What was the biggest building project in Tulare County in 2023?
The largest building project in Tulare County last year (by far) was valued at $468 million and involved construction of a ground mounted solar project near Richgrove called Rexford Solar Farm.The two phase project sprawls over nearly 5000 acres and will produce 1200MW of solar power and 1200MW of battery storage. The solar farm is said to be the largest in the nation.
The huge dollar value rivals the building of the 33-mile Friant Kern Canal replacement estimated to be costing $500 million.By contrast the million sq ft Amazon buildings in Visalia came in around $100 million each and the new Visalia Civic Center built on 33 acres in east Visalia, is estimated to cost about $107 million.
Visalia new home construction lags while multi-family is up
Latest snapshot of building activity through August in Visalia published by the city shows new home construction down 19% from the year before permitting 195 single-family homes versus 240 during the same eight months of 2023.
On the other hand, multifamily construction is way up, permitting 323 apartments so far this year compared to just 19 during the same period 2023. The value of the single family home construction is $63 million through August while the value of the multifamily is nearly as much at $60 million.
Low interest rates may stimulate more building activity in Visalia going forward but so far this summer the monthly building numbers are lower each month than the 2023 numbers.In Tulare County, San Joaquin Valley homes is the busiest builder this year.
It’s taking longer to sell a home
The latest report from the Tulare County Association of Realtors shows that it is taking longer to sell single-family homes in the county than in past years. In August 2024 it’s taking 11% longer compared to the same month and two years ago it’s 110% longer, says the report. As of this August it’s taking over 45 days to market and sell a single-family home in Tulare County. In August 2022 it took just 22 days.
Tulare County home sales per month are down from around 350 in Aug 2021 to under 250 this last month.
Zeeb merges with Pearson
Visalia-based Zeeb Commercial Real Estate will merge with Fresno’s largest commercial broker Pearson Realty,the two companies announced recently. Zeeb Commercial Real Estate was founded in 1986 by Marty Zeeb.