Take Me To Post Comment Form At a conference held by Bryan County Commission Chairman Jimmy Burnsed & Richmond Hill Mayor Richard Davis discussed what they say is the beginning of a "turnaround" for the local real estate market. "Richmond Hill, Bryan County" was recently listed as one of the top five best places nationwide to buy a home & live, according to real estate investor Danielle Babb. "Bryan County has a strong housing market. You obviously have tremendous job growth which is paramount to having stable housing prices," she said, noting she will continue to highlight Bryan County in the media. "Jobs are going to continue to push demand higher. My job is to make consumers aware of good places to buy and live. You are one of the top five markets in the nation." Babb said she actually has nearly 30 "top spots" she thinks are good investments for 2008, but said it’s too early to see exactly how they are doing market-wise. "Right now, nationally, sales are up about six percent. The Midwest & the south are getting the best of that," she said. "I won’t really know until the end of the year how well (my top spots) did." Babb bases her information first and foremost on whether or not job growth is stable. Then, she said she looks at how well the local market has done over the past 10 years, whether income is keeping up with inflation, price stability & fluctuation, where crime rates are at & what the rates of foreclosures are. In the future, she sees Bryan County housing prices increasing by 12 percent each year, a "conservative" number she said. Her positive news is long overdue, according to Bryan County Commission Chairman Jimmy Burnsed. "I do think the drought is over for the housing market," Burnsed said. "The market is picking up steam. It’s not exactly where we’d like to see it, but I think in the next couple months it will continue rising." One real estate company in Richmond Hill provided information for 42 closings in May at an average listing of $279,000 and an average selling price of $263,000, Burnsed said. He also pointed out of 472 homes on the market right now, 102 are under contract. "I think this is an indication that the new inventory is coming down," he said, noting inventory seems to be "stabilizing." " Davis said the city can be successful only if the business community is. "The building industry is the largest industry in the city and we feel like it’s time to rally & I see this today," he said. "I’m grateful for the turnout; it’s like a pep rally. We’re going to leave here today & talk about positive things. We can turn this thing around." The other four locations Babb listed during the Fox interview were Lake Mary, Fla.; North Brook, Ohio; Albuquerque, N.M.; and Irvine, Cal.
Richmond Hill to offer deferments. Developers & small home builders with plans to develop in Richmond Hill might soon catch a "deferring" break, thanks to a proposal announced by Davis. "No one has been hit harder by the housing market than builders & developers," he said Thursday. In response, the city will be voting on a proposition to defer certain construction fees at the June 17 city council meeting. "We’re all in this together. Deferring certain construction fees will help stimulate real estate in Richmond Hill." According to the proposition, builders would pay a $100 nonrefundable fee to get a building permit for a home. All other fees, such as tap, power connection and water meter installation, would be deferred until later in the construction process. Davis said this would not decrease or eliminate any fees. "New construction of detached single family houses is starting to rebound & this proposal will allow builders to defer some upfront costs until the house is almost sold. That will be a big plus for those builders who are in a bind because of the economy," he said.
» Comments: (4)
Lefty: June 14, 2008 - 01:43 AM On one hand the politicians said the housing market is alive and well but when it comes to the mayor's friends its "lets help them with a construction fee delay". What a crock of BS. The city never gave me or any other homeowner a break.

phdengl: June 14, 2008 - 03:35 AM 1.) Those figures aren't accurately listed above. Babb's average was $359,000 not $263,000, or I just misread something. 2.) Deference of fees? Seriously? Weren't they wanting to do "impact fees" about a week ago? 3.) http://www.drdaniellebabb.com/interviews... That's the link for the interview on Cavuto. Interview is dated 5-26 and entitled "Top five house-hunting towns." We looked great!PhD

mlimberg: June 14, 2008 - 02:42 PM Dr. Babb, with all due respect, you need to step back & look at the bigger picture. I have been tracking your comments for about a year now. I think you have a lop sided view of real estate. it's great to see the glass half full, but it is wise to be a realist, you called a bottom on Cavuto about 5 months ago. You missed that one by a mile. Everything you say is all positive about real estate. It's not positive, it's getting ugly & you can not "wish" it better anymore. Let the market work. People paid too much for their homes, Houses are expenses & not investments & certainly not ATM's. Homes are like cars, once you drive them off the lot, they start to fall apart. You have to put money into them to keep them standing. Entropy is always at work, until people understand that, we will have people losing money on real estate. The value of property is not going down, it was never worth what buyers dreamed it would or could be, it was all a dream, now a nightmare.

That_Woman: June 16, 2008 - 12:54 AM Looks like "spin" to me. Ms. Babbs statements were based on data from 2004 - 2006.... just a bit outdated I'd say. Rose colored glasses were great 2 years ago, today is the real world. We were in an unrealistic market, things are just returning to somewhat normal. And we do still have a surplus inventory of new homes in Richmond Hill... all high end, I might add. Too bad local developers/builders won't construct a price point our "true" market is calling for... everybody cannot live in $359,000. homes. So sad that our local officials want to report such hype. Obviously someone forgot to read the rest of the story.