Data Centers and Indianapolis Real Estate: Buyer Guide

I'm Jason Compton, and my team and I help people buy, sell, and relocate all around Indianapolis. In this article, I'm going to cover what a data center actually is in plain English, the five areas around Indy where these projects are landing, what's approved versus what got scaled back or killed, and what it means if you're buying or selling near one of them. Each township has a completely different situation, and if you're relocating here from out of state, keeping all of this straight on top of Carmel versus Fishers versus Westfield is a hard job. Your brain's a mess just trying to keep it all straight.

This is easily the biggest capital project in the history of the city of Lebanon. Meta broke ground in February on its data center campus in the LEAP Innovation District. It's not that far from where Lilly has an enormous project going on just northeast of the site. Meta is specifically in the southern part of the district, west of I-65 and split by State Road 32. All 1,500 acres sit to the west, and you can see construction cranes on some of the buildings that have already broken ground and are standing. There's plenty more to be built where they've broken ground, though there's not much to show for right now as far as buildings go off to the west.

If you're buying anywhere along the I-65 corridor north of Zionsville, this is the single biggest thing shaping that market right now. I don't think most buyers looking out there have really connected those two things yet. The state committed Meta to a 35-year sales tax exemption on this project, and Meta has to invest at least $1 billion in the first six years to keep it. That exemption can stretch to 50 years if they put in another $2.2 billion. So 50 years of sales tax exemptions is definitely quite a magnet.

That farmland along with the interstate access is exactly what made it attractive. I'm back over Post Road and I-74 right here. I can see that land beyond this gas station, and it is just a super attractive spot next to interstate. Plus these transmission lines just made it a pretty desirable place really for any project. If you take a look at Indy's reporting for February, Google withdrew its petition after what they described as mass opposition from residents on the south side. People showed up and of course they organized, and a company with essentially unlimited money, I mean, how much money does Google have? they decided that it wasn't worth the fight.

Everything that made a hyperscale company look at those 468 acres is still sitting there exactly where it was. What changed was just the political appetite for a project like that at that particular time. Which means if you're buying on the southeast side, the question isn't did a project get canceled? You got to ask what the current zoning is on the big open parcels near the house you're looking at. There are a lot of big open parcels around here. And then ask how the local commission has voted on things like this before.

There's a data center going into an old Ford Visteon plant on the east side of Indianapolis, and this one is actually a smaller building today than it was just six months ago. This is the Thunderbird Commerce Center in Warren Township, east side of Indianapolis. It's a redevelopment of a dead manufacturing site, and the developer here is DC Blox. Total construction cost around $800 million, with about $320 million of that just going into the labor. At peak construction, DC Blox has said they're going to have about 600 or so people working on it.

Not every project is a redevelopment of something that was already industrial. This is Decatur Township, and where this is at, it's on the southwest side of Indianapolis, kind of that southwest corner of Marion County. It's towards Camby and Mooresville. Sabie Data Center Properties got approval on March 18th to build a 250-megawatt facility on 130 acres at the northeast corner of Canby Road and Kentucky Avenue. This road right here is Canby Road, generally going west to east, and then Kentucky Avenue is over here diagonally, which is really actually State Road 67, going all the way back up into Indianapolis and connecting with 465.

What does that mean if you own a house out here, or let's say you're looking at one? Well, short term, you're going to have, of course, the usual. You got trucks, you got dust, you've got roadwork, and you're going to have a lot of it for probably a couple of years or so. If you're planning to sell in that window, that's definitely going to be a real factor in how your house shows and also really how fast it moves because you're going to have that period where you just don't have a solid-looking place. It's going to factor in the indecision for some people.

If you're relocating here from out of state, you've probably never even heard of Decatur Township or Warren Township or any of the townships around Indianapolis, let alone which one has a $4 billion project going on on Kentucky Avenue. And it's not on a listing. Most agents generally don't know that either. So my team and I put together a free relocation guide. It breaks down neighborhoods, school systems, cost of living, and of course commute times across the entire metro, whatever township it is that we're talking about, or city or town even, so you can figure out where you actually want to be before you start looking at houses.

But here's the thing. EQT already knows how this story can go very, very wrong. Back in 2025, a different developer, Surge Development, proposed a 775-acre mega site not far from the same corridor. That project sat right next to Tuttle Orchards, a family orchard that's been operating since 1890. If you've ever taken your kids apple picking on the east side, you know exactly the place I'm talking about. I have been to this place a million times, and I've been on school field trips here as well.

But really, honestly, the bigger story here isn't EQT. It's what the county did in between. After that mega site got pulled, Hancock County didn't just move on. They built an entire rule book. A citizens committee spent months on it. In June 2026, the county passed Ordinance 2026-6E. Data centers are now banned outright from agricultural and commercial zones. They're only allowed in industrial general zones. And the county commissioners now hold final veto power over where any of these projects can go.

If you're buying out in Greenfield to the east, New Palestine, Fortville, or McCordsville, this definitely matters. Those are all places in Hancock County. These rules are going to shape what gets built out in that area for the next couple of decades. And they're already on the books. I love these east side communities. They're some of the most overlooked places around this entire metro for the money. But if you're out house hunting in that direction, then you need to know both halves of the story, not just the one everybody's already heard about.

That's five areas, five completely different situations. Lebanon's under construction. Decatur's approved. Warren got smaller. Hancock County is still writing the rules. And Franklin Township is dead for at least now. If you're moving here from California or Chicago or the East Coast or anywhere, keeping all of that straight on top of Carmel versus Fishers versus Westfield versus Zionsville versus Greenwood versus Greenfield is really a hard job. Indianapolis can feel really a whole lot bigger than you ever imagined if you don't know all that much about it.

When you're relocating here, people can burn their one scouting trip driving to a lot of places that really aren't a fit for them. So we built a neighborhood match quiz. You answer a few quick questions just about things like your budget, your commute, home style you want, the lifestyle you want. Then it gives you a personalized shortlist of communities around the metro that actually fit. I've taken it and it's matched me very well to where I already live, so I feel pretty good about the accuracy of it.

Three things people actually feel when one of these places shows up: power bills, water, and land. Let's take them one at a time because the answer is a little bit different in each spot. Power first. This is the number one thing that people ask me. The honest answer is that it entirely depends on how the deal is really structured. In Lebanon, Meta is paying the full cost of the energy that the campus uses. That's a really specific commitment attached to a specific project, and it doesn't automatically apply to every other project in the state. Anyone who tells you all data centers are free money or all of them raise your bill the opposite is really guessing.

If you're a seller near a project, then your reality is that timing matters more than usual. Selling during active construction is a totally different experience. If you're a buyer, here's some practical advice for you. You don't wanna ask if there's a data center near this house. You need to ask oftentimes what the zoning is on the large open parcels within a couple of miles that you see that might be around you and whether the county has an overlay district in progress for those. Those two answers are going to tell you what could get built there in the next 10 years, not just what's there today.

Here's what worries me for out-of-state buyers. You fly in for a weekend and fall in love with a house on, let's say, the southwest side or out east towards Greenfield. Nobody mentions a petition sitting with the Plan Commission. Two years later, you're trying to sell a house across the road from active construction. It could be one of these projects like this. It may not be, it may be a residential construction project as well, but either way, it's probably going to cost you some money or you're at the risk of it costing you some money.

Data centers are reshaping parts of the Indianapolis area real estate market in ways most buyers and sellers don't see coming. Lebanon's $10 billion Meta campus is already under construction with road improvements and water restoration commitments. Decatur Township has an approved $4 billion facility that's the largest private capital investment in Indianapolis history. Warren Township scaled back a project after community input. Franklin Township killed Google's 468-acre proposal. Hancock County built an entire rule book after a failed mega site.

If you're looking at a specific house or a specific neighborhood or just a specific area, and you wanna know what's actually proposed there, what's approved or maybe paused near it, then give us a call or a text or book a time with me directly. I'll pull the filings for that area and I'll walk you through it. My team and I help people buy, sell, and relocate all around Indianapolis, and we spend time in county planning documents that most agents are never going to open. That's how you avoid flying in for a weekend, falling in love with a house, and finding out two years later there's a petition you never heard about.

FAQ

What is a data center and why are they coming to Indiana?

A data center is a big windowless warehouse-looking building packed with rows of computer servers. Every time you stream a movie or back up a photo or ask ChatGPT a question, there's a physical machine somewhere doing the work. That machine sits in a building like a data center and it runs 24 hours a day. Indiana has large flat parcels near interstate corridors and transmission lines, and land costs a fraction of what it costs on either coast. The state also committed Meta to a 35-year sales tax exemption that can stretch to 50 years.

Will a data center near my house raise my power bill?

It entirely depends on how the deal is structured. In Lebanon, Meta is paying the full cost of the energy the campus uses, so residents aren't picking up that tab. That's a specific commitment attached to a specific project, and it doesn't automatically apply to every other project in the state. Anyone who tells you all data centers are free money or all of them raise your bill is guessing.

How do data centers affect home values in the area?

Short term, if you're selling during active construction, you're going to have trucks, dust, and roadwork for a couple of years. That's a real factor in how your house shows and how fast it moves. Longer term, it's a mixed bag. A project changes the revenue picture for the township, and that revenue funds roads and services. But proximity matters significantly. There's a big difference between living three miles from a site and directly across the road from it.

What should I ask before buying a house near a potential data center site?

Don't ask if there's a data center near this house. Ask what the zoning is on the large open parcels within a couple of miles and whether the county has an overlay district in progress. Those two answers will tell you what could get built there in the next 10 years, not just what's there today. That's not a question Zillow can answer for you.

Which Indianapolis-area data center projects are actually happening?

Lebanon's Meta campus is under construction as of February. Decatur Township's Sabie project is approved with a zoning variance in hand. Warren Township's DC Blox project is approved and scaled back after community input. Hancock County's EQT proposal is filed but subject to new rules passed in June 2026. Franklin Township's Google project was withdrawn in February after mass opposition.

Are data centers always bad for nearby neighborhoods?

Not always. Warren Township's project is a redevelopment of a dead Ford Visteon plant, so nothing green is being lost and a modern facility with landscaping requirements might be a better neighbor than a vacant industrial building. Lebanon's Meta campus comes with $45 million in public road improvements and a 100% water restoration commitment. But proximity matters, and selling during active construction is a totally different experience than living three miles away from a finished facility.

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