Gloom Report- Real Estate Is Local!

Perhaps you’ve read all the gloom and doom reports in the news (or on TV, internet, smoke signals, etc.) about how the housing market is still in the tank and heaven only knows when it will come back.  I just wanted to put a little perspective on all these reports showing statistics that indicate that our real estate market has still not turned around.  Those stats do have some bearing as an indicator of the condition of our overall economy, but they shouldn’t be interpreted as being a reason to stay out of the real estate market if you have a good reason to buy or sell.

The fact of the matter is that when someone needs to sell property, there are people out there willing to buy it.  When you see that sales are off 25% from last year, that means that there were still millions of houses being sold during the period.  The buyers are getting great deals and the sellers are giving up more than they’d like, but they do close real estate sales.  What’s more, when the seller goes on to buy another property, they likely will make up for their initial “loses” in the low price they pay for the next property, and they’ll get a remarkably low mortgage rate, too.

What it comes down to is if you’re a buyer or seller in the market, the statistics can inform you about how much competition is out there and what prices will be prevalent, but the stats don’t tell you that you can’t make a deal on real estate.  I’m working with buyers right now who want to move to the Lake Norman area.  They are ready, willing and able, and I can show them the local numbers showing what’s been selling and at what price in order to help them come up with a reasonable offer.  Same for sellers who really want to sell.  We can come up with numbers from our local market reports that prove that at the right price, properties will sell.  Sometimes it takes awhile to find what that price is, but in most areas, there will be willing buyers.

A little patience and a positive attitude go a long way in this business.

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Mooresville Electric Car Team In X Prize Finals

I previously reported that our Mooresville neighbors at Li-Ion Motors are doing well in the $10,000,000 Progressive Automotive X Prize competition which is designed to drive out the best technology for future energy-efficient vehicles.  Well the folks at Li-Ion continue to advance and do us proud.  They survived all of the on-track testing with great numbers on efficiency and now they are in the Validation phase where they go through various tests on a dyno to confirm the on-track performance.  Go to the web sites linked above to check out more about this competition and how Mooresville’s funky little green car is working to make some history.  Seems only right since they are from Race City USA!

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Help Us Fight Breast Cancer!

My Mooresville Coldwell Banker United office is participating in this year’s Making Strides Against Breast Cancer event in Charlotte on September 25.  We’ve formed a team of enthusiastic Realtors who want to help in the fight against breast cancer.  You can help me reach our goal by going to the StrideCharlotte website HERE and making a donation and/or join our team and work with us to raise funds.

Yes, that's me in the back!

We’ve all been touched by this terrible disease that can be so devastating to our friends and families.  Just before this campaign began, I found out that one of my neighbors got the terrible news that she has breast cancer.  She discovered it herself.  Because of the type of cancer it was, routine mammograms did not pick it up even though it was already at an advanced stage.  I want to do everything I can to help her overcome this disease and help others to avoid it altogether.

Please help me raise funds.  Every donation amount is a good donation amount (more is better;-) 

Like they say,” Less breast cancer means more birthdays!”

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Get Info on Proposed Troutman Park

I was in the new Troutman Library last Saturday and saw a poster for an upcoming meeting at Town Hall inviting folks to drop by and comment on plans for a new town park on land behind the Town Hall that is owned by Engineered Sintered Components and would be leased for a minimal amount for use as a park.  The meeting is a drop-in between 5 and 7 PM.  Town Planner Erika Martin was nice enough to send me a photo of the plan which you can see below (click on it to see a larger version).  HERE is a link to previous article in the Statesville Record & Landmark about town plans for this and other athlectic fields that could be developed.

Troutman continues to do things for current and future citizens that really add to the quality of life.  The library where I saw the poster is a great benefit to area residents, and this planned community park will bolster Troutman’s image as a family-friendly community.

I encourage Troutman residents to go by on Monday, August 23 from 5-7 PM to comment on the park and also to thank Engineered Sintered Components for their contribution to this plan.

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Live Green and Win Some Green

Coldwell Banker United, Realtors, my company, works with American Home Shield to provide homeowner warranties for our clients.  They provide a valuable service to home buyers and sellers, and now are offering everyone a chance to learn more about living “green” and also a chance to win some cash for a kitchen and bath makeover in cooperation with Lowe’s.

You can check out these opportunities to “be green” at a web site named Live Green Save Green HERE.  I’ve looked it over and decided to join myself in order to take advantage of all the articles with great advice on reducing your impact on the earth.  They even have a downloadable publication that covers lots of that territory.  I’m basically a frugal guy, and the advice at the website helps me to live that way and help to keep from screwing up the planet.

Check it out.

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Real Estate Solution for Senior Citizens

Earlier this year I worked with a client in Mooresville who wanted to downsize her living arrangements and also get into a home that would be a low maintenance situation as opposed to the older home that she had lived in for many years.  The old home had lots of character and good memories, but it also had lots of repairs that needed to be made and would need constant attention to maintain it in good condition.  She decided to sell that home and buy a new, smaller home that she would enjoy without worry about major maintenance, not to mention enjoying the lower utility costs of a newer home.  What she did not want was a new mortgage payment.  She had considerable equity in her old home and found that the mortgage market has come up with a variation on the reverse mortgage concept that allowed her to take the equity from the sale of her old home, and add that to the cash from a reverse mortgage on her new home to buy it without need for further payments. 

I had not worked with one of these before, but she had learned about it from a trusted friend in the mortgage business.  The more I found out about it, the more it made sense for senior citizens wanting to make such a move but not wanting to deal with payments since their income stream is lower in retirement.  These are called HECM for Purchase, or Home Equity Conversion Mortgage.  This works great for retirees since income and credit history are not factors in the getting the mortgage.  It’s based on the home that is being purchased.  There are many details that should be considered, but the main thing is that anyone 62 or over can apply for one of these deals, the homeowner can stay in the house as long as they like, and the amount owed on the loan when they finally sell the property will never be more than the home’s fair market value.  In other words, the heirs will never have to face paying a balance on the loan if they simply sell the house, or they can buy the house themselves at fair market value.  This doesn’t affect any other assets owned by the borrower.

I know that these loans are offered by Wells Fargo, Bank of America, and MetLife, and others may be offering them also.  If you think that this may be a good solution for you, call me to discuss the sale of your current home and purchase of another.  I’ll give you names of reps from the above lenders to talk to about the details.  This is an FHA insured loan and requires that the borrower be counseled by a HUD approved counselor, so I think this mortgage product will see more use in the future as being a legitimate, reasonable choice for many seniors.

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Raleigh? Really?

The Today Show on NBC this morning had another segment of Barbara Corcoran, big deal NY real estate mogul, telling Al Roker and us about some great deals around the country.  She always likes to  throw in a little bit of interesting detail about the city where each house is located.  This morning, the very first city was Raleigh, NC.  Barbara wanted to let us know that she’s done her research (or someone did it for her), and she launced into a bit of detail about Raleigh saying that in the 1600’s Raleigh was the location for a community of settlers that vanished and was eventually called “The Lost Colony.”  Trouble is, the only thing the town of Raleigh has in common with The Lost Colony is that it is named for Sir Walter Raleigh who planned and financed the settlement that would become The Lost Colony, and that was done in the late 1500’s.  The Lost Colony was located on Roanoke Island in North Carolina’s Dare County on the coast (the outer banks) near Manteo.  It’s an interesting place complete with an outdoor play named for The Lost Colony that’s been running for many years- actor Andy Griffith got his start in acting there.

The lesson here is that all real estate is local.  Get your advice on real estate from someone local to the place about which you need information.  If that place is the Lake Norman, NC area, call me.  I bet I know more about this area and North Carolina than Barbara does.  Of course, I know nothing about NY City real estate.

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Get Your Season Tickets to Iredell Concerts

For the last several years I’ve been working with the Iredell Concert Association, helping them bring a range of  high quality live music to Mooresville and Statesville.  September 25th brings our first concert with Emile Pandolfi, a fabulous pianist who presents a very entertaining show.  Four more concerts will follow during the winter and spring, including singer/harpist Orla Fallon, formerly of Celtic Women.  Additionally, for the price of a season ticket you have reciprocal access to 21 additional concerts hosted by concert associations in 5 surrounding counties!  That’s quite a deal for a $40 adult ticket, a $20 student ticket, or a $90 family ticket ($50 for single parent).  You may also attend individual concerts for $20 per ticket, but you can see that the season ticket is the best deal.

You can find out all the details at the Iredell Concert Association web site HERE.  Information for purchasing tickets can be found on the site.

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Mortgage-oscopy

Last week we closed on a very nice home in Mooresville, NC for a great couple who vow that they don’t ever want to go through that again.  The “that” is the process they went through to get a mortgage.  These folks have excellent credit and income, yet the lender (who shall remain nameless) put them through a rather gruelling passage of questions and answers and producing documentation, sometimes the same documention more than once becuase the lender lost the first set.  Even though this loan was applied for in a no-rush situation, the lender was still dragging their feet a day after the original closing date.  The sale was finally recorded two days late, with the moving van sitting in the driveway waiting for the buyers to actually own the house.  FYI, when you buy a house, you don’t legally own it until the deed is recorded with the local Register of Deeds.  I’ve had to caution many buyers that closing dates routinely slip, usually because the lender doesn’t get the “loan package”, all the papers to sign and preparation instructions, to the attorney until they have every i dotted and t crossed.  For some reason, they often will assure you they have everything they need and then a day before come up with some additional information requirements.  Given that they used to provide loans on little more than a wink and a handshake, the pendulum has swung way far in the opposite direction.

I tend to think in analogies.  For this situation, I told my clients that nowadays, applying for and getting a mortgage is like getting a financial colonoscopy without benefit of anesthesia.  Hopefully, you’ll be pleased with the results, but you won’t enjoy the process!

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