BILOXI, Miss. (WLOX) - For those looking to buy or sell their home, there’s currently an uptick in the local housing market.
According to the Gulf Coast Association of Realtors, a local chapter of a national organization with 2,200 members, that increase is not unusual given the time of year or the growing popularity of the Coast.
“Spring is just a typical time that the market increases,” says Danny Lee, CEO of the Gulf Coast Association of Realtors. “Interest rates are actually starting to come down a little bit. We’ve seen a little over half of a percent decrease since this time last year. So, I do think that’s had a positive impact on the market.”
One reason for the year-on-year increase in home inventory, sales and average price – currently at $274,196 across Hancock, Harrison, Jackson, George, Greene, Stone and Pearl River counties – could be the annual influx of cash this time of year.
“People are getting their tax returns,” says Biloxi realtor Summer Newman, President of the Gulf Coast Association of Realtors and owner of Next Level Realty. “They have more money to go towards closing costs or paying a realtor compensation if they need to, so they just have more money in their pocket. ”
Besides the deeper pockets, Newman said other factors are also at play.
“So, new homes are selling more than resales because they are just more affordable,” Newman explained. “I call it an insurance crisis we are in right now. Insurance rates on new builds are just so much cheaper than a resale home, so it’s really changing what people can afford in this market.”
According to Newman, the rising cost of insurance due to the ongoing threat of flood and wind damage, as well as other factors, also steer homeowners toward where – and what – to buy.
“I think a lot of people are actually moving north of the Interstate 10 because of insurance rates,” she told WLOX News Now. “I am seeing that.”
“You have these townhouses like the ones at Lost Garden Villas that are close to the beach and have great amenities,” Newman continued. “I feel like these are geared more towards people trying to downsize a little bit, retire, because it does put them close to the beach. They see their retirement here goes further than in any other state.”
Another trend is the continuing development of smaller homes, which she attributes to construction costs and lifestyle choices.
“Since COVID, the cost of materials has gone up so much that builders, contractors, have had to change the way that they build these homes,” she explained. “Less square footage might put a little more money in their pocket.”
But despite current issues surrounding insurance affordability and recession fears, Gulf Coast Association of Realtors CEO Danny Lee expects the local housing market to remain strong.
“When you compare beachfront homes on the Mississippi Coast to just about anywhere else there’s beachfront property, you can get so much money here on the Coast, and it’s a great place to live. They call it the ‘Secret Coast,’ but the secret is getting out.”
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