Local home prices set another monthly high

Home prices in the Houston real estate market continued to set records in November, despite a slow rate of sales that has persisted over the past few months.

The Houston Association of Realtors says that the median price for Houston homes sold last month was $152,500, up slightly from the median price the previous month and the highest median sale price ever recorded for this time of year. More sales in the high-end market also drove up the average price, which jumped more than $10,000 compared to last month to nearly $220,000.

The Houston real estate market continued to show strength despite a slow rate of sales over the past few months. Compared to last year, home sales are 22 percent below 2009 levels, when the federal tax credit inflated numbers.

"Bright spots in the housing report include what appears to be improvement in pending sales and, of course, the continued price appreciation not seen in most other markets," said Margie Dorrance, HAR chair.

The resilience of prices have also meant that sellers aren't forced to cut their asking prices significantly. Data from ZipRealty released earlier this month showed that sellers in Houston trimmed their asking prices by an average of just 5.6 percent - significantly below the national average.