Dr. Wade R. Ragas

Wade R. Ragas, Ph.D., MAI, SRA, died peacefully at Inspired Living of Kenner, LA at the age of 76 on April 25, 2024. He was preceded in death by his father, Wade Louis Ragas, and his mother, Noella Evelyn Tournier. He is survived by his wife of 53 years, Yvette Manthey Ragas, his children, Matthew Wade Ragas (Traci) and Joshua Paul Ragas, and his sister, Susan Ragas Price (Andy). Wade was the uncle of Christopher Price (Kate), Kellie Price Rothman (Elisha), Kimberly Price (Jon), Taylor Price, and Dominic Manthey, who preceded him in death.

Wade was a Jefferson Parish native with Louisiana roots that went back over 200 years. Every year, when the weather turned cooler, he had to cook a pot of file gumbo using his mom’s recipe. Wade loved boiled seafood of any kind. He enjoyed travel, taking the family on trips to Europe from the time his sons were in diapers. He was a student of history and loved to keep up with politics and world affairs.

Wade was a teacher at heart. For 30 years, he was a professor of finance at the University of New Orleans and created the Real Estate Market Data Center, which he directed from 1978 to 2005. After earning his doctorate in Real Estate and Urban Analysis from The Ohio State University, Wade returned to Metairie and joined the faculty at what was then called LSUNO. While at UNO, he directed a wide range of applied real estate projects through the Center. Over this time, he authored 35 volumes of the 100-page semi-annual “New Orleans Real Estate Market Analysis.” As a research and full professor at UNO, he taught thousands of students and some 30,000 real estate professionals over his career. He authored over 30 articles and a textbook.

As the president of Real Property Associates, Wade specialized in commercial appraisals, litigation services involving real estate, marketing feasibility studies and other complex commercial asset analyses, primarily in the Southeast Louisiana market. His practice contributed to over $2 billion of residential and commercial real estate valuation and feasibility studies since Hurricane Katrina. He provided expert opinions in over 80 court cases at the State and Federal District Court levels, as well as the Federal Circuit Court of Claims. Among the most sought-after real estate experts in the New Orleans area and the Gulf Coast region, Wade was a fixture in the local news media for many decades, regularly sharing his insights and forecasts at symposiums and meetings, including the New Orleans Economy and Real Estate Market Forecast, which ran for 15 years. Roughly 600 professionals would attend this annual gathering.

Wade became interested in real estate around the age of 11 when he started helping his father with his work as a real estate agent. As a young professional, he worked in real estate market research and residential and commercial lending before going on to earn a doctorate from The Ohio State University. He held the SRA and MAI professional credentials from the Appraisal Institute, the nation’s largest professional association of real estate appraisers. Wade also earned a bachelor’s degree in economics and an MBA from the University of New Orleans.

He was active in the community, serving on the board of directors of Mutual Savings and Loan in Metairie and on the Archbishop Rummel High School Development Committee. As Wade told Biz New Orleans in a 2015 profile of him called “MarketMaster”: “I’m lucky, I believe my work is not work. So much of what I do on a day-by-day basis I find really enjoyable.”

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made online to the Lewy Body Dementia Association (LBDA.org) or mailed to: LBDA, 912 Killian Hill Rd. SW, Lilburn, GA 30047.

Relatives and friends are invited to attend a funeral mass on Friday, May 3, 2024 at 12:00 pm at St. Philip Neri Church in Metairie (6500 Kawanee Ave.). Visitation will take place from 10:30 am until noon. Following the mass, interment will be at All Saints Mausoleum in Metairie Cemetery. The family invites you to share your thoughts, fond memories, and condolences online at www.lakelawnmetairie.com