Mandeville Will See the Girod Street Stroll This Fall

Typically held in the spring, the Girod Street Stroll has been postponed due to COVID-19 and will now be held in the fall. The event is held annually by the Old Mandeville Business Association.

This year the Girod Street Stroll is presented by Resource Bank and will take place on September 25, 2021 from 5pm - 9pm in Old Mandeville. The activities take place starting at Girod Street at the Mandeville Trailhead and following along to the Lakefront. Live music and entertainment will be by 10th Street Brass.

Patrons will be able to stroll to over twenty stops and enjoy small bite plates by local Mandeville chefs and cocktails. Participants of the event can vote for the best small plate and cocktail. There will also be a raffle of a live painting that will be created by artist Andrew Wilkie.

"It is one of Mandeville's most popular annual events, as it showcases our local businesses and restaurants, our artists community, and our vibrant culture," OMBA Board Member Andre Judice said.

The Old Mandeville Business Association (OMBA) is a non-profit that is made up of both businesses and residences of Old Mandeville. The goal is to serve and support the local commerce while preserving and promoting the charm and beauty of the community.

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Housing's Growth According to NAHB's Eye on the Economy

 

June 2020 saw a small decline in single-family new home sales to around 6.6% according to the National Association of Home Builders Eye on the Economy. The annualized rate fell to 676,000. Although the past several months have seen a small monthly decline, the new home sale is still 13.5% higher on a year-to-year basis from 2020.

The small decline according to some industry professionals is from the lack of inventory and the higher construction costs while other industry leaders believe it is caused due to the higher new home prices. New home prices have risen 10% since January 2020.

The new home inventory is down by 44% which is a little over 34,000 homes over the last year. Supply factors including the material, labor and lots are holding builders back. The survey also indicated that today's buyers are not happy with housing affordability. In fact, the share of buyers who can afford less than half the homes available for sale worsened from 63% at the end of 2020 to 71% by midyear.

Although the market is still going strong, those who did not purchase during the second quarter of 2021 was due to pricing. The higher construction cost and development costs have hindered housing prices. The GDP growth for the second quarter was at a low of 6.5%. The good news is that NAHB is predicting an overall growth rate of just under 7% for the whole year. This will be the best rate seen since 1984.

This is still a good time to buy as mortgage rates are still reasonable. If you are in the market for a home, contact your local Realtor.

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New $150 Million Retirement Community To Be Built in Mandeville

 

Al Copeland Sr. who is famous for starting Popeyes Chicken and is native to Louisiana is a big part of a new retirement community coming to Mandeville. Copeland Sr, who passed away in 2008 owned a 29-acre tract of land in Mandeville that the family recently donated to LSU Health Foundation.

Al Copeland Jr. said the family was honored to donate the land in his father's name. The land, worth $7 million is the largest donation LSU Health Foundation has ever received. The site, across from Mariners Village, will house the $150 million mixed-used development which specializes in retirees. This will make the project the first retirement community that is connected to a university in Louisiana.

The multi-use restricted retirement community will feature restaurants, a marina, a hotel and apartments along with health care services. The health care services will be serviced through LSU Health Sciences Center and the center's students. The development will not only aid in training future medical professionals but will also provide revenue for cancer research.

“The partnership, growth and symmetry between the LSU Health Sciences Center and the LSU Health Foundation absolutely shines through this project,” LSU Health Sciences Center Chancellor Larry Hollier said in a prepared statement. "Having the ability to help train students in geriatric health care while providing new funding for faculty research in fighting cancer, not to mention building a beautiful place for LSU alum (and the public) to retire and enjoy life in a wonderful community is the best of every world."

The project will bring training opportunities and jobs to the Northshore. The revenue earned will go towards cancer research in honor of Al Copeland who died of a rare form of cancer. All in all, over $20 million from the land lease will be dedicated to cancer research funding for the next 40 years.

"While the project is only at the conceptual stage, we look forward to working with the LSU Health Foundation through our planning and zoning process once a formal application has been made,” Mandeville Mayor Clay Madden said.

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Over Half of New Construction Single-Family Homes in 2020 Were Built on Slab Foundations

 

During the release of the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) Survey of Construction (SOC) it was reported that over half (65%) of new single-family homes built in 2020 were constructed on slab foundations. The remaining accounted for 22% with a full/partial basement and 12% with a crawl space.

In fact, there is a wider gap between a slab and full/partial basement and this gap is still widening. This can be seen in the reports from previous years. In 2000 only 46% of new single home starts were built on slabs. This is not the case with new homes constructed on a basement. In 2000 36.8% were built on basements while only 22% were in 2020.

The percentages differ from region to region. New homes that were built on slab foundations were predominant in the West South Central (95.7%), followed by the South Atlantic (79.4%), next was the Pacific (97.7%) and still strong but a little under half in the Moutain Region (48.1%).

Over the past decade, most new single-family homes were built on slab foundations. Experts say this is due to the warmer climate. In the East South Central division, 43% of the new single-family homes were built on a crawl space which outnumbered the 38% that were built on slabs.

The climate in each region plays a big part in what types of foundations are used in that area. Homes that are built in colder areas must have their foundations built below the frost line. This means that the majority are built on partial or full basements. New England saw 79.8% of new homes built with full/partial basements, West North Central (77.2%), Middle Atlantic 69.5% and East North Central 54.3%.

The survey also reported the average area of a finished basement in the colder regions. In the East North Central new single-family construction homes had 1,156sq. ft., while West North Central had 998sq. ft., Middle Atlantic 921 sq. ft. and in New England 734 sq. ft. According to the survey nationwide the average finished basement area was 1,137 sq. ft. in 2020.

If you are in the market for a new home, now is a great time to buy. Check with a local Realtor who can help you with the process from start to finish.

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