BP,
We do a ton of research in our prospective markets. I would like to share with you what we have came across. Let me know what you think!!
2016 Louisville, KY Housing Trends
The real estate market in Louisville, Kentucky and the surrounding area showed some serious growth last year. One unique finding about the Louisville housing market is the popularity of multi-family homes. Clearly, owning rental property is a popular aspect of the local economy. The price of real estate in the area hit a new high as well. Downtown Louisville residents are appreciating new investment and activity. Still, economic growth lagged real estate activity since affordable housing was still difficult to come by for some Louisville natives.
Renting is a Hot Option
With there being lots of multi-family units sold in the Louisville area, it stands to reason that a large proportion of residents are actually renters and not owners. The Louisville Metropolitan Housing Coalition’s annual housing report for 2015 revealed that this community has a serious problem with making living in the city affordable for more people. According to the report, 14% of the workforce does not earn enough to afford the average 2-bedroom apartment. Another thing is those who are too poor to afford housing are very isolated. More than two thirds of the public housing population are contained in only two locations in the metro area.
Out of Towners are Circling the Area
There is a lot of real estate activity from outsiders and institutions looking to make rental property a part of their investment strategy. This all coincides with the lower single family home purchasing power in Louisville, KY. If you can’t buy, you must rent; increasingly, residents will be renting from people who have little connection to the community. Louisville’s attraction to people from other parts of the country is quite natural; with real estate on the coasts being extremely expensive, this market becomes the land of opportunity for those looking to make their investment dollars stretch.
Louisville Home Prices are at an All-Time High
So while Louisville is a cheap option to an investor from, say, New York, these are some of the highest home prices ever before seen by Louisville natives. According to Zillow, the median home price in Louisville, Kentucky is $134,900. Again, this isn’t much to people from outside the area, but to many locals, this value is outpacing wages.
Louisville is a great buy for people looking to relocate to a more affordable place. The home prices here are lower than the national averages, but local residents are also paid lower. Many of the experts following the trends in this market have openly wondered if the rental market is due for a bust sometime soon. If you are interested in investing here, you may want to act now, because an improvement in the economy will mean more competition for homes which of course leads to higher prices.
