HARRIS COUNTY, Texas — The Rice Kinder Institute for Urban Research released its 3rd annual State of Housing report for Houston and Harris County.
The report found that the price of buying a home in Harris County may soon overtake the cost of purchasing one in the city.
According to the report that tracked numbers from last year, Houston’s median home sale price was almost $350,000. That’s an increase of 10%. The percentage is even higher in Harris County at 16% where the median price was $285,000. The gap between the cost of city and county living is shrinking and expected to disappear soon.
The Kinder report also revealed that Hispanic and Black mortgage applicants get higher interest rates and more denials on lower-valued homes. A finding that was part of a panel discussion hosted by Rice.
Alexandra Miller is an urban planner for Alexandra Miller Consulting.
"Even for middle-income folks, we are starting to see a lot of those people get squeezed out of the market,” Miller said. “Folks with good jobs and two-income families, they still can't get loans. They can't afford the level of cost that it will take the deliver a single-family home or even a resale."
Despite the challenges, the report reveals that Hispanic residents will soon become the largest share of homebuyers in all of Harris County.
To see the housing report, click here.