Market Value Analysis: New Orleans
In New Orleans, Reinvestment Fund’s Market Value Analysis (MVA) tool has been helping city officials make better-informed decisions about where to direct limited development funds since 2012. “The Market Value Analysis is an invaluable tool as we strategically implement programs to restore properties to commerce,” said Brenda M. Breaux, Executive Director of the New Orleans Redevelopment Authority (NORA).
Prior to using the MVA, when deciding whether to demolish a blighted property or invest in it, NORA relied on an informal assessment of the neighborhood and how the area was likely to be affected by either course of action. Now, NORA can rely on the MVA and its component metrics for the area in question, such as the median sales price, permit activity, the presence of vacant land, and the percentage of homes that are owner-occupied. “The MVA highlights important neighborhood characteristics that inform our policies and programs. The analysis lends itself to the development of a custom set of tools to address the unique market conditions associated with each cluster,” said Ms. Breaux.
With updates conducted in 2015, 2018, and 2023, Breaux added, “The MVA allows us to visualize the impact of our programs by mapping our investments against the evolution of our real estate market over time. While the MVA benefits from continuity over time, the model is also dynamic and is constantly being refined. For example, the 2018 iteration incorporated a new Short Term Rental License variable reflecting a market factor that couldn’t have been contemplated when the first iteration was completed in 2012 and the 2023 MVA adjusted market categories to reflect strengthening observed across the board.
Indeed, the New Orleans real estate market has undergone remarkable change since the 2012 MVA. NORA’s Chief of Strategy, Programs, and Projects, Seth Knudsen, noted that “In our strengthening market, the MVA has allowed us to identify areas where the rate of neighborhood appreciation has not kept pace with the city as a whole and there is opportunity for growth. The MVA overlays allow us to track important private investment trends within the city and explore the critical relationships between those housing and commercial investments and neighborhood strength. We have used the MVA to identify areas where we can successfully auction properties for market rate residential development as well as areas where development and homebuyer subsidies are needed for affordable housing development.”
The latest update was released in October 2023.
New Orleans 2023 MVA