The Comptroller’s Texas Ahead website has the latest in economic data and resources. As a part of Texas Ahead, the Tracking the Texas Economy page features revised snapshots of categories including employment, housing, consumer confidence, oil and natural gas production and more. 

This week’s tables include updates on the Texas housing market, which is stabilizing after the post-2007 fall in sales and construction levels. 

  • November’s gains in housing permits extended across both single- and multi-family construction. Multi-family permits rose again, the seventh consecutive year-over-year gain. Single-family permits, meanwhile, gained slightly from October totals. Also, more than 63,600 single-family permits were issued for the 12-month period ending in November 2010, a 3 percent increase over the same period ending in November 2009.
  • The December median sales price for existing single-family homes rose 4.1 percent year-over-year from December 2009. That marks year-over-year increases in three consecutive months, and seven of the last 10.

The Economic Outlook page also contains detailed analysis of Texas taxes, jobs and more. The latest updates highlight Texas jobs, including: 

  • Texas total nonfarm employment increased by 20,000 jobs from November to December.
  • Texas gained more than 230,000 jobs between December 2009 and December 2010.
  • The state’s unemployment rate has been at or below the national rate for 47 consecutive months.