Arkansas

Report: New builds dominate home sales in Northwest Arkansas – Talk Business & Politics

Published

2 years ago

March 19, 2024

Report: New builds dominate home sales in Northwest Arkansas – Talk Business & Politics

Arvest Bank has published the latest Skyline Reports on residential and multifamily real estate in Northwest Arkansas for the latter half of 2023. The bank sponsors the biannual reports completed by the Center for Business and Economic Research (CBER) at the Sam M. Walton College of Business at the University of Arkansas.

In the residential sector, home sales saw a 2.1% decline in the final six months compared to the same period in 2022 and a significant drop of 22.5% compared to the latter half of 2021. Notably, new construction homes accounted for 39.9% of all homes sold, the highest percentage since the inception of the Skyline Report in 2004.

“The increasingly high percentage of new builds indicates a couple of market trends,” said CBER Director Mervin Jebaraj, the lead researcher for the Skyline Report. “One is that current homeowners are less likely to make an in-market move because of higher interest rates, as most people don’t want to replace a 3.5% mortgage with one at 7.0% or higher.

“Secondly, many new home developers offer assistance by paying points that reduce a loan’s interest rate. Some homebuilders might also be helping buyers with other incentives like including appliance packages with new homes.”

A result of that trend is that inventories of existing homes for sale have risen. Two years ago, at the end of 2021, there were 584 homes for sale in the MLS database. That number increased to 1,618 at the end of 2022 and 2,119 at the end of last year, representing a 263% increase.

Jebaraj also discussed the need for regional coordination regarding rezoning along the U.S. Highway 71B corridor.

“With all four major cities in the region having mayoral elections later this year, I hope we use the opportunity to seek public support for re-imagining the 71B corridor to allow transit-oriented denser housing growth closer to the city centers,” he said. ‘As the region continues to grow population, a coordinated approach to redevelopment among the four big cities would go a long way towards solving many of the housing issues and disruptions from unplanned growth we are experiencing.”

MULTIFAMILY
In the multifamily market, the region’s overall vacancy rate rose from 2.2% a year ago to 3.1% due to 10 new apartment complexes with almost 1,700 new units entering the market. Even with the influx of new rental units, the cost of renting continued to climb, with the average lease rate moving above $1,000 per month for the first time.

“While the multifamily vacancy rate increased, it is still very low nationally,” Jebaraj said. “And with so many new complexes entering the rental market toward the end of the year, it takes some time for new properties to get leased up. I suspect that the vacancy rate today is lower than it was at the end of the year.”

“It is obvious that higher mortgage interest rates are having an impact on the housing market in Northwest Arkansas,” said Gene Gates, executive vice president and loan manager with Arvest Bank in Fayetteville. “At the same time, the region continues to grow in population, and we continue to see a healthy market to help customers with mortgages. We are also working with apartment developers to secure the funding they need.”

For a PDF of the residential report, click here.

For a PDF of the multifamily report, click here.

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Arkansas

Arkansas driver’s licenses and state IDs now available in Apple Wallet

Published

6 hours ago

June 3, 2026

Press Room

Arkansas driver’s licenses and state IDs now available in Apple Wallet

Arkansans can now present their driver’s licenses and state identification cards on mobile devices using Apple Wallet, state finance officials announced Wednesday.

The Department of Finance and Administration said Arkansans can use Apple Wallet to present their license or ID in person, online and in apps at select organizations, including at more than 250 Transportation Security

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Arkansas

Your Arkansas Driver’s License Can Now Live on Your iPhone

Published

16 hours ago

June 2, 2026

Press Room

Your Arkansas Driver’s License Can Now Live on Your iPhone

IDEMIA Public Security North America and the Arkansas Department of Finance and Administration’s Division of Driver Services and Motor Vehicles have launched Arkansas driver’s licenses and state IDs in Apple Wallet, allowing residents to securely store and use their credentials on an iPhone or Apple Watch.

The new feature gives Arkansans the ability to present their identification at participating businesses and venues, at Transportation Security Administration (TSA) checkpoints in more than 250 airports, and online or within apps when age or identity verification is required.

The launch builds on Arkansas’ ongoing efforts to expand digital identification options. In March 2025, the state introduced the Arkansas Mobile ID app, and officials say adding IDs to Apple Wallet offers residents another secure and convenient way to access their credentials.

“We’re proud to build on our partnership with the Arkansas DFA’s Division of Driver Services and Motor Vehicles, expanding on the launch of the Arkansas Mobile ID app in March 2025. The launch of ID in Apple Wallet in the state provides Arkansas residents a new, secure way to store and present their digital credentials, with transparency and control over how their information is shared at the forefront,” said Rob Gardner, CEO, IDEMIA Civil Identity.

To add an Arkansas driver’s license or state ID to Apple Wallet, users can tap the plus sign at the top of the Wallet app on their iPhone, select “Driver’s License or State ID,” and follow the verification process.

Officials say privacy and security were central considerations in the rollout. Information stored in Apple Wallet is encrypted on a user’s device, and users control when and how their information is shared. When presenting an ID, only the information necessary to verify age or identity is provided.

Apple and the Arkansas Division of Driver Services and Motor Vehicles also do not receive information about when or where residents use their digital IDs.

The technology is also designed to make verification easier for businesses. Participating businesses can use IDEMIA’s Mobile ID Verify app to accept and verify mobile IDs directly from an iPhone without requiring customers to hand over their devices or use additional hardware.

The launch marks another step toward broader adoption of digital credentials in Arkansas, giving residents a secure alternative to carrying a physical driver’s license or state ID while maintaining control over their personal information.

For information on the launch of IDs in Apple Wallet in Arkansas, click here.

READ ALSO: Adam O’Neal Stepping into Chancellor Role at UA-EACC

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Arkansas

Arkansas gymnatics coach Chris Brooks completes staff with hiring of Zan Jones | Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

Published

1 day ago

June 2, 2026

Press Room

Arkansas gymnatics coach Chris Brooks completes staff with hiring of Zan Jones | Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette

New Arkansas gymnastics coach Chris Brooks announced Monday the hiring of Zan Jones to complete his first staff, as well as the promotion of assistants Kyla Ross and Catelyn Branson.

Brooks succeeded his wife, Jordyn Wieber, on April 28 after Wieber stepped down.

Jones joins the Razorback after two seasons as an assistant coach at Texas Woman’s University in Denton, Texas. The Pioneers won back-to-back Women’s Collegiate Gymnastics National Invitational Championship titles in 2025 and 2026 with Jones on staff. He has been named a Women’s Collegiate Gymnastics Association Division II assistant coach of the year three times, including this spring.

Jones also earned Midwest Independent Conference assistant coach of the year in both of his seasons at Texas Woman’s.

Jones served as the Pioneers’ primary vault and uneven bars coach, and the team set a program record of 49.35 on the bars in March.

An Alabama alumnus, Jones served as a student manager for the Crimson Tide gymnastics team. He served a year at Talladega (Ala.) College in its inaugural season of gymnastics and spent time as a recreational and team coach at Trussville (Ala.) Academy of Gymnastics.

Brooks also promoted both Ross and Branson to the title of associate head coach. Ross, a former UCLA gymnast and Olympic gold medalist as part of Team USA in 2012, started at Arkansas as a volunteer assistant in 2022. Ross helped Arkansas produce program records on the balance beam in back-to-back years before taking over the vault squad, which set a program high 49.675 in 2026.

The Razorbacks ranked as high as No. 2 on the vault last season and were never lower than No. 7. Senior transfer Morgan Price landed the first 10 in school history on the vault in February.

Branson returned to the Arkansas staff ahead of the 2025 season, helping lead the floor squad. In that time, Branson has led the Gymbacks to two of their top five best floor scores ever and Arkansas has been ranked as high as No. 2 in the country on floor in the last two seasons. In 2026, over 60% of the team’s scores on floor were 9.85 or better.

Branson served as Lindenwood’s head coach from 2022-24, where she was named 2024 Women’s Collegiate Gymnastics Association South Central Region Coach of the Year and the Midwest Independent Conference Coach of the Year. She led the Lions to their second consecutive and fifth overall USAG national championship and seventh MIC title in 2024.

Branson had a prior stint at Arkansas from 2020 to 2022, in which time the Gymbacks ranked as high as third on beam and second on floor.

Tom Murphy

tmurphy@wholehogsports.com

Tom Murphy is a sports reporter for WholeHogSports. A graduate of Louisiana Tech University, he is a member of the Football Writers Association of America and voter for the Heisman Trophy and AP Top 25 football poll. He was voted the 2017 Arkansas Sportswriter of the Year.

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