The State of Real Estate has improved in the Lafayette area, compared to last year. That’s the assessment of experts who give an annual report on commercial and residential property sales.
Lou Johnson with F.C. Tucker Real Estate says the number of home sales last year approached 2,00 and permits for new construction were close to 500. She says most of those new homes are going up outside the city limits of Lafayette and West Lafayette.
"One reason for that is the land available for growth is in the county, for the most part. A lot of the new subdivisions are going up in the county area - really, every direction from Lafayette."
Johnson says the number of homes sold is the highest it’s been since 2006, while total dollar volume is greater than 2006. She says more higher-priced homes are being sold as well.
"Where lower-priced numbers stayed somewhat even - going up a little bit here and there - not like in the $150,000 and above range. We saw significantly more units sell in that price range."
On the commercial side, experts says several large construction projects should begin this year, and there’s hope new development at the former Home Hospital site will begin. More than half a billion dollars in capital investments were realized or announced during 2012 for the Lafayette area. Realtors say that includes more than 140-million dollars in new commercial and multi-family projects.