Louisiana

Louisiana’s insurance crisis expected to hang over real estate market in the coming year

Published

2 months ago

October 10, 2024

Louisiana’s insurance crisis expected to hang over real estate market in the coming year

NEW ORLEANS (WVUE) – The New Orleans Metropolitan Association of Realtors (NOMAR) hosted its annual Forecast Symposium, where real estate professionals gathered to discuss key factors impacting the housing market.

A major theme this year was Louisiana’s ongoing insurance crisis, which is severely affecting home sales and affordability.

Craig Mirambell, president of NOMAR, says soaring insurance premiums have become a central issue.

“Insurance prices are really outrageous, interest rates being high, the economy is slow, elections are coming up. We got a lot of negatives, but the good thing is homeowners have kept the equity in their houses,” said Mirambell.

Mirambell says Louisiana’s insurance crisis has been pulling down the state’s housing industry for the last two years. He believes the most recent hurricanes along the Gulf Coast can only complicate matters.

“Even though we didn’t get a direct hit here in Louisiana, seeing these come to our Southern friends, is ultimately not going to help our insurance rates at all assumably. So that wasn’t needed, the costs that are coming with that are ultimately going to keep prices high,” said Mirambell.

Those prices have made it very tough for some realtors to sell homes. That means less money is coming in.

“To be honest, I used to do real estate full-time. I do not do it full-time anymore because it’s just too hard. I have a family as well. So, I can’t put everything on these deals happening, because I need them to happen. If they don’t happen, then my clients aren’t happy and then family isn’t happy,” said Misty Frye of Frye & Melancon Realty in New Orleans.

INSURANCE CRISIS

Misty Frye has been an agent for 17 years and says the cost associated with a buying home in Louisiana can often put potential buyers on an emotional roller coaster.

“People can be tearful, they’re upset. They think they’re getting to the finish line and then something comes up and it’s like, oh no, you can’t do it, the insurance blew it out of the water,” Frye said.

Dr. Jessica Lautz was a featured speaker at this year’s symposium. She is an economist for the National Association of Realtors. She brought a broader view to the forecasting conference and said Louisiana’s real estate industry is facing several headwinds, including declining population.

“In most areas of the Sun Belt, we see a mass migration into those areas, but unfortunately Louisiana is not seeing that. So, we don’t have that in the New Orleans area. Job growth has not rebounded since before the start of COVID and that could be restricting people from moving here. Though what I have to say affordability is definitely in a better in a better scenario than what we see in other areas of the country,” said Dr. Lautz.

Despite the multiple challenges the New Orleans real estate market has faced in recent years, NOMAR’s board president predicted an improving market in 2025.

“I’m always an optimistic kind of guy. I like to bring that to our boardroom, our clients and consumers. Ultimately, we are at a slower time in the market right now. The market has been slow. We had an uptick in COVID that was kind of wild and crazy. Surely, it had to go down from there. Once, the election is over and people settle down from that, we expect the market to pick up in 2025 regardless of insurance prices.” said Mirambell.

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Louisiana

Louisiana (LHSAA) high school football playoffs: quarterfinals schedule, matchups, times, scores, 2024 brackets

Published

7 hours ago

November 28, 2024

Press Room

Louisiana (LHSAA) high school football playoffs: quarterfinals schedule, matchups, times, scores, 2024 brackets

The Louisiana high school football playoffs continued last week, and now it’s time for Round 3 — the state quarterfinals.

Stick with High School on SI for complete coverage of the 2024 LHSAA football playoffs.

Here are the Louisiana high school football playoff brackets, with matchups and game times for every LHSAA division:

(1) Vermilion Catholic vs. (8) St. Edmund

Friday

7 p.m.

(12) Kentwood vs. (13) Southern Lab

Friday

7 p.m.

(3) Covenant Christian vs. (11) Ouachita Christian

Friday

7 p.m.

(2) Ascension Catholic vs. (7) Riverside Academy

Friday

7 p.m.

(1) Haynesville vs. (9) Welsh

Friday

7:30 p.m.

(4) Jeanerette vs. (12) General Trass

Friday

7 p.m.

(6) Logansport vs. (19) Franklin

Friday

7 p.m.

(2) South Plaquemines vs. (7) Mangham

Friday

7 p.m.

(1) Dunham vs. (9) Lafayette Christian

Friday

7 p.m.

(4) Jewel Sumner vs. (5) Bunkie

Friday

7 p.m.

(3) Calvary Baptist vs. (6) Episcopal

Friday

7 p.m.

(2) Isidore Newman vs. (7) Catholic – N.I.

Friday

7 p.m.

(1) St. James vs. (9) Pine

Friday

7 p.m.

(4) Kinder vs. (5) Union Parish

Friday

7 p.m.

(3) Oak Grove vs. (6) Sterlington

Friday

7 p.m.

(7) Jena vs. (15) Loreauville

Friday

7 p.m.

(1) Archbishop Shaw vs. (8) John F. Kennedy

Friday

7 p.m.

(5) Madison Prep vs. (13) Istrouma

Friday

7 p.m.

(3) E.D. White vs. (6) Vanderbilt Catholic

Friday

7 p.m.

(7) Leesville vs. (18) Booker T. Washington – N.O.

Friday

7 p.m.

(1) Franklinton vs. (8) Lakeshore

Friday

7 p.m.

(4) Franklin Parish vs. (5) Iowa

Friday

7 p.m.

(6) Plaquemine vs. (14) Opelousas

Friday

7 p.m.

(7) North DeSoto vs. (18) Cecilia

Friday

7 p.m.

(1) Edna Karr vs. (8) St. Thomas More

Friday

7 p.m.

(4) Catholic – B.R. vs. (5) Archbishop Rummel

Friday

7 p.m.

(6) Teurlings Catholic vs. (19) John Curtis Christian

Friday

7 p.m.

(2) Alexandria vs. (10) C.E. Byrd

Friday

7 p.m.

(1) Neville vs. (24) Chalmette

Friday

7 p.m.

(4) Central – B.R. vs. (21) West Monroe

Friday

7 p.m.

(3) Ruston vs. (6) Southside

Friday

7 p.m.

(2) Airline vs. (10) Destrehan

Friday

7 p.m.

To get live updates on your phone — as well as follow your favorite teams and top games — you can download the SBLive Sports app: Download iPhone App | Download Android App

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Louisiana

Genetic testing shows more Gulf of Mexico shrimp at Louisiana seafood market, festival • Louisiana Illuminator

Published

15 hours ago

November 28, 2024

Press Room

Genetic testing shows more Gulf of Mexico shrimp at Louisiana seafood market, festival • Louisiana Illuminator

A joint WVUE-TV Fox and Louisiana Illuminator investigation into shrimp sold at festival and market vendors in the New Orleans area found most of the samples to be domestic.

The results could indicate retailers and event organizers are becoming more careful about how they label and present their dishes.

The samples of shrimp were collected from nine vendors at an area seafood market in early November and from five vendors Oct. 6 at the Gretna Heritage Festival. Only one of the samples, which came from a non-restaurant vendor at the Gretna Fest, tested positive as foreign. All nine samples from the seafood market were from the Gulf of Mexico, the analysis found.

The testing was performed by SeaD Consulting, a food safety technology company that recently developed a rapid seafood species identification test. Dave Williams, a Houston resident, developed the process in collaboration with Florida State University microbiologist Prashant Singh.

“I grew up in the fishing communities,” Williams said. “It’s important to me.”

Their technology examines tissue for specific DNA markers unique to a species of Asian shrimp commonly raised in aquaculture farms.

The Illuminator and WVUE-TV Fox 8 independently collected the shrimp samples and shipped them to Singh’s laboratory at Florida State, following an industry standard chain-of-custody protocol.

Last month, SeaD Consulting used its own team to collect seven samples from the inaugural Louisiana Shrimp Festival in New Orleans. Testing from that event showed all seven samples were domestic, though that was expected considering the event served as a fundraiser for local shrimpers.

Those results are a far cry from those seen at the Louisiana Shrimp & Petroleum Festival in Morgan City, where four out of five vendors evaluated during the Labor Day weekend event were serving shrimp that tested positive for foreign genetic markers.

A similar story unfolded a few weeks later at the National Shrimp Festival in Gulf Shores, Alabama, on Oct. 12. Testing by SeaD Consulting at that event revealed four out of five samples were farm-raised imports.

A row of food vendors at the 2024 Louisiana Shrimp & Petroleum Festival in Morgan City, La. (Photo courtesy of Erin Williams/Sea D Consulting)

News of the Louisiana Shrimp & Petroleum Festival results sparked immediate outrage from consumers and public officials who have been trying for years to address the ongoing problem of imported seafood. State Rep. Jessica Domangue, R-Houma, publicly excoriated Shrimp & Petroleum Festival organizers for allowing its vendors to undermine Louisiana’s unique culture and “openly violate Louisiana law” for years.

Williams said he believes word of his testing has gotten out to festival and market organizers, prompting them to consider stricter rules for food vendors. He has now turned his attention to the restaurant industry, which he said has been more resistant to change.

“We don’t want to stop people promoting their product in a manner that helps them sell it,” Williams said. “So if they’re going to put boats on the wall, if they’re going to have nets, if they’re going to imply that they’re local, then, for God’s sake, serve local product.”

State laws require restaurants and anyone else selling seafood in Louisiana to label it as such, but the state never adequately funded enforcement of the laws. Ambiguity in state law prevented health inspectors from levying fines even after recording more than 2,600 violations since 2019. Lawmakers rectified that issue with legislation passed in May, calling for stricter enforcement.

Laws at the federal level have seen a recent step-up in enforcement.

Last summer, U.S. Food & Drug Administration agents arrested the owners of an iconic Mississippi Gulf Coast restaurant and their seafood wholesalers on charges related to a decades-long fish substitution scheme. The individuals pleaded guilty to felonies ranging from wire fraud to mislabeling seafood.

In the wake of that case, the Federal Trade Commission adopted new guidance in October to clarify that restaurant decor, imagery, menu descriptions and slogans that suggest their seafood is local could be illegal if the restaurant is not actually serving domestic catch, according to Reuters.

Pile of shrimp sitting on table on a boat — A batch of wild caught Gulf of Mexico shrimp sits on a sorting table on shrimper Keo Nguyen’s boat at a dock east of Lake Borgne prior to bringing it to a seafood market Tuesday, Oct. 24, 2023. (Wes Muller/Louisiana Illuminator)

According to some estimates, upwards of 80% to 90% of seafood consumed in the U.S. is imported. The foreign seafood industry has a number of problems. Some seafood companies have been caught using slave labor for commercial fishing and processing, and testing of imported seafood in Louisiana revealed the presence of banned veterinary chemicals that are potentially harmful to humans.

Louisiana shrimper and seafood retailer David Chauvin said the influx of cheap imported shrimp has decimated the domestic industry.

“For us to compete with imported shrimp, we can’t,” he said. “If we keep going down this road, we’ll be out of business.”

Chauvin said he believes regular genetic testing at restaurants and festivals could make a big difference for the industry. He and other shrimpers have been asking for tighter regulations for years, but he said there are many big businesses making a lot of money from the status quo. The state should at least require all state institutions, such as schools and prisons, to prohibit serving imported shrimp, he said.

Chauvin’s idea was actually included in legislation Louisiana approved in May that will take effect Jan. 1. The new law will require all local school districts, state agencies and state institutions that serve seafood to use only domestic shrimp and crawfish. It will also set much stricter country-of-origin laws for restaurants, prohibitions against vague menu descriptions, clear enforcement authorizations for state agencies and much higher fines for labeling violations by retailers and wholesalers.

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Louisiana

Obituary for Liz Marie Cole at Kinchen Funeral Home, Inc.

Published

23 hours ago

November 27, 2024

Press Room

Obituary for Liz Marie Cole at Kinchen Funeral Home, Inc.

Liz Marie Cole February 3, 1969 – November 25, 2024 Scott Liz Cole passed away on November 25, 2024. She was born in Lafayette, Louisiana, on February 3, 1969, to Donald Cole and Jenelle Broussard Cole of Scott, Louisiana. Liz is survived by her mother, Jenelle Cole Michael Cluse her

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