Central Indiana housing market enjoys strong May
In May, pending sales of existing homes in the Indianapolis area increased 7 percent from the same month last year while building permits for new construction rose 20 percent.
In May, pending sales of existing homes in the Indianapolis area increased 7 percent from the same month last year while building permits for new construction rose 20 percent.
New-home construction in the Indianapolis area rebounded last month from a poor April to post a big year-over-year increase.
Modest increases in home sales are the latest sign that the market could be starting to turn around nearly five years after the housing bubble burst. Still, housing construction remains at roughly half the pace that economists consider a healthy market.
Permits filed last month in the nine-county area totaled 352, a 2-percent year-over-year decrease. But activity through the first four months remains stronger than it was during the same time last year.
Pulte is tossing out the prior builder's playbook, which called for duplexes aimed at buyers 55 and older. Pulte rezoned the land to allow for single-family homes on larger lots. The resulting 123 home sites will accommodate ranch-style homes starting in the low $100,000 price range.
Newly confident buyers seeking to capitalize on low mortgage rates have discovered there’s a scarce supply of well-maintained existing homes for sale and are turning in larger numbers to new homes.
New-home permits in the Indianapolis metropolitan area rose 13 percent in the first three months of 2012 compared with the same quarter last year, bolstered by stronger activity in February and March.
Developers are catering to nontraditional renters by building units resembling upscale condos.
Residential building permits are being filed nationally at about half the rate considered healthy by most economists, but builders have grown more confident over the past six months after seeing more people express interest in buying a home.
The nine-county Indianapolis area rebounded from a slow January to post a 40-percent year-over-year increase in building permits last month.
Building permits filed in the nine-county Indianapolis metropolitan area totaled 194 in January, a 2-percent dip from the same time last year. But industry leaders are cautiously optimistic.
Kim Hutchison, 52, the former treasurer of Greenwood-based J. Greg Allen Builders and Princeton Homes, has been sentenced to 18 months in prison for allegedly stealing more than $446,000 from the now-closed companies.
New-home construction in the Indianapolis area slid in 2011, marking six straight year-over-year declines in residential building. The 3-percent decrease in building permits, however, was the smallest decrease since 2006.
In the nine-county metropolitan area, the number of home-construction permits filed last month dropped to 225, a 13-percent decrease from the same month in 2010.
Providence Homes was started earlier this year by Mitch Davis, 42, a former vice president of the now-defunct CP Morgan Homes; and Brian Mann, 44, managing partner of Mann Properties.
Double-digit increases in permit filings the past three months have residential construction activity in the Indianapolis metropolitan area in position to surpass last year’s pace.
Most buyers are bottom-fishers, investors looking for better returns or companies wanting their own building.
Paul Estridge Jr. owes a list of creditors including banks, suppliers and vendors more than $50 million, but has assets of less than $5 million, he said.
Kim Hutchinson, former treasurer of J. Greg Allen Builders and Princeton Homes, agreed to plead guilty to stealing $446,419. Her cooperation likely will result in a lighter sentence of 30 to 40 months.
The number of permits filed last month in the Indianapolis metropolitan area declined to 305, a decrease of 4 percent from the same month in 2010, according to the Builders Association of Greater Indianapolis.