Designer of Terra Bella Village to Create Lakefront Traditional Neighborhood Development

The term, traditional neighborhood development, evolved out of the concept of urban planning which included designing a “small town” within larger cities that has its own town center as well as commercial, retail, residential, and sometimes rental opportunities for its residents.  Walk to where you work and play became the buzz words for these urban and suburban communities.  Now, in Mandeville, Louisiana urban architect Steve Oubre, of Architects Southwest is set as the designer of terra bella village to create lakefront traditional neighborhood development plans for the site of the now abandoned industrial concrete plant.

Located just east of the Causeway Bridge, the plant was used to fabricate the concrete sections and

pillars for the Causeway Bridge, which was originally built in 1956.  The plant has not operated as an industrial concrete fabrication site since 1984.  Drs Michael and Marcus Pittman purchased the property at sheriff’s auction that same year.  In 2011, they commenced a massive cleanup effort to prep the land for development.

Three planning  meetings have been scheduled by Architects Southwest, the developers, and interested community groups and residents of Mandeville on April 7th, April 9th, and April 13th.  Steve Oubre spoke at the first meeting on April 7th and presented a 90-minute powerpoint explaining the vision of this new community.  After extensive market studies, high-rise towers were eliminated from the plan, and the vision now includes retails shops, housing units, a hotel, and a marina on the lakefront location all centered around the town center, just like the traditional neighborhood developments he designed both in Lafayette, LA and Covington, Louisiana.

Once community feedback has been received, it’s “back to the drawing board” to actually draw up plans and renderings to present to the Mandeville City Council and the St. Tammany Parish government for ultimate approval to begin construction. Homeowners in Mandeville can expect property values to appreciate with the construction of several hundred housing units if the engineered plans are approved.

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Multiple Reasons for Optimism in the Housing Market

Home builders nationwide have a reason to celebrate – it’s beginning to look a lot like a seller’s market once again in the current real estate market.  According to statistics, the monthly supply of homes ready to be purchased on the market has dropped below a 5 months supply.  The tightening of inventory will promote quick sales as well as an eventual increase in home prices as demand will soon outweigh supply.
Potential home buyers will be able to purchase these new homes for sale as well as existing homes for sale because of an easing of credit requirements and down payment requirements both for FHA and Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae loans.  Decisions are being made to introduce loan packages that will offer down payment assistance to home buyers as well.

Another huge factor in supply and demand is the dramatic increase in household formation which means that more people will be out looking to establish a residence whether it is in an apartment or buying a home.  Millennials that were unable to get a job “right out of college” have started to move out of roommate or parent / relative living arrangements because of the new availability of employment nationwide.  The percentage of Millennials looking to get their own place increased by 11% from November to March according to surveys.

Finally, even though housing starts have been stymied by the unusually brutal winter weather, housing sales as of February reported a 7.8% sales increase on a monthly basis for new home sales and a 1.2 sales increase on a monthly basis for previously owned homes.

Wall Street is reflecting this sentiment with the iShares Dow Jones U. S. Home Construction ETF (ITB) showing a new 7.5 year high which is a reflection of the averaging out of home pricing gains which were on a roller coaster ride as the economy recovered.  Investors are interested in housing shares once again as the real estate market is showing true signs of recovery.  Overall there are multiple reasons for optimism in the housing market

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New Home Buyers Can Make More Flexible and Informed Mortgage Decisions

As credit requirements and down payment requirements become more feasible for first-time home buyers as well as conventional loan buyers, new home buyers can make more flexible and informed mortgage decisions about the type of loan that they would like to use making their purchase.  First-time home buyers can enjoy the benefits of using a loan offered by Freddie Mac or Fannie Mae or even an FHA loan.  These loans typically reduce the amount of money that must be brought to the table and make it more affordable to buy a home.

Other home buyers can also use an FHA loan if they meet the time period requirements between the purchase of their existing home and the purchase of a new home.  Also, for the veterans, the VA loan is an incredible opportunity to become a homeowner and start establishing home equity.  Regardless of the type of loan you use when you buy your home, you still have to make a decision about the terms of your loan.  Interest rate, purchased points, ARM vs. standard, and time periods come into play when you are making your decision.  Below are some of the reasons that using a 15-year loan vs. a 30-year fixed loan can be beneficial to your long-term financial situation.

15-Year Home Loans:

1. Pay Off Your Home More Quickly:  If you are in a position to make a higher monthly payment (you have a lot of residual income each month, you have no financial responsibilities for multiple children’s expenses, you have a really low loan amount because you had a lot of equity when you purchased your home, etc.), you will want to consider using a 15-year loan.  Even though the payments will be higher each month, you will save 10’s of thousands of dollars in interest.  If you are near retirement age, you may want to pay off your home quicker so that you don’t have to make loan payments with a social security benefit check.

2. Faster Equity Accrual:  Because the way that a 15-year mortgage is structured, you are making a huge dent in your principal and interest for every loan payment that you make.  Because your payments are higher, you are also paying off more principle, more quickly, thereby creating “instant” home equity by being in a shorter-term loan.

3. Pay Less Interest Overall: Have you ever looked at a Federal Truth in Lending page and wondered how in the world you ended up with $120,000 interest on a $200,000 loan?  With a 15-year mortgage, you pay significantly less interest over the life of the loan because you are cutting the time in half and increasing the amount you pay.

4. Lower Money Up Front: 15-year loans can require less money up front because they require a less stringent loan-to-value (LTV) ratio – 95% vs. 80%.  This means you can finance up to 95% of the value of your loan.  Also, 15-year mortgages typically have better interest rates because they deem the buyer more financially stable and responsible to make higher monthly payments.

5. Multiple Loan Types From Which to Choose: You can get many different types of 15-year loans – FHA loans, conventional loans backed by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae, and VA loans.  You can pretty much select to turn any type of loan into a 15-year mortgage vs. a 30-year fixed mortgage.
If you are in the market for a new home for sale in the St. Tammany Parish area, you may want to consider building a new custom home in the cities of Mandeville, Madisonville, Covington, and Abita Springs on the Northshore of Lake Pontchartrain.  For more information about building a new home and using a 15-year loan, Contact Us at 985-626-7619 or E-mail Info@RonLeeHomes.com.

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