The Scoop
The Press Room
Wesley Webb Says the Tupelo Land Rush Is On
Question: Why did you become a Mossy Oak Properties’ agent?
Webb: I’ve always wanted to be involved in land sales. They’re a young company and I’m kind of young. Mossy Oak Properties is an aggressive company, and I like to work with these kinds of people.
Question: What types of investors are buying property in and around Tupelo?
Webb: Smart ones. Tupelo may be one of the fastest-growing sections of the nation. We’re seeing individuals purchasing land to hunt ducks on, to hunt deer on, to develop and to use strictly as an investment. Most of our investors have had money in stocks and bonds and/or they are self-employed and own small businesses and have earned enough money to consider investing in land. They want places to drive their tractors and hunt deer and ducks. We’re also seeing people who have had their life savings tied up in company 401k plans and now are pulling that money out of those 401k plans and investing it in forest-recreation lands and timber lands. Those are the general reasons.
There is a second major consideration that’s making Tupelo a boomtown for investors - Toyota. Ground has already been broken for a brand-new Toyota plant here in Tupelo that will employ 2,000 people. It should be up and running around the end of 2009. Three subsidiary companies that will be supplying the Toyota plants have announced that they are opening plants here, and two other companies are rumored to be coming to this region. The town of Tupelo’s current population is around 40,000, and it may home 60,000 people or more within the next 3 years. Most of the people moving to town are looking for 1- to 2-acre lots. Many of these folks want to live right outside of Tupelo close to the Toyota plant.
Interstate 222 is another tremendous advantage that’s coming to Tupelo. This new interstate is scheduled to be opened at the same time the Toyota plant opens. Interstate 222 will run from Birmingham, Alabama, to Memphis, Tennessee. This major highway will provide an artery for people working in Tupelo and at the Toyota plant and at these other plants to anywhere they want to go. The Toyota plant will be located about 10 miles from Tupelo. Therefore, the land between Tupelo and the plant is prime property. Also, properties 30-miles away from the Toyota plant will be lands that the newcomers to the town will be considering for home building and recreational properties. Since the announcement that the Toyota plant will be coming to Tupelo, land prices have increased dramatically. I just sold some land I bought a year before the plant was announced for twice what I paid for it. There are some tremendous opportunities for developers and investors who want to purchase raw land and who have visions for the future.
To contact Wesley Webb, call (662) 231-0740, or email him at wwebb@mossyoakproperties.com.
Tomorrow: Bet on a Duck Hole
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