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Commercial real estate strong in most Mississippi markets.

Article Excerpt
The commercial real estate market in Mississippi has improved by leaps and bounds from what it was 25 years ago when Nancy Lane, CCIM, started in the business.

Lane, who is president of the Mississippi Association of Realtors (MAR) and owns Nancy Lane Commercial Realty in Jackson, recalls that when she started in commercial real estate, she would go to national commercial real estate conventions and get questions like, "Where is Mississippi?" and, "Do you have paved roads?"

"I vividly recall walking up to a T.J. Maxx booth at a convention," Lane recalls. "They were looking at expanding in every state around us. Mississippi was the only state not marked for expansion. I thought then: 'What a shame. They don't know what they are missing.' I think people have judged our state by looking at demographics that are not realistic pictures of the opportunities here."

An improving image

The image of Mississippi regarding commercial real estate investments has improved dramatically in the past few years. Lane, whose business does work all over the state, said there is increasing recognition of Mississippi as a good place to operate a business.

"I think tort reform has certainly helped that," Lane said. "I do a lot of retail, and I'm excited to see the retail growth in this state. Jackson, the Coast, Tupelo and even places like Corinth have nice new developments. All you have to do drive down Lakeland Drive to see...

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