The number of licensed real estate agents operating in Texas fell after home sales decreased by 27 percent in 2007, according to a story published in the January issue of Tierra Grande. The story, "License to Sell" by James P. Gaines, points out that the number of licensed agents in Texas dropped from 124,185 in 2007 to 111,193 by the summer of 2012. The number of agents peaked during the housing boom of the 2000s and fell with the downturn, he notes in the story that can be seen at http://recenter.tamu.edu/pdf/2018.pdf. Locally, the real estate market has seen a similar decrease in agents who live and work for companies in the immediate area, according to commercial real estate agent Curtis Webster, who is the immediate past president of the Henderson County Board of Realtors. He points out the number of licensed agents has fallen from a high of 240 to about 150. Webster attributes the decrease in the number of agents locally to off-water home and commercial sales still lagging, even though lake-front property sales showed an increase from 2011 to 2012. Webster said the number of residences and commercial properties listed for sale around Cedar Creek Lake remains large and diverse.