Barksdale AFB, LA

Recently, I conducted an impromptu survey on the Barksdale Military Life and Information Facebook group to see what the most highly recommended apartments are for those PCSing to Barksdale AFB. Criteria for the list would be location, military friendly, and amenities.

Below are the top 5 apartment complexes as voted by current Barksdale AFB residents. (Note: I am just the messenger! I have never personally rented from these apartments, so this is not an explicit endorsement of any of them. They are not listed in any particular order)

Bossier City:

Lexington Place (located right outside the north gate of BAFB)

1301 Williamsburg Drive, Bossier City, 71112

Fellow military members voted for this apartment complex for its location (backs up to base) and amenities. Someone even mentioned they offer furniture packages.
Community Features:

• Business Center with Copy & Fax Services
• Clubhouse with Fireplace, Kitchen & HDTV
• 24-Hour Fitness Center
• Gated Community
• Jogging Trail
• Dog Park
• Covered Parking
• Laundry Facility
• Playground
• Resort-Style Swimming Pool
• Whirlpool Spa

Jamestown Place ­ (less than 5 minutes from BAFB)

5400 Barksdale BLVD, Bossier City, LA 71112

Fellow military members voted for this apartment complex also for its location (less than 5 minutes from the Main Gate) and amenities. These apartments also offer a furniture package. Access to Shreveport is just over the river!

Community Features:

• Gated
• Resort styled pool
• Lush landscaping
• Community center with: Billiard table; 2 flat screens; Coffee bar; Business center; 24hr fitness center with children’s play place; Wi-fi; Outdoor kitchen for residents

Shreveport:

The Willows at Wright Island (less than 5 minutes)

1333 Coates Bluff Drive, Shreveport, LA 71104

The Willows are located right over the river from the Main gate. They have 2 community pools
and whirlpools. There are also on-site management and maintenance that are very responsive.

Community Features:

• Clubhouse
• Whirlpools(s)
• On-site laundry
• On-site manager
• Fitness center
• Storage space(s)
• On-site maintenance
• Pool(s)
• High-speed internet available
• Dishwasher

Villages of Williamsburg - (less than 10 minutes from BAFB )

3215 Knight Street, Shreveport, LA 71105

This community was recommended for price, location and amenities.

Community amenities:

• Pool(s)
• 24 hour fitness center
• Tennis court
• Volleyball
• Pet-friendly

Summer Pointe (about 20-25 minutes from BAFB, but worth the drive I am told)

5720 South Lakeshore Drive, Shreveport, LA 71119

This neighborhood is not the best location to base, but was recommended because of the peaceful retreat feel it has and location to Cross Lake. Ideal for those who want to get away from base when you’re not working!

Community Amenities:

• Across from Cross lake (boating,
  sailing, hunting..etc)
• Tri-level resort style pool with
  whirlpool
• Clubroom
• Courtyard with volleyball area
• Pet-Friendly
• Fireplaces available
• Alarm systems available
• W/D hook ups in select apartments

These (of course) are not the only apartments available in the area. Here are map views of apartments in Bossier City and Shreveport. I fyou have any recommendations, please share!

If you are looking for a house to rent, check out www.AHRN.com for military owned properties for rent!

If buying is an option or if you would like to explore the possibility of owning your own home, contact me today for a FREE, no obligation Buyer Consultation!

I am in the process of putting a report together for my Military clients PCSing in and out of Barksdale regarding where the Military tend to buy (based on VA loans used*) and the market conditions in those areas. I thought it was interesting and had to share a sneak peek of the top neighborhoods military tend to buy.

The top 3 Areas that Barksdale Area Home Buyers purchased homes in 2011:

#1 North Bossier with 26% of all VA loan home purchases in the Shreveport-Bossier Area!
#2 South Bossier with 22% of all VA loan home purchases in the Shreveport-Bossier Area!
#3 Haughton with 19% of all VA loan home purchases in the Shreveport-Bossier Area!

These rankings are based off the total number of homes purchased with a VA loan by Multiple Listing Service Zone. I have also broke it down by neighborhood!

Top 15 neighborhoods where Barksdale Area Military Bought Homes in 2011:

#1 DOGWOODSOUTH (Haughton)

#2 CYPRESS BEND (Benton)

#3 TIBURON (North Bossier)

#4 GOLDEN MEADOWS (South Bossier)

#5 FOREST HILLS (Haughton)

#6 SHADY GROVE (South Bossier)

#7 SAVANNAH PLACE (South Bossier)

#8 BROADMOOR (Shreveport)

#9 LAKEWOOD (North Bossier)

#10 SOUTHGATE ESTATES (South Bossier)

#11 GREENACRES (North Bossier)

#12 DOGWOOD PARK (Haughton)

#13 STOCKWELL PLACE (North Bossier)

#14 LEGACY (North Bossier)

#15 BELLAIRE (South Bossier)

Just a peak! I am working on a detailed report that will show the military real estate market trends over the last 5 years, which will include the sales trends for the top neighborhoods and well as detailed information about the neighborhoods themselves. Please check back for information on how to obtain the report, or shoot me a request for it at JennyMcCarty@JennyTheRealtor.com!

*Please note the above data is from the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) and is deemed reliable, though it is not guaranteed. It does not include For Sale By Owner’s whose sales were not reported to MLS. It also does not take into account the home purchases by military that did not use the VA Loan.

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November is "Military Family Appreciation Month". In honor of this, and during this season of thankfulness, why not consider saying a personal "thank you" to a military family for their extraordinary service and sacrifice to our great American heroes. Although, there are probably dozens of reasons to appreciate the spouses, children, parents and extended family members of our men and women in uniform, here are my top seven reasons why we should appreciate and be thankful for our military families - please add your own to the comments:

7. They are tough. Incredibly tough. When their loved ones return home carrying the wounds of war, either physically, mentally or emotionally, their families are there to embrace them. In the case of severe injury, many must give up life as they have known it, along with homes or career, to care for their military loved one full-time. Now that's tough.

6. The military families have a culture of sharing. They lend a hand and help each other. Over and over again, I have seen this, with an office in a military town, the families reach out to one another - always willing to do whatever it takes to help another military family. They stick together.

5. Their resilience. I have personally visited with families where the soldier has been deployed three or four times in the last decade while the spouse remaining at home handles moves, home purchases, career and school changes.

4. Military spouses. A young couple shared this with me as I was handling the financing for their home. He was from Holland and met his military wife while she was serving in Germany. She told him from the start: "If we marry, then you will have to follow me wherever I go - the Air Force will come first...". "WOW" is all I could say. He said "But I loved her and I said 'no problem'". He left his family and his culture to move to the United States and is quite satisifed with this life. Many military spouses give up careers to follow their loved one around the world or hold down the home front during deployments.

3. Military children. Imagine this - they change schools on average of six to eight times over the course of their parent’s military career. They deal with long separations from parents– who aren’t just headed out for a business trip, but for a year in a combat zone. But in the face of all this, they are strong, brave and adaptable. And most understand the reason that their parents serve and even follow in their parents' footsteps. Just recently while visiting with a soldier who was purchasing a home, his twenty year old son walked in - in a military uniform! Like father, like son.

2. Extended family members. We can easily forget about the extended family members who serve too. There are the grandparents who care for the children during deployments, the sisters and brothers who call and send cards and care packages, a host of uncles, aunts and cousins offering their unwavering support.

And the Number 1 reason to be thankful and appreciate our military families:

1. Their service and sacrifice. These families.....may we never forget that they serve this nation also. When I meet a military couple for the first time, I shake hand of the soldier and say "Thank you for serving" and then with his wife and say "Thank YOU for serving him while he is serving us..." . Holidays, births and birthdays, family gatherings - all celebrated without their military loved one. And then the unthinkable happens and they suffer the ultimate sacrifice - the loss of their loved one.

I hope everyone takes a moment to thank a military family this month - or better yet - year-round. Why not do something tangible and give them a helping hand - whether it’s with child care, cooking a meal or helping to mow a lawn. Despite all the challenges, military families persevere and serve as an inspiration to us all. Robert L. Gordon III said it and I agree: "A strong nation is made up of strong families; among the most resilient are our military families."

What are some of YOUR reasons to appreciate and be thankful for our military families?

"This post is a submission to the DocuSign/ActiveRain Thankful Contest. It's possible I will win a prize for writing this post. You could win a prize too by going to the Contest Announcement and sharing your own story"

Yesterday, the Louisiana Department of Education released the School Performance Scores for the state, and for the first time in was done with the same A-F system of grading that is used to evaluate students. In the past the scores were given in the form of star ratings, using the scoring system below.

This system was confusing, and many have argued that does not accurately represent the conditions of the schools. This ultimately resulted in the lack of much needed improvements our local schools require. So, after the passage of a 2010 law the State has gone to the A-F grading system that we all are too familiar with stating, "Today is the beginning of an honest dialogue. Today we start telling the truth. Today is about transparency for our parents, schools and taxpayers". Below is a table showing how our local schools performed this last year.

	A	B	C	D	F
Benton		Benton High School (B)	Benton Elementary (C-) Benton Middle School (C-)	The Remaining 10 schools in Bossier Parish received a “D”
Bossier City	W.T. Lewis Elementary (A+) Legacy Elementary (A+) Stockwell Elementary (A)	Airline High School (B-) Apollo Elementary (B) Bellaire Elementary (B) Cope Middle School (B+) Curtis Elementary (B-) Elm Grove Middle School (B+) Parkway High School (B-) Sun City Elementary (B+)	Greenacres Middle School (C-) Elm Grove Elementary ©	Charlotte Ann Mitchell Educational Center (F)
Haughton			Haughton Middle School (C-) T.L. Rodes Elementary School (C) Princeton Elementary (C+)
Shreveport	Caddo Magnet High (A) Caddo Magnet Middle (A+) Fairfield Magnet (A-) Eden Gardens Fundamental Elementary (A+) South Highlands Elementary School (A+)	Byrd High School (B-) Captain Shreve High (B-) Judson Fundamental Elementary (B-) Oak Park Microsociety Elementary (B) Riverside Elementary (B+) Shreve Island Elementary (B) A.C. Steere Elementary (B) University Elementary School (B-)		The 44 remaining schools in the Shreveport area (Caddo Parish) received either a “D” or an “F”

There are more than 1300 schools in the State of Lousiana and out of them only 98 schools receive an “A” grade. Out of those 98 schools, 10 of them were in Northwest Louisiana and eight of those are in our area! To see the full School Report Cards by District and School, visit the Louisiana Department of Education Website.

>>>>>Original Press Release<<<<<

VA loans are a great avenue for not only the military and veterans but normal people too! Especially for Investors!

In the Barksdale AFB area we saw a slight rise in homes values when the Global Strike Command moved in. Now that they are almost all here we have seen prices begin to drop in the area. They are not dropping dramatically, just back to the pre-Global Strike real estate market. Unfortunately, that is putting a lot of military personnel in a tough situation. A lot people bought during that time, and now are PCSing to other areas. The problem they are facing is that the value of their home is slightly less than their mortgage because they haven’t lived here long here to pay off the VA funding fee, let only build equity in their home. Though this is an unfortunate situation for the military, it is a prime time for investors to step in and lend a hand.

By assuming a VA loan, an investor can obtain great properties with no money down. The only cost would be the transfer and perhaps a commission if you hired a Realtor to assist in the transfer.

You are probably, thinking, "Hey! Isn't that taking advantage of our veterans." and as a military spouse who has done "the move" I can confidently say "NO!" This process which does entail the veteran leaving his VA certificate with the loan (If the assumer is not a veteran with eligibility), but it will alleviate the stress that comes along with being upside down in a mortgage or in a situation where you cannot afford to pay a professional to sell your home without bringing money to the closing table.

Everyone in the transaction has to understand what is happening and the implications of this kind of transaction, but most importantly, our military can move on without the threat of foreclosure or unwillingly becoming a long distance landlord; and the investor can get into properties cheaper than they could ever have.

Rebecca Radice wrote a great article on the Facts about VA Assumptions you should check out for more information!