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Forbes Says Louisville 3rd Best Option in Region

Jul 25, 2009 News

According to Forbe’s America’s 100 Cheapest Places To Live, Louisville ranks as the third best option in the East South Central region, just behind Knoxville and Chattanooga.

Louisville ranked 40th on the overall list with even numbers across the rating scale of: Avergage Salary, Unemployment Rate, Crime Rate and Culture Index.

Here’s how they conducted the research.

We measured America’s 380 metropolitan statistical areas and metropolitan divisions (or metros)–geographic entities defined by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget for use by federal agencies in collecting, tabulating and publishing federal statistics–and picked out the 100 cheapest. In order to do that, we ranked all on cost-of-living data from Moody’s Economy.com and home affordability figures from the National Association of Home Builders and Wells Fargo.

We then rated them across four quality-of-life measures: violent crime rate, from the Federal Bureau of Investigation; unemployment rate, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics; average salary for college grads, from Payscale.com, and cultural opportunity, based on the leisure index from Sperling’s Best Places.

Very positive endorsement of Louisville, if I don’t say so myself.

Tags: Churchill Downs, Forbes, louisville ky

Louisville Housing Market Improving

Jul 23, 2009 News, Residential

This piece in the NYT is aptly titled Home Sales, All Over the Map and that’s exactly the point! Depending on where you live, housing markets are extremely different from one another.

Areas like D.C. and San Francisco which had seen home values dropping drastically are leveling out, whereas, Las Vegas and most of Florida are still seeing these numbers fall. Like I just posted yesterday, Louisville isn’t seeing those dramatic drops because we never saw dramatic increases years before.

So is this a good time for you to buy? As always, that depends on your situation.

For Amy Musial, who manages a Starbucks in Sacramento buying a house became “a no-brainer” this spring once she and her husband realized that their monthly payments would be slightly lower than the rent they had been paying on a two-bedroom apartment. They paid about $229,000 for a three-bedroom house that had been through a foreclosure. Several years ago, the same house could have sold for more than $350,000, estimates Shelley Hescock, the real-estate agent who represented the Musials.

The best advice I can give is for you to find a trustworthy Realtor and ask as many questions as you need. Interest rates are still historically low and there’s a great deal of inventory still in the Louisville MLS, though we just dropped under 8,000 Single Family Homes today.

Update 7/24: The CJ decides to post the positive news, for once.

Tags: Housing Market, louisville ky, Wall St. Journal

Louisville Beats Nation as Values Level Out

Jul 22, 2009 Trends/Statistics

The data isn’t very different from when I posted Home Prices Drop Nationally, Louisville Holds Steady but with, perhaps a slightly better result.

First American Core Logic puts out reports from time to time and just recently published, National Home Price Declines Continue to Improve. I already know that the national numbers have little effect on Louisville’s market, but they do a good job of supplying data for many metro cities. Here’s the part I really liked.

In Louisville/Jefferson County, home prices have decreased 1.79 percent in May compared to a year ago. In April 2009, Louisville/Jefferson County showed an increase of 0.00 percent compared to one year prior.

So this means our price drop, albeit nothing to be happy about, appears to be coming to an end. Here’s hoping we’ll see a quick return to our steady, annual increases of 4%-5% here in Louisville, which are the norm going back 40 years.

Tags: First American Core Logic

Buyers Beware, Don’t Miss Free, Professional Advice

Jul 16, 2009 General

I’m constantly surprised by the number of clients I speak with who don’t fully understand how real estate agency works. So many people looking for a new home go straight to the listing agent to schedule a showing rather than find themselves a buyer’s agent. I’ll briefly tell you why this isn’t in your best interest.

The listing agent has an agreement with the seller, to market and sell their home. That’s their first agency responsibility. Agency simply means “authorized to act on behalf of another.” When a buyer comes to this same agent, their responsibility gets split between two parties. For the sellers, the listing agent is tasked with selling their home as quickly as possible, at the highest price possible. For the buyers, they’ll likely promote this particular home over any others, which certainly isn’t in the best interest of the buyer.

Another reason buyers here in Louisville should find their own Realtor is because there’s so much information involved in the selection, negotiation and eventual purchase of a home that having a professional on their side only makes sense. The process will run more smoothly and there will be a much smaller chance that they buy a bad house. Like this article in the Wall St. Journal highlights, some homes come with more than their share of defects.

Did I mention that this professional advice is 100% free? In what other situation do consumers gets service from a professional at absolutely no cost to themselves? Because the seller always pays the commissions of both agents—listing and buyer’s—the buyer pays no commissions at all.

So if you’re planning to buy a new home, first things first, find a Realtor who you trust. (Realtors are real estate agents who, in addition to their standard training and licensing are bound by a code of ethics.) This person can steer you away from trouble, find properties you may never have seen, and generally make the whole process more worry free.

Now, if you need help finding a top Louisville Realtor, just let me know. *wink*

Best Louisville Neighborhoods: Alia

Jul 14, 2009 Neighborhoods

Alia is a small but unique subdivision in Louisville’s East End. These high-end single family homes and condos are truly luxurious. Located just off Highway 22, near Northfield and the Woods of St. Thomas, Alia is in a great location, near shopping, restaurants and the expressways. This neighborhood began in the last 90s and is nearing completion now. Read More »

Tags: Alia, best louisville neighborhoods, Kentucky, Louisville

Glorious New Homes at Homearama 2009

Jul 8, 2009 News

Homearama this year is taking place at Shakes Run & Poplar Woods from July 11th to July 26th. Shakes Run is located on Eastwood-Fisherville Road just a mile and a half south of Shelbyville Road. Poplar Woods is located in North Oldham County just 7 miles east of the Gene Snyder Freeway on Hwy 42. Both are Canfield Development but at different price points. Homes in Shakes Run start in the $400k’s while home sin Poplar Woods begin in the $700k’s.

If you’re in the market for luxury, new construction make sure to visit this year’s event. For more information, directions and ticket prices, visit the official Homearama 2009 Web site.

Improve Your Deck for the Fourth

Jul 3, 2009 Home Improvement

Home improvements can cover anything from replacing a faucet to adding an addition onto your house. Given that it’s the 4th of July, I thought I’d post how you can improve your outdoor experience by updating your deck. Just three steps… let’s get started!

1. Wash the Deck

It may sound like an unnecessary step but experts agree that washing the deck first make repairs easier, and more importantly, helps the staining process. Rent a power washer and have at it! Make sure to let the wood dry overnight before moving to the next step.

2. Repair Any Problem Spots

Nail pops, loose screws or cracked boards will each require your attention in this step. Using screws rather than nails gives the connection a more secure fit. If you’re replacing a board or two, the new boards may appear to be a bit larger than the current ones but they’ll shrink a bit as time goes forward.

3. Stain the Deck

Unlike composite decking, first made famous by Trex, wooden decks need to be treated every few years. You can’t always believe what the label on a can of stain boasts, in terms of how long the stain will last. Instead, look to experts like Consumer Reports who rate Cabot Decking Stain very well. Getting 3 years out of a treatment is better than average.

Also remember, after applying the stain, wait about 48 hours before walking on the deck to allow it time to sink in.

I hope you find this information helpful. Enjoy your summer!

Tags: Trex

Louisville KY Home Sales: June 2009

Jul 2, 2009 News

Mixed again this month as East End areas are up and those to the South are down. If you didn’t see, here is last month. This is the last time I’ll post about this but if you haven’t read Louisville Kentucky Real Estate Review of 2008, here’s your chance.

Like always, if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

June 2009

AREA	SALES	AVERAGE	DoM
0 Central Downtown District	12	$97,479	53
1 Downtwn/Old&WestLouisville/Shively	78	$44,148	77
2 Butchertown/Highlands/Germantwn	104	$182,447	67
3 Brownsboro/StMatthews	65	$298,181	82
4 Pleasure Rdg/Valley Station	58	$95,522	79
5 Auburndale/Fairdale/Iroquois Park	72	$108,696	83
6 Buechel/Highview/Okolona/FernCreek	141	$115,924	70
7 FernCrk/Hikes Point/Jeffersontown	142	$167,950	75
8 Hurstbourne/Middletwn/Anchrg	88	$236,422	82
9 Anchrg/Lyndn/Prospct/UpRvrRd	107	$252,189	84
11 Bullitt Co.	66	$152,540	96
19 Spencer Co.	11	$158,900	115
20 Oldham Co. – North	28	$278,325	110
21 Oldham Co. – South	38	$257,016	110
30 Shelby Co.	32	$163,971	98

Source: MetroSearch, Inc. Values are not warranted by LHB.

Tags: home sales, June 2009, louisville ky