“The magic formula is it’s got to be within an hour of our office. And traffic has gotten worse over the years, so let’s call it an hour and a half,” he said. “Our bread-and-butter property will be a one story, three bed, two bath, in a decent school district that’s kind of the entry point of the neighborhood in terms of price. … Houston is one of the places where that entry-point housing is still affordable for people making the median income.” Lizell’s cautious bullishness, mean - while, stems from his retreat from more at-risk markets and concentration in safe-haven markets. “What markets do we see that got trashed the most last year? Raleigh, North Carolina; Denver, Colorado; Austin, Texas; California up around Oakland and San Francisco, and Idaho. All those were big tech markets. So those people getting laid off … have to sell the property or lose it to foreclosure. So those are the markets that are getting hit,” he said, noting that he is avoiding those markets and buying in Florida, Tennessee, Wyoming, South Carolina, Indiana, and Ohio. Although he’s bullishly buying in some markets, Lizell is staying vigilant for any market changes that could once again shift his strategy. “If I see any semblance of increased job losses in other sectors, I’ll start pulling back in different markets. And if I see companies moving to particular regions … I’ll buy in those markets for potential future growth,” he said. “But right now I’m bullish—at least through I would say August.” •
Daren Blomquist is vice president of market economics at Auction.com. In this role, Blomquist analyzes and forecasts complex macro and microeconomic data trends within the marketplace and industry to provide value to both buyers and sellers using the Auction.com platform.
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