The Real Deal

May 06 2008 – Ah, spring is in the air. For many of you that means it’s time to dive into the real estate market by buying or selling a home.

Apr 22 2008 – There’s something brewing in Spring Hill, and it’s not just the Brazilian Oro at Carpe Diem.

Mar 25 2008 – A couple of columns ago, I wrote about moving to and from LA.

Mar 11 2008 – With all of the new developments around town, we talk with some local realtors about what is to be expected in the coming months.

Feb 25 2008 – Mobile’s favorite raconteur, Eugene Walter, opened his novel, "The Untidy Pilgrim," with this famous passage (well, it’s famous in Mobile anyway): "Down in Mobile they’re all crazy, because the Gulf Coast is the kingdom of monkeys, the land of clowns, ghosts and musicians, and Mobile is sweet lunacy’s county seat." Can you imagine a more apt description of our fair city?

Feb 12 2008 – It’s "Idol" season again, and it seems every time I turn on the radio, there’s Daughtry – the guy who’s made the most money by losing the contest – belting out his mega-hit "Home." "Be careful what you wish for," he sings "You just might get it all." And now it seems that’s exactly what’s happened to the city of Mobile.

Jan 28 2008 – Now that the holiday gift-buying frenzy is a month or so behind us, I have a question for all you readers out there in Lagniappe Land.

Jan 15 2008 – Yep, it’s that time of year again. I’ve been to just one parade so far and already there are beads all over the house, a pair of stuffed pink dice hanging in the living room and the kitchen is well-stocked with MoonPies and tongue-coloring chewy pops we’ll never eat.

Jan 01 2008 – Heck, if I’d known I could manifest things by simply writing about them, I would have been asking for a lot more stuff.

Dec 18 2007 – Yes, it’s that time of year again. I haven’t even thought about getting a tree yet, there are cards to address and they’ve already announced the Mardi Gras parade schedules.

Dec 04 2007 – What’s up with all the drama in Oakleigh? In my last column I mentioned that the historic Bellingrath Carriage House at 1114 Government St.

Nov 20 2007 – Things are a-hopping in Midtown these days. Back in October, I wrote about the goings-on in Oakleigh, including rumors circulating the neighborhood that a local shipbuilding company was purchasing an apartment complex to house immigrant workers.

Nov 06 2007 – Downtown living got a pretty nice preview with the recent Downtown Living Tour. Hopefully it’s a view of what we’ll see in the not-too-distant-future.

Oct 23 2007 – A year ago, I wrote about Mobile’s brain drain problem.

Oct 09 2007 – Ever wonder what all those cool lofts downtown look like inside (but not badly enough to call a real estate agent)?

Sep 25 2007 – When Carnival Cruise Lines started cruising out of Mobile in October 2004, there was dancing in the streets.

Sep 11 2007 – I’m jonesin’ to live on the water. Of course, I want to be up on a bluff (or otherwise protected from "tropical occurrences"), fairly close to downtown Mobile.

Aug 28 2007 – It’s been a year since I took over the real estate/biz beat at the Lag-nappie (woo-wee), and they haven’t fired me yet.

Aug 14 2007 – Oh dear….oh dear. Kevin and I spent last weekend in Asheville visiting my brother and sister-in-law.

Jul 31 2007 – Have you noticed the increase in commercial development in Midtown Mobile, in predominantly residential historic districts?

Jul 17 2007 – There’s no doubt downtown Mobile is undergoing a renaissance, driven in large part by residential development.

Jul 03 2007 – Mercy, what’s up with all the yard signs on Dauphin Street in Midtown?

Jun 19 2007 – Geez oh Pete, things sure do move sloooow around here sometimes.

Jun 05 2007 – The bon temps just keep on rolling. First, the ThyssenKrupp steel mill announcement in mid-May.

May 22 2007 – Just when you thought life couldn’t get any better along Mobile Bay, the long-awaited RSA Battle House Tower and the Battle House Hotel finally open and ThyssenKrupp chooses Mobile for their new $3.7 billion steel mill and the Earnhardts decide to add two more tracks to their little park up in Prichard – all in one glorious long weekend.

May 08 2007 – If you read my last column, you know Mobile ranked 17th out of 282 U.S.

Apr 25 2007 – Every time you turn around there’s another embarrassing article ranking Alabama first in something bad or last in something good.

Apr 10 2007 – When my editor suggested I do a column on development along the Causeway, the first thing I did was take a little road trip to see what was going on between the lovely Austal boat shed to the west and Alligator Alley to the east.

Mar 28 2007 – Ahhh, spring…and a young man (or woman’s) fancy turns to love.

Mar 13 2007 – Ever wonder how the whole loft thing got started downtown?

Feb 27 2007 – So who knew that Warren Buffett – the second-richest man in the world according to Forbes magazine – has a business presence in little ol’ Mobile?

Feb 13 2007 – If you’re headed to downtown Mobile for Mardi Gras, and you haven’t been downtown for a while, you may expect to see the area transformed.

Jan 30 2007 – The condo action in Mobile isn’t all downtown these days.

Jan 16 2007 – Back in the day, Broad Street was a thriving corridor lined with elegant homes and small businesses serving residents of the surrounding neighborhoods.

Jan 02 2007 – By Sharman Egan Lagniappe columnist In the last "Real Deal," we looked at the most important events of 2006 in the Mobile Bay area, based on interviews with five area business leaders: Darrelyn Bender, president of the Eastern Shore Chamber of Commerce; David Clark, chairman of the Eastern Shore Chamber of Commerce and general manager of the Grand Hotel Marriott, Win Hallett, president of the Mobile Area Chamber of Commerce; Lee Metzger, president of the Mobile Bay Area Association of Realtors and director of real estate for Providence Hospital; and Claudene Nichols, president of the Baldwin County Association of Realtors and broker/co-owner of Prudential Nichols Real Estate.

Dec 19 2006 – By Sharman Egan Lagniappe columnist Oh my, what a year it’s been for business and real estate in the Mobile Bay area.

Dec 05 2006 – By Sharman Egan Lagniappe columnist Several months ago, the Downtown Mobile Alliance commissioned a study on the market potential for housing in downtown Mobile.

Nov 21 2006 – By Sharman Egan Lagniappe columnist For the last few weeks the e-mails have been flying around Oakleigh faster than Dale Earnhardt Jr.

Nov 08 2006 – Will the "Crack Dixie" on Catherine Street ever get it’s act together? Our intrepid columnist is praying for them and praying for LoDa/MiMo in the process.

Oct 25 2006 – By Sharman Egan Lagniappe columnist There’s been a lot of talk recently about the new I-10 bridge.

Oct 10 2006 – By Sharman Egan Lagniappe columnist If you’re looking to buy a house in Mobile in the next year or so, and especially if you want something under $150,000, you may want to consider the Hillsdale neighborhood next to the USA campus.

Sep 27 2006 – The real estate and business buzz on the Bay over the last several weeks has been all about NASCAR.

Sep 13 2006 – Mobile is on a roll. Real estate is booming, unemployment is low, sales tax revenues are high and life on Mobile Bay is good.

Aug 29 2006 – By Sharman Egan Lagniappe columnist If you’re interested in the Mobile real estate market, you have to wonder what’s going on with development on the Western Shore.

Aug 16 2006 – By Sharman Egan Lagniappe columnist According to Wikipedia, tipping point is a "sociological term that refers to that dramatic moment when something unique becomes common." The phrase was first coined in the 1960s, but most of us became familiar with it in 2000 when Malcolm Gladwell published his bestselling book, "The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference." So how does this tipping point concept apply to downtown Mobile?

Aug 01 2006 – Residential development is coming quickly to downtown Mobile, but that doesn’t necessarily mean anyone knows where it’s going or what its effect will be.

Jul 19 2006 – Mobile’s proximity to the disaster area created by Hurricane Katrina has already proven to be a boon, bringing displaced citizens and businesses.

Jul 05 2006 – By Lagniappe staff It looks like the Riverview Plaza and Battle House Hotel will soon have some company along Royal Street in downtown Mobile, as Hampton Inn plans to build a 155-room hotel between Government and Dauphin Streets.

Jun 21 2006 – What goes around comes around and one Mobilian hopes his establishment of a revolving fund to renovate historic houses can revive past glory.

Jun 06 2006 – Hurricane season has gripped everyone that owns a home with real fear.

May 23 2006 – Mobile is about to become the Real Deal with the tallest building in Alabama, a major shipping and cruise port, a major aeronautical manufacture/service hub, a leading cancer research center, a growing tourist and retirement destination and more.

May 09 2006 – Everyday someone asks whatever happened to this or that deal, is it for real?

Apr 26 2006 – Is Mobile really turning the corner? After all these years, is optimism the new attitude?

Apr 11 2006 – If you are reading Lagniappe you probably have an interest in downtown Mobile.

Mar 29 2006 – New columnist Robin Delaney wants to use real estate to help build community.