Chaille Ralph, chair of the Houston Association of REALTORS board, has worked as a licensed real estate broker since 1982.

The native Houstonian began her career by managing and marketing commercial office buildings, and then it grew to include commercial construction and project management before shifting to residential sales in the mid-'80s.

Ralph often helps train aspiring and well-seasoned real estate agents, and she combines state-of-the-art technology solutions along with support for her sales associates to bring a high level of service to costumers.

Through her career Ralph has served on numerous committees and task forces and held leadership positions with the Houston Association of Realtors.

Today Ralph serves as the 2014 chairwoman of the HAR board, and she holds director positions with both the Texas and National associations of REALTORS.

How long is the Greater Houston area expected to remain a seller's market? What are the projected real estate trends in 2014?

We expect that certainly throughout 2014 and into 2015 that we are going to see pretty much a seller's market. We think the market will stay strong well into 2015. Sales are strong right now; they continue to be strong on a monthly basis. If property is priced right it tends to move very quickly. Inventory is still low as of the end of January. Our February numbers will be out next week.

Our January numbers showed 2.6 months of inventory throughout the Greater Houston area currently on the market. And that's everything single family. You can drill down into price point, you can drill down into neighborhoods, and so we really encourage people to consult with a Realtor if you have questions about what's happening in a specific area.

When is the current and planned future home construction expected to catch up with the demand in the Greater Houston area and is the market expected to turn back toward a buyer's market in upcoming years because of new construction? Is there any fear of overbuilding?

We really think ... that we have learned our lesson in the overbuilding. I think we have probably started a little slow in the last couple of years building because the market was still coming back. I think you will start to see again, probably in 2015-16, a lot of that catch-up because right now they really can't keep up with a lot of the demand. We have buyers in all market areas.

What factors are taken into consideration when determining housing costs? Oftentimes housing costs will increase or decrease dependent on a number of factors, but what are some major factors that either drive costs up or down?

Certainly inventory is going to drive prices up. When you have lower inventory your prices for land go up as well.

When you have a market such as we are in, you also end up with issues with supply, you have issues with contractors to do the work, and the cost of materials goes up.

That in itself will drive up the cost.

Several of Houston's suburbs are seeing an influx of new multifamily housing options. How do these developments typically affect local economic and demographic trends?

Certainly when you have the high density your traffic patterns are going to change somewhat. Townhome developments where you have larger density of people living there, I see the biggest [negative] impact [being] traffic patterns and things like that.

It brings more people to the grocery stores, it brings more people to the restaurants, it brings more people to the facilities that are in the area, so it has a positive impact on the economy.

What kind of impact is the ExxonMobil relocation having on the housing market in north Harris and south Montgomery counties?

It's having a huge impact. The months of inventory around that market are 1.5 months of inventory. So if nothing else came in the market, basically, the inventory would be depleted in a month and a half, so it's definitely a big effect. It's in all price ranges that we have out there that the inventory is low, so the new construction is really important.

I think people are fearful of putting their house on the market because they don't have any place to go. People are thinking, 'Should I wait to list my home in The Woodlands? Should I wait to list my home in the northwest side of town?' Am I going to get more for it in the next two or three years?' If we had that crystal ball it would be great. It's still a great time to move, and it's a great time to buy and to sell.

Both Tomball and Magnolia are experiencing a significant rise in the number of homes being built in the region. How does rapid growth of this kind affect the real estate climate in these areas?

Well when the new homes come in, obviously you are going to start to see the older homes price values go up as well, and the newer homes are going to be more expensive. The supply and demand is the real key to what is happening in our market right now. The inventory is incredibly low. Again, 2.6 months of inventory throughout the Greater Houston area at the end of January.

We need listings. New construction is coming on the market, but the resale is selling just as quickly as it hits the market. I think one of the areas that we have seen a lower value over the last year or so is the end of the $80,000 mark, so the Greater Houston area has probably reached a point where there is not much for or under $80,000.

Gone are the days that you could buy a $79,000 house in most areas. It's not really a declining market as much as a diminishing market.