Texas scores high in Realtor.com’s housing report card

☕️ Morning! Welcome to a new month. Today, we’ll talk about the Realtor.com housing report card, the shrinking economy, and a gorilla fight debate.

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Today's newsletter is 716 words — a 2.5-minute read.

1. Texas scores high in Realtor.com’s housing report card

A new report by Realtor.com ranked all 50 states based on how well they balanced housing affordability with new construction efforts. Texas earned an A- the second highest score, just behind two other states, South Carolina (A) and Iowa(A-).

Texas issued 15.3% of all residential permits last year, despite only having 9.2% of the population, the largest such gap in the country. This shows Texas is building much more than its population share.

2. Texas bill aims to eliminate NAR speech code

A recently introduced bill in Texas seeks to eliminate the NAR speech code within the state and to bar any other trade associations from taking similar action.

Texas S.B. 2713, introduced by Mayes Middleton, explicitly bans any trade association from “denying access, membership, or participation based on various factors, including race, color, religion, sex, disability, familial status, national origin, or an individual’s exercise of freedom of speech or assembly.”

The bill is currently pending with the Senate committee, and if passed, it would take effect on Sept. 1.

3. Catch up quick

📉 Buyers pull back even as rates hold steady. (Nuggets)

🗳️ Election day is Saturday, and city council and school board positions are up for grabs across North Texas. (StateSoS)

🖼️ A Preston Hollow home in Dallas that once housed expensive art pieces is for sale. (artnet)

⚖️ Housing discrimination laws in Texas. (Realtor.com)

🤔 Fun read: 100 men v one gorilla: who would win. (USAToday)

4. For the first time since 2022, the economy is shrinking

The U.S. economy contracted at an annualized 0.3% rate in the first quarter, as a rush to import goods ahead of Trump's tariffs weighed on economic growth, the Commerce Department said on Wednesday.

• The January-March drop in gross domestic product (GDP) — the nation’s output of goods and services — reversed a 2.4% gain in the last three months of 2024.

It's the first contraction in three years, a sign that the economy was softening before the tariffs took effect.

Quarterly change in U.S. GDP

5. Pending home sales jumped 6.1% in March

According to new data from the NAR, pending home sales increased 6.1% in March–the greatest month-to-month increase since December 2023, when pending sales rose 7%.

• Regionally, the South led the gains with a 9.8% increase in contract signings, followed by the Midwest (+4.9%) and West (+4.8%). The only region to see a decline was the Northeast, where pending sales fell 0.5%.

On an annual basis, only the Midwest saw year-over-year growth, with the South, West, and Northeast still trailing behind 2024 levels.

6. Former Texas title employee sentenced for $350K wire fraud scheme

A former escrow officer at a McAllen, Texas-based title insurance company has been sentenced to two years in federal prison for orchestrating a wire fraud scheme that defrauded homebuyers and mortgage lenders of more than $350,000, the DOJ announced.

Mayela Saby Cantu, 55, pleaded guilty in December to conspiracy to commit wire fraud.

On Monday, Chief U.S. District Judge Randy Crane ordered Cantu to serve 24 months in prison followed by three years of supervised release. She must also pay $350,000 in restitution.

Federal prosecutors said Cantu used her position as an escrow officer to manipulate real estate closings between November 2020 and the time of her arrest.

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