Day 4: Market Trends Analysis + H&L Career Plan Update
Lesson Overview
| Time | 50 minutes |
| Objectives | Analyze DFW real estate labor market trends with labor data; connect trends to career opportunities; update the H&L Career Plan with 5th Six Weeks exploration data |
| TEKS | d(5)(A) |
| Deliverable | Market Trends Analysis notes + updated H&L Career Plan reflecting 5SW exploration |
| Materials | Chromebooks, H&L accounts + Workbook (Ch 16 Career Plan template), BLS Real Estate OOH page, Texas Real Estate Research Center, Zillow or Realtor.com (projected), printed Market Trends Analysis notes sheet, projector |
Warm-Up (5 min)
WARM-UP: Do you think home prices in DFW will go UP or DOWN over the next 10 years? What evidence supports your prediction?
Collect 3-4 predictions. Most students predict "up" because everyone is moving to Texas. Bridge: today we will use real data to test that intuition. Economists track specific indicators, today you will think like an economist.
Activity 1: Teacher Modeling — Reading Real Estate Market Data (10 min)
Project the Texas Real Estate Research Center website or a BLS Real Estate OOH page. Model how to extract specific data points:
- 10-year BLS projection for Real Estate Agents: typically 3-5% growth
- Median home price in DFW: pull from Zillow's DFW market page
- Number of home sales per year in DFW: roughly 100,000+ depending on market conditions
- Interest rate effect: Higher interest rates → fewer sales → lower commissions
- Population growth: DFW is one of the fastest-growing metros in the U.S.
Emphasize: "Real estate is a CYCLICAL market. Some years are hot (20% sales growth). Some years are cold (sales drop). Agents who survive the cold years become very successful in the hot years. You need to understand the cycle."
Activity 2: Student Market Trends Analysis (20 min)
Students complete the Market Trends Analysis notes sheet independently. They pull data from BLS, Zillow, and teacher-provided news articles. Fields:
| Field | Data Source |
|---|---|
| BLS 10-year job outlook for Real Estate Agents | BLS OOH |
| Median DFW home price (current year) | Zillow DFW market page |
| Estimated annual home sales in DFW | Texas Real Estate Research Center |
| Factor 1 driving demand | News article |
| Factor 2 driving demand | News article |
| Factor 1 that could slow the market | Interest rates, oversupply, recession |
| Your career opportunity assessment | 1-2 sentences |
Students also answer:
- Why is DFW a strong market? (Population growth + corporate relocations + lower cost of living)
- What could change the market? (Federal Reserve raising interest rates sharply, economic downturn, oversupply from new construction)
- What does this mean for a new agent starting in 2027-2028?
Facilitation Tip
H&L's localized DFW data is useful but limited for real estate. Supplement with news articles from the past 6-12 months for current market conditions. The Texas Real Estate Research Center at Texas A&M publishes monthly reports.
DOK 3: What conclusions can you draw about how factors like interest rates and population growth affect the number of real estate jobs available in DFW?
Activity 3: H&L Career Plan Update — End of 5SW (12 min)
Source: H&L Workbook Ch 16: My Next Steps, "My Career and Course Plan"
Direct students to open H&L and update their Career Plan to reflect everything they explored in the 5th Six Weeks:
- Architecture (Wk1)
- Civil Engineering (Wk2)
- Construction (Wk3)
- Skilled Trades: HVAC/Electrical/Plumbing/Welding (Wk4)
- Personal Budgeting / Lifestyle Snapshot (Wk5)
- Real Estate (Wk6)
Students should:
- Favorite 1-2 real estate careers if any interested them (Real Estate Agent, Broker, Appraiser, Property Manager)
- Update Building Blocks if this week revealed a new connection (sales skills, independence, communication)
- Review the full Career Plan: by now, students have explored 12+ career clusters. Their plan should show clear patterns in what they are drawn to
- Identify their TOP 3 careers of the year so far: these will become the focus of the final capstone in 6th Six Weeks
Remind students: The Career Plan is meant to evolve. It is OK to drop interests that no longer feel right and add new ones as they learn more.
DOK 2: How has your Career Plan changed from the beginning of the year to now? What surprised you about your own interests?
Exit Ticket (3 min)
EXIT TICKET (Comparison Matrix) · Printable PDF:
Use my Day 4 Market Trends notes to fill in the matrix.
| Factors DRIVING DFW real estate UP | Factors that could SLOW DFW real estate | |
|---|---|---|
| Factor 1 | ||
| Factor 2 |
Bottom line: In one sentence, which factor (up or slow) is STRONGER RIGHT NOW, and how does that create OR limit career opportunities for a new agent starting in 2027?
MY current top career choice from ALL clusters explored this year: _____. (d(5)(A))
Differentiation
- Support: Pre-fill the Market Trends Analysis sheet with BLS data and home price numbers. Students focus on interpreting what the numbers mean rather than collecting them.
- Extension: Compare DFW's real estate market to Austin's or Houston's. Which Texas metro is growing fastest right now? Why?
- ELL: Bilingual Market Trends Analysis sheet. Numbers and percentages are language-accessible. Pair ELL students with bilingual peers for the Career Plan update discussion.