KLUP Post 1/3/2008 More Hotels in San Antonio

The British are Coming, The British are Coming, John Thurman of Heart of Texas Realty here with Today’s San Antonio Business Journal News Feature. Business Journal writer Tricia Lynn Sylva reported that English hotel powerhouse InterContinental Hotels Group has announced that construction will begin soon on nine new hotels in greater San Antonio. These hotels will be Candlewood Suites Staybridge Suites and all of them fall into InterContinental's extended-stay segments. Their locations will include suites off I35 in Schertz , the Westover Hills area. The common denominator in the selection of the various locations is the proximity of job growth, and companies that need employees to stay in temporary quarters for extended periods of time but not permanently. San Antonio's industrial and tourism base continues to grow and the need for extended stay hotels is evidence of that growth. Westover Hills, one of the areas where these new hotels will be located, continues to attract high tech businesesses that have need for employees to reside in extended stay hotels. For San Antonio area homes and real estate, call John Thurman of Heart of Texas Realty. www.HeartofTexasRealty.com

KLUP 1/14/2008 San Antonio Economic Development

Local Trade Group wants to tackle some tough issues in 2008. John Thurman of Heart of Texas Realty here with Today's San Antonio Business Journal News Feature. Business Journal writer Mike Thomas reported that Foreign investments in San Antonio declined in 2007 compared to the last couple of years, according to the city's Economic Development Foundation, but the overall prospects for foreign trade are looking up as the as the Free Trade Alliance pushes ahead with an ambitious agenda for this year. Kyle Burns, President and CEO, Free Trade Alliance of San Antonio, wants to expand foreign investmens in the Alamo City in 2008. Mario Hernandez, President, San Antonio Economic Development Foundation, noted that some decline in foreign investment was to be expected after the completion of phase one of the Toyota Manufacturing Plant. Hernadzez notes that his office is working on 104 prospects for job creation investments and eight of them are internationally based. In years past, the number of internationally based companies that were looking at investing in the Alamo City were more than that number. Toyota is likely to announce another phase for its manufacturing plant but until that happens the city is looking to the Free Trade Alliance to pursue the initiaive. For San Antonio area homes and real estate, call John Thurman of Heart of Texas Realty. www.HeartofTexasRealty.com

KLUP Post 1/15/2008 Toyota

Toyota is trucking through tough market conditions. John Thurman of Heart of Texas Realty here with today's San Antonio Business Journal News Feature. Business Journal writer Scott Bailey wrote that truck sales were down at Ford and General Motors in 2007. And while Toyota saw an impressive increase in its Tundra sales versus the previous year, the automaker still came up short of what some industry observers have referred to as a conservative sales goal. Toyota officials say the company sold almost 200,000 Tundra Trucks nationwide in 2007 - up from 125,000 in the previous year. Industry analyst Ron Pinelli of Auto-Data Corp. notes that the auto industry has contracted because of the housing and credit crunch. Pinelli believes however, that considerable improvement will occur in both markets in 2008 and Toyota should benefit from that. One hitch though that may affect large vehicle sales is oil prices. Many analyists predict that the price for a barrell of oil could go as high as $200.00 per barrel, roughly doubling the price of a gallon of gasoline. If this were to happen, large vehicle sales would undoubetly sufffer. However, Toyota's history is in light trucks and cars and they have plans to build such a smaller model if gas prices get out of hand. For San Antonio area homes and real estate, call John Thurman of Heart of Texas Realty. www.HeartofTexasRealty.com

KLUP Post 1/29/2008 Six Flags Budget Cuts

Six Flags Incorporated considers selling more parks and they are eying big budget cuts. John Thurman of Heart of Texas Realty here with Today’s San Antonio Business Journal News Feature. Business Journal Writer Scott Bailey reported that the financial rollercoaster of Six Flag Inc. the parent company of Six Flags Fiesta Texas, has taken another dramatic turn. Amid speculatoin from some industry observes that the deeply indebted company could be headed for bankruptcy. The company filed a notice with the Secutities and Exchange Commission that the company is planning huge spending cuts and the possible sale of more parks. Six Flags CEO is Mark Shapiro, a former Disney and ESPN executive notes the problem they are facing is a huge debt load. The company plans to slash between $25 to $30 million out of this year's operating budget and that will invlove paring their employment and cutting ineffecient rides and attractions. Six Flags Fiesta is an important asset to San Antonio though but the company did not report how this facility will be affected. For San Antonio area homes and real estate, call John Thurman of Heart of Texas Realty. www.HeartofTexasRealty.com

KLUP Post 2/1/2008 Talks of Recession

Talks of recession may slow future construction projects. John Thurman of Heart of Texas Realty here with today's San Antonio Business Journal news feature. Business Journal writer Mary Scott Nabers reported that as the housing market and construction in general slows, the public sector is ramping up in a big wa. Government entities, cities, counties, state and federal agencies, have millions of dollars to spend in '08 and '09 for all types of construction and infrastructure projects. As private sector construction related projects slow, contractors are well advised to consider bid opportuniteis with goverment agencies. Even though residential and commercial building projects are slowing, the Texas economy remains very strong but talks of recession have caused many private companies to be cautious about spending. Business development in this sector may be very competitive. But, although national economic indicators are down, government has money for public sector initiatives becaus the projects were planned and funded some time ago. For San Antonio area homes and real estate, call John Thurman of Heart of Texas Realty. www.HeartofTexasRealty.com

KLUP News Post 2/4/2008 San Antonio Economy

San Antonio stays stable as credit crunch hits national real estate market. John Thurman of Heart of Texas Realty with today's San Antonio Business Journal news feature. Business Journal writer, Michael D. however wrote that we passed through a period of unbridled enthusiasm and now it is time to come back to realty. Recent reports are heralding the impact of the credit crisis on commercial real estate, and to be sure, since August of 2007, a hauntingly familiar bubble started to arise within the industry. After a dozen years of up cycle in the real estate industry, we have to ask, When will the ride come to an end? Increased values, low interest rates, rising rents and huge profits led to an intense rush of capital into the market. A record $130 billion was poured into the market in the first half of 2007. Things looked good. Underwriting standards by the more aggressive lending institutions were lax and cheap debt was easily available. That's all coming back to earth and hopefully for a soft landing because job creation and family growth are both continuing and a steady rate this pointing to continued growth and stability in the Alamo City. For San Antonio area homes and real estate, call John Thurman of Heart of Texas Realty. www.HeartOfTexasRealty.com