Interview with Realtor & Broker Dennie Hodge
Dennie Hodge, a native Houstonian and Inwood Forest resident, has been selling homes in the greater Inwood area since the 1970's. Dennie has always held a position as a top producer and for years won the Award for Excellence for outstanding production in sales. Among her many awards for salesmanship, she ranked top in the region for a major franchise, winning a national award for her accomplishments. Dennie will be the first one to tell you that selling real estate is not an easy way to make a living, but the people she meets make all the effort worthwhile. Dennie's wit, friendly manner and eye for business detail attribute to her success.
We recently sat with Dennie to discuss realty trends in the area. Below are some of the questions and her responses.
Are you seeing an increased interest in homes in Inwood Forest?
Definitely! I am seeing increased activity in the neighborhood and I see buyers coming here who might otherwise have bought in the Heights or Oak Forest, but are attracted to our newer homes, larger lots and lower prices.
How about other surrounding neighborhoods?
Definitely the activity spreads to surrounding neighborhoods and we're closing one in Candlelight Forest tomorrow. Some of these neighborhoods are smaller than Inwood Forest and very stable ... long time homeowners and very few homes turning over. That is a good thing.
Do you think the recent win for IFCIA has helped with home sales?
I don't think that the IFCIA win has helped with home sale prices yet, but I do believe that it will help home sales as soon as a final resolution is announced. At the moment, the owners of the golf course still have the option to appeal. Once the matter is settled, and hopefully the land purchased for parklands or recreation for the community, then I think it will be a big plus ... especially if the country club building is developed into something the whole area can enjoy. It will be a draw to bring people into our neighborhood ... and once they see it, what's not to like? We all mourn the loss of the golf course and country club. But the development of the golf course could be so much bigger for our neighborhood as it could serve the whole community.
What do you think about Lone Star College building a new campus at the entrance to Inwood Forest?
Lone Star is definitely going to be a wonderful attraction. The campus is going to be beautiful. They are going to include programs in which the community can participate. I'm looking forward to checking out the classes and activities. I'm hoping for a course in genealogy and I will once again tackle Spanish.
Did the approach of the tax credit deadline bring additional buyers?
The tax credit deadline had everyone scrambling down to the wire to have their contract for a home purchase in before the midnight deadline on Friday, April 30th. Personally, I made six sales that last day which had me working from 6:00 in the morning until midnight the last two days of the month. From what I can tell, we got some terrific new neighbors.
How is the Realtor activity? Are Realtors from "outside" the area showing homes?
Back when I started in real estate in the early '70's, there were many real estate companies up and down Antoine that served the whole area. In recent years all of those companies have disappeared. The Realtors have moved to higher priced areas closer to or inside the loop or to the 1960 area or up 290 where there is lots of new construction. It left us hanging without much representation. For years it seemed that nothing we could do would encourage agents from Oak Forest, Heights or 1960 to show in Inwood and surrounding areas. But I definitely see a major change and it's a real pleasure to see these agents bringing their clients to our fine neighborhoods where their clients can get newer, often remodeled, homes at very appealing prices.
Why would you recommend buying a home in the greater Inwood community?
I'm often asked why I would recommend buying in the greater Inwood community and there's one really big answer - THE NEIGHBORS. These neighborhoods are like family. I have seen people move from one street to the other to stay in the neighborhood. And I know of cases where the neighbors moved to the same street just to stay neighbors. Besides that, the city is growing and it has to grow our way. I believe that we are just waiting to be discovered. I don't expect that our prices are going to stay this low very much longer. These prices make a home purchase in the greater Inwood area a very good investment.
What would be your advice for someone selling and/or buying?
My advice for selling has always been to be sure that you are moving for the right reasons and looking at all the options. When you sell a home, you can lose 9-12% of your equity in your home in the cost to sell. That's not to mention the cost to purchase a new home. Our neighborhoods are going to go up in value, we are getting terrific new neighbors, and our crime stats are low and our neighborhoods safe. The reasons to not sell are the same reasons to buy. This is a great place to live. 20 minutes to downtown and the Galleria, located between the 610 loop and Beltway, just minutes to I-45, 290, the Loop, Beltway and I-10. Our location is exceptional.
Click here to visit Dennie Hodge's website.
