Ray Allison Realtors, 820 Gessner, Suite1380, Houston, TX (2026)

10/05/2026

Happy Monday from the wild world of commercial real estate! 👑😂

“Mondays don't suck. Unless your mindset does.”

Well...I'm going to disagree with our little motivational queen on one small point.

I actually like Mondays.

After more than 40 years in commercial real estate, I've found that Monday can be the most productive day of the week — if you allow it to be.

By Monday morning, people have questions. They need answers. Someone wants a showing. Someone needs a lease reviewed. Someone has decided to sell.
Someone wants to buy. A deal needs another push. A problem that appeared Friday afternoon is still sitting there waiting for somebody to solve it.

And Monday gives you an entire week to do something about it.

I've always thought there is something energizing about that.

You can't control everything that lands on your desk — particularly in the occasionally wild world of commercial real estate — but you can control what you do with it.

Answer the call. Return the email. Solve the problem. Make the appointment. Follow up with the person you meant to call last week.
And if necessary...

Fix your crown and show the world what you've got. 👑😂

So here's to Monday — not something to survive, but an opportunity to get things moving.

And if you know someone who needs help buying, selling, leasing, developing or simply figuring out what to do with a commercial property, referrals are always appreciated.

Happy Monday, everybody! Let's get something done.

Ray Allison, Broker�Ray Allison Realtors�[email protected]�RayAllison.com

10/05/2026

Apparently, Tobas Fire didn't get the memo that it's October. 🔥🌺

This is Tobas Fire, a plumeria growing in the ground in front of my house in Houston. She's approaching nine feet tall now, with a substantial woody trunk, and for reasons known only to her, she has decided that October is an excellent time to produce this bouquet.

After growing plumerias for many years, I've learned something that also applies surprisingly well to business: You can do everything right and still not control the outcome.

You prepare the soil. You fertilize. You water. You provide plenty of Texas sunshine. You protect the plant through winter.

And sometimes you're rewarded with this.

Other times, the plant essentially looks at all your hard work and gives you the botanical equivalent of the finger. 😂

Tobas Fire is a perfect example. She grows beautifully and blooms spectacularly, but I've found her extraordinarily difficult to propagate. I've taken cuttings, treated them properly and tried rooting them during the hottest part of summer — exactly when plumerias are supposed to root best.

She apparently has other ideas.

Commercial real estate can be remarkably similar.

You research the market. Price the property carefully. Prepare the marketing. Make the calls. Follow up. Negotiate. Solve problems. Put together what should be a perfectly workable transaction.

Sometimes everything comes together beautifully. Sometimes it doesn't.

After more than 40 years in commercial real estate, I've learned that hard work dramatically improves your odds. Experience improves them further.
But neither gives you complete control over the result.

The important thing is knowing the difference between an outcome that failed because you could have done better and an outcome that simply wasn't yours to control.

Learn from the first.

Accept the second.

And then keep planting. 🌱

That's true in the garden, in business and certainly in commercial real estate.

Meanwhile, Tobas Fire is blooming gloriously in October, apparently just to remind me that sometimes the surprises work in your favor, too.
I'll take it. 🔥🌺

Ray Allison,
Broker�Ray Allison Realtors�[email protected]�
RayAllison.com

10/05/2026

Sunday morning I had the privilege of serving as Lector I at the Co-Cathedral — and a reading from Isaiah left me thinking about faith, life...and commercial real estate.

And yes, The Great Orchid Drama of 2026 continues. 🌿🤍😂

Four enormous white orchid arrangements appeared around the Fourth of July after three weddings on one Saturday. I assumed they'd be gone shortly.

It's October. They're still blooming. Someone has clearly been tending them well.

Then I stepped to the ambo to proclaim this:
A reading from the Book of the Prophet Isaiah:
Let me now sing of my friend, my friend's song concerning his vineyard.
My friend had a vineyard on a fertile hillside; he spaded it, cleared it of stones, and planted the choicest vines; within it he built a watchtower, and hewed out a w**e press.
Then he looked for the crop of grapes, but what it yielded was wild grapes.
Now, inhabitants of Jerusalem and people of Judah, judge between me and my vineyard:
What more was there to do for my vineyard that I had not done?
Why, when I looked for the crop of grapes, did it bring forth wild grapes?
Now, I will let you know what I mean to do with my vineyard:
take away its hedge, give it to grazing, break through its wall, let it be trampled!
Yes, I will make it a ruin: it shall not be pruned or hoed, but overgrown with thorns and briers; I will command the clouds not to send rain upon it.
The vineyard of the LORD of hosts is the house of Israel, and the people of Judah are his cherished plant;
he looked for judgment, but see, bloodshed! for justice, but hark, the outcry!
The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Isaiah 5:1–7

One question stayed with me: “What more was there to do for my vineyard that I had not done?”

Isaiah's vineyard has a much larger theological meaning, of course. But after more than 40 years in commercial real estate, I couldn't help hearing something about business in those words as well.

Sometimes we're given what looks like fertile ground — a promising property, a wonderful opportunity, a new relationship, a carefully constructed transaction or a plan that seems to have everything going for it.

We clear the stones. We plant the best vines. We tend them. We protect them. We do the work.
Sometimes they flourish. And sometimes they don't.

Commercial real estate will teach you that lesson sooner or later.

You can research the market, price carefully, market aggressively, negotiate thoughtfully, solve problems and do everything you know how to do — and still not get the harvest you expected.

Sometimes there's a lesson in what went wrong, and experience should make us humble enough to learn it. Other times, we really did everything we reasonably could.

Perhaps maturity — in faith, in life and certainly in business — is learning the difference.

Be grateful for the vineyards that flourish. Learn from those that don't. And continue to plant anyway.

That's not a bad philosophy for commercial real estate — or for life.

Meanwhile, those orchids at the Co-Cathedral are still flourishing. Apparently, they have their own ideas about perseverance. 🌿🤍😂

Ray Allison, Broker
Ray Allison Realtors
RayAllison.com

10/01/2026

Hello, October! 🎃🍂
My goodness, how did we get here already?
October means pumpkins, Halloween, hopefully a little cooler weather here in Texas — and for those of us in commercial real estate, we're now smack dab in the middle of the fall market.
There is something about fall that gets people moving again.
After the summer heat and vacations, businesses start looking ahead. Owners reconsider properties they've been thinking about selling. Tenants begin looking for new locations. Buyers get serious about opportunities. And projects that may have been sitting quietly for a few months suddenly find their way back onto the table.
After more than 40 years in commercial real estate, I've watched that rhythm repeat itself many times.
Of course, real estate doesn't pay much attention to the calendar. A good opportunity can appear in January, July or October. But fall has always seemed to bring a little renewed energy to the market.
Maybe it's the cooler weather.
Maybe everybody suddenly realizes there are only three months left in the year. 😂
Whatever the reason, October is a good month to get things moving.
So if you've been thinking about selling, buying, leasing, developing — or simply wondering what your next move should be with a commercial property — I'm always happy to have a conversation.
Meanwhile, here's hoping October brings us some cooler weather, productive business, good opportunities and maybe even a little fun along the way. 🎃
Happy October!
Ray Allison, Broker
Ray Allison Realtors
RayAllison.com

Do you like this personality?

09/14/2026

Happy Monday from the wild world of commercial real estate! 🦈

Apparently, sharks don't complain about Mondays. They get up early, bite stuff, chase things around, and remind everybody they're sharks.

Come to think of it, that sounds suspiciously like commercial real estate. 😂

After 40+ years in this business, I've certainly met a few sharks. I've represented a few, negotiated against a few, and probably had lunch with more than a few without realizing it until the check arrived.

One thing experience teaches you: you don't have to be a shark to know how to swim with them.

Commercial real estate can involve big personalities, complicated properties, difficult negotiations, unexpected problems and occasionally a little blood in the water. Knowing when to push, when to listen, when to negotiate — and when to simply walk away — comes from having been around the ocean a few times.

Fortunately, most transactions aren't really about sharks at all. They're about people trying to solve a problem: selling a property, finding a location, leasing space, buying land, redeveloping something old or figuring out what to do with a property they already own.

That's what we do at Ray Allison Realtors.

If you know someone with a commercial real estate question — large or small — referrals are always appreciated. I'm happy to take a look, offer an opinion and see whether we can help.

Meanwhile, it's Monday.

Get up early. Chase something. Maybe even bite something. Just try not to scare the clients. 🦈😂

Happy Monday!

Ray Allison, Broker
Ray Allison Realtors
RayAllison.com

09/07/2026

.

🇺🇸 Happy Labor Day!

Labor Day is a welcome long weekend — hopefully with a little time away from work, some good barbecue, and people you enjoy. But it's also worth remembering why we have the holiday in the first place.

It's a day set aside to recognize the contributions of American workers and the generations of people whose labor, skill, ingenuity, and determination helped build this country.

After more than four decades in commercial real estate, one thing I've learned is that very little gets accomplished by one person.

Every successful transaction eventually involves a long list of people — owners, tenants, buyers, brokers, attorneys, lenders, title companies, surveyors, engineers, architects, contractors, tradespeople, city employees and plenty of others whose names may never appear on the closing statement.

Buildings don't build themselves. Businesses don't run themselves. Communities don't grow by themselves.

People make things happen.

So today, here's to everyone who gets up, goes to work, solves problems, creates something, builds something, serves someone, takes a risk, runs a business, signs the front of a paycheck — or simply does an honest day's work well.

And since today is Labor Day, perhaps the most appropriate business advice I can offer is this:

Try not to do too much business today. 😂

Enjoy the day. Enjoy the barbecue. We'll all get back to work tomorrow.

Happy Labor Day! 🇺🇸

08/30/2026

Some things worth growing take time. 🌺

This beautiful bouquet of blooms is from a seedling of Japanese Lantern plumeria growing on my kitchen patio here in Houston.

Growing plumeria from seed requires patience. It can take three to five years—or sometimes longer—before you ever see the first flower.

You water it. Feed it. Give it sunshine. Protect it when Houston decides to freeze.

And you wait.

There are no guarantees, either. A plumeria grown from seed isn't identical to its mother plant. You don't really know what you've grown until that first flower finally opens.

Looking at these blooms, I was reminded that commercial real estate and business relationships can work much the same way.

Over more than four decades in this business, I've learned that some of the best relationships don't produce an immediate transaction.

You meet someone. You stay in touch. You answer questions. You share what you know. You make an introduction or a referral when you can. And sometimes you help simply because you can—with no idea whether you'll ever do business together.

You're building trust.

Then one day, sometimes years later, the telephone rings.

That's why I've never believed every conversation has to produce immediate business. You never know which conversation, introduction, email, referral—or even Facebook post—is planting a seed for something down the road.

You simply tend the relationships worth tending.

Eventually, some of them bloom.

This particular plumeria took years to show me what she was going to become. Now she's producing this spectacular bouquet in the middle of a Houston August.

Good gardens and good businesses have at least one thing in common: neither is built overnight.

Ray Allison, Broker
Ray Allison Realtors
RayAllison.com

08/24/2026

Happy Monday from the wild world of commercial real estate!

If Monday had a look… I think we may have found it. 😂

School is back in session, calendars are filling up again, Houston is still approximately the temperature of the surface of the sun, and more than a few of us are probably dreaming about the first cool morning of fall.

In the meantime, commercial real estate keeps moving. Buyers are looking, tenants are looking, property owners are making decisions—and sometimes the most interesting opportunities begin with a simple conversation.

After more than 40 years in Houston commercial real estate, I continue to help clients buy, sell and lease commercial properties. I'm always grateful for the referrals and introductions that keep those conversations going.

If you know someone considering a commercial real estate decision—or simply trying to figure out what the next step should be—I'm always happy to talk.

And if Monday happens to have this look today, apparently you're not alone.

Happy Monday, everyone. Stay cool. Fall is coming… eventually.

Ray Allison, Broker
Ray Allison Realtors
RayAllison.com

08/13/2026

🌶️ The Americas Made the World Spicy — and then we exported a few other ideas, too.

Christopher Columbus was looking for Asia. Instead, he got lost and bumped into the Americas — landing first in the Bahamas on an island he called San Salvador.

Having spent part of my youth in the Bahamas, I’ve always thought that had Columbus arrived anytime in the last 40, 50 or 60 years, somebody would have been waiting with an old beat-up taxi:

“Hey mon, need a taxi?” 😂🇧🇸

Of course, with the proper Bahamian accent.

But here’s the interesting part.

🌶️ All Capsicum peppers originated in the Americas.

Before 1492, there was no Hungarian paprika in Hungary. No Spanish pimentón. No Korean gochugaru. No Italian peperoncino. And no chile peppers transforming the cuisines of India, Turkey, North Africa or China.

Peppers traveled around the world, and apparently people everywhere tasted them and said:

“Oh, we’re keeping this.” 😂

But they didn’t merely copy what came from the Americas.

They adapted it.

Hungary developed its paprika traditions. Spain created pimentón. Italy embraced peperoncino. Korea developed gochugaru. Each culture took something foreign and made it distinctly its own.

And there’s a business lesson hiding in all those peppers.

American ideas about manufacturing, retailing, franchising, branding, technology, logistics and management have traveled around the world, too.

And just like the peppers, other countries didn’t simply copy them.

They adapted them. Improved them. And sometimes sent them back to us better than when they left.

I’ve spent more than four decades in commercial real estate, and markets work much the same way. What worked yesterday doesn’t necessarily work tomorrow. What works in one neighborhood, city or country may need to be reconsidered somewhere else.

The underlying idea may be sound.

The successful application requires adaptation.

Five centuries after peppers left the Americas, they’re so thoroughly integrated into cuisines around the world that we can hardly imagine those cuisines without them.

Good ideas work that way, too.

🌎🌶️🏢

Ideas travel. Markets change. People adapt. And the good ideas endure.

All because, at least in the case of the peppers, somebody got a little lost on the way to Asia. 😂

Ray Allison, Broker
Ray Allison Realtors
RayAllison.com

08/10/2026

From Development Land to 100+ New Homes

Sometimes successful commercial real estate brokerage begins with looking at a property differently.

Not that long ago, Ray Allison Realtors was engaged to market an approximately seven-acre tract in North Houston. The property had been on the market for several years with different brokers, with a last asking price for the entire tract of just under $7 million.

After working with the property and evaluating the market, it became clear that the best solution wasn’t necessarily finding one buyer for all seven acres.

The strategy changed.

The property was divided into two marketing tracts — one fronting West Tidwell and another fronting West Donovan — and ultimately both tracts sold, to different buyers for different uses.

The 5+ acre Donovan tract shown here was purchased by a homebuilder and is now becoming Shepherd Heights, with underground infrastructure and streets in place and development underway for more than 100 patio homes.

It’s gratifying to see what was once underutilized land becoming an entirely new residential community.

We’re grateful to the sellers who trusted us to rethink the marketing strategy, and to the buyer and their broker for working with us to complete the transaction.

We figured out how the property needed to be sold — and then we sold it.

That’s what experienced commercial real estate brokerage should do.

If you own development land, industrial, office or retail property and are considering a sale or lease — or simply need another perspective on what to do with it — we’d be happy to have a conversation.

And to our residential and commercial brokerage colleagues: Ray Allison Realtors welcomes referrals and pays referral fees on transactions that result in a commission.

Ray Allison Realtors

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