Texas

A home builder and an electricity retailer are partnering to install backup power batteries in new homes as Texans brace for potential outages this winter.

These tools help lower peak demand as our economy is increasingly electrified.

"I have not seen us write more than two offers before getting an acceptance, whereas before it was writing offer after offer after offer," said Houston real estate broker LaTisha Grant.

High tech represents nearly 5% of state GDP and more than 9% of employment. What makes the state's sector so resilient?

Up to 10,000 birders visit High Island each spring, boosting business for the small restaurants and motels near and along the coastal area.

A big part of the problem: Power plants usually go offline for maintenance in April.

"I'm not getting any younger. If I'm going to have a dome, I need to get on with it," said Paula Stone of Fredericksburg, Texas.

Checking in with the remaining reporters in Val Verde County, Texas, three years after its last daily newspaper folded.

Researchers have labeled 204 counties in America as "news deserts" — places that lack access to credible, reliable news sources. That includes Val Verde County, Texas.

"This market is just really wacky right now," says Houston-based broker LaTisha Grant.