From The Trussville Tribune staff reports
TRUSSVILLE –After a steep decline in new home construction in 2006, virtually every city in metro Birmingham began a prolonged struggle to renew residential growth.
Low interest rates and an improved economy helped the new home construction market to gain traction and forward progress has been underway since 2012 with a surge in 2015.
While new home starts have not reached the 2005 high, the last three years have been strong and few cities in the metro area can match Trussville’s numbers.
In addition to the interest rates and economy, highly ranked schools combined with low crime rates, city amenities, retail shopping, and dining options have driven Trussville’s growth. Not to be overlooked is the well underway entertainment district and revitalization of downtown which ranks high on young professional families’ wish list when choosing a home.
New home values in Trussville have topped an average of $300,000 since 2016 when the average was $310,125. The data is based on new residential building permits which are calculated on the value of the completed dwelling.
“You also have to remember that those numbers don’t include the cost of the lot,” Trussville City Clerk Lynn Porter said.
In 2017, there were 221 new homes built in Trussville at an average value of $311,242. So far in 2018, the average new home value remains well above the $300,000 mark. Those averages are up from $233,000 in 2015
According to a recent article on residential growth in the metro Birmingham market, the Birmingham Business Journal reported, “Both in terms of long- and short-term growth, Trussville is one of the standouts.”
“According to building permit data, Trussville posted a 49 percent increase in residential permits between 2016 and 2017, which was comfortably the highest among local cities. From 2013 to 2017, the city’s growth in homebuilding permits topped 70 percent,” the BBJ reported. “Another suburb, Gardendale, posted a 31 percent increase to rank second. Birmingham (25 percent), Helena (23.8) and Vestavia Hills (21.7 percent) rounded out the top five.”