On The Market

Luxury living with room to roam awaits at new community just north of Houston

Want to be semi-close to Houston's hustle and bustle yet still enjoy your space? Just head north of the Loop to Hockley, where the new luxury gated community of Stallion Lakes is starting to take shape.

Lots are now being sold — in sizes ranging from 1.5-3.5 acres — that future residents can base their new dream home on.

You'll have your choice of five builders — Jeff Paul Custom Homes, Kickerillo Companies, Matt Powers Custom Homes, Morning Star Builders, and William David Homes — to create your new custom home, in a community which will feature private concrete streets, natural gas, and fiber optic cable.

Residents will also enjoy a low tax rate and the peace of mind that comes from knowing that none of the lots sit within a flood plain.

"Once again, we are creating a project of extraordinary design and quality," remarks Kelli Kickerillo, CEO of Kickerillo Companies, which is overseeing the development. "Stallion Lakes sits on more than 400 acres of rolling land with five lakes and a nature preserve surrounded by landscaped walk/bike trails. This land truly takes your breath away. We are thrilled to be able to bring together Houston's best builders to deliver luxury living in the heart of Hockley."

Founded in 1957, Kickerillo Companies has been responsible for the construction of over 16,400 homes in more than 40 prestigious Greater Houston neighborhoods, including Lakes of Parkway, Kelliwood, Twin Lakes, and Vintage Lakes.

The firm has joined forces with local businessman Bill Bean, who originally purchased the land with his wife, Karen, approximately 12 years ago from iconic A. J. Foyt.

The Kingshill Martini Group will be the exclusive listing agent for Stallion Lakes lots, and co-founder Diane Kingshill agrees about the beauty and convenience of the area.

"Located just 40 miles from downtown Houston, Stallion Lakes is one of the closest areas to the city that offers this stunning, rolling terrain," she explains. "I own a home in Hockley and can personally endorse the quality of life here. Getting back and forth to Houston is easy, even on a daily basis. Minutes away, Fairfield Town Center offers a large variety of shops and restaurants, and The Clubs at Houston Oaks is only two miles down the road, adding to the community's tremendous appeal."

Lot prices range between $300,000 and $690,000. Those interested in the custom builds should note that the development requires at least 4,500 square feet for one-story plans and at least 5,000 square feet for two-story homes.

"We are excited about the initial response to Stallion Lakes," says Kickerillo Companies president Jim Miller. "Stallion Lakes is on track to be a great success because it is the perfect destination community for families looking to escape the city while still being within arm's reach."

Diane Kingshill and Ashton Martini lead The Kingshill & Martini Group at Martha Turner Sotheby’s International Realty, a dynamic partnership responsible for more than $1 billion in combined sales throughout the Greater Houston area. This award-winning duo is deeply involved in both local real estate and the Houston community, with multiple industry accolades and substantial nonprofit fundraising accomplishments to their credit.

Photo courtesy of Stallion Lakes

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Houston boasts No. 20 hottest real estate market among big U.S. cities

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It doesn't get much hotter than the Houston housing market. A new report has ranked H-Town as the 20th best real estate market among America's biggest cities right now.

WalletHub's annual study, "Best Real Estate Markets (2026)," compares the real estate markets in 300 U.S. cities based on 17 relevant metrics, such as "housing market attractiveness," home value forecasts, housing affordability, population growth, and many others. Cities were also ranked by size: large cities with over 300,000 residents; midsize cities with 150,000-300,000 residents; and small cities with fewer than 150,000 residents.

In the overall ranking of the best housing markets in America, regardless of city size, Houston ranks 90th out of all 300 cities.

WalletHub ranks Houston's real estate market No. 102 nationally, and its "affordability and economic environment" ranks 111th overall.

This is how WalletHub ranks the "health" of Houston's housing market (where No. 1 is the best and No. 150 is average):

No. 51 – Job Growth Rate
No. 96 – Home Price as a Percentage of Income
No. 99 – Median Home-Price Appreciation
No. 128 – Foreclosure Rate
No. 159 – Share of Seriously Underwater Mortgages
No. 172 – Percentage of Delinquent Mortgage Holders
No. 173 – Median Days on the Market
No. 192 – Maintenance Costs as a Percentage of Income

Despite Houston's good standing among the biggest cities in America, a separate WalletHub report claims Houston is one of the worst cities for first-time homebuyers. Instead, Houstonians are turning to popular ZIP codes in suburbs like Cypress and Katy, which rank among the hottest places to move to in the U.S.

Other high-performing housing markets in Texas
Two popular North Texas suburbs — Frisco and McKinney — topped WalletHub's overall list of the best real estate markets in the U.S. for 2026 at Nos. 1 and 2, respectively, and they locked in the top two spots in the midsize city ranking, too.

Frisco tops the nationwide "affordability and economic environment" category, and ranks No. 2 nationally for its real estate market.

"When you look at home prices as a percentage of income, [Frisco] is the 95th-cheapest among the 300 cities in our study," the report said. "But it’s the 11th-cheapest city for phone service and the 11th-cheapest for maintenance and energy."

Frisco boasts the highest share of houses that were built between 2010 and 2024, at nearly 47 percent, which WalletHub says is "good news for people who want all the benefits of a recently-constructed home," without having to "put in a lot of work" to renovate an older or run down home.

"If you aim to make a profit in the long run with your housing purchase, you’ll need to look beyond tangible factors like square footage and style," the report's author wrote. "Those factors certainly drive up property values. From an investor’s standpoint, though, they hold less significance than historical market trends and the economic health of residents."

Nearby Denton and Allen also made the overall top 10, respectively ranking as the 5th and 8th best real estate markets in the U.S. for 2026. Denton similarly ranked 5th in the midsize city rankings, and Allen topped the list of small cities.

The top 10 best real estate markets in America for 2026 are:

No. 1 – Frisco, Texas
No. 2 – McKinney, Texas
No. 3 – Murfreesboro, Tennessee
No. 4 – Durham, North Carolina
No. 5 – Denton, Texas
No. 6 – Cary, North Carolina
No. 7 – Madison, Wisconsin
No. 8 – Allen, Texas
No. 9 – Charlotte, North Carolina
No. 10 – Irvine, California

wallethub housing market real estate reports houston