Texas Floods Could Worsen Housing Market Issues
www.newsweek.com

... The flash floods that claimed the lives of at least 135 people in Texas Hill Country on July 4 also impacted thousands of properties that stood along their path of death and destruction, according to estimates by researchers at data-driven tech company Cotality.

Using rainfall, stream gage, and property data, Cotality experts recreated the footprint of the flash floods in central Texas, finding that over 38,600 homes in nine counties deemed eligible for individual and public assistance by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) are likely to have been damaged during that tragic weekend. ...

The cost of home insurance has skyrocketed in recent years in Texas, reaching an average annual cost of $4,585 this year -- 117 percent more than the national average of $2,110, according to NerdWallet.

Premiums are so expensive that many homeowners cannot afford them, and some are choosing to renounce paying extra for flood coverage, which is not included under the standard homeowner policy. ...

Southwestern drought likely to continue through 2100, research finds
arstechnica.com

... The drought in the Southwestern US is likely to last for the rest of the 21st century and potentially beyond as global warming shifts the distribution of heat in the Pacific Ocean, according to a study published last week led by researchers at the University of Texas at Austin. ...