Despite what you’ve heard about the housing market in other parts of the country, home values in the river region are expected to increase over the coming year. That’s according to a new report by CNN.com and Business 2.0 magazine.The report ranked Montgomery among the top ten housing markets in the U.S.
“We’re on an economic role in this part of the country,” said Taylor Jernigan of the Montgomery Area Realtors Association.
Jernigan says east Montgomery is seeing most growth because there’s more available land. He says he was not surprised by the recent rankings.
“We’re very fortunate in Montgomery to have a very stable economy,” he said.
That stable economy is the result of recent job growth thanks to companies like Hyundai and Kia.
The CNN article lists Montgomery fifth among cities where home values are expected to increase. Here is the list as it appears online:
- Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas
- Indianapolis, Indiana
- New Orleans, Louisiana
- Atlanta, Georgia
- Montgomery, Alabama
- Memphis, Tennessee
- Mobile, Alabama
- Austin, Texas
- Houston, Texas
- St. Louis, Missouri
The CNN article also mentions growth in Old Cloverdale and other midtown Montgomery neighborhoods. They are closer to downtown where state government has also added new jobs.
“People are reaching their point of inconvenience with commuting,” said real estate agent Sandra Nickel, who specializes in midtown Montgomery. “I met with a couple just the other day who said, ‘we want to get back to the heart of town.'”
Northern communities in Autauga and Elmore county should also see growth.
According to CNN’s findings, the median Montgomery home price of $140,000 should rise to $147,000 in the next 14 months.
Mobile was the only other Alabama city on the list. Experts attribute its growth to new industry as well, including so-called mega-projects like the new Thyssen-Krupp plant announced earlier this year.
Reporter: Mark Bullock, WorldNow and WSFA
