More than 1,600 Houston property owners who flooded during Hurricane Harvey will likely be forced to elevate their homes if they want to continue living there. The city's Public Works Department is preparing to notify property owners in floodplains that their structures have been declared "substantially damaged" and will required additional repairs to comply with current building codes. For most, that will mean physically raising their properties, a pricey upgrade that can cost well more than $150,000. The 1,611 letters that start going out this month will be the "first batch" for properties identified as damaged so severely that repairs would cost more than 50 percent of the market value of the structure, excluding the land.

A partnership including a Houston-based real estate firm is in talks to buy Marathon Oil Tower for $175 million, an industry publication reported this week.

WASHINGTON - Americans bought new homes in October at the fastest pace in a decade - a 6.2 percent monthly increase that reflects both the underlying strength of the economy and the worsening shortage of existing homes for sale. The Commerce Department said this past week that new-home sales in October rose to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 685,000. That marks the third straight monthly gain and the best sales clip since October 2007. Much of the sales growth came from the Northeast and Midwest, with the South and West posting smaller increases. Many buyers are turning to new construction because there is a shrinking supply of existing homes for sale. But new construction has been unable to keep up with demand.

One of the twin residential towers perched above Hermann Park just off Texas 288 has been sold to a joint venture that has rebranded the property and taken over management and leasing. PGIM Real Estate and Houston-based Hanover Co. formed a joint venture to acquire the upscale building, previously known as Mosaic at Hermann Park. The 29-story tower is now known as Hanover Hermann Park. The other tower is still called Mosaic. Hanover will handle leasing, operations and management for the 396 apartments in its tower. The building also has 20,087 square feet of first-floor retail space.

Creamistry, a California-based chain serving ice cream made on the spot using liquid nitrogen and custom mix-ins, will open a shop at Town & Country Village in west Houston in mid December. The store, at 791 Town & Country Blvd., Suite 140, will be owned and operated by franchisees Mohammed Albanaa and James Alaskare. The duo plans at least three more locations over the next two years. Creamistry has other area locations on Westheimer across from the Galleria and in Katy. Dr. Dipak Kalani has purchased 1.27 acres at Kirby Drive and Shadow Creek Parkway in Shadow Creek Ranch Village, Pearland. Bob Conwell and Brad Elmore of NewQuest Properties represented the seller, CG-Shadow Creek Ranch Village LP.

CDI Corp. has renewed a 19,337-square-foot office lease at Westchase Place, 11200 Richmond. Bubba Harkins and Russell Hodges of JLL represented the landlord, CREA Investments. Jon Lee with CBRE represented the tenant. Contemporary Services Corp., a provider of event security for NRG Stadium, has signed a 5,684-square-foot lease expansion at 2656 South Loop West. Zach Leger and Jacob Aldridge of NAI Partners represented landlord, Forbes Land Corp. DivisionOne Construction has leased an 8,200-square-foot office building at 11280 West Road. Gloria Parrino of Betz Commercial Brokerage represented the landlord, TAG Texas Property Holdings. Reed Vestal of Lee & Associates represented the tenant.

Thor Equities has inked its first office leases within Kirby Collection, a large mixed-use project under construction in Upper Kirby. The New York developer signed long-term leases with Hancock Whitney Bank, Novum Energy Trading and Regency Centers totalling 36,775 square feet. The deals are indicative of companies' growing appetite for office space within larger mixed-use projects where workers can not only work, but live, eat and play. Move-ins are expected to begin in the second quarter of 2018. "All three tenants were attracted to the project's highly desirable location, attractive amenities and modern design," Melissa Gliatta, COO of Thor Equities, said in a statement.

Quantum Energy Partners has leased the top floor of Capitol Tower, a Class A office building in downtown Houston.

Falcon Steel America plans to open a new factory in Conroe that will increase its manufacturing capacity by 60 percent.

In 2015 Houston's high-flying real estate market ranked at the top of a prominent national list of cities to watch. That same list, published annually by the Urban Land Institute and PWC, now ranks Houston no. 60.

WASHINGTON - Americans bought more homes last month, as sales snapped back in hurricane-hit Texas and Florida. Yet the market is still suffering from a dwindling supply of available homes. Sales rose 2 percent in October to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.48 million, the National Association of Realtors said this past week. That's the fastest pace since June. Still, sales have slipped 0.9 percent from a year ago. The number of available homes has fallen 10.4 percent from a year earlier to just 1.8 million. That's the lowest for any October since the real estate group began tracking the data in 1999. The tight supply is pushing up prices and thwarting many would-be home buyers. The median home price jumped 5.

Air General has signed a 101,460-square-foot industrial lease near George Bush Intercontinental Airport.

Renters paid an average of $1,105 for an apartment in October, the highest average rate in two years as the need for post-Hurricane Harvey housing is shoring up Houston's glutted multifamily market.

Salem Lutheran Church has leased a 106,000-square foot warehouse and covered space at 1121 FM 2920 Road in Tomball for its Heart for Texas program. Tomball-based BJ Services, a provider of pressure pumping services to oil and gas companies in North America, donated the space to assist with Hurricane Harvey relief efforts.

Auto Financial Group has subleased 6,598 square feet at 5555 San Felipe from Marathon Oil Corp. Griff Bandy and John Simons of NAI Partners represented the tenant. Axiom Medical Consulting has subleased 26,189 square feet of office space at 8401 New Trails from Hunt Guillot & Associates. Scott Covington of S.E. Covington & Co. represented the subtenant. Rob Banzhaf and Ryan Dierker of Newcor Commercial Real Estate represented Hunt Guillot, which relocated to an 11,000-square-foot space in The Woodlands. Capital Plastics International will relocate from 10702 Cash Road in Stafford to 1601 Gillingham Lane in Sugar Land.

Lily Rain, a lifestyle brand out of Houston that's grown to 20 stores across the United States, will add a third area location in CityCentre on Houston's west side during the holidays. The 1,821-square-foot store, across from the central plaza on Town & Country Boulevard between Elaine Turner and J. Crew, will offer women's apparel and accessories, home décor and gifts. It will take over the space previously occupied by ivivva, an active-wear brand by Lululemon. Originally an online shopping site, Lily Rain opened its first store in Rice Village in 2014.

The midcentury Southwestern Bell building in downtown Houston will get new life as a 150-room Hyatt Place Hotel. The development group, including Anthony Patel and Nick Patel of Pride Management, has obtained a $22.8 million loan for the long-vacant building from Dallas-based Hall Structured Finance, the companies announced. Renovation of the 16-story high-rise is targeted for completion by March 2019. The first-lien construction loan, which closed after Hurricane Harvey and represents a portion of the development costs, will jump start the project.

The 411,442-square-foot facility will feature 32-foot-tall ceilings, a fast response sprinkler system, docks on both sides of the building and storage space.

Public officials and executives from The Howard Hughes Corp. posed for photos Wednesday morning next to a tent on a newly poured street on the site of a new master-planned community under construction 13 miles north of The Woodlands.

Houston earned a spot on a global ranking of the best cities to raise a family, according to online real estate portal Homeday. Berlin-based Homeday examined 15 factors identified by parents as contributing to what makes a city great. They included infrastructure, maternity laws, healthcare quality, happiness levels, activities for children, and expert perception. Homeday selected the top 100 cities in the index after analyzing thousands of cities, with Copenhagen, Denmark earning the top spot.