Alabama real estate is appreciating!
The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) produced a report in November that indicates Alabama real estate has been appreciating, even though most areas of the country are still experiencing a troubled real estate market. Alabama was number 4 in the list of US states that are appreciating. The report shows almost 3% appreciation which is a result of the local economic successes of the Mobile, Huntsville, and Decatur areas.
In this area of the country, there are federal tax incentives for investment. Known as the "Go Zone," investors that meet certain requirements get huge tax breaks for investing here. Couple that with the state's pst efforts to attract new companies to the area and the result is local businesses are growing. With over 1/2 of the states in this report showing decreases, the Alabama example is worth study.
The Florence real estate appreciates over 8% in the third quarter. Mobile, Decatur and Huntsville all had more than 4% appreciation in the third quarter. Tuscaloosa, Anniston, Oxford, Auburn, Opelika, Dothan, Muscle Shoals, Gadsden and the Birmingham area also appreciated. While the "GO Zone" tax incentives were created after Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast, Mobile and other Alabama cities already had economic plans in place to attract new jobs. I made a few trips there myself to research opportunities and look at real estate. They had already attracted thousands of new manufacturing jobs before Katrina hit. Now, those jobs are helping the area grow as they continue to rebuild.
Some of the towns in the rrpoet are: Mobile, Decatur, Huntsville, Tuscaloosa, Birmingham, Hoover, Montgomery, Anniston, Oxford, Auburn, Opelika, Dothan, Florence, Muscle Shoals, and Gadsden.
There are some statistical issues with the report, as with all statistical reports. For example, the fact that the information/data for the report only comes from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac might have more weight from problems than if the data included smaller regional institutions across the country. Of course that data would be more tedious to collect.
This version of the report only covers the third quarter of 2008. The next report, which may include a summary of the whole year, should be even more interesting. The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) produced the report for the Office of Federal Housing Enterprise Oversight (OFHEO).
Happy selling and listing!
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