The 2020 Survey of Construction (SOC) revealed that it took 10 days less to finish a home from authorization to completion in 2020 than in 2019. The survey also shows that the average completion time of a single-family house is around 7.8 months, which usually includes a little over a month from authorization to start and another 6.8 months to finish the construction.  Good news for the housing market as inventory has been very low the past year.

Depending on the function of the new construction single-family homes the time it takes to complete varies. For a house built for sale, it took the shortest amount of time which was 6.9 months from permits to completion. A new construction home built by owners took around 13 months and a home built for rent took around 10.6 months. New construction homes built by a hired contractor only took 9.7 months from permits to completion.

Time also varies by region. The region with the longest time tied with Middle Atlantic and New England at 11.6 months while the shortest was the South Atlantic division with an average of 7.8 months. The remaining regions include the Pacific at 10 months and East South Central at 9.1 months.

Hopefully, with the shorter construction times, there will be more inventory for homebuyers. If you are in the market for a new home, choose a Realtor to help you with the process.

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St. Tammany has seen a big growth spurt with the current housing market trends. The growth in the area has also brought many new residents. Coquille Parks is expanding along with the community growth.

“This area has seen over 5% growth for the last five years,” Richard Bentley-Smith, executive director at Coquille Parks and Recreation said. “We really are just trying to keep up with the growth of this area off La. 22 and U.S. 190 as much as possible, so we can offer a place for every kid to play. And not just baseball or football or volleyball, but we want as many kids in the area to come to our splashpad or playgrounds and not be overcrowded.”

“The key to running a recreation department, no matter where you are, is listening to your community,” Bentley-Smith said. “What Madisonville, Goodbee, Covington and the District 14 area wants may not be what Baton Rouge or even Slidell wants. So you have to really listen to your taxpayers and build to suit their needs.”

This summer the center hosted a cheer camp for over 100 kids for the first time. In fact, organized program participation has grown 750% since 1999, when the recreation district was established. St. Tammany Recreation District 14 began with Little League ball fields in 1999  which consisted of 46 acres that were purchased by the Madisonville Youth Boosters. Currently, Coquille Park includes 130 acres fields, gyms, multipurpose facilities, tennis courts, playgrounds and outdoor exercise areas.

A bond that was passed at the beginning of 2021 will give the park the opportunity to focus on upgrades and maintenance. Bentley-Smith also hopes for additional funding in order to purchase additional land. The negotiations and funding are in the works for 35-acres of land next to the park.

A new baseball complex is slated to open next month. The park is also looking into purchasing outdoor fitness equipment and building a disk golf area as well as miniature golf courses. That’s not all on the list of what is to come. A dog park is planned to open in the early spring of 2022, new trails are to be built through the wetlands area, and a campground with an accessible ball field will also be added.

“We listened to the public requests,” Bentley-Smith said. “We build facilities based on what the public requests, and that includes the bond dollars. We heard the public, and we want to put those funds to the best use possible.”

The new park will be for all residents from toddlers to senior citizens. Bentley-Smith gives the credit to the town of Madisonville where the two fields started out on Pine Street. The citizens and St. Tammany have come together to help the park continue to grow to meet the needs of the community.

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Even with the lumber shortage and rising prices homeowners are still investing in their homes. Home Depot reported in May that their stock surged 20% so far in 2021.

“We continue to build on the momentum from our strategic investments and effectively manage the unprecedented demand for home improvement projects,” Home Depot chairman and CEO Craig Menear said in a press release.

Menear says that the housing industry is steady and strong and will only continue to strengthen since COVID-19 restrictions are being lifted. More buyers are getting out there and looking and more sellers are eager to list their homes.

“The current shortage of new housing clearly is helping to drive improvements in the home values, which is a good thing for spending in the home,” he added.

According to many other reports released, data shows continued demand for housing. Buyer demand is up and mortgage rates still remain at historic lows. Even with the shortage of lumber and other things such as a bottleneck in shipping appliances, new homes are still being built. The demand still sharply outways the current housing inventory.

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