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Talk to residents of Kenilworth, and they will tell you they wouldn’t live anywhere else. The 1970s-era subdivision is conveniently located, reasonably priced and has a strong neighborhood association with a close-knit community feel that makes it attractive to families.

“It had everything we were looking for,” says Annabelle Signorelli, who moved from New Orleans to Kenilworth with her husband and two young sons after Hurricane Katrina. “It was great for kids.”

But while Kenilworth has obvious advantages, it gets a bad rap from some people in south Baton Rouge who say it’s too sterile, too suburban and just a little too cookie-cutter.

“It just has a stigma,” says one local real estate agent who asked not to be identified. “It’s a subdivision, not a neighborhood.”

Plenty would disagree with that assessment of the south Baton Rouge community that stretches from Perkins Road to Highland Road and includes some 700 single-family homes. But perception is reality in markets like real estate, and Kenilworth has typically sold at lower prices than other nearby neighborhoods that have more mature trees and older homes with more unique architectural features.

Home prices in Kenilworth last year, for instance, averaged around $192,000, which is low given the sizable lots on which most of them sit. It’s also a good deal less than the $250,000 or so averaged in University Gardens and the Garden District last year, or the $242,000 fetched in Southdowns.

But data suggests Kenilworth is holding its value and showing slight but steady price increases as a growing number of buyers recognize its homes offer a lot of bang for the buck. Home prices have climbed steadily over the past three years, and property typically sells very quickly, spending on average just a little more than three weeks on the market.

“I’ve been there 24 years, and I have seen it steadily increase in value,” says Linda Fredericks, a longtime Kenilworth resident and real estate agent. “It’s never really experienced a big dip.”

This year, statistics show the average home price is up a whopping 25% over last year, while in 2006 it was up more than 6% over 2005. But this year’s numbers might be a bit misleading, as two exceptionally high-priced sales have inflated the average. One was the sale of an $850,000 home on Highland Road, which is technically in Kenilworth but not really considered part of the neighborhood. The other sale was for one of the largest homes in the subdivision. Its price per square foot was in line with comparable homes but because of its size, its sale price was $545,000.

When those two homes are taken out of the equation, the average sale price for 2007 is a more modest $197,000. That represents an increase over the previous year of around 3%.

“The numbers are not wrong,” Fredericks says. “But they can be misleading.”

Still, Fredericks sees a healthy amount of interest in the neighborhood, particularly as the original baby boomer-era owners are moving out and making room for younger families to move in. Many of the buyers she works with are attracted to the spacious yards. They also like the fact that because the homes need a facelift, they have an opportunity to update according to their individual tastes.

“I’m starting to see a lot of younger families come in and fix these homes up the way they want them to be,” Fredericks says. “It’s actually a selling point.”

Another selling point is Kenilworth’s strong neighborhood association. It strictly enforces association rules—no parking on the sidewalk, for instance. It also throws annual celebrations on the Fourth of July and at Christmas, which help build community. Then there are a host of recreational offerings, including Kenilworth Park, the nearby velodrome, a private swimming club, bike paths and, on most streets, sidewalks, which are conspicuously absent from many south Baton Rouge neighborhoods that may have more charm.

“After Katrina, we were just looking for a place where we could be safe and comfortable,” Signorelli says. “It didn’t matter that there weren’t 14- foot ceilings. We just wanted a nice neighborhood feel with sidewalks.”

Photo by Marie Constantin

A SIGN OF PROGRESS: Improvements to the intersection of Highland Road and Kenilworth Parkway will enhance access to the subdivision, which includes some 700 single-family homes.

Fredericks says buyers also shop the area because of its proximity to both Highland and Perkins roads, a major hospital and the interstate. In fact, she and her husband moved there in the 1980s precisely because of its location.

With so much growth and new construction in and around the area, and the softening of the real estate market nationwide, it’s conceivable a neighborhood like Kenilworth could experience a slump in the near future. But Fredericks doesn’t think that’s likely. Kenilworth has withstood previous bust cycles and still held its value.

“It has never been overpriced like some neighborhoods,” she says. “This one has just had a slow steady climb, and I don’t see that changing.”