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       For the second time in as many years, St. Tammany Parish voters will decide a referendum that seeks to double the homestead exemption for veterans who are disabled from their military service.

       Last November, voters in St. Tammany and statewide approved a constitutional amendment that gave parishes the option to hold local elections to ask voters if they want to double the homestead exemption for veterans whose service injuries render them entirely unable to work.

       The issue will come before St. Tammany Parish voters again Oct. 22; passage this time would make it the rule in St. Tammany.

       In the metro area, voters in St. Charles Parish have approved the increased homestead exemption for disabled veterans. Like St. Tammany, voters in Jefferson, St. John the Baptist, Plaquemines and St. Bernard parishes will decide the issue in those parishes Oct. 22.

       The St. Tammany Parish Council, at the urging of Assessor Patricia Schwarz Core and council members Marty Gould, Al Hamauei, Steve Stefancik, Reid Falconer and Gene Bellisario, approved legislation this spring to bring the issue to parish voters.

       The measure only affects veterans considered 100-percent disabled by the U.S. Department of Military Affairs due to service-related injuries. If approved, the homestead exemption for these veterans would increase from the usual $75,000, to $150,000. The benefit would extend to spouses after the disabled veterans die.

      Core, a supporter of the measure, said the tax break would affect a small portion of taxpayers and estimated it would cost the parish around $30,000 annually.

"So it won't really cost that much," she said.

       Robin Keller, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Veterans Affairs, said information on the specific number of disabled veterans in St. Tammany is confidential due to privacy laws. She said there are more than 23,000 veterans living in St. Tammany, but that the number of veterans who would be impacted by the referendum, if approved, is "significantly lower."

       The idea for the increased homestead exemption came from the Baton Rouge chapter of the Military Order of the Purple Heart, where the commander wanted to help disabled veterans and saw that Texas offered a tax break.

       Last fall, the government watchdog group Bureau of Governmental Research estimated that 2,500 veterans statewide would qualify. The BGR opposed the constitutional amendment, in part saying it was the federal government's role to provide benefits to veterans and noting that a provision in the amendment prevents local governments from replacing lost revenue through other measures.

       The Northshore Legislative Alliance, a collaboration of the St. Tammany West and East chambers of commerce and the Northshore Business Council, is set to discuss the measure on Wednesday.

       If the vote on the constitutional amendment last November is any indication, the measure is likely to find a sympathetic electorate in St. Tammany. The constitutional amendment paving the way for the local election passed here by a margin of 64 percent to 36 percent.

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       Homeowners in the Washington area can uncross their fingers -- 2011 is expected to be the best year for home prices the region has witnessed since the recession, with experts saying the area's market recovery will be tops in the nation.

       The region's relatively strong uptick in prices over the last year -- second in the nation -- gives analysts reason to believe the Washington market could see a 6.5 percent increase in home prices over the next 12 months, according to a new report by Clear Capital, which tracks real estate trends. It's the biggest increase the firm is predicting across the country.

       "D.C. prices are already going up for all homeowners who have purchased a home in last two years," said Alex Villacorta, senior statistician at Clear Capital. "So they are likely to see positive equity in that purchase."

       It's a different story, however, for those who bought a home at the height of the housing boom in the summer of 2006. The area's home prices on average are back to their 2004 levels, while houses in the rest of the nation are averaging prices closer to 2001 levels.

Annual price changes for 2011's top markets

       Strong employment and the relatively low percentage of bank-owned foreclosures on the market are two big factors that have contributed to the Washington area's ability to stay ahead of the curve, experts said. Roughly 15 percent of properties on the market in the region are bank-owned compared with more than 40 percent in other major markets, according to Clear Capital. Unemployment is a little more than half the national average of 9.8 percent.

       That helped propel Washington-area home prices in 2010 to a 5.3 percent increase, second only to Honolulu, where prices increased by 7.2 percent, according to the report.

       Meanwhile neighboring markets suffered significant declines. Prices in Richmond fell last year by more than 10 percent and Baltimore-area prices fell by more than 8 percent. Clear Capital expects both markets to see losses again this year.

       Nationally, prices fell by 4.1 percent in 2010. Much of it was because of the false boost the federal homebuyer tax credits gave the market during the first half of the year, which created a highly volatile atmosphere.

       "They probably did as much harm as they did good because the dramatic falloff of purchases ... seems to have had the effect of further depressing prices," Rick Sharga, executive vice president of foreclosure-tracking firm RealtyTrac, said last month.

       Real estate agents say it's a relief to hear the positive prediction for Washington -- but it's not surprising.

       "The average length of time a property stayed on the market once we got through the tax credit [has been] declining," said Joanne Darling, president of the Prince George's County Association of Realtors. "Properties are actually staying on market less than 90 days ... [whereas] at its worst, it was longer than six months."

       But location is key and real estate is highly local. Darling said she's seeing multiple offers on homes in places like Capitol Hill, Northwest D.C., Bethesda and Chevy Chase. But towns farther away from the city -- and where residents have to be more reliant on cars -- have been slow to come back, she said.

       The market volatility in 2010 created a shift toward rental properties, with potential buyers in the region being afraid to invest in a home that might continue to drop in value. But Villacorta said 2011 may see a shift back toward homeownership.

       "As rents start to increase, that could provide an opportunity for investors to come in and ... rent those properties back," he said. "That would drive prices up and that can swing the tide back into the favor of 'maybe it's a good time to buy.'"


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