Real Estate Information Archive

Happy Monday! We hope you had a wonderful weekend and enjoyed the great weather (except for that storm Saturday night that kept us from seeing the "Super Moon"). Summer is definitely getting close so enjoy these cooler evenings while it lasts.

Last week's weaker-than-expected jobs report helped bond prices and interest rates. The unemployment rate dropped to 8.1% which was more of a direct result of the labor force shrinking than jobs being added. Locally, we continue to see signs of growth in our market with the most active price ranges being in the $100,000-$200,000 range.

If you are seriously considering getting your home on the market, you need to understand that this market is a price war and a beauty contest. Not only does your home need to be priced well to attract buyers in this market but it also needs to be in better condition than the competition. These 2 elements combined will certainly increase your chances of a higher sales price and less time on the market. Want your homes current market value? Check us out www.WilmingtonHomeValuesOnline.com

If you're looking for a great home in a waterfront community, The Cameron Team has a great listing coming on the market in a few weeks. This 5 bedroom, 4.5 bath home with over 4400 sq. ft. is in the final stages of major renovations being completed. With a 25 ft. boat slip, 3 car garage and TONS of upgrades, you'll want to move right in! Aggressively priced at $575,000, this one won't last long. If you want to get in early, just give us a call and we'll get you more details.

Have a great week and give us a call for all your real estate needs!

Quote of the Week:

“The essential thing is not knowledge, but character.” ~Joseph Le Conte

Featured Home for Sale

4 Forest Hills Dr, Forest Hills

Our featured home this week was chosen due to its character. It has many features that you don’t usually see rolled into a home in this price range.

This is the old EW Godwin home, which was owned by the local lumber and oil company.

Located in one of Wilmington's most desirable neighborhoods this elegant home has all of the charm and character of long ago but has been renovated to reflect today's lifestyle with a spacious open floor plan that is well designed for entertaining. Features include: 4000 sq ft all on one floor, 3 large bedrooms each with their own bathroom, oversized dining room with built in solid mahogany china cabinet, breakfast nook with butler's pantry, original hardwood floors throughout home, 10 ft. ceilings, extra-large mahogany doors, large floored attic for storage, large basement with bank size vault/safe, screened in porch, fiber glass pool, 3 car garage that is made of solid tongue and groove in thick furr with half bath and closet and an additional 50x16 RV garage, and a generator that has the ability to run the whole home, if needed.

Visit the listing page for a full description and more pictures – 4 Forest Hills.
View other homes for sale in Forest Hills.

Listing Info Courtesy of Jennifer Bullock, Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Advantage

In Case You Missed It

The Wilmington area has a new food delivery service for our furry friends - The Dog Connection. Trish Papoulias, a Dunkin Donuts franchise owner for 20 years, gave up her three stores last year and started delivering food and treats this year. The selection is a wide variety, including some brands that are hard to get in large stores. It’s a one woman – one vehicle service that covers Wilmington, the beach towns, and North Brunswick, and has proven to be a real winner for pet owners that don’t have time or unable physically to make it to a store. You can learn more at the Dog Connection web site.

The StarNews reported on May 1 that the North Carolina film incentives, which were raised in January 2011, brought about 25 productions to the state last year amounting in $121 million and 10,500 jobs. Wilmington was a filming location for many of those films. The project that gained the most from the incentives was One Tree Hill. The next largest was Journey 2: The Mysterious Island. Currently, the area is in preparation for Iron Man 3. For the full story and the history of the state’s film incentives, visit the StarNewsOnline.

Laney High School has chosen a new head boys basketball coach. Nathan Faulk of South View will begin coaching this coming school year. He has previous ties with the program as he spent several years as assistant coach under Fred Lynch, who recently stepped down as head coach, but remains as the athletic director. Faulk has a history of improving troubled programs and currently coaches Flight 22 AAU, which incorporates kids from coastal North Carolina. In addition to coaching, he will teach physical education at Laney.

Coming Up

5/04/12: The Movement – The Brikhouse
5/04/12: Registration for the Wilmington Bulldogs Youth Football Association – Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center
5/05/12: Arts in the Park at Greenfield – Greenfield Lake Amphiteater
5/05/12: Lake Fest 2012 – Greenfield Lake Park
5/05/12: 26^th Annual Parade of Homes – Various
5/05/12: Great Strides Cystic Fibrosis Walk & 5K Run – Mayfaire Town Center Even Lawn
5/06/12: Swing N Sing Golf Tournament – Porters Neck Country Club
5/10/12: YWCA Women of Achievement – Hilton Riverside

The Cameron Team

Melanie Cameron, Broker 910.233.2840

Susan Harkins, Buyer Specialist, 910.431.2362

Gina Martin, Buyer Specialist, 910.619.1987

Meghan Riley, Client Care Specialist, 910.202.2547

Diligently working to exceed real estate expectations in Wilmington, North Carolina, and surrounding areas including Ogden, Porters Neck, Wrightsville Beach, Carolina Beach, Castle Hayne, Leland, Burgaw, Rocky Point

Nick Timiraos reports in this video from the Wall Street Journal that real estate bidding wars are on the rise. National pending home sales in March were the highest they've been since April 2010. That, combined with low interest rates and an inventory that is 30% lower than last year, has created prime conditions for generating bidding wars. However, the main key component is that the subject home needs to be priced right. If you would like to know the estimated selling price of your home, give us a call at 910-202-2546 or send us an email through our Contact page.

Happy Monday! April is coming to an end and we hope it was a great one for you.

Today, the Wilmington Regional Association of Realtors released their first quarter analysis of the six major zip codes in our area (28403, 28405, 28409, 28411, 28412 and 28451). This analysis revealed a few important facts:

1. The average sales price has decreased 8.6% since the fourth quarter of 2011.
2. Of the 594 homes sold in the first quarter, 30.3% of the home sellers provided a concession for the purchase of the home. This is down from 32.7% in the fourth quarter of 2011.
3. The list to sales price ratio for the first quarter was 95.64%, an increase from 94.60% for 4th Quarter 2011
4. The average sold price of the property was $220,815, down 10% from the fourth quarter of 2011.
5. The average days-on-the-market was 169, up from 147 in the fourth quarter of 2011.

While these numbers do not show a huge improvement, Lawrence Yun, National Association of Realtors chief economist, pointed out that home sales are fluctuating up and down in a rather narrow margin – a margin that is well above what the nation was seeing a year ago.

If you have any questions or desire assistance with your real estate needs, please don’t hesitate to give us a call. We hope you have a great week!

When I went looking for online tools that would be helpful for homeowners, I was overwhelmed by all of the options. I did a similar search almost two years ago and there was a fraction of the number of web sites that there are now. New technology and the explosion of the smartphone industry have made it possible for startups to create some really innovative tools and I’m excited to share a few of those with you. Below are five of the most widely useful tools I found.

HomeZada

HomeZada is your home owner “digital hub” where you can plan all your remodeling projects, keep track of budgets, catalog researched products, and keep track of all purchases. It has a calendar where you can create a schedule for current home maintenance and receive notifications when new tasks are due for completion. You can keep track of warranties, manuals, receipts, permits, and your home inventory. Plus, they have mobile phone apps that let you do a lot of this on the go. The basic access is free and provides you with a home inventory and document database, maintenance tips, and seasonal checklists. The premium package is $9.95/month and gives you access to the home project planning, calendar, customization tools, budget planning, and tools for managing multiple houses. It’s a great way to keep everything you need for managing home maintenance in one place.

Other Home Inventory Databases

If your home burned down or was broken into, how would you prove what was in it? A home inventory can ease the claim process by providing all the proof you need to provide your insurance agent and local law enforcement. If you create your inventory online, it can also be a safe and secure way to create a digital backup of important documents, warranties, and purchase dates accessible from any computer that has an internet connection. There are many sites that offer this service, but here are two that have received good reviews:

1. StuffSafe – For $30/year, you get a secure website with easy drag and drop tools for pictures and documents, informational reports and graphs about your belongings, an iPhone/iPad app, and a restore function, so you don’t accidentally delete anything.
2. iKeepm – This site doesn’t have a drag and drop interface, smartphone app, or all the reports that StuffSafe has, but it’s free, secure, and does exactly what you need an online home inventory to do – log your belongings by room, and upload documents and photos.

If you prefer not to keep your inventory online, you can also download What You Own for FREE. It will centralize your inventory and keep it all on your computer. Then, you can either print it all off in a single report or put it on an external hard drive that’s easy to take with you.

Sherwin Williams Color Visualizer and Valspar’s Virtual Painter

Thinking of repainting? You may want to try out colors on the subject room(s) prior to purchasing paint. You can save money on samples and skip a trip to the paint store, by visiting Sherwin Williams Color Visualizer and Valspar’s Virtual Painter, two websites that let you upload a photo of your room and virtually paint it right in your browser. Both are great tools that allow you to mask off areas in the room, so you can focus on just the walls, molding, doors, etc.

While you’re at the Sherwin Williams web site, check out ColorSnap® for iPhone, Android and BlackBerry. This is a really neat app that lets you take a photo of a color and match it to their current inventory of samples. It’s especially helpful if you want to match your paint colors to current décor, like a sofa or pillow.

Progress Energy Customized Home Energy Report

If you are a current customer with Progress Energy, they have some great tools for helping you to save money on your home energy bill. At their website, you can receive a FREE home energy report customized for your home’s specific energy usage. It will give you a breakdown of how the energy in your home is being used, steps you can take to save energy according to that data, and what rebates are available to you if you would like to make energy-wise home improvements. Their tips for home owners include both no-cost and low-cost options.

While you’re at Progress Energy’s web site, also check out their 100 Ways to Save Energy at Home and their appliance recycling program with FREE pickup.

Energy Star Home Energy Yardstick

If you aren’t a Progress Energy customer, you can learn more about your home energy usage and how to improve it by visiting Energy Star’s Home Energy Yardstick. After you plug in a few numbers about your current home and the amount of electricity you use, you can compare your usage to that of other homes in the country and get tips on how to reduce your usage. It’s not as customized as Progress Energy’s tool, but it can certainly help you lower your energy bill.

If you have any experience with the online tools shared here or have any others that you would like to contribute, please share them in the comments section below.

As a home buyer, you may be surprised to find there are some things that a real estate agent can’t or won’t tell you. But it’s for good reasons! Most of these topics are determined by the fair housing acts, which prevent real estate agents from discriminating against buyers according to race, color, religion, national origin, sex, handicap, or familial status. Other topics avoided are due to a fear of providing incorrect information that may result in HUGE headaches for buyers and sellers. Instead, agents will direct clients to an official resource and let them come to their own conclusions.

The Cameron Team understands how important it is to feel comfortable in the neighborhood you’re buying in. We want to make it as easy as possible for our clients to learn everything they need to know to choose the best house for them. So, here are 4 topics real estate agents are required by law or ethics to avoid and the tools to help you make an informed decision.

Environment

Agents can provide clients with a wealth of information about homes, neighborhood amenities, selling trends, construction plans, and litigations. However, if you ask them about local environmental factors like air and water quality, they’ll leave the answers to the experts. If you’re interested in knowing about the surface water quality, health risks, and energy consumption in an area, visit the web site for the United States Environmental Protection Agency where you can search for information by zip code.

Demographics

As the fair housing laws state, an agent cannot steer a buyer toward or away from a property on the basis of demographics. For example, an agent cannot tell a buyer if people of a certain race or religion are more prominent in one area than another. This includes the location of centers of religion. If you ask your agent to look for homes near a specific church or synagogue, the agent cannot oblige. However, if you know what area a center of religion is located, like Historic Downtown Wilmington or Pine Valley Estates, you can ask to focus your home search on that area. So, do your homework beforehand and check some maps. You can also find many statistics on local demographics at the U.S. Census Bureau web site.

Schools

While many agents themselves have experiences with local school systems, the topic of schools is usually avoided. If an agent is asked about test scores or enrollment for certain schools, gives incorrect information, and the buyer doesn’t do further research, they could potentially be buying in the wrong school district. So, agents will refrain from answering questions about schools unless they have hard evidence in front of them. However, parents can always learn more about the quality of New Hanover, Pender, and Brunswick County schools by visiting NC School Report Cards or GreatSchools.

Crime Rate

The level of criminal activities in a neighborhood is very important to most buyers, but real estate agents can’t say if a property is or isn’t in a safe neighborhood, even if they whole heartedly believe that it is. Crime can happen anywhere, even in typically safe neighborhoods. That’s why, like the subject of schools, an agent can’t say one way or the other. However, websites like Spot Crime, StarNews Online (local), and Family Watchdog all provide information about area crimes and sex offenders.

We hope these web sites are helpful in your research of local areas. We want you to choose the best neighborhood and home for YOU. If you have any questions or concerns, let us know at our Contact page or give us a call at (910)202-2546.

Quote of the Week:

“Affection is responsible for nine-tenths of whatever solid and durable happiness there is in our lives.” -C. S. Lewis

Featured Home for Sale

8706 Champion Hills Dr, Porters Neck Plantation

This beautiful home is in a water access community in a very sought-after area of Wilmington.

Lovely executive custom brick home located in one of the most prestigious sections of Porter's Neck Plantation. Home is situated only minutes from the ICWW with a community pier and boat ramp. Porter's Neck is a gated community featuring a Championship Fazio golf course. The country club, sports center for golf, tennis, pools, fitness gym, walking paths and club dining are just some of the reasons you will love this home in Porter's Neck. This luxury 5 BR 3.5 Bath home features a wonderful kitchen, custom cabinets, granite countertops and a large breakfast are. Enjoy entertaining for family and friends with spacious family areas, over-sized bonus room, open floor plan, formal dining room, screened porch and patio. Ask for list of special home features as there are too many to list.

Visit the listing page for a full description and more pictures – 8706 Champion Hills.
View other homes for sale in Porters Neck Plantation.

Listing Info Courtesy of Debi Byrd, Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Advantage

In Case You Missed It

AAIPharma, a Wilmington-based research organization and drug maker, opened its new state of the art Technology Center lab on Tuesday. This is the first physical expansion for the company in the past ten years and it plans on expanding its pharmaceutical manufacturing facilities this business quarter. AAIPharma is a contract company and makes many top brand veterinary and pharmaceutical products. These expansions are a step toward competing better globally and the company is planning to add 40-50 new jobs by the end of the year. This is wonderful news for our area!

On a completely different (and slightly geeky) note, Iron Man 3 has started filming in Wilmington. There have been multiple sightings of Robert Downey Jr. around town and casting calls for extras were held last week at Independence Mall. This is super exciting for our local film industry and area movie buffs, but I’m also excited to see that the actors are visiting our local businesses. This is great for the owners and staff, who work very hard and many long hours.

This month, we are featuring a local business in our monthly newsletter’s trivia contest – Glynne’s Soaps. They are a great little company that sells all-natural, artificially-free soaps, lotion, lip balm, etc. They even have soap for our four-legged friends. I’ve purchased from them before and LOVE their stuff, especially their beer soap made with locally brewed beer. If you aren’t signed up for our newsletter, take a moment to fill out the form on our web site and you’ll have a chance to win our monthly trivia contest prize.

Coming Up

4/25/12: Scottish Rite Annual Fish Fry – Scottish Rite Temple
4/25/12: Lend Me a Tenor - Opera House Theatre Company – Thalian Hall
4/26/12 – 4/29/12: Cape Fear Independent Film Festival – Downtown Wilmington
4/28/12: Battleship Park Car & Truck Show – Battleship Park
4/28/12: Wilmington Hammerheads vs. Pittsburgh Riverhounds – Legion Stadium
5/05/12: Arts in the Park at Greenfield – Greenfield Lake Amphiteater
5/10/12: YWCA Women of Achievement – Hilton Riverside

The Cameron Team

Melanie Cameron, Broker 910.233.2840

Susan Harkins, Buyer Specialist, 910.431.2362

Gina Martin, Buyer Specialist, 910.619.1987

Meghan Riley, Client Care Specialist, 910.202.2547

Diligently working to exceed real estate expectations in Wilmington, North Carolina, and surrounding areas including Ogden, Porters Neck, Wrightsville Beach, Carolina Beach, Castle Hayne, Leland, Burgaw, Rocky Point

Happy Monday! I hope everyone had a great weekend.

The National Associations of Realtors (NAR) has reported recently that the housing affordability index is currently at the highest point since records began being kept in 1970. The historically low interest rates that we've been seeing for so long coupled with the decline in home values around the nation is most definitely the reason for this. The experts at NAR are also saying that they expect that the home affordability index will remain the same for at least the remainder of 2012. The lack or slow pace of job creation is the main issue holding back a surge in the national housing market. I think you'll see that in areas where job growth continues to improve, so will the housing market.

Bottom line is that now is a historically good time to buy a home! Let us know how we can help you.

Have a great week!

Good news for short sales!

Starting June 15, 2012, home buyers who make offers on loans backed by Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae should see a response within 30-60 days. The Government Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs), financial service corporations created by the United States Congress, announced new response guidelines. This is a response to the largest complaints made about the short sale process – wait time and lack of communication.

In previous years, real estate agents have submitted offers on behalf of their clients only to spend several months to over a year waiting for a response from the financial institution. Many short sale contracts have fallen through due to wait time. Now, servicers of these loans must provide a response within 30 days of submission of a complete offer package. That includes the offer itself and any additional financial documents they need, including the homeowner’s financials and the buyer’s proof of funds. If they are unable to provide a response, as in more complicated cases involving private mortgage insurance, they must give the borrower a reason why before the 30 days is up and give them a weekly update until a decision is made. This must take no longer than 60 days.

If the servicer counters the offer, the borrower must respond in 5 business days. The servicer then must respond within 10 days. All communication with the borrower, including receipt of documents, must be recorded by the servicer.

This new timeline is intended to clarify the short sale process and improve communication. This is good news for both buyers, who often stall their move dates, and sellers, who need a completed sale. Short sales are a good alternative to foreclosure and help to stabilize local real estate markets.

If you’re looking to feel far from the hustle and bustle of the city, but remain in Wilmington, look no further than the private community of Porter’s Neck Plantation. It’s one of the most sought after residential areas in Wilmington. This vibrant community has the charm of southern hospitality, amenities to fit any lifestyle need, and value that will please many budgets.

Porter’s Neck Plantation was established in 1989 at the outskirts of Wilmington before Hampstead. It features a variety of home plans, wooded preservation areas, lakes, ponds, and creeks spanning across 650 beautiful acres. It was named one of the “100 Best Master Planned Communities in America” by Where to Retire Magazine, but has proven to be a destination community for people of all age groups.

Located adjacent to the Intracoastal Waterway, it provides a special opportunity for sportsman of many kinds. Multiple piers and boat ramps reach out into the Intracoastal making it easy to reach local fishing spots and restaurants, shopping, and entertainment by boat. It has a Tom Fazio-designed 18-hole, par-72 golf course that was named “#1 Coastal Golf Course in North Carolina” by Golf Digest magazine and is located within 10 miles of multiple other courses that will please the avid golfer. Porter’s Neck Plantation has a sports complex with a lap pool, clay tennis courts, and a fitness center. Plus, the area marshes and walking trails allow for the enjoyment of nature by kayak or foot.

Porter’s Neck Plantation has a large, colonial-style clubhouse that provides many social opportunities with its restaurant, The Grill, a full-service pro shop, and several areas designed for events and receptions. There is a mixture of adult and family community planned events. Some of the events include: Wine Tasting, Ladies Bunco Groups, Dinner Theaters, a Kentucky Derby party, Luaus, a Fall Festival, and Sunday “Fun Day” by the pool. You can learn more about what’s happening at the club by visiting their web site.

There is a wide range of homes for sale in Porter’s Neck Plantation – golf course lots, pond front, Intracoastal front, and more!

View homes for sale in Porter’s Neck Plantation.
View land for sale in Porter’s Neck Plantation.

If you would like to view a property listed for sale in Porter’s Neck Plantation, give us a call! We have sold many homes in the area and would be happy to help you find the perfect home or land for you. You can reach us at 910-202-2546 or you can email us through our Contact page.