents in relation to real-time, real-life current transactional issues.  

Eight hours of Texas Real Estate Commission continuing education credit are offered. All students who take and pass a short, written examination at the ​end of the course will receive designation as a "Texas Farm and Ranch Specialist."

The course will be from 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. Nov. 14 at the Hill Country University Center at 2818 E. US 290.

Cost is $395 for TALB and Texas Land Brokers Network members and $495 for nonmembers. 

Register online at http://texaslandbrokers.org/advanced-farm-ranch​.

​​​​​​​WASHINGTON – Nationally, builder confidence in the single-family housing market rose one point to 68 in October on the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB)/Wells Fargo Housing Market Index (HMI).

Builder confidence levels have held in the high 60s since June. 

"Builders are motivated by solid housing demand, fueled by a growing economy and a generational low for unemployment," said NAHB Chairman Randy Noel. "Builders are also relieved that lumber prices have declined for three straight months from elevated levels earlier this summer, but they need to manage supply-side costs to keep home prices affordable."

According to NAHB Chief Economist Robert Dietz, while favorable economic conditions should continue to support demand, housing affordability is a challenge due to ongoing price and interest rate increases. 

"Unless housing affordability stabilizes, the market risks losing additional momentum as we head into 2019," said Dietz. 

The HMI measuring current sales conditions rose one point to 74. The index gauging expectations in the next six months also rose one point to 75. The metric charting buyer traffic registered a four-point uptick to 53.

Regionally, the South's HMI rose one point to 71. ​

​​​​​TEMPLE – The city has a few new multifamily developments coming to life as the population grows. Here’s what to watch out for:

• Portico at Friars Creek recently opened at 507 Marlandwood Rd. with 262 units. It features one- and two-bedroom units with monthly rent between $939–$1,139.​
  

• Work has started on a 218-unit development called The Reserve at Friars Creek, located east of Lowe’s Dr. and south of Loop 363.
  

• ​The city council has approved a 140-unit apartment complex at the southeast corner of the Temple Mall property.
  

• Two complexes, Villas on the Hill and Ariza, have recently been completed across 31st St. from Baylor Scott & White Medical Center, adding around 400 units.​
  

​​​HOUSTON – WGC Development will break ground this month on Tower 5040, a private luxury apartment building near the University of Houston at 5018 Calhoun Rd.

The eight-story project will have 147 units with a mix of one-, two-, and four-bedroom options. It will have a three-story parking garage with five stories of residences above that. 

The nearly 1.5-acre site is the former home of a fraternity house.

This month, a $2.86 million building permit was filed with the city. Construction is expected to begin later this month and should wrap up by summer 2020. 

WGC Development is a partnership between locally based Wellington Development Co., Colorado-based private equity firm Gore Creek Partners LLC, and an unnamed investor.

​Check out Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land Multifamily Market Research.

​​​​​​HOUSTON – Dallas-based Crow Holdings will break ground in January 2019 on a 530,000-sf industrial project on the north side of town.

The project, dubbed Layne Crossing, will eventually contain six warehouse buildings ranging from 56,400 to 174,000 sf.

Two of the project's six buildings will be configured for front loading, two will be configured for rear loading, one will be a cross-dock building, and one will be a side-load building.

Layne Crossing will sit on 45 acres in Greens Crossing Business Park. Crow Holdings purchased the land from Dallas-based Sarofim Realty Advisors.​

​Check out Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land Industrial Market Research.

​​​​​PARIS – A subsidiary of American Cast Iron Pipe Company is building a state-of-the-art, spiral-welded steel pipe plant on 140 acres in Northeast Texas' Lamar County. 

American SpiralWeld Pipe Company LLC (ASWP) will make an initial capital investment of between $70 million to $90 million in the new facility, which will employ 60 workers initially.

The plant will service the south central United States, and the majority of the finished product will be shipped within a 250- to 500-mile radius of the plant.

The facility is expected to be operational by spring 2020.

In April, the city council unanimously approved the Paris Economic Development Corporation’s request to offer a $2.5 million incentive package to ASWP.  ​

​​​​​​​SAN ANTONIO – Austin-based Wildhorn Capital has purchased a 388-unit apartment portfolio from Oregan-based Hayden Properties. 

The two properties include the 190-unit Bitterwood Ranch at 400 W. Bitters Rd. and the 198-unit Fifth Avenue Apartments at 11530 Vance Jackson Rd.​

The units at Bitterwood Ranch average 723 sf with the average monthly rent at $844. Fifth Avenue​ offers larger unit sizes, averaging 855 sf, with average monthly rents at $892.

​​​​​​​HOUSTON – Stonelake Capital Partners has purchased a 238,125-sf East End industrial property at 3401 Navigation Blvd. 

The warehouse used to service Weingarten's Grocery, a local supermarket chain that shuttered in the early 1980s.

​Check out Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land Industrial Market Research.

​​​​COLLIN COUNTY – When it comes to new single-family home development, Collin County is showing no signs of slowing down.

But just how fast is the county planning new home growth? More than twice as fast as Dallas County and steps ahead of Tarrant and Denton, according to recent data from the Real Estate Center at Texas A&M.​

From January to August 2018, an average of 889 single-family building permits per month were submitted in Collin County compared with 436 per month in Dallas County. 

Tarrant County came closer with an average of 714 permits per month. Denton County followed with 606.

Housing growth in the county has been mounting since the market started to recover in 2011. 

According to Residential Strategies Inc., the area's steady growth is due to an abundance of developable land and a strong job market.​

​​​​​SOCORRO – Tropicana Building Corp. will build two affordable apartments on Nevarez Rd.

Jaime O. Perez Apartments will offer 96 units and Nevarez Palms Apartments will bring 104 units to the market. Construction on both complexes will begin spring 2019, with completion scheduled for 2020.

The company received $23.3 million in federal tax credits from​​​​​​ Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs for the apartments.

​​​​AUSTIN – ​​Home sales and prices increased in third quarter 2018 as the Texas housing market continued to show signs of normalization, said the Texas Association of Realtors' latest quarterly housing report. 

​​​There were 95,225 homes sold last quarter, a 4.4 percent increase from third quarter 2017. The median price also increased 4.4 percent to $235,000. 

Slightly over 36 percent of homes sold in Texas were priced under $200,000. The $200,000-$299,999 price range accounted for 31.5 percent of sales.​​​

​​"Our market remains extremely strong but is still slowly moving toward normalization," said Real Estate Center Chief Economist Dr. Jim Gaines. "Median home prices and home sales are up, but the rate of increase statewide is beginning to slow compared with prior years. With inventory levels for homes priced under $150,000 remaining low, we’re seeing a concerted effort from homebuilders to build lower-cost housing to fit the entry-level homebuyers’ market."

Active listings were up 4.7 percent year over year to 111,144 listings in the third quarter. Texas homes spent an average of 52 days on the market.

Inventory increased 0.1 months over the year to 3.9 months of inventory. According to the Real Estate Center, a balanced market has six to 6.5 months of inventory.

​​​​MERCEDES – International clothing store H&M is opening its third Rio Grande Valley location this month at 5001 E. Expressway 83.

The 25,000-sf store will be at the Rio Grande Valley Premium Outlets, joining Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th, Banana Republic Factory, and Express Factory Outlet, among others.

​​​​​HOUSTON – Dornin Investment Group (DIG) has sold two adjacent Class B office properties totaling 164,933 sf. 

The buildings are at 1250 Wood Branch Dr. and 11931 Wickchester Ln. in the Energy Corridor. 

DIG purchased the​ properties in 2013 and sold them to two separate investors. 

​Check​ out Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land Office Market Research.

​​AUSTIN – Single-family home sales remained flat across the metro last month, reports the Austin Board of Realtors. 

​Despite a slowdown in total sales, sales dollar volume increased in September, partly due to a 4.2 percent increase in median home price from $290,000 to $302,250.

Year to date, home sales in the area are up 3.6 percent from the first nine months of 2017.​​

​​​​​​LUBBOCK – Georgia-based Dovetail Development has sold Wildwood of Lubbock to a private buyer.  

The 1,005-bed, 294-unit student housing community is at 1701 N Quaker Ave. It co​​mprises​ 25 buildings totaling 470,700 sf.

The community, which serves Texas Tech University, has the largest swimming pool in the city.

CBRE brokered the deal. 

​​IRVING – Trammell Crow Co. has started construction on a 259,947-sf general services administration building at the Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport. 

The one-story, Class A building will house the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ Texas Service Center. The project will meet the government’s security and energy efficiency requirements. 

It will be on 27 acres at the northwest intersection of N. Belt Line Rd. and President George Bush Turnpike.​

Delivery is set for early 2020.

​Check​ out Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington Office Market Research.

​​​​​​​NEW BRAUNFELS – Austin-based Calendar Holdings is leasing 250,000 sf in a new 400,000-sf warehouse near I-35 and Rueckle Rd. 

Between 65 and 70 people will be employed at the site once the move is complete in May. 

The company is making the move after shutting down its 200,000-sf distribution center on Freidrich Ln. in Austin.​

​FORT WORTH – Airborne Tactical Advantage Company (ATAC) has broken ground on a maintenance, repair, and overhaul facility at Alliance Airport.

On completion, the Adversary Center of Excellence facility will be ATAC's largest operation, including up to 200 personnel responsible for the maintenance of high-performance aircraft.

The facility will include a 75,000-sf hangar to support not only maintenance but also pilot training and professional development. Delivery is slated for summer 2019.

Fort Worth Alliance Airport, the world’s first industrial airport, anchors AllianceTexas, a 26,000-acre master-planned community home to over 488 companies.