Not every city has a downtown area. While they may have a good location and a lot of housing options, they lack a town center where people can eat, shop and enjoy community events. Boulder's Pearl Street pedestrian mall is the heart of the city, and Louisville's old town area has undergone some phenomenal improvements over the past decade. The City of Lafayette does not want to be left behind.
In 1999, the city council established the Lafayette Urban Renewal Authority (LURA). The mission of LURA is "to encourage revitalization and redevelopment in the Downtown Urban Renewal Area and the South Boulder Road Urban Renewal Area by working in partnership with property owners to improve existing structures, fostering new development, and preventing deterioration of properties within the urban renewal districts."
One of the initiatives is to realize the potential of the downtown area. The desire is to develop the Old Town identity by enhancing the diversity of it's businesses and pedestrian lifestyle. That's good news for the local homeowners as well as the business owners and residents. I thought it might be time to take a look at a few of the properties for sale near the downtown area.
The description leads with, "Eccentric Artists Welcome!" Does this speak to the inspirational quality of the home or imply that you must be creative to see potential? Not even a block off of Public Road, the ability to walk to shops is a plus, but with only 2 beds, 1 bath and 972 finished sqft this ranch may be on the small side for some.
This property is actually two lots, totaling almost a half acre. Built in 1905, the 2 bed, 1 bath property has a root cellar and alley access to a 1 car detached garage. Somewhere along the way it's been updated with central air and a sprinkler system. This may be a great property to subdivide and sell, or live in one house while you build another.
This listing says the property is zoned for a duplex, so possibly a good investment for someone who wants to take on a renter. It boasts over 3000 sqft with 5 beds, 2 baths and a 4 car detached garage with shop. Not many pictures on the internet; I'll be curious to see both what this house and the block its on looks like.
This listing is a duplex built in 1943 with a 2 car detached garage plus 4 parking spaces off of the alley. There's a total of 3014 sqft with 6 beds and 3 baths, but it's hard to tell how those rooms are divided between the two units. Another opportunity for someone who would like to take on a renter, or perhaps put up their recently returned college graduate.
Depending on your situation, these properties could be a great investment for the future. Whether you renovate the current houses or start from scratch, the area is on the cusp of some brilliant changes which should positively affect property values. Take a drive around the downtown area sometime, and give me a call if you want some sales stats and history.
I would love to help you with your real estate journey.
Please contact me at 303-917-7143 or robbin@stauferteam.com
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