The Lone Star State has been the place to be for homeowners during the Great Recession. Nine of the 10 metro areas with the greatest home-price increases since the peak of the housing market (in mid 2006) are in Texas. The state largely missed the housing runup—so it had no bust. (Home prices in Texas last took a major hit during the oil bust of the late 1980s.) Still, prices began to slip in 2009 because of the recession. The slide show begins with the navigation bar to your right:

• Percentage of change in home price since the peak reflects the period from July 1, 2006 to June 30, 2010.
• One-year percentage of change in home price reflects
  the period from July 1, 2009 to June 30, 2010.
• One-year forecast change in home price ends June 30, 2011.
• Unemployment rate is as of September 2010. The
  national rate was 9.6%
• Foreclosure rate is as of the third quarter of 2010.

Sources: Fiserv Case-Shiller, Federal Housing Finance Agency, National Association of Realtors, Moody’s Ecnomy.com, Bureau of Labor Statistics, RealtyTrac
By Pat Esswein
Compiled by Amy Pollak
(November 2010)

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10 Housing Markets Where Prices Have Gone Up

% change in price since peak: +30.6%
One-year % change in home price: - 0.1%
Median home price: $$124,650**
Median family income: $72,000
Unemployment rate: 5.1%
Foreclosure rate: 1 in every 1,312 households
Forecast change in home price over one year: - 2.7%
This West Texas city sits in the Permian basin, which is the largest single source of oil and gas deposits in the U.S. The most famous Midlanders? Former President and Mrs. George W. Bush.

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1. Midland, Tex.

% change in price since peak: +22.2%
One-year % change in home price: - 6.9%
Median home price: $83,994**
Median family income: $56,600
Unemployment rate: 7.4%
Foreclosure rate: 1 in every 779 households
Forecast change in home price over one year: - 1.7%
This is Midland’s neighbor, about 20 miles down the road. Public-service employers rule here, but Wal-Mart is the largest private employer. The city is home to the University of Texas of the Permian Basin.

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2. Odessa, Tex.

% change in price since peak: +20.4%
One-year % change in home price: +1.3%
Median home price: $122,990 **
Median family income: $63,800
Unemployment rate: 5.5%
Foreclosure rate: 1 in every 682 households
Forecast change in home price over one year: - 4.1%
Houma is the parish seat of Terrebonne Parish, on the Gulf coast southwest of New Orleans. Mainstay employment includes oil-platform fabrication, ship-building and oilfield services, as well as commercial fishing. In March 2010 Terrebonne had the lowest unemployment in the U.S., but joblessness increased after the Deepwater Horizon Drilling Platform explosion. A local economic development authority recently warned foreclosures could increase and lead to loss of population, putting downward pressure on home prices.

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3. Houma-Bayou Cane-Thibodaux, La.

% change in price since peak: +15.8%
One-year % change in home price: +5.2%
Median home price: $150,000
Median family income: $65,100
Unemployment rate: 8.2%
Foreclosure rate: 1 in every 209 households Forecast change in home price over one year: - 0.3%
Although Houston is known for the oil and gas industries, a multitude of corporations make their home there (only New York and Chicago host more headquarters of Fortune 500 companies). Other boasts? Largest 5-year employment gain (Bureau of Labor Statistics), largest population gain (Harris County, per the U.S. Census), and lowest cost of living among major metro areas (second quarter of 2009, ACCRA).

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4. Houston-Sugar Land-Baytown, Tex.