Magnolia ISD hosted its second Realtor Forum on September 20. Over 80 attendees were in attendance, including local realtors, lenders, builders, title companies, and other service industries. The district provided an update on the growth and the reasoning for the November 2022 bond election. The second half of the event included a panel discussion featuring: Stephen Barrera, Director of Residential Land Sales for Johnson Development; Jeff Dewese, Sr. Vice President Land Division for Signorelli; Candy Emmerich, Sr. Vice President of First Financial Bank; Sam Yager III, President of Audubon; and Shannon Wiesepape, Director of Acquisitions for Beazer Homes.

The panel gave an update on each of their areas of expertise and addressed questions from the audience. Mr. Yager mentioned while the market has leveled off, this is more of a “manageable pace” and allows us to catch up with the demand. Signorelli’s development, Magnolia Springs, already has students attending MISD schools. Audubon is on schedule with more development happening in the fourth and first quarters of 2023. MISD is already seeing 87 students from this new area.

The Houston area has a diverse economy to adjust to housing and interest rate changes. The panel discussed the impact of supply chain issues. This summer, the transformer supply chain caused delays in closings. Excessive heat caused transformers to go out, impacting existing neighborhoods. This forced utility companies to take transformers ordered for new developments, replacing old equipment. 

While interest rates have increased, buyers are continuing to apply for financing. The length of time for financing has been extended due to the length of construction time. It is taking longer to build homes. While the pace of construction has become manageable, it has not stopped.

Buyers moving into the Magnolia area include families wanting to move from the city of Houston and the mid-western states. MISD also sees families from several countries, including Australia, Canada, France, and Spain.