Ascension Parish Real Estate - Pelican Point Townhomes

I have some clients looking for investment property in the Pelican Point Golf Community. Many of the qualifying properties we looked at were townhomes. Previously, my Pelican Point Market Analyses dealt primarily with detached single family homes so I wanted to take a closer look at the sales history with respect to the townhomes. A total of forty-eight recorded sales between January 2002 and present were examined. The first parameter looked at was the selling price. The following chart plots the selling price vs. time. While only 22% of the variation in price is attributable to the time we can see that prices are increasing over time. Between 2002 and present a linear regression analysis calculates that the rate of increase has been about $25.51/day or about $9,311 per year.

The next chart plotted selling price per square foot of living area over time. A regression analysis here revealed that over 40% of the variation in pricing is explained by the date of sale. The equation predicts that selling price/sq.ft. is rising by almost $4.75 per year (1.3¢/day).

The third chart shows the average price/sq.ft. of townhomes but distinguishes between new homes and homes in the resale market segment. This chart shows some decline in the average home price in the resale market during 2007 but this drop was attributable to a single townhome being sold well below the others.

Finally, I looked at the Days on Market statistics for townhomes. One can see that the demand for townhomes historically was not very strong within the subdivision and they tended to remain on the market for months or even years. The following chart shows that, in 2007, townhomes sold much more quickly than in previous years.

The data used for this analysis was extracted from the Greater Baton Rouge Association of Realtors MLS database. While every attempt was made to ensure accuracy, no warranties are either expressed or implied. Please feel free to leave comments. You can also reach me at (225) 413-3624 or by e-mail.

As always, I welcome readers to visit my websites at www.PelicanPointHomes.net and www.LiveAscension.com for real estate information about and to search for homes within the Greater Baton Rouge area. Click here to search for homes.

©2008 by Don Stern - all rights reserved

Pelican Point Real Estate 2007 Year-end Market Analysis

2007 was not a particularly good year for real estate in Pelican Point. Not only was it affected by the gloom and doom reported in the national press and the problems with mortgage lenders but the primary road into the subdivision was closed for nearly six months. Those six months included most of the peak selling season for real estate in our area. Overall, the real estate market in the parish is doing well. Home prices are holding. While unit sales volumes in the parish have dropped below the post-Katrina boom years of 2005 and 2006, they have only dropped back to pre-Katrina levels. I'm encouraged and quite hopeful that 2008 will be a better year for Real Estate in Pelican Point.

Pelican Point Real Estate 2007 Market Statistics

28 new homes and 32 homes in the re-sale market sold during 2007 at an average selling price/sq.ft. of $135.24 and $125.40 respectively.

Pelican Point Real Estate Sales Price 2002-2007

This chart shows that, while the average selling price of new construction grew in 2007, the average selling price of a home in the re-sale market fell by almost 9% from a high of $336K in 2006 to $307K in 2007.

Pelican Point Real Estate Sales Volume 2002-2007

As we said before, 2007 was not a particularly good year for real estate in Pelican Point. This chart show a significant drop in overall sales volume in both market segments but particularly with respect to new home sales.

Pelican Point Real Estate Absorption Rates

With 70 homes currently listed (not counting FSBO's) for sale within the subdivision, it is a buyer's market. There is approximately a 14-month supply of homes in both market segments (new and re-sale.) The charts above also show that the highest velocity of home sales in 2007 was in the $130.00-$130.99/sq.ft. price range for new homes and in the $120.00-129.99 price range for homes in the re-sale market segment.

I will be continuing to closely monitor and report on the state of the market so visit often.

Please feel free to leave comments. You can also reach me at (225) 413-3624 or by e-mail.

As always, I welcome readers to my websites at www.PelicanPointHomes.net and www.LiveAscension.com for real estate information about and to search for homes within the Greater Baton Rouge area. Click here to search for homes.

Don Stern

Okay, so I wasn't feeling too good today. People weren't returning calls, I wasn't having any luck tracking down the owners of some lots, some former clients haven't paid for services rendered and I'm getting ready to send the IRS it's share for the quarter.

Then I read the You Have To See This Video, You Are Capable Of Extraordinary Things! UPDATED! and was really moved. Following that I saw this from my living room windows...

I feel better now :)