The Texas Association of Realtors has examined the data, and proclaimed the Texas housing market to be worry-free. Lance Lacy, chairman of the irrepressibly optimistic and fun-loving multi-ethnic group pictured at right, was quoted in Monday’s Austin Business Journal as saying “based on demand and economic factors, there is virtually no risk of a housing bubble in Texas.” Lacy went on to ply a few well-worn innuendoes, suggesting that doubts stirred up by the media only apply to coastal housing markets. I’m not sure where the TAR thinks Las Vegas is located, but perhaps it only matters that it’s not in Texas.

A few days later, Texas A&M’s Real Estate Center released figures showing that real estate professionals are actually less confident in the market than they were last quarter. Snap! The TAR seem to be telling us (the buyers) something different than what they’re telling the researchers. Well, sorta …

Despite the quarterly decline, overall confidence was still positive, and higher than at this time last year. In fact, confidence was “surprisingly strong in light of the economic uncertainties surrounding hurricanes Katrina and Rita and considering that we