Houston restaurateur Kelly Barnhart, owner of the Montrose-area restaurant Vibrant, has purchased a home in Memorial Villages that was listed for $8.25 million. According to county records, Barnhart acquired the property at 302 Timberwilde Lane on October 31. The 7,400-square-foot house had the highest asking price among Houston homes that went under contract in October, with an asking price of $1,115 per square foot as reported by the Houston Association of Realtors.
The sale was completed in just one month, which is nearly two weeks faster than the average time luxury homes spend on the market in Houston. William Wheless of Wheless Realty handled the listing.
Located on a 2.7-acre lot, the property includes a tennis court, golfing green and pool alongside a five-bedroom, six-bathroom house built in 1956. While investors were drawn to its potential as a teardown project, Barnhart may opt to preserve it given her experience with renovating properties for her restaurant business.
This home was not only the most expensive sale last month but also the oldest among Houston’s top ten sales for October. In contrast, newer properties like 46 Aria Isle Drive in The Woodlands were also sold during this period; this custom-built home by John Post Homes was purchased by John Wisenbaker for $5.5 million after initially being listed at $5.75 million.
Another notable transaction involved 606 Pinehaven Drive in Houston—a spec mansion sold by Rich Strike Holdings to King Family Trust, associated with Jabari Smith Jr., a player for the Houston Rockets. The property was originally listed at $5.35 million and sold after a price reduction.
While final sales prices have not been disclosed publicly, data from Zillow indicates that both spec mansions reduced their asking prices before selling.
The luxury real estate market across much of the Sun Belt is slowing down; however, Houston is experiencing what analysts call a K-shaped market—where high-end homes continue to gain value while lower-priced homes are losing value.
Redfin reports that median sale prices for luxury homes in Houston increased by four percent year over year as of September. Luxury properties are also selling more quickly locally: averaging 43 days on market compared to a national average of 52 days for similar listings.
Meanwhile, overall median home prices in Houston dropped by about 1.5 percent during this period according to Homes.com—a decline matched only by Austin nationwide.
Data from HAR shows that last month’s top ten residential sales had an average asking price of $6.1 million—up from $5.8 million one year ago and $4.3 million two years prior.
Despite rising values at the top end of the market, many sellers are adjusting expectations due to less negotiating power than seen previously; six out of ten leading luxury sales last month involved reductions from original listing prices.
