Texas Featured Real Estate Market Areas and Agents

The second largest state in the U.S. by both land area and population, Texas was the 28th state and is home to around 23.5 million residents. It stretches from the southwestern region of the U.S. across to the South, and has a mix of both cultures. The state is often called the Lone Star state after its flag. The capital is Austin and the largest cities are Houston – the fourth largest city in the U.S. – and Dallas-Fort Worth, San Antonio and El Paso. The state has a long history as the center of the U.S. cattle industry, and it is commonly associated with the cowboy image. Texas has been claimed by several different countries. Spain first held it, France had a short-lived colony, and Mexico owned the area until 1836 when Texas won its independence. It then joined the U.S. as a state in 1845. Texas is also home to rich oil reserves, which have helped to establish the state’s riches throughout the years. The first oil well was developed in 1901 and oil production here peaked in 1972 at 3 million barrels per day. The state is home to about one-quarter of the country’s known oil reserves and also leads the country in natural gas production, producing one-fourth of the supply. Texas is home to the most farms, both by number and by acres, in the country, and leads in livestock production, with cattle the top product. Sheep and goats are also raised here and with more than 1,000 miles of shores, fish is caught here as well.

The Rio Grande, Red River and Sabine River form natural state borders, with Oklahoma to the north, Louisiana and Arkansas to the east, and the Mexico to the south. There is no state income tax here, and Texas has more airports than any other state. The port of Houston is the busiest U.S. port by foreign tonnage. The state has vibrant arts and music scenes across the cities. There are two NFL teams, the Dallas Cowboys and the Houston Texans; two Major League Baseball teams, the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros; and three NBA teams: the Houston Rockets, the San Antonio Spurs, and the Dallas Mavericks. Texas also has the most Division I football schools in America, with 10, and college football is a huge pastime. The college system is made up of the University of Texas System and the Texas A&M University System, with four other state university systems and four independent public universities. There are two presidential libraries: the George Bush Presidential Library at Texas A&M University and the Lyndon Baines Johnson Library and Museum at the University of Texas, with a third, the George W. Bush Presidential Library at Southern Methodist University, planned.