The San Antonio Board of REALTORS^® hosted its 2010 Housing Forecast on January 5, 2010 at the Omni Colonnade Hotel. Over 500 local real estate industry professionals were in attendance to gain insight to recent market trends and possible future developments in the housing market.

After breakfast and a brief welcome from Marietta Alba, the 2010 SABOR Chairman of the Board, the morning kicked off with a presentation by San Antonio Mayor, Honorable Julian Castro. Mayor Castro’s speech underscored an optimistic outlook for the city. “San Antonio will continue to be a community that works together to create a globally competitive city,” the Mayor said.

Dr. Mark Dotzour, Chief Economist Research Director from the Texas Real Estate Research Center and the second speaker of the morning, predicted that the homebuyer’s tax credit, with its recently extended deadline of June 30, will thrust home buying forward in the first half of 2010. “There is no reason in my mind not to buy a house today,” Dotzour said. Dotzour predicted a positive economic stance both locally and nationally, stating that business layoffs should end within the first quarter of 2010.

Bob Gardner, CEO of Legacy Mutual Mortgage, provided an in-depth analysis of the local market. Gardner stated that an increase in sales can be expected for 2010. Gardner was optimistic about homes sold in the under-$200,000 price range, stating that these properties will continue to fair extremely well. “For homes in this price range, values will increase, demand will be strong, and sales will lead to economic recovery in the coming months,” Gardner said.

Mario Hernandez, president of the San Antonio Economic Development Foundation, reported on the job growth in San Antonio and highlighted that San Antonio has the number one metropolitan economy in the nation. “Jobs, jobs, jobs,” Hernandez replied when asked for a one-sentence summary of his 2010 predictions for the local economy. Hernandez also mentioned that recent city advancements, such as the river expansion, the continued development of retail outlets like La Cantera and The Rim, and local branch openings of major companies like Medtronic will help to propel San Antonio’s economy forward. “Medtronic will generate an estimated $470 million dollars a year. That will be a tremendous game-changer for San Antonio.”

The Housing Forecast is presented annually by the San Antonio Board of REALTORS® to provide local REALTOR^® members and industry watchers insight to past, current, and possible future market conditions. Starting in 1986, the Housing Forecast was presented in conjunction with the Greater San Antonio Builders Association (GSABA). In 2009, SABOR began to host its own Housing Forecast in efforts to gear the event’s subject matter toward the concerns of its REALTOR^® members.

The San Antonio Board of REALTORS^® (SABOR) is the largest professional trade organization in San Antonio, with over 7,000 members. SABOR is affiliated with the National Association of REALTORS^®, which is the nation’s largest professional association. For nearly a century, SABOR has been a leading organization in the San Antonio community, the preeminent source for information relating to the local and regional real estate market and also an advocate for private property owners everywhere. For information about available properties in the San Antonio area click on the Property Search button on the main page of SABOR.com.