Parish Has Plenty of Appeal for Savvy Home Buyers
cotton port district, culture, home buyers, real estate, river place condos,
This is on the level: The housing market in Ouachita Parish is strong.
Many real estate agents and developers are pleased that the current market has not seen any real drops in sales during recent times.
“We have two large paper mills here‚ timber companies‚ oil and gas industry‚ farming in the outlying areas and three universities that are all within 30 miles‚” says Jimmy Johnson‚ an agent with John Rea Realty in Monroe. “All of those factors have kept our economy strong through the national ups and downs‚ so people have been able to purchase houses.”
While the median home price in Ouachita Parish is approximately $75‚000‚ many houses in popular neighborhoods such as Frenchman’s Bend and Northwood Estates appeal to move-up buyers willing to spend $150‚000 or more.
Home sales these days are especially vibrant just north of Monroe in the Highway 165 corridor‚ and just west of West Monroe along Interstate 20.
“Interest rates should remain stable in 2007‚ so home sales in our parish should continue to roll along‚” the Realtor says.
As the housing market remains strong‚ the same goes for the local apartment-renting sector.
“Back in 2003‚ I renovated the old Union Oil Mill and turned it into the Cotton Mill Apartments‚ and those units stay full all the time‚” says Steve Hall‚ president and CEO of Arco Builders in West Monroe. “I also built the Cotton Port Apartments and then renovated the former city hall building to now feature nine luxury apartments. The River Place Condos have also opened in the historic Cotton Port District. Renting units is really no problem right now‚ and what’s nice about this entire parish is that a lot of the properties are unusual.”
One such unusual property is the old Penn Hotel in Monroe‚ currently under renovation. The former hotel is noted for the little pink house that sits near the top of the 10-story building.
“The hotel dates back to 1928 and I plan to renovate it with luxury condos on each floor‚” says building owner Melody Olson. “The bottom floor will be commercial and retail‚ while the remaining floors will be residential. It’s a big job.”
And the top portion of the building that features the odd little pink house – what will become of it?
“I’ll keep it because people enjoy it as a landmark around here‚ but I’m going to paint it a stone color simply because pink just won’t fit it with the new color scheme of the renovated building‚” Olson says. “I actually plan to live on the ninth floor of this building once the entire renovation is complete. I can’t wait.”
Story by Kevin Litwin
