The Woodlands: 494 homes sell within days

THE WOODLANDS – Since January 2013, 927 homes have been sold, according to Ken Brand, sales manager for Better Homes and Gardens in The Woodlands and Magnolia. Of those homes sold, 377 spent less than ten days on the market (DOM), while 117 spent less than two days on the market.

According to Heritage Texas Properties, 2,415 homes were sold between May 2012 and April 2013 in the five ZIP codes that encompass The Woodlands. Those homes spent an average of 57 days on the market before they were sold.

Over the past year, there has been less than a two-month supply of available properties.

In 2012, 1,007 homes were sold, ranking the community third in the United States among master-planned communities in new home sales.

The Woodlands plans to develop about 790 lots in 2013, with total home sales reaching about 875, according to Susan Vreeland-Wendt, director of marketing for The Woodlands Development Company.

There has been an average demand of about 32,000 new homes in the Greater Houston area per year, while builders have been building about 25,000.

The trend has led to about 8,000 potential buyers per year who have turned to the leasing market. “In 2011 and 2012, 40,000 homes went from owner-occupied to renter-occupied because there wasn’t a new home to buy,” said Tim Welbes, co-president of The Woodlands Development Company.