Find out about the latest news in Madisonville, Louisiana as well as St. Tammany Parish. We will keep you “tuned in” to all of the information about Southeast Louisiana as well as the real estate industry in general. Many new home buyers are concerned about the market, mortgage information, and builder trends. We plan on keeping you as up to date as possible on these and many more topics. There is a lot going on in the Greater New Orleans area, so you will have plenty to read!

The American Iris Society Convention Tours Bedico Creek

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Gary Salathe, owner of Alternative Design Build Group, LLC,  and Leigh Anne Salathe transformed a mandatory retention pond at Bedico Creek into a nature-lover’s paradise. With a long history of cultivating different plant species both in and out of the different swamps and wetlands around Louisiana, Salathe took his extensive knowledge of plant life and seasonal growth and created a private wetland oasis next to his house in Bedico Creek.

This amazing pond did not got unnoticed by a particular local group named the Greater New Orleans Iris Society which worked together with Salathe to make him and his pond a part of the 2018 American Iris Society Convention in New Orleans.  The annual national convention was held by a combination of two organizations – The American Iris Society and the Society for Louisiana Irises. Visitors came to town April 8th – 14th and many stayed in the city of New Orleans. The convention regularly features several tours of local gardens in the city in which it is held. This year’s list of garden tours included Gary and Leigh Anne’s “A Louisiana Pond” on the Northshore of Lake Pontchartrain in Madisonville, Longue Vue House and Gardens in New Orleans, Independence Botanical Gardens in Baton Rouge, and Sydney and Walda Besthoff Sculpture Garden, which is located at the New Orleans Museum of Art.

The history of the Iris Society is equally as important as its events because irises have actually seen a decline in growth in their native locations throughout the United States. In Louisiana, especially, irises could mainly be found only in the wild in swamps or wetlands outside of city limits. However, with the help of professional and weekend gardeners, the return of the growth of irises within city limits in professional landscaping and public gardens has seen a rise in natural annual growth once again.

Gary and Leigh Anne Salathe’s “A Louisiana Pond” was honored to be a part of such esteemed company for the garden tours and enjoyed approximately 230 guests to its location on the day of the event. Not to be outdone, right before the event, 3 families of mallard ducks showed up at the pond to be a part of the big day as well!

Click Here to View the Facebook Page for A Louisiana Pond, as well as Pictures of the Event & the Ducks!

 

Developers Expanding Amenities to Meet Evolving Demand

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Solar panels, a Spanish-style roof and a community fitness center?

Demands for new homes are changing in unique ways. Multifamily Executive – the industry magazine for larger-scale real estate developers – noted only last year that “if … you don’t have a pool or fitness center, it’s doubtful you’re going to compete.”

Louisiana developer David Waltemath certainly seems to understand that concept.

“We’re adding our second pool complex,” he said. “It’s pretty rare that anybody has more than one.”

Waltemath is the developer behind several southern Louisiana communities, including the massive Bedico Creek Preserve development in Madisonville. Encompassing 1,000 acres, the Bedico Creek Preserve project will complete with slightly less than 950 homes.

The new pool complex, due to be completed this year, is just the most recent of an amenities package at Bedico Creek. Residents can also make use of fishing piers, hiking trails, playgrounds and even a 9-hole disc golf course. “It’s an amenities package that, according to Waltemath, has propelled Bedico Creek to one of the top selling developments in St. Tammany Parish.”

“In St. Tammany Parish, there’s not a development that’s selling more,” Waltemath said.

In the past, buyers have sought value in the amount of physical house they could get for the money – large lawns, numerous rooms and big spaces, for example. But now, buyers seem to be increasingly willing to forego personal features for access to shared amenities. Millennials and baby boomers likely will find this new breed of development to their liking. Many mature buyers want to minimize their maintenance, without sacrificing activities. Meanwhile, millennials will relish increased opportunities for walkable developments that cultivate a sense of community.

Bedico Creek was a rare opportunity for Waltemath. The original plan for the land was for a golf community, but as those original plans faltered with the previous developer, Waltemath reimagined the space for a new kind of buyer. The Madisonville development now features 12 different neighborhoods, but also includes roughly 600 acres specifically set aside for green space, lakes and nature preserves.

“Parks and trails are the number one sought-after amenity in the country,” Waltemath said. “We’re fortunate to have a huge amenity package–and it’s showing in the absorption rate (the number of months it takes a currently listed home to sell).”

In southern Louisiana, land comes at a premium. The swampy nature of the region can make it challenging to find solid ground for new development. Despite this, Waltemath notes, people are not moving back into “the city” as much as the trends may indicate. Groups such as the Urban Land Institute – of which Waltemath has long been a member – touts the revitalization of downtowns in New Orleans and across the country. Waltemath said this excitement has created the myth that people don’t want to live in suburbs.

“Downtown living … is a lot more alive than it has ever been in the past,” he said. “But the vast majority of people like to live in the suburbs with a yard and a fence.”

To this end, developers are doing their part to redefine the concept of a suburb. The latest developments go beyond homebuilding, and instead use amenities to foster a sense of community. Developments are using their resources to build neighborhoods, not just homes. In Bedico Creek, for example, an activities director arranges group functions, including mini-parades, crawfish boils and more.

And when these developments are located within areas that boast good schools and close proximity to New Orleans, even city-minded buyers may take a second look.

Originally Published on NOLA.com.

St. Tammany Parish Introduces New Trail System

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A great advantage to living in southern Louisiana is the mild climate.  The outdoors can be enjoyed basically year round.  Residents have many recreation trails and waterways to explore.  St. Tammany Parish is capitalizing on this great advantage introducing a new trail system called Tammany Trails.

Parish government spokesman Ronnie Simpson says, “We’ve had the Tammany Trace for 20 years. It’s a known entity. The Tammany Trace now has a sister, Tammany Trails.”

The focus of the plan is to educate residents about all the outdoor amenities that are right in their backyard.  A website has been launched, tammanytrails.org, that connects people to all of the ways they can enjoy nature’s beauty.Groundbreaking for New Tammany Trails Photographs and maps of the green and blue trails will be on the site showcasing areas such as the Folsom hills, trails in the Honey Island Swamp, Tammany Trace , Big Branch Wildlife Refuge, Camp Salmen Nature Park, Abita Creek Flatwoods Preserve, Lake Ramsey Wildlife Management Area, Fairview Riverside State Park, and Foutainebleau State Park.  Waterways include Bayou Lacombe, Cane Bayou, Abita River, Bogue Falaya River, Tchefuncte River, Lake Pontchartrain and Pearl River.

St. Tammany Parish government is not the only entity that recognizes the value of parks and walking, hiking, and biking trails.  Bedico Creek Preserve in Madisonville, Louisiana has a complete Parks & Trails system within our Master Planned Conservation Community.  By buying a new or custom home in our subdivision, you will enjoy planned concrete paths through out a wildlife refuge and natural habitat.  You can even go “off road” on “make your own nature trails” in over 500 acres of natural wooded areas, greenspaces, and waterways.

St. Tammany already has proven to be one of the best places to live in the Greater New Orleans area, and the parish New Tammany Trails Websiteand state want to make sure current residents and those who want to purchase a new home in the area also understand the value of its natural resources.  They have come together to brand Tammany Trails initiating a partnership between the federal, state and parish levels creating an emphasis on recreation, conservation, tourism and economic development of the area.

“Our natural resources are one of our most valuable assets, not just in St. Tammany, but throughout the entire state of Louisiana, so to work together to raise awareness about how they enhance our unparalleled quality of life, and to give our children and their children this gift to utilize, care for and conserve — this will impact our community on several levels for generations,” Parish President Pat Brister said.

The coming together of all of the agencies to promote Tammany Trails will also boost opportunities for grants who will involve volunteers.  So far the lieutenant governor’s office, Office of Louisiana State Parks, Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. National Park Service, Northlake Nature Center, Land Trust for Louisiana, The Nature Conservancy, City of Slidell, The Tammany Trace Foundation, Camp Salmen Nature Park, Town of Abita Springs, City of Covington, City of Mandeville, St. Tammany Recreation District No. 1 / Pelican Park, Northshore Community Foundation, St. Tammany Parish Tourist and Convention Commission, and the St. Tammany Economic Development Foundation have partnered with the parish to make Tammany Trails a success.

 

Click Here for the Source of the Information.

Custom Homes Trend Down Slightly From All Time High

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As the economy began to recover, custom homes led the way in housing market statistics.  In 2009, the percentage of custom homes being built by an owner, contractor, or builder on the owner’s land – a single, custom home built with collateral – was 31.5%, a record high amount of custom homes being built.

For 15 years, most builders and owners had shied away from building one custom home at a time, however the financial constraints of the Recession brought this trend back in 2009.  The reason that builders were not building 0-609 Lake Circle Front Exteriorcustom homes was because they could build spec homes on credit before the Recession.  However, builders were unable to build spec (inventory) homes because of the overwhelming restrictions on lending following the Recession.  The typical AD&C credit for new home starts without a pre-sold contract was simply unavailable.  Therefore, this custom home building trend for individual builders and individual owners continued until just recently when the housing market started to make a full recovery.

Now, builders are able to build spec homes once again, and the capital that has been built up by new home builders by the selling of new home inventory that had been sitting stagnant for many years has loosened up the purse strings for builders to now reverse the custom home trend.  Also, lending restrictions have eased slightly as well. As a result, the percentage of the housing industry that includes the construction of custom homes has dropped back to 21.9%.

At Bedico Creek Preserve, a master planned, Conservation Community in St. Tammany Parish, our builders build both inventory homes and custom homes for new home buyers on the Northshore.  Our buyers come from Mandeville, Covington, Abita Springs, and Madisonville. We also have around 30% of interested buyers from the Southshore in New Orleans, Metairie, & Kenner.  The reason for this diverse audience of interested home buyers is because of the 16 available builders that build new homes and new, custom homes in our subdivision.  We also offer lots for sale in 7 different, distinctive Neighborhoods in a variety of price ranges and sizes.  Bedico Creek offers something for everyone, so if you have not already had the chance, Come Out & Visit Our Community to Discover the Preservation of the True Northshore Lifestyle.  Call 985-845-4200 or E-mail [email protected].

Click Here for the Source of the Information.

New Home Pricing Up in the Greater New Orleans Area

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One of the clear indicators of a healthy housing market is home pricing.  Whether it is new home pricing or prices of existing home, the price of homes in any area can give a clear picture as to the health of that area’s housing market.  While coming out of the Recession, many economists kept a sharp eye on housing prices because of the constant, steady, and sometimes sharp increases in home prices.  If prices went up too much, too fast, there was a danger of a “double-dip” Recession because the housing market would create what is called a housing bubble – inflate home prices and then tumble leaving homeowners in homes that were not worth as much as the price for which they were purchased.

The good news is that prices stabilized in the housing markets nationwide about 6 months ago, and local St. Tammany Parish Home Pricingcommunities have been enjoying nice profits on homes that previously were not selling with as much regularity.  Taking a look at the Greater New Orleans area pricing, Wade Ragas, of Real Property Associates, who authors the twice-yearly report regarding real estate trends, reported that New Orleans pricing, especially in historic neighborhoods, jumped 14% during 2015.

For many people, this price range became unattainable, and many home buyers started looking to the suburbs of New Orleans such as Jefferson Parish on both the East Bank and the West Bank, St. Charles Parish, and St. Tammany Parish.  However, even though prices were a bit more affordable in these outlying suburbs, pricing in these other parishes also increased during 2015.  St. Tammany Parish home pricing rose 4% from $103 / square foot to $110 / square foot.  The average price of a house in St. Tammany Parish in 2015 was $242,442, up 3.2% from 2014 which saw an average house price of $234,818.

According to Ragas, two things will impact the Greater New Orleans housing market moving forward – oil prices and interest rates.  Oil prices have been slightly volatile, causing layoffs and reducing the price per barrel of oil.  Mortgage interest rates are still at historic lows even with the Fed recently raising the interest rate, so now is still the right time to make the investment in a new home or an existing home in the Greater New Orleans area.

Click Here for the Source of the Information.

Builder Confidence in St. Tammany Parish

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For 30 years, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) and Wells Fargo has been measuring builder confidence based on 3 factors of new home building – current new home sales, projected new home sales, & new home buyer traffic.  The survey is called the Housing Market Index (HMI), and builders nationwide are selected and surveyed by the NAHB each month.  The result is a gauge of how confident builders are in the housing market and the future of the housing market.  Post Recession, these numbers stayed low for many months, even years, but in the 8-1609 Audubon Parkway Kitchen Overviewpast 2.5 years, builder confidence has been up.

Nowhere is that more evident in our own backyard than at Bedico Creek Preserve, a master planned, Conservation Community in Madisonville, Louisiana, in St. Tammany Parish.  Builder confidence in St. Tammany Parish is definitely up in our community.  We have had a record high amount of 18 builders all building new homes in our subdivision at one time.  Currently, we have a list of 16 qualified and quality new home builders that offer lots to be built, as well as new homes for sale in the 9 available neighborhoods within our new home community in Southeast Louisiana.

Two of our Neighborhoods focus solely on the new homes built by exclusive builders that have purchased the lots in the neighborhoods to build established floorplans to maintain an inventory of new spec homes for sale.  These two neighborhoods are Cypress Crossing and Deer Park.  Other builders have individual Homes for Sale that are located throughout the other 7 Neighborhoods.

Builder confidence nationwide in January had a score of 60.  Any score above 50 is considered optimism from new home builders.  Broken down, the builder confidence rating scored as follows: current sales conditions rose two points to 67, projected sales conditions dropped three points to 63, and current buyer traffic came in at 44.  In St. Tammany Parish, the new homes at Bedico Creek have been selling as fast as builders have been framing them.  Many of our new homes for sale are available on our website for just weeks before they are under contract.  If you are interested in living at our new home subdivision, you may want to meet with one of our 16 builders to discuss purchasing a lot in your selected Neighborhood and then building a new home for you and your family.

Contact Us Today to Make an Appointment to View Our Lots at 985-845-4200 or E-mail [email protected].

Click Here For the Source of the Information.