by Fred Afflerbach | Business Writer
Published: July 13, 2010

 Loaded with groceries and other dry goods for points east, west, north and south, the big rigs begin rolling today from the new Temple H-E-B distribution center.

The 450,000-square-foot dry-grocery facility sits on 168 acres in northwest Temple, atop a small hill in the Rail Park at Central Pointe Industrial Park. Temple is a key location because the 105-year-old grocer now ships from San Antonio. Having a distribution point 120 miles north saves fuel and cuts trip time to destinations north of Austin.

With room for growth, the workforce of 200 could expand to 1,000 several years from now. The Temple location will begin with a fleet of 50 tractor-trailer rigs.

WASHINGTON, D.C. (Associated Press) – Homeowners have received another year to refinance their loans under the Home Affordable Refinance Program, the Federal Housing Finance Agency announced yesterday.

The program, which was originally scheduled to end June 10 but now expires June 30, 2011, allows borrowers who owe up to 25 percent more than their homes are worth to refinance at lower interest rates.

The Treasury Department reports that, so far, the program has helped about 220,000 homeowners with loans owned or guaranteed by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, far less than the projected four to five million.

AUSTIN (Austin Business Journal) – Texas expects to receive $2.25 billion for about 450 highway projects statewide from American Recovery and Reinvestment Act road construction funding.

About 320 of the projects are currently under construction.

These dollars are leveraged with state funds, including about $12 million awarded last month to Central Texas projects, according to the Texas Department of Transportation.

Nationwide, the bill signed last year is expected to pump $26.1 billion into the nation’s road infrastructure.

Vice President Joe Biden and U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood announced the funding yesterday.

TEXAS CITIES' HOUSING FORECAST STABLE

CARY, N.C. (Local Market Monitor) – Five large Texas cities and ten smaller ones are among the nation's top markets when it comes to expected home price performance, according to Local Market Monitor’s latest Home Price Forecast.

Among the largest markets — those with populations exceeding 600,000 — Dallas-Plano-Irving, Fort Worth–Arlington, Houston–Sugar Land–Baytown, San Antonio and Wichita Falls filled five spaces on the ten-slot list of cities with the best expected performance in home price over the next year.

The same survey of the smallest U.S. markets revealed ten Texas cities were tops, tied with other cities across the country. These were Abilene, Amarillo, Brownsville-Harlingen, College Station–Bryan, Corpus Christi, Killeen–Temple–Fort Hood, Laredo, Lubbock, Texarkana and Waco.

The study predicts local market behavior over the upcoming 12 months in over 300 markets, identifying those that are stable and have opportunity for growth.

First National Real Estate Brand to Offer Automatic Notifications of New Listings Through a Mobile Application

• GPS-based search to locate nearby homes for sale, open houses and recent homes sold
• Ability  to sort recently sold properties by location, price and sale date
• Option to view search results in list form or on a variety of maps including street, hybrid and satellite that are marked with “clickable” Coldwell Banker Real Estate icons 
• Detailed property listings that include images and a slideshow view
• Direct dial and e-mail functions from the user’s mobile handset to the local Coldwell Banker Real Estate listing agent associated with each property
• Real-time notifications of new properties and open houses identified through the user’s customized saved searches

H-E-B DISTRIBUTION CENTER GROUNDBREAKING IN TEMPLE

TEMPLE (San Antonio Business Journal) – San Antonio-based H.E. Butt Grocery Co. has broken ground on its new 450,000-sf distribution center.

The facility, which is being built on 160 acres next to Temple’s Rail Park at Central Pointe, will employ about 112 and house stock for more than 50 H-E-B grocery stores between Austin and Dallas.

TEXAS (Dallas Morning News) – Two Texas metros ranked highest in the country on Metrostudy's latest list of new home starts and sales.

Ranking first in the year-long survey was Houston with 22,502 home starts and 28,326 sales. Dallas–Fort Worth ranked second with 17,638 starts and almost 24,000 sales.

Austin was sixth with 8,617 starts and 10,627 sales. San Antonio came in at number 11 with 7,761 starts and 9,847 sales.

SAN ANTONIO (San Antonio Express-News) -- Homeowner's, developers, landlords and anyone else wishing to buy energy efficient appliances will be able to purchase them tax-free Memorial Day weekend across Texas.

May 23 through 25, taxes will be deducted from Energy Star--qualified appliances. This will include air conditioners under $6,000, washing machines, ceiling fans, dehumidifiers, dishwashers, light bulbs, programmable thermostats and refrigerators priced under $2,000.

The Energy Star label, developed by the Environmental Protection Agency, appears on appliances that use less energy or water than the industry standard to operate.

There is no limit on the number of Energy Star appliances that can be purchased tax-free.

Additionally, San Antonio Water System customers who purchase the highest efficiency washing machines, known as Tier 3, can also qualify for a $100 rebate on their water bill.

Eleven Texas metro areas experienced positive employment growth rates from February 2008 to February 2009 while 12 metro areas experienced net job losses. Petroplexes Odessa and Midland ranked first and second in job creation followed by Killeen–Temple–Fort Hood, Tyler, and College Station–Bryan.

HEB grocery has purchased more than 160 acres in Temple to build a 400,000-square-foot distribution center that will employ about 100 workers.