Monday, March 26, 2012

LOCAL TRIANGLE NC REAL ESTATE MARKET UPDATE


The February numbers are in for our area, and it is good news.  Let’s see what’s going on.   

The number of new listings decreased by 10.5 percent.  Keep this in mind when Chicken Little is running around on the national news saying, “The foreclosures are coming…”  This is actually good news because it decreased the competition for existing listing leading to…

Closed sales – sales that were actually sold & completed -- increased 32 percent.   Wow!  Let’s just let that one sink in.

The median sales price of homes in our area increased 2.6 percent to $200K (that means half were over that amount, half were under).  The average sales price in our area is $233,949. The national median existing-home price for all housing types was $156,600 in February, up 0.3 percent from February 2011.   (http://www.realtor.org/press_room/news_releases/2012/03/ehs_feb)

Number of days on market did increase by 9.4 percent to 125 (hey, I have to give you the truth and not just all the sunshiny stuff!).  But, that is still only about 4 months. 

Month’s supply of inventory is at 6.5 percent.  Traditional rule is home inventory under 6 months is a sign of a positive market, and we are darn close.  In February, 2011, we were at 9.5 percent.

Percent of original list price received:  96.5 percent which remained the same.  More than anything, the market is telling us that it is most important to price your home right the first time.  Subsequent reductions lengthen time on market.  I’ll more on that in an upcoming blog.

So, what does this mean:  Home sales are up – by a healthy number!  It is taking a little longer to sell, but I can attest that showings have increased, meaning that buyers are coming out.  Prices have increased and mortgage rates are going up, too.  Gone is the 3.7 percent rate we saw just a few months ago.  Still wondering when to buy?  I think we have our answer right here.  The economic forecast is positive and rentals are going up.

Think you can’t buy – I bet you’ll be surprised!  I have several mortgage experts who will speak to you in complete confidence and at no charge.  Get in touch.  How can I help you? 

Source:  Triangle Multiple Listing Service

Friday, March 23, 2012

Fun Things to do this Weekend

Back by popular demand -- here is a sampling of some fun things to do in our area this weekend!  Weather will be gorgeous, so get on out & enjoy yourself.

SATURDAY, MARCH 24

SPRING FLING
Rain or Shine!
6175 Old Jenks Road, Apex (across from Salem Schools)

Hope Chapel's 4th annual Spring Fling Community Event is coming March 24 from noon to 5pm.  Join us for a afternoon full of FREE fun featuring food, egg hunt, magicians, music, rides and games.  The event will be staffed entirely by volunteers and is made possible through many generous donations.


OPERATION MEDICINE DROP
Time:               10 a.m.  – 2 PM
Location:          Rex Healthcare Cary Campus
                        1515 SW Cary Pkwy, Cary

Rex Healthcare announced its first “Operation Medicine Drop,” in conjunction with Safe Kids North Carolina and the Cary Police Department. The event will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Rex Healthcare of Cary campus and will provide an easy “drive-thru” drop-off to help participants quickly discard unused, unwanted or expired medications. “We encourage people from all of the surrounding areas to bring medications they no longer use to our ‘Operation Medicine Drop’ event,” said Beth Mills, pharmacist with Rex Healthcare. “With unintentional poisoning deaths on the rise in North Carolina, it is important to rid homes of medications that are no longer needed or expired. This ensures safety for families and also provides proper disposal that benefits our environment.” North Carolina has some of the highest numbers of deaths from unintentional poisoning, and the majority of these are due to over-the-counter or prescription medications. An estimated 40 percent of poison related injuries occur in children ages five and younger. Members of the public can drop off medications to officers and pharmacists at the Rex Healthcare of Cary campus, specifically the drive-thru area in front of Rex Wellness Centers.

http://www.rexhealth.com

RALEIGH SYMPHONE ORCHESTRA PRESENTS: "CABARET"

Halle Cultural Arts Center, Historic Downtown Apex

7:30 – 11:30 PM (doors open at 7 PM)

Tickets:  $20 (only 100 available)


The Free Spirits Wind Ensemble will present a delightful evening of music, dance, wine and cheese in a cabaret setting.  The music of Piazzola with tangueros Jason Laughlin and Cecilia Pagani will be festured.  After the concert, they will host a brief tango lesson and DJ for your dancing pleasure.

For ticket info, call 919-546-9755

SUNDAY, MARCH 25

MARVELOUS MUSIC SERIES:  RAPUNZEL
Time:               3 p.m.
Location:          Cary Arts Center
Address:           101 Dry Avenue
Contact:           (919) 469-4069
Website:           http://www.townofcary.org

Tarradiddle Players, the Resident Touring Company of Children’s Theatre of Charlotte, spreads the joy of live theatre across the Southeast. Tarradiddle Players has performed for over one million children during its 38 years! Adapted by renowned playwright Max Bush, this production stays true to the mystery and enchantment of the original Brothers Grimm fairy tale. For more, (919) 469-4069 or www.ctcharlotte.org.


TUESDAY, MARCH 27

Where Did I Come From? A Genealogy Primer
Time:               7:30p.m.
Location:          Page-Walker Arts & History Center
Address:           119 Ambassador Loop (on the Cary Town Hall Campus)
Contact:           Lisa Englert   (919) 460-4963
Website: 
  
Who are our ancestors and how do we discover our family lineage? The study of genealogy will solve these mysteries. Join the Friends of the Page-Walker Hotel as they present a panel discussion on the experiences, lessons, and challenges of genealogical research. Panelists will be Bren Witchger (Cary Writing Club); Carla Michaels (Yates Family Chronicler); Terry Moore, Certified Genealogist (Terry Moore Genealogical Services); and a representative from Olivia Raney Local History Library. Learn how to explore your family history by hearing what has worked for others like you. This free program is offered as part of the Friends of the Page-Walker’s Historic Preservation Series.

Let me know if you have something to add, I'm always looking for fun adventures in our area.



Monday, March 19, 2012

ATTITUDES ARE MORE POSITIVE

Survey Shows Consumer Attitudes More Positive

Just like today’s weather, with the sun trying to poke through the fog & clouds, it appears that our outlook on key economic and housing issues is getting a little brighter, too.

Fannie Mae’s February 2012 National Housing Survey shows that 
consumer attitudes have stabilized across most indicators such as
personal finances, housing, and employment compared to late summer and fall of 2011. The survey polled 1,003 Americans via telephone interview to assess their attitudes toward owning and renting a home, mortgage rates, homeownership distress, the economy, household finances, and overall consumer confidence. Homeowners and renters are asked more than 100 questions used to track attitudinal shifts.

The most dramatic change in this recent survey revolves around the economy in general—35 percent of Americans now feel that the economy is on the right track, up 19 percentage points since November, and 57 percent think the economy is on the wrong track, down 18 percentage points since November. I’m not going to sugar-coat this, more than half of those surveyed still feel we are not on the right track, but at least that number is going down.

Americans’ confidence about personal financial situations, household income, and household expenses, as well as attitudes about homeownership and renting is holding at steady levels. Also important to note, Americans’ concerns about losing their job in the next 12 months has stabilized since the late fall, with 76 percent of Americans saying they are not concerned in February 2012, compared to 70 percent in November 2011.  Fannie Mae believes that the recent pick-up in the pace of hiring over the past few months is directly responsible for alleviating consumer concerns about unemployment.  I can also personally attest that buyers are starting to come out and home sales are up.  I’ll have those numbers soon. 

Here are some additional highlights from this survey:
Ø     Only 12 percent of respondents believe that their personal financial situation will worsen in the next 12 months, a 3 percentage point drop from January and the lowest value in over a year.

Ø      33 percent say their expenses have increased significantly over the past 12 months, a 3 percentage point decrease from last month and the lowest level in the past 12 months.

Ø      28 percent of respondents expect home prices to increase over the next 12 months (consistent with last month), while 15 percent say they expect home prices to decline (down 1 percentage point since last month).  Everyone’s waiting for the “bottom” and the sad fact is that you will only know the bottom once it has passed.  You should base your home-buying decision upon careful research & discussion with an experienced Realtor.

Ø    10 percent of Americans say that mortgage rates will go down in the next 12 months, a 2 percentage point increase from last month.  They are already at historic lows, so it’s anyone’s guess what will happen here.  This stat can also be read as “90 percent think mortgage rates will either remain the same or increase in the next year.”

Ø     The percentage of respondents who say it is a good time to sell rose by 3 percentage points to 13 percent, the highest level in over a year.

Ø      45 percent of respondents think that home rental prices will go up, a 2 percentage point increase from last month.  I’ve already received a number of calls from folks who are feeling the pinch of rents going up as much as 25 – 30 percent a month.  Rentals are hot in our area, so landlords can charge whatever the market will bear.  They are seeing the value of buying now.

If you’d like to read more for yourself, here is the link to the report:  http://bit.ly/escottfebreport

What do you think?  Are we on the right track – could we be doing something different?  Let me know!

Friday, March 16, 2012

7 HOT HOME IMPROVEMENTS FOR NOW AND LATER

Trends that Make Your Home Work Now  and Add Value Later

Home improvement trends embrace energy efficiency, low maintenance exteriors, and double-duty space.

Trend #1: Maintenance-free siding
We continue to choose maintenance-free siding that lives as long as we do, but with a lot less upkeep. But more and more we’re opting for fiber-cement siding, one of the fastest-growing segments of the siding market. It’s a combination of cement, sand, and cellulosic fibers that looks like wood but won’t rot, combust, or succumb to termites and other wood-boring insects.

At $5 to $9 per sq. ft., installed, fiber-cement siding is more expensive than paint-grade wood, vinyl, and aluminum siding. It returns 78% of investment, the highest return of any upscale project on Remodeling magazine’s latest Cost vs. Value Report.

Maintenance is limited to a cleaning and some caulking each spring. Repaint every 7 to 15 years. Wood requires repainting every 4 to 7 years.

Trend #2: Convertible spaces
Forget “museum rooms” we use twice a year (dining rooms and living rooms) and embrace convertible spaces that change with our whims.

Foldaway walls turn a private study into an easy-flow party space. Walls can consist of fancy, glass panels ($600 to $1,600 per linear ft., depending on the system); or they can be simple vinyl-covered accordions  ($1,230 for 7 ft. by 10 ft.). PortablePartions.com sells walls on wheels ($775 for approximately 7 ft. by 7 ft.).

A Murphy bed pulls down from an armoire-looking wall unit and turns any room into a guest room. Prices, including installation and cabinetry, range from $2,000 (twin with main cabinet) to more than $5,000 (California king with main and side units). Just search online for sellers.

And don’t forget area rugs that easily define, and redefine, open spaces.

Trend #3: A laundry room of your own
Humankind advanced when the laundry room arose from the basement to a louvered closet on the second floor where clothes live. Now, we’re taking another step forward by granting washday a room of its own.

If you’re thinking of remodeling, turn a mudroom or extra bedroom into a dedicated laundry room big enough to house the washer and dryer, hang hand-washables, and store bulk boxes of detergent.

Look for spaces that already have plumbing hookups or are adjacent to rooms with running water to save on plumbing costs.

Trend #4: Souped-up kitchens
Although houses are trending smaller, kitchens are getting bigger, according to the American Institute of Architects’ Home Design Trends Survey.

Kitchen remodels open the space, perhaps incorporating lonely dining rooms, and feature recycling centers, large pantries, and recharging stations.

Oversized and high-priced commercial appliances—did we ever fire up six burners at once?—are yielding to family-sized, mid-range models that recover at least one cabinet for storage. 

Since the entire family now helps prepare dinner (in your dreams), double prep sinks have evolved into dual-prep islands with lots of counter space and pull-out drawers.

Trend #5: Energy diets
We’re wrestling with an energy disorder: We’re binging on electronics—cell phones, iPads, Blackberries, laptops--then crash dieting by installing LED fixtures and turning the thermostat to 68 degrees.

Are we ahead of the energy game? Only the energy monitors and meters know for sure.

These new tracking devices can gauge electricity usage of individual electronics ($20 to $30) or monitor whole house energy ($100 to $250). The TED 5000 Energy Monitor ($240) supplies real-time feedback that you can view remotely and graph by the second, minute, hour, day, and month.

Trend #6: Love that storage
As we bow to the new god of declutter, storage has become the holy grail.
We’re not talking about more baskets we can trip over in the night; we’re imagining and discovering built-in storage in unlikely spaces--under stairs, over doors, beneath floors.

Under-appreciated nooks that once displayed antique desks are growing into built-ins for books and collections. Slap on some doors, and you can hide office supplies and buckets of Legos.

Giant master suites, with floor space to land a 747, are being divided to conquer clutter with more walk-in closets.

Trend #7: Home offices come out of the closet
Flexible work schedules, mobile communications, and entrepreneurial zeal are relocating us from the office downtown to home.

Laptops and wireless connections let us telecommute from anywhere in the house, but we still want a dedicated space (preferably with a door) for files, supplies, and printers.

Spare bedrooms are becoming home offices and family room niches are morphing into working nooks. After a weekend of de-cluttering, basements and attics are reborn as work centers.

Thinking of making improvements?  Home needs a little something? Call me -- I have a list of great, quality experts who can help with anything in your home!



Saturday, March 3, 2012

Are You Prepared?

I just picked up my annual order of Girl Scout cookies & it always reminds me of the great times I had as a scout.  Of course, our main credo was, “Be Prepared”.

Those words are even more pertinent today, with all the crazy weather we’ve been having -- tornados & earthquakes – in addition to the customary hurricanes & lightening storms.  While I sincerely hope none of us is ever involved in a disaster (weather or other), it is probably a good idea for all of us to Be Prepared!  Here’s a quick checklist of things we should do & have to ease our way should the unexpected happen

Disaster preparedness checklist

1. Enough food and water for at least three days for an emergency evacuation, or two weeks' worth of food and water if you are confined to your home.
The Red Cross recommends at least one gallon of water per day per person (and take into account extra for toilet flushing & washing).  Include easy-to-prepare food items that do not require refrigeration. Canned goods, dehydrated fruits, nuts and vacuum-packed foods are good choices.
Also, be sure to remember baby formula, bottles or any other special needs anyone in your household may have. Stock up now. If you don't use the food, you can give it to your local food bank and take a tax deduction.
Furthermore, be sure you have knives, a pair of scissors, and an old-fashioned can opener that doesn't require electricity. Don't forget to include eating utensils for each person.

2. At least $500 to $1,000 of cash on hand in case you are unable to access an ATM and have to evacuate to a safer area.
If the power is out, chances are that your Internet service may be down, as well. This means that your credit cards and your local ATM will probably not be working. Even if food and other supplies are available after the disaster, you may have to pay cash.

3. A first-aid kit, medications, and personal hygiene items for each member of your household. A smart way to prepare these items is to pack a backpack for each member of your household, including your pets.
If someone in your household requires refrigerated medications, make sure you have an ice chest with cold packs ready to go. Be sure to include glasses, hearing aids, contact lenses and solution, syringes, and any other necessity. For children, include games and activities to keep them occupied.
Also, remember to include personal hygiene items such as diapers, soap, shampoo, baby wipes (in case there is no water), pillows, and blankets or sleeping bags. For your animals, include a collar, leash, ID tag, carrier, and food and water bowls.

4. A way to keep the lights on. While a generator may not be a practical option, a flashlight, candles, matches and extra batteries are within everyone's reach. Even if the power is out, you can use a solar charger for your cell phone or a battery-charged recharging station.
It's also smart to have a battery-powered radio or crank radio so you can hear details about disaster response and aid while the emergency is taking place.
In terms of your computer or other devices, be sure you have all the cables, the charger, and any other hookups necessary to run your computer from a remote location.

5. Your personal documents stored in a single place. The Red Cross recommends that you pull all critical personal documents together in one place so you can quickly grab the package if you need to evacuate on a moment's notice.
Items to include: proof of address, insurance policies, medical ID cards, credit cards, deed/lease to your residence, passports, birth certificates, and pertinent medical information and medications. To be doubly safe, scan these documents and back them up in the cloud.
6. Specialized survival items for your home. Surgical-style masks can prevent inhalation of dust after a major quake or building collapse, for example. It's also smart to have sturdy shoes, rain gear, plastic sheeting, duct tape, and household bleach for water purification.
7. Items you can't replace should be stored so you can quickly access, pack them. Whether it's family heirlooms, junior's golf trophies, or grandma's favorite quilt, decide which items are irreplaceable and have those stored in a single place where you can quickly reach and pack them, if need be.

8. A plan for being in touch or going to a safe place. It's smart for your household members to have two or three options as to where they can go in an emergency. The Red Cross also offers a way to notify friends and loved ones through their organization, even if the power is out.  Also, does your town have an evacuation plan?  Do you know what it is & can you easily get that information?  You’ll also need a plan for your pet should you need to leave your home.

So, while I’m munching on these cookies, I’m going to be checking my supplies, listing items I need & deciding where to store them & gathering all my paperwork (including phone numbers of family & loved ones) so I’ll have a plan.  The biggest obstacle to preparedness is procrastination. The smart move is simple: Prepare now -- don't wait.

If you’d like to read more, check out: