New Orleans Real Estate by Eric

Uptown Condos-More people looking in Uptown New Orleans for second homes-Charm or Price?

     I have seen many more clients and people looking at the New Orleans Uptown Market for condos that will make nice second homes.  The real estate prices are going to be cheaper than the French Quarter or the Warehouse District. It may be that many of the areas were never brought to mind.  Many are looking for a two bedroom and two bath for under 250k and that is hard to find in these other areas such as the Quarter and the Warehouse District.  It can be found in the Uptown area. New Olreans Condos

     Its the historic condos with the high ceilings, wood floors and character that seem to be in favor.  Th.e name streets near St. Charles, Magazine and Pytania seem to be where most want to be.  The two bedrooms are often wanted so that you can bring business friends and family to visit with you.  They all feature easy walking and places where the cars can stay put if you like to walk the area.  New Orleans is very compact in these areas and you are never more than 15-20 minutes to the French Quarter going slow. 

      You tend to get much more size and many have been updated.  Most of the complexes are going to be small complexes as they were converted from old homes or apartment houses into condos. Its much easier to find the units between 170 and 200k in the Uptown area as compared to other neighborhoods. 

     There has never been a lot speculation in tghe New Orleans Condo Market so values have remained constant for the last couple of years.  There was never much sub-prime in these areas so that issue is not in play in almost all cases.  A very steady market for the right kind of unit.  The story is much different for condos that tend to look like 1970s apartment complexes.  These have fallen out of favor as they tend to be just a place to stay.

     We are beginning to see some good values and people have waited too long to sell for seasonal reasons and just not pricing the condos correctly in the beginning.  You hear over and over again that this is what I need.  The market does not work that way and real estate is worth what others are willing to pay.  No concern is ever given to an individuals need for a price. 

    I showed one unit yesterday that was put on the market for 199k and now the price has been dropped to 159k and now the price is great.  Few have been looking in the last 3-4 weeks with the hurricanes and mortgage mess.  The seller is now willing to jump at any reasonable offer and so will the Bank. I did not show it earlier as I knew the price was unrealistic and the price would have to drop with time.  Drop it did?

"LSU has kids from the Bayou who can't even read and would probably be dead or in prison if not for football. USC has these Samoan islander freaks that would be picking strawberries in the San Fernando Valley if it wasn't for football. If our kids don't make it in football, they go to law school or Wall Street. That's a good thing for our endowment fund and our US News ranking, but it is a problem for our football team. All I can think about was going out on Bourbon Street after the Sugar Bowl, and EVERY SINGLE GUY on LSU's team had the team issue clothes on out at the bars. EVERY GUY. Why?? I have no idea, but maybe it's because it's the only clothes they have. Our guys were wearing button downs, khakis, nice shoes. It's a great image for our team obviously, but our guys don't need football to dominate every part of their lives."  Interesting take on Football and life-Ever wonder why the SEC teams get fired up.

Maybe we could have avoided this mess if more main street people had a say in what goes on in Washington and Wall Street. Things are very black and white for the main street folks. The bail out smells and something is rotten in Washington and Wall Street. Bring out the brooms and sweep them out.  Printing a trillion dollars is not the fix. Just level with the people and lets look for who gets helped and who does not. The markets say the dollar is getting weak. Oil and Gold soar today. The more money you print the less its worth. It is only paper and the Bayou Boys know that. Inflating your way out of a problem is hurts the main street people. Think of this when filling you car up later in the week. Its easy to blame the oil companies, maybe we are wising up.

 Its always an exciting game. LSU was down 14-3 and came back to win. The first LSU quarterback was knocked out with a concussion. They still had to rally to score the winning touchdown in the last minute. Football in the SEC is big for the fans of all schools. There were 5 SEC teams in the top ten this week. Now they start playing each other in the coming weeks. LSU has Georgia, Florida, and Alabama plus the rest of the gang. Glad the time ran out for Auburn. Les Miles winds 6 in a row against top ten teams.

Its fine to blog as my clients are LSU fans and like to mix real estate with football in Cajun Land. 

New Orleans-City Park, the Sculpture Garden. When is the last time you have gone?

       Being in real estate you are your own boss.  You work a lot of hours but you have control of what you do.  I took the time to stop by City Park this week after visiting a client.  You forget how pretty and how many things there are to do.  One of the things is the Sculpture Garden which is open daily.  The Besthoff's owned the leading retail drug chain in New Orleans for years, K&B Drugs. 

    The admission is free but it worth leaving a donation so others can enjoy it as well.  Its open daily and takes up only 5 acres with paths and lagoons spread about the park.  Its very quiet and a short drive from downtown.  Take the street car from Canal Street to Carrolton and you get off at the end of the line across from Bayou St. John.  I just pulled over parked and started taking pictures with my cell phone in the car.

The Sculpture Collection

donated by Sydney and Walda Besthoff in New Orleans City Park

"The Sydney and Walda Besthoff Sculpture Garden is home to 57 sculptures by artists from around the world. Forty-four of the 57 sculptures have been donated to the New Orleans Museum of Art by the Besthoff Foundation. The other 11 are Museum purchases or gifts from other donors. The collection includes work by some of the great master sculptors of the 20th century (Antoine Bourdelle, Henry Moore, Jacques Lipchitz, Louise Bourgeois), as well as younger, contemporary sculptors (Kenneth Snelson, Allison Saar, Joel Shapiro, Jean-Michel Othoniel). Nine of the 57 sculptures pre-date 1960, while 29 of the 57 artists represented are living. "

The Gulf Coast of the USA has always played an important part in our nations energy needs. I cannot be in your be in your backyard as it may not be there. However it can be found in many of your yards but there is resistance for whatever reason. US Oil Companies get bashed daily for high prices even thought they control less than 10% of the supply. You can throw in Wal-Mart since they are a non-union success.

Most of our local power comes from a Nuclear plant upriver from my house. I always wonder why other areas do not try this source of power. Its in our backyard. It could be in your backyard.

Natural Gas finds are being discovered in 2008 North Louisiana. The finds are in the trillions of cubic feet. Making a much bigger dent in the energy needs than that of corn. The price of corn and food stocks have increased dramitically since the government programs have started. Are these succeeding? I have no idea as you never hear about the success.  We are blessed with Sugar Cane which makes a more efficient fuel. Just look at Brazil and what they have done. Not enough electoral votes to try that.

Just had to vent since this is the real estate that I live in Louisiana, Texas, Mississippi and Alabama coast. Several Hurricanes later and we are still here. Shot today in my backyard of New Orleans City Park. Busy in recovery mode while suppling what everyone needs. Energy------Your Plan 

New Orleans-Borders Bookstore Opens Fall of 2008. St. Charles and Louisiana Ave.

    Borders Bookstore on St. Charles Ave will open this Fall in the Crescent City.  It is located on St. Charles Ave. at the corner of Louisiana Ave on the St. Charles Ave Streetcar line.  The bookstore will showcase Louisiana and New Orleans Books, Authors and Music.  The bookstore is notable for several reasons.  It is built on the site of the Baltman Funeral Home which has been at the location since 1943.  The exterior of the building is being preserved as you can see below.  The nine million dollar project will be 24,000 sq. ft  and will be the first chain store on St. Charles Ave.

    The Borders Concept store is within walking distance of many of the condos that I have been selling in the Uptown area over the past couple of years.  It will be a destination place for the locals as well a tourist stop on the Streetcar line.  Outdoor coffee shop and cafe no doubt.  I did a search on the Borders site and they had 2821 New Orleans related Music items and 939 books.  Guess its name that tune over hangman!

     Will see you at the Grand Opening if you are in the area.  Always nice to get an upgrade from a funeral home to a book and music store.

Do we really need law for this? I know in this area among the top agents women out number men in earning and sales. They get there due to hard work and long hours in all the cases that I know. Most of the managers in our company are women, the compay was founded by a woman  I see little or no evidence where gender determines your success or failure in real estate.

I came into real estate from the supermarket business where it was hard to get women hired and have them stay.  There were more opportunity for them to work elsewhere where the work was not as physical.  The hours were hard starting at 6 am and you finished when your route was done. You had to load your van in the dark many mornings.

 The job was commission and you on your feet unless you were driving the truck. Then you had to look nice while you stocked shelves, loading and unloading. As hard as we tried we had 90% men. The bread and milk business was much the same. In the end we had to pay more to women so they would stay.

Back to real estate, equal pay for equal work. No-but the chance to earn the smae commission. Thats my take. Do we really need more laws like this?

Maybe some of these politicians should work on a commission.

Mardi Gras Krewes mainly divided along gender lines.  There are some mixed Krewes but most seem to  like it that way.  The Krewe is the club that puts on the parade.

Hurricane really put a dent in the real estate business. Its hard to get back into the norm after being gone a week. People are just getting power back in the Southern Parishes. Wind is blowing pretty good here right now. I have not taken off my window boards yet. Maybe this weekend. Getting to show two new clients tommorow so let keep the rain away.  

Hurricanes usually do not get stronger at nite as there is less heat. I think the Gulf water has churned up a lot from last week which may bring cooler water to the surface. Would not want to be on the off shore rigs tonite.  Just got a e-mail from an offshore industrial diver who wants a condo. He is out there tonite and was too windy to work today. Have to believe that.

New Orleans Condo-Buyers Delight! Rates drop and sellers are more modivated!

     The interest rates have dropped since the take over of Freddie Mac and Fannie May.  The takeover and the slowing economy are bringing rates down.  What does this mean for you and your note.  If the rates drop .5% you are looking at saving $33 per 100k on what you borrow.  If you were looking at borrowing 200k you can save about $75 on your note in the past week alone.  This is $900 per year in interest savings.  Its like a $12,000 reduction in the price of the home or condo in terms of your note.  I have have no idea as to how long these rates will hold.  Good time to think about it however.

     At the same time sellers who have had their condos or homes listed over the summer are getting ready to take a lower offer as the seasonal effects of real estate will take effect now.  Throw in a Hurricane and sellers become ready to strike a deal.  This bodes well for the buyers.  Its bodes especially well if you have the loan ready to go with a well thought of lender.  Get qualified and start looking as there are some good deals in all price ranges.  Much has not changed since 2005 and expectations are for steady prices.

    The seller may also be getting a good deal on his next purchase and just wants to move on.  These are the sellers that buyers need to look for.

     First time buyers can still get a tax credit of  $7500.

 Pic nik is a very easy program for pictures.   Check  www.picnik.com out as it is a great free tool you can use to enhance your photos.  This took me about 3 minutes to frame and etch in a name.  Just a tidbit to pass along.  The basic version is free.  You keep the original photos and make changes on line before downloading.  Always amazed how many free and useful things you can find on the Internet.

     View other related articles. Sellers Motivations , New Home buyers tax credit , To Buy or to rent.