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About admin

Professional Realtor with Keller Williams in Baton Rouge Louisiana. My primary focus is residential and small commercial properties. I look forward to being YOUR Realtor.

Home sales in Baton Rouge up 21% in April

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From the Baton Rouge Business Report

With 616 sales recorded as of this morning, 20.8% more homes were sold in April across the eight-parish region tracked by the Greater Baton Rouge Association of Realtors compared to the same month a year ago, GBRAR reports. Last April, a total of 510 home sales were recorded. East Baton Rouge, Ascension, Livingston and the five other parishes lumped into GBRAR’s “other” statistical category—West Baton Rouge, Iberville, East Feliciana, West Feliciana and Pointe Coupee parishes—all posted year-over-year sales increases. The average sales price, however, continued a downward year-over-year trend in April, decreasing about 4.3% to $188,441, compared to $196,877 in April 2011. Nonetheless, the increase in overall sales pushed total volume up 15.5% to $409.9 million on the month. A strong April builds on first-quarter figures in 2012 that were the best since 2008. Year-to-date, total sales now stand at 2,213, up 18.2% over the 1,873 sales recorded through April last year. For historical comparison, 2,128 homes were sold through April in 2010, while 2,003 were sold over the four-month period in 2009 and 2,535 in the same period of 2008. You can check out the complete sales report from GBRAR here

Real estate recap: Louisiana home sales jump 17% in first quarter … Groundbreaking ceremony for LSU Olinde Career Center set for Thursday … April U.S. housing scorecard shows mixed outlook

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From the Baton Rouge Business Report

A strong start: The number of homes sold throughout Louisiana in the first quarter of 2012 was up sharply from a year ago, according to the latest Louisiana Realtors Real Estate Trends Report. Residential sales jumped 17.2% compared to the same period in 2011, with total sales volume increasing 15.3%. The average sales price, however, dipped 1.6% from the first quarter of last year to $171,684. The average listed home stayed on the market just a little longer, too: 113 days, compared to 111 days last year. All eight of the state’s metro areas posted an increase in home sales on the quarter. The Greater Baton Rouge area continued its strong upward sales trend with 17.5% more homes sold on the quarter and a 16.2% increase in total sales volume. Baton Rouge’s average sales price of $190,499 was the highest in the state, though down 1.1% from the same period last year. You can see the complete first-quarter report here.

Going up: A groundbreaking ceremony for the new LSU Olinde Career Center, the future home of LSU Career Services, will be held at 10 a.m. Thursday in the LSU Student Union’s Live Oak Lounge on campus. The LSU Olinde Career Center will bring together Career Services’ two current locations in a new state-of-the-art environment that LSU says is “better suited to prepare LSU students and alumni for their careers.” Scheduled speakers include LSU Chancellor Mike Martin, LSU Vice Chancellor for Student Life & Enrollment Services Kurt Keppler, Director of LSU Career Services Mary Feduccia, Secretary of Louisiana Economic Development Stephen Moret, and LSU Student Body President Taylor Cox. For more information on the project, click here.

Incomplete: The April edition of the housing scorecard recently released by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and the U.S. Department of the Treasury shows some promising signs of stability, but the overall outlook remains mixed. Mortgage delinquencies have declined for four consecutive months and remain substantially below levels seen a year ago, and sales of existing homes in the first quarter were also 5.3% higher than a year ago. Data on home prices remains soft in many mortgage markets. The full report is available online here.
This week’s poll question: When searching for a new home or apartment, what is the most important factor for you?

2012 Parade of Homes scheduled for May 5-6, May 12-13

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Tim Smith and Willie Martin with the Capital Region Builder’s Association shared about this year’s Parade of Homes 2012 , May 5-6 and May 12-13. Homes will be open on Saturday : 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. Sunday : 1 p.m. – 5p.m. The Parade will feature 55 Homes in 43 Subdivisions from 29 Builders. Prices range from $164,000 to $795,000. Builders will be on hand to discuss rennovations/remodeling, outdoor kitchens, ideas, building your dream home and more. For a guidebook and more information go to :

http://www.capitalregionba.com/AM/Template.cfm?Section=Parade_of_Homes&Template=/custom/poh/POHList.cfm

Louisiana most improved on CEOs’ ranking of best states for business

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From the Baton Rouge Business Report

Ranked at No. 13, Louisiana made the biggest upward move in Chief Executive magazine’s annual Best & Worst States Survey measuring the collective sentiment of 650 CEOs from across the country on the most attractive places to do business. Louisiana jumped 14 spots on the list from last year’s No. 27 ranking, and has improved 32 spots over the past four years. Texas took the top ranking for the eighth straight year, while California was named the worst state to do business. For the 2012 survey, which was conducted between January and February, CEOs were asked to evaluate states on issues such as regulations, tax policies, workforce quality, educational resources, quality of living and infrastructure. CEOs recognized an improved policy and regulatory environment in Louisiana, along with improved economic performance, according to Chief Executive Editor in Chief JP Donlon, who writes, “Although often eclipsed by Texas, its next-door neighbor, Louisiana is the Cinderella of business improvement.” Check out the entire list and read the full story here.

Real estate recap: DDD launches facade improvement grant program … B.R. foreclosure rates inch lower in February … Home builders, former NFL players partner on ‘Touchdown for Homes’

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From the Baton Rouge Business Report

Discounted facelifts: The Downtown Development District has launched a grant program benefiting homeowners in the DDD boundaries who make improvements to the facades of their homes. The Downtown Residential Facade Grant Program provides up to $500 to eligible improvements that are visible from the public right of way. The grants require a 50% match and do not have to be repaid as long as property owners meet the general requirements of the program. Grant guidelines and a pre-application form are available here.

 

On the down low: A report from CoreLogic says 2.39% of homes in the Baton Rouge metro area were in some stage of foreclosure in February—a decrease of 0.41 percentage points from February 2011 and a smaller dip of 0.03 points from January. The U.S. foreclosure rate in February was 3.41%, a drop of 0.18 percentage points on the year, while the Louisiana rate was down 0.51 points from February last year, to 2.48%. Baton Rouge’s mortgage delinquency rate—the percentage of home loans more than three months past due—also dipped 0.22 points year-over-year to 5.75% in February. That’s also lower than the U.S. rate of 7.24% and the Louisiana rate, which dropped 0.31 points on the month to 6.3%. See a CoreLogic map of February foreclosure rates in the Baton Rouge area by ZIP code here.

 

Home field advantage: A coalition of homeownership industry professionals will gather on the steps of the Capitol at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday to promote homeownership and kick off a partnership program between the Louisiana Home Builders Association and the National Football League Players Association’s New Orleans Former Players Chapter. The groups’ efforts are part of a nationwide charitable outreach program called “Touchdown for Homes,” which brings together former NFL players and home builders to strengthen communities by constructing or renovating homes for local families in need, including U.S. military veterans. New Orleans was selected to be a participating city because it will play host to the 2013 Super Bowl. To learn more about the program and find out how you can contribute, visit the National Association of Home Builders website here.

U.S. Home Ownership Rate Slides to 15-Year Low

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From Fox Business

The share of privately owned U.S. homes fell to a 15-year low in the first  quarter, government data showed on Monday, suggesting that falling house prices  are discouraging Americans from being homeowners.

The home ownership rate slipped to 65.4 percent, the lowest since the first  quarter of 1997, the Commerce Department said. The rate was at 66.0 percent in  the fourth quarter.

Homeownership was lowest in the West, while higher rates were reported in the  Midwest.

House prices have dropped about 32 percent from their peak at the end of  2005, leaving millions of Americans with houses worth far less than their  mortgages and pushing many into renting.

In the first quarter, the median asking sales price for vacant homes on the  market was $133,700, the lowest since the first quarter of 2005, the Commerce  Department said. That compared with $133,800 in the fourth quarter.

The data showed the residential rental vacancy rate dropped to 8.8 percent in  the first three months of this year from 9.4 percent in the fourth quarter.

Growing demand for rentals is boosting rents, with the median asking rent for an unoccupied property in the first quarter at $721, the highest since the first quarter of 2009. That compared with $712 in the fourth quarter.

Stronger demand for rental apartments is helping to stabilize the housing  market as builders break more ground on multifamily housing projects.  Residential construction in the first quarter grew at the fastest pace in nearly  two years and is expected to contribute to growth this year for the first time  since 2005.

The share of empty privately owned house dipped to 2.2 percent from 2.3  percent in the fourth quarter. The homeowner vacancy rate was higher in the  South, one of the regions hardest hit by foreclosures.

Read more: http://www.foxbusiness.com/industries/2012/04/30/us-home-ownership-rate-slides-to-15-year-low/#ixzz1tXkDzl45

Baton Rouge High renovation, addition on schedule for June finish

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From the Baton Rouge Business Report

Baton Rouge High School is about 85% finished with its $58.2 million overhaul and addition, and is on schedule for a June 2 “substantial completion date.” That’s according to Earl Kern, project manager with CSRS/Garrard, which has been overseeing the two-year renovation. Though the work appears to the casual observer to be far from finished, Kern says most of it has been done. That includes tripling the size of the nearly 90-year-old building in Mid City, along Government Street, by adding more than 220,000 square feet onto the existing 111,700-square-foot structure. Among the specialty areas in the new building are a 6,800-square-foot student dining facility, two black-box theaters, a 12,000-square-foot gym and a 7,400-square-foot media center. Among the highlights in the old school building are a renovated auditorium, refurbished millwork, all new windows and all new classrooms. Kern led a media tour through parts of the buildings last week. To see a slideshow of the progress and some of the building’s features click here. —Stephanie Riegel

17542 Martin Lake Drive, Baton Rouge, La 70816 – Shadows Lake Subdivision

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Beautiful 3 bedroom 3 bath home in the Shadows Lake subdivision. Wood floors throughout the home with large windows that allow tons of natural lighting. The best part about this home is that the master bedroom overlooks the lake with large french doors opening to the backyard. There is also an unfinished bonus room above the garage that would be great for a game room for kids or could be used as a fourth bedroom.

For more photos and full details :

http://www.buyorsellbatonrougehomes.com/listing/mlsid/393/propertyid/B1116310/

Baton Rouge home prices continue to fall

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From the business report:
B.R. home price index drops for fifth month running

The CoreLogic index of Baton Rouge home prices was down 4.2% in December, when compared with the previous year’s figures. This is the fifth month in a row the local index was down. That’s worse than the CoreLogic Home Price Index for Louisiana, which was down 3.5% for the month when compared with December 2009. Similarly, the national index was down by 5.46%, its fifth year-to-year drop. Mark Fleming, chief economist for CoreLogic, says despite the bumpy end to the year, the average annual HPI was unchanged in 2010. That compares with a 12.7% decline from 2008 to 2009. “Excess supply continues to drive prices downward, but the silver lining is that the rate of decline is decelerating,” he says. The drop in the Baton Rouge index came after a 3.2% decline in October. CoreLogic bases its indexes on public sale records and databases.