One year after the 2016 August flood many families are still struggling to get back home. Delay’s with the response from the federal government has left many with only a few months in their FEMA trailers left until the deadline. There has been no official answer if these families will be forced from their temporary housing, some of them including JD Pence, wasn’t given his trailer until February of this year. Please watch his story all the way to the end, he more than deserves to be heard.
This comes directly from an email I received and I wanted to get the word out to all residents of Ascension Parish and surrounding areas.
The Restore Louisiana Homeowner Assistance Program strongly urges all flood-affected homeowners to complete the initial homeowner assistance survey. The survey takes about 15 minutes and may be completed online at http://restore.la.gov or over the phone by calling (866) 735-2001 from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday.
The program recognizes that some homeowners may need help completing this survey and has scheduled six outreach events to ensure that those who need assistance can receive it.
These events will be held as follows:
May 16 – 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Southeastern Louisiana University – Student Union 500 W University Ave., Hammond, LA 70402
May 17 – 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Ascension Parish Library – Gonzales 708 S Irma Ave., Gonzales, LA 70737
May 18 – 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Bill Cockrell Recreation Center
4109 Pines Road, Shreveport, LA 71119
May 23 – 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
East Baton Rouge Parish Library, Greenwell Springs 11300 Greenwell Springs Road, Baton Rouge, LA 70814
May 24 – 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Youngsville Sports Complex Gymnasium 801 Savoy Road, Youngsville, LA 70592
May 25 – 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Denham Springs Old City Hall
115 Mattie St., Denham Springs, LA 70726
The purpose of these events is to help homeowners complete the survey and answer any questions about the program. No formal presentation will be provided, but program information and materials will be available. While no documentation is required, we do ask that you bring your FEMA ID number if you have one.
For all updates, go to restore.la.gov
To be eligible for one of the six phases of the program, homeowners must meet all of the eligibility criteria listed below:
• Must have been the owner occupant at time of the disaster event
• The damaged address must have been the homeowner’s primary residence at the time of the disaster event
• The damage suffered must be a result of the March or August 2016 severe storms and flooding events
• The structure must be eligible as determined by the program, which includes single family homes, duplexes, mobile homes, and condominiums
• The structure must be located in one of 51 disaster-declared parishes
COMPLETING THE SURVEY DOES NOT REQUIRE THE HOMEOWNER TO STOP WORK.
******The description provided comes directly from The Restore Louisiana Homeowner Assistance Program and does not belong to me. If you would like to see this information please visit the website in the description.******
The very short answer is yes and no!From a volume of sales, we are only speaking of the difference of 12 homes if we look at the same time period of January 1, to March 4th.In 2016, 258 residential homes sold. This year from January 1st, 2017 to March 4th, 2017, 246 homes sold. The difference is so small enough it would not indicate any change in the market.Our market can’t be determined by numbers alone. The market is still being driven by all the intangibles offered by Ascension Parish; schools, location, and lifestyle.
So what’s the activity currently? The market is great, but it seems to be leaning towards a seller’s market because inventory is very low and demand is higher due to the lack of homes available due to the Great Flood of 2016.
(the picture above is not an actual housing number graph)
The energy is high but very optimistic.Most of the others I’ve spoken to about our market say that they don’t feel like housing prices will spike up like they did after Hurricane Katrina. Most lenders, investors, appraisers feel that kind of spike won’t happen. The majority od people affected are wanting to stay in their current home instead of getting out of town to find a new place to live. While this makes a potentially stronger market for sellers, it doesn’t mean they are getting $10,000 over asking price cash like had happened before. Buyers are much savvier,and they would rather wait for the correct price home to come along.While multiple offers are happening,I haven’t seen or heard of any buyer willing to pay thousands of dollars cash for a home that isn’t worth it. This is good news because it makes for a more healthy market.
We have been blessed here in Ascension Parish that our market, even in the housing crash, never fell out completely with loads of foreclosed homes. We have a lot to offer here other than a nice neighborhood, as we are sandwiched between two major cities making it convenient for people working in either; our home prices are not outrageous and we, of course, have amazing schools.
This is an exciting time in our housing market.If you are thinking of selling and are trying to time the market to make the most money this might be the best time to get your house on the market. With summer right around the corner and school about to let out, I predict that this will be the busiest our Ascension Housing market has seen in many years, but again, I don’t think you are going to be getting a HUGE increase in price from last year, but your home will sell faster at the price that is fair for your neighborhood.If you’d like to discuss with me about the value of your home today please feel free to comment below or you can fill out the contact form and I’ll reach out to you within a few hours
You see the sign in the neighbor’s yard “For Sale,” and you know what that means, but when you look on the internet and you see homes you like only to learn that they are either “Pending” or “Contingent.” What does that mean, and can you still make an offer on the home?
Contingent
A couple years ago I had a buyer who was annoyed with me because I was sending her listings that were marked “Contingent”.She thought this meant that she couldn’t have the house so why would I be sending them to her.
This is not the case!A contingent home is one that has an accepted offer but has special conditions that allow other buyers to make an offer as well.For example, a home on 123 Love Bird Lane is for sale; the Brown Family are buyers that put in an offer that is accepted by the sellers but they need to sell their current home first before they can purchase the home on 123 Love Bird Lane. The sellers Realtor® now mark in the MLS that the home is now contingent. The Smith Family sees the same home on the internet that’s now marked contingent, takes a look at it and puts an offer on the home that the sellers do not want to turn down.At this time the Brown Family is informed by their Realtor® that they can either remove their “contingency” and hope their current home closes without issues, or they can walk away from the home on 123 Love Bird Lane and find another one.
This can be devastating for Brown family, it’s a risk to remove a contingency as they could be left with two mortgage payments if their current home doesn’t sell. Some buyers are willing and able to take the risk;others not so much.
Pending
I generally don’t send listing’s that are marked “pending.”When you see “pending” above a listing, that means the home has an accepted offer and is in the inspection and financing part of the process of the transaction. The seller cannot consider other offers since there are no special “contingencies.”
In Ascension Parish we’ve seen many homes recently go pending quickly. With the recent flood, many buyers have cash in hand and are ready to move into a new home.Just know if you see a home marked “contingent,” don’t be afraid that the home of your dreams is gone!You can always ask your Ascension Parish Realtor® if the sellers are still willing to show and/or consider another offer.Remember, “it ain’t over, ’til it’s over!!”
The big MOLD lie told to us in Ascension Parish
I fell victim to this scam as have many others. Days after the flood, a rumor was spread that the state and the Parish requires the residents affected by the Great Flood of 2016 to have a “Mold Certification”. As a realtor this verbiage made sense to me, I have heard it in my dealings with the buyers requesting a “Termite Certificate” stating that the home was free of wood destroying insects, including termites. Not a required form to the sales contract but is usually requested by many buyers to be done at the seller’s expense. As of yesterday, I learned that this was not true, just a rumor that was spread through social media and inspectors who offer these mold inspections at a cost of $500.00 plus dollars. A pretty hefty price to pay nowadays since everyone throughout the Parish have lost so much. I’m not saying that mold remediation companies are a scam, many reputable vendors in our area have been doing amazing work treating homes in our area but if anyone is trying to tell you that you have to have a “Mold Certificate” before hanging up your sheet rock, they have been misinformed. Quoting General Landry from Via theCreole.com said “homeowners are permitted to perform their own mold remediation work without any license, but special guidelines and steps for mold removal and prevention should be followed. Visit www.lsuagcenter.com for more information.To report a scam or sign up for consumer alerts, call Attorney General Jeff Landry’s Consumer Protection Hotline at 800-351-4889 or visit www.AGJeffLandry.com.”
Let’s keep passing on this kind of information to everyone in Ascension Parish and all of the Greater Baton Rouge area. Stay safe out there.
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