There are more than 100 opportunity zones throughout Harris County, and At-Large City Councilwoman Amanda Edwards has been meeting with residents to explain how this federal program works and how it stands to affect investment and development in these areas. The program is expected to be a boon to investors, but Edwards worries that a lack of planning on the front end could lead to unintended consequences. She joins Nancy and Rebecca to talk about how the city can help influence investment and d...
Apr 18, 2019•30 min
For the first time in his 40-year legal career John Ransom, has been getting cold calls from people with technical tax questions. Specifically, they're asking about Opportunity Zones, a program created in the 2017 tax overhaul to spur economic development in low-income neighborhoods while offering investors potentially large tax breaks. John Ransom, a partner and tax specialist with the Jackson Walker law firm, joins Nancy and Rebecca to talk about how Opportunity Zones could boost real estate v...
Apr 09, 2019•24 min
One of the barriers to building affordable housing often comes in the form of NIMBYism. Take the recent project proposed on Columbia Street in the Heights. The neighbors got wind of the proposal, swiftly launched a campaign to oppose it, and ultimately the developer walked away. It isn't always this way and it shouldn't be, said Joy Horak-Brown, president and CEO of New Hope Housing, a nonprofit developer that builds and runs housing and support services for low-income individuals. Horak-Brown j...
Mar 26, 2019•29 min
Nancy and Allyn talk to Rice Management Co.’s Alan Arnold about plans for the former Sears building in Midtown. The property, now called The Ion, is being redeveloped as part of Rice’s broader plan to create an innovation district on 16 acres Support the show: https://offers.houstonchronicle.com/?offerid=125&origin=newsroom&ipid=podcast See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Feb 28, 2019•40 min
About six months after Hurricane Harvey ripped through southeast Texas, Chronicle editor Dianna Hunt, who helped guide the paper’s coverage of the storm, took some family members visiting from Massachusetts on a driving tour to show them some of the places most affected by the hurricane. Her tour has become somewhat of a regular activity for Hunt when visitors come to town. She talks to Nancy and Allyn about where she goes – and why she goes there – on her Harvey tours. Support the show: https:/...
Feb 21, 2019•26 min
A few years ago Houston preservationist James Glassman began posting each day on his Twitter feed about important events that happened on any given day in Houston history. Those tweets inspired a new book, "The Houstorian Calendar: Today in Houston History," Glassman's latest project in a string of artistic endeavors meant to change the way Houstonians think about their city. He joins Nancy and Allyn to talk about the most memorable moments in Houston history. Support the show: https://offers.ho...
Feb 14, 2019•28 min
For Looped In's second-annual Loopie Awards, Nancy asked listeners to vote for their favorite real estate deals and developments of the past year. She gets help revealing the winners from none other than Looped In co-founder Erin Mulvaney. Support the show: https://offers.houstonchronicle.com/?offerid=125&origin=newsroom&ipid=podcast See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Feb 05, 2019•34 min
Nancy and Allyn bring back former guest (and Chronicle tech writer) Dwight Silverman to talk about his adventures in the Houston housing market. Silverman, a baby boomer who for years owned a townhouse in Montrose, decided to see what renting was like. After a couple years of that, he decided to buy again. But in a hot neighborhood like Montrose – and with a limited budget – it wasn’t easy. He tells listeners how he found his new home and what he gave up to get there. Support the show: https://o...
Jan 24, 2019•31 min
As promised, Looped In hit the road to visit a house listed for sale by an iBuyer, a company that uses data and technology to make fast offers on homes, close on them quickly and then turn around and resell them. After downloading an app and answering a few questions, Nancy and Rebecca were able to get into the house and take themselves on a tour. No agent needed. Coincidentally, their journey took them to one of Houston’s most beloved treasures.Support the show: https://offers.houstonchronicle....
Jan 16, 2019•24 min
ibuyers, these new data-driven real estate companies that buy properties directly from homeowners, are battling for market share in Houston and across the country. Nancy and her colleague Rebecca Schuetz are joined by industry analyst Daren Blomquist of Attom Data Services, to talk about how this new breed of companies is shaking up the residential real estate industry. Support the show: https://offers.houstonchronicle.com/?offerid=125&origin=newsroom&ipid=podcast See omnystudio.com/list...
Jan 04, 2019•26 min
In the second part of Looped In's discussion with Houston real estate veterans Joe Colaco, Marvy Finger, Ed Wulfe and Welcome Wilson Sr., we talk about what it was like to work with the legendary architects Philip Johnson and Cesar Pelli; what transit solutions would work best for Houston; and why the Kirby Mansion is worth saving. Support the show: https://offers.houstonchronicle.com/?offerid=125&origin=newsroom&ipid=podcast See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn mor...
Dec 19, 2018•29 min
For Looped In's 100th episode, we sat down with some of the city's most prominent figures in real estate and development. Joe Colaco, Marvy Finger, Ed Wulfe and Welcome Wilson Sr. have spent a collective 230 years shaping our skyline and our suburbs. They debated such charged topics as mass transit, historic preservation and zoning, and shared the high points of their careers and the lessons they learned working in a city whose economic success is inextricably linked to the price of oil. Support...
Dec 10, 2018•42 min
Looped In has been on a mini break gearing up for a new year and new episodes, so enjoy this rerun from November 2016 on the history of Houston neighborhoods. (Incidentally, we recorded this episode right after real estate developer Donald Trump was elected president.) Stay tuned for a fresh episode of Looped In (our 100th!) next week. Support the show: https://offers.houstonchronicle.com/?offerid=125&origin=newsroom&ipid=podcast See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn...
Dec 06, 2018•38 min
Nearly 1,800 households in East Texas are still living in trailers provided by FEMA more than a year after Hurricane Harvey. Now, many are at risk of losing their temporary shelters. Support the show: https://offers.houstonchronicle.com/?offerid=125&origin=newsroom&ipid=podcast See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Nov 16, 2018•16 min
More than a year after Hurricane Harvey, developers continue to build in parts of Houston that flood, and it's not expected to stop anytime soon. After all, one-third of the city is covered by flood plains. On the newest episode of Looped In, Nancy is joined by the Chronicle's Mike Morris, who explains his recent reporting that found one in five homes permitted in Houston in the year after the hurricane is in a flood plain. Support the show: https://offers.houstonchronicle.com/?offerid=125&o...
Nov 08, 2018•30 min
After years of catering to move-up buyers with big housing budgets, builders in Houston are introducing new models with lower price tags and smaller footprints. One company is marketing a 1,000-square-foot model with three bedrooms, two bathrooms and a one-car garage for under $92,000. Lawrence Dean, regional director of home building consulting firm Metrostudy, talks with Nancy about the growing market for small homes. Support the show: https://offers.houstonchronicle.com/?offerid=125&origi...
Nov 02, 2018•24 min
Nancy and Chronicle retail reporter Paul Takahashi deep dive into Mattress Firm’s strategy of “over-storing” and talk about where the company – now in Chapter 11 – goes from here. Houston retail expert Jason Gaines of NAI Partners joins them to discuss the real estate implications. Support the show: https://offers.houstonchronicle.com/?offerid=125&origin=newsroom&ipid=podcast See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoic...
Oct 16, 2018•22 min
In her attempts to bring a communal-style pocket neighborhood to Acres Homes, Heidi Eagleton discovered another way she could build in the underserved area: affordable housing. But her homes don't fit the typical image of affordable. They have exposed beams, screened-in porches and fenced yards. They are designed to meet energy efficiency standards. Eagleton joins Nancy and Allyn to discuss her new homes and the challenges building affordable housing in Houston. Support the show: https://offers....
Apr 16, 2018•53 min
Whenever Houston finds itself in competition with another city, it’s usually about the food, the fashion or the attitudes of the people – and it’s usually Dallas that we’re defending ourselves against. Houston recently found itself fending off another big-city rival, but for a very different reason: a giant silver bean. Nancy is joined by the Chronicle’s Allyn West and Lisa Gray, who go into it with a Chicago Tribune columnist who wrote a scathing piece on Houston and our newly installed Anish K...
Apr 04, 2018•25 min
Perhaps unlike any other time in history, immigrant labor is playing a critical role in getting Houston back on track, a theme highlighted in a new documentary called "Immigration's crossroad, rebuilding after Hurricane Harvey." Director Gregory Kallenberg and producer (and former Chronicle columnist) Loren Steffy discuss the film, which is part of a series of short documentaries that attempt to bridge the two sides of the immigration debate by framing the issues in a historical context and thro...
Mar 21, 2018•28 min
Hurricane Harvey destroyed the lower portions of Buffalo Bayou Park, devastating the beloved dog park and causing the loss of some 400 trees. After hauling off 30,000 cubic yards of sediment -- at a cost of more than $1 million -- the Buffalo Bayou Partnership continues its costly efforts to repair what's become Houston's central park. President Anne Olson joins the Chronicle's Nancy Sarnoff and Allyn West to discuss the park's future and the long-term plan for the bayou's eastern stretch. Suppo...
Mar 06, 2018•41 min
Ryan Walsh, one of the county officials guiding the redevelopment of the Astrodome, and local preservationist James Glassman join Nancy and Harris County reporter Mihir Zaveri to discuss the plans, the funding and the ethos of the project, which aims to transform the Houston’s most legendary landmark into what officials hope will be a coveted event space. Support the show: https://offers.houstonchronicle.com/?offerid=125&origin=newsroom&ipid=podcast See omnystudio.com/listener for privac...
Feb 27, 2018•41 min
Nancy and Allyn talk to Chronicle writer Molly Glentzer about her story on dismantling the 18th century ballroom at La Colombe d’Or, the boutique hotel on Montrose Boulevard, to make way for a luxury residential tower. Support the show: https://offers.houstonchronicle.com/?offerid=125&origin=newsroom&ipid=podcast See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Feb 20, 2018•19 min
