If you are a licensed real estate broker in North Carolina and are still needing to take your required 4 hour update course, I am teaching the course tomorrow afternoon at Legacy Real Estate School. Class size is small and the session will be interactive.

Costs is only $55 and we provide the materials.

Class will begin promptly at 1:30 PM.  Walk ins are welcome or you can register on-line at Legacy Real Estate School.

Legacy Real Estate School
2431 Spring Forest Road, Suite 175
Raleigh, North Carolina 27615
919-861-6500

The Sky is Falling, the Sky is Falling! Or at least so said Chicken Little. If one listens to the main stream news organizations one might conclude the same about the real estate market – even in the Triangle area of North Carolina.

Don’t get me wrong, Raleigh area home sales have been dramatically impacted by the national real estate marketplace and the national economy. Wake County home sales continued to decline in September 2008 as compared to September of last year. Yet, Triangle Area homes appreciated an average of 4.8% this year.

While this is not the double digit gains of the past California boom times, the rate is significant when compared to the national average appreciation which is a negative 4.8% for this year.

Read my Raleigh real estate market update and check out the statistics for each of the four major counties by clicking here: Raleigh Real Estate Market Update

While I will not attempt to “predict” the future, everyone understands that one wants to purchase low and sell high. Now is a great time to purchase a home in the Raleigh, NC area.

Contact The PolingTeam or email me to learn what opportunities there are to invest in Raleigh residential real estate.

The cities of Raleigh and Cary, North Carolina are among MSN’s pick of 66 cities where buying makes sense.

The decision to purchase a home verses continuing to rent is dependent upon a number of factors that are directly influenced by one’s credit record and credit score. A potential home buyer with a good credit history might obtain a 6% mortgage loan and they will pay a third less in monthly payments than someone who qualifies for an 8% loan. This can make a huge difference on the monthly payments and for those who are credit challenged it may make more sense to continue to rent.

So what are the returns that are projected should you buy a Raleigh, NC or Cary, NC home? One way to look at this is to project the equity that you would have in four years. Here are MSN’s projections:

How much equity you’d have by 2012 if you bought a low-priced home today…

*Source: Center for Economic and Policy Research and the National Low Income Housing Coalition

These numbers are not as large as areas in Texas, Greensboro-High Point, N.C. , or even Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater, Fla.  “Of the 100 most populous metro areas, 57 have average three-bedroom rental costs higher than the cost of a 6% loan for a typical low-priced house, including Little Rock, Ark., and Akron, Ohio. (The study’s authors defined low-priced as 75% of the area’s median.)”

With the lower interest rates that came about in the last several days as a result of the Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae bailout and the high inventory levels it is a great time to buy a Raleigh or Cary, NC home.

We love to help buyers – especially first time home buyers. Give us a call to obtain our high level of personalized service!

Vist our website at http://www.polingteam.com

The bailout of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac has already brought lower interest rates, but it may not be as large a benefit to the real estate marketplace as one might expect. Because of the tightening credit requirements (which are absolutely justified – non conforming loans were how we got into the mortgage crisis) there are fewer buyers who can qualify for a mortgage loan.

Speaking of home mortgage rates, one of our recommended lenders has a 30 year fixed conventional loan rate of 5.75% with no origination fee and 0 points. Their 30 year fixed FHA loan is at 6.0%. This is good news for home buyers and home sellers who may need to refinance their homes.

Many of the first time home buyer assistance programs are going away as of October 1^st. There are some that will still be available but the PolingTeam recommends that you have an experienced lender help you navigate the process.

Since interest rates are low and there is plenty of homes on the market, it is a great time to buy a home. Contact Us and we will be glad to help. We love first time home buyers!

You can search all active listings in the Triangle Multiple Listing Service on our website at Find Your House with Your Mouse

1. Get a Home Inspection: In a buyer’s market, it pays to be pro-active. Home defects or outdated systems can hold up a sale or result in price reductions later on. By getting a home inspection before putting your home on the market, you’ll be able to address problems that might otherwise turn off knowledgeable buyers. Contact us about our free home warranty program that may help with the cost of repairs.
2. Set Pricing Accurate to the local Market. Setting a realistic asking price is the best way to ensure a timely sale. It’s no longer enough to simply check current comparable listings in your area and match their asking prices. It is necessary to research both the price and the time on the market of the current comparable listings. It is important to study the absorption rate (comparing the number of homes on the market verses the number of homes sold in the last year).
3. The PolingTeam pays close attention to any properties that have sat unsold for an extended period of time and we study statistical data on local home buying trends.
4. Depending upon the location, the PolingTeam might even recommend hiring a professional appraiser to give you more definite idea of your home’s value.
5. Keep your mind open to the possibility of a future price reduction should your initial listing not generate the kind of response you desire. You do not want to constantly be behind the market. In a strong buyers market, it is important not to make the price reduction too small if the market prices are dropping.
6. Consider waiting on listing your home if you are in an area with high inventory and if you have the time to wait. Yes, I really did say potentially wait – even if it means we don’t have the opportunity to list your home now. We always recommend what is best for our clients.
7. Call the PolingTeam to obtain our professional advice with absolutely no obligation.

Market Watch reported today that Beazer Homes is quitting the mortgage-origination business and that the embattled builder is closing its mortgage unit, exiting several housing markets.

While they are not currently planning on leaving the Raleigh, NC area, they are quitting the home building business in Charlotte, NC. It plans to complete all homes that it is currently building in those five cities and will determine how to dispose of its land holdings in those markets.

In addition, Market Watch reported,” The builder said it found evidence that workers in its mortgage business violated Housing and Urban Development regulations. Its probe also uncovered evidence of other accounting irregularities that will lead to expected restatements. It has negotiated waivers of default from its lenders due to its failure to report financial results on time.” Read the article: Beazer Homes

This is disturbing news, but represents the challenges faces by new construction home buyers that do not have the assistance of an experienced real estate agent.  It is important that home buyers understand that Builders & Developers have agents on site who represent the Builders & Developers and many times these representatives are not licensed real estate agents. Builder representatives by definition represent the seller or developer. As a real estate professional we recommend that every buyer have their own professional representation when purchasing any real estate property. 

Check out The Poling Team Realtor® Services for New Construction Home Buyers by clicking here: Services for New Construction Home Buyers

It is hard for me to believe that I have been gone from my Raleigh Residential Real Estate blog for so long. Linda and I (The PolingTeam) had a wonderful holiday season with family and friends. Then our youngest son was married in Tennessee on January 5.

So with all those activities and keeping up with several year end home sales and a closing on January 8 for a California relocation home buyer, I have not taken the time to write.

However, I trust you will be interested to see what I have been working on for the last several weeks in regards to the status of the Raleigh, NC area real estate marketplace.

I have posted a fairly comprehensive report and a series of graphics that show a summary of the Triangle’s four main counties real estate sales for 2007 and predictions for the upcoming year. Even with all the mortgage turmoil and the declining sales numbers for the last half of the year, it still can be said that the Raleigh Area of North Carolina had a great year in 2007 for buying and selling real estate.

In the upcoming days, I will be sharing more about why it is a good time to buy a home in the Raleigh, NC area. For now take a look at my real estate market update at: Raleigh, NC Real Estate Market Update

One of the things the Poling Team likes to do in our Raleigh Residential Real Estate blog is keep readers informed about issues involving growth in the local real estate market. Today’s blog will focus briefly on Knightdale, NC.

With all the new Growth and Development in Knightdale, some growing pains surfaced with the decision of the Knightdale Town Board to rezone a site off of Highway 64 for a new Super Wal-Mart this past year. This week the issue went to the North Carolina Court of Appeals.

Local residents went to court to block the building of the new Wal-Mart so close to the Timber Ridge and Widewater Village subdivisions.

“The suit claims the town did not properly notify residents about the rezoning and that one of the council members who voted in favor of the project had a conflict of interest.”
 
The suit was denied by a Superior Court Judge last spring.

“Thursday, a panel of three, Judges John Tyson, Barbara Jackson, and John Arrowood, heard the case without oral argument. They were scheduled to look over briefs and documents submitted by both sides of the case.
 
A decision is expected to come down in about 90 days.”

Read the full article about the current status of the lawsuit at:  Judges To Decide Knightdale Wal-Mart’s Fate

It is not unusual for the proposal of a new Wal-Mart to cause controversy. There is a national push to stop Wal-Mart and it often brings high emotions to the issue of grow and development. One internet website dedicated to stopping Wal-Mart is http://walmartwatch.com/

One of indicators that those who are involved in investing in the stock market, the buying and selling of real estate or other kinds of investments is the Consumer Confidence Index. The Consumer Confidence Survey that determines the index is based on a representative sample of 5,000 U.S. households. This index is not based upon any kind of reality or scientific measurement of how the economy is actually performing; rather it is based upon the opinions of a random group of 5000 people.

If you read the reports the index has been declining since the summer, but consumers have not lost their holiday spirit and anticipate spending more on gifts this season than they did last Christmas. So despite how they feel about the direction of the economy, at least those surveyed are going to do the opposite. They are going to spend more.

Another facet of the survey covered what consumers are thinking about future jobs. “The outlook for the labor market was also more pessimistic. The percent of consumers expecting more jobs in the months ahead fell to 10.8 percent from 13.3 percent, while those anticipating fewer jobs rose to 23.1 percent from 20.2 percent.”

Again, this is based upon the feelings of these 5,000 people who were surveyed. It is not based upon any scientific evidence. The recent job numbers came in better than anticipated and last months figures were adjusted upward.

So one of the indicators that is used to help in day-to-day decision-making and long-term planning in based upon how 5,000 people feel about things. And those feelings are quite fickle and as we have seen their actions are inconsistent with their thinking.

You can read the November 27 Press Release here: The Consumer Confidence Press Release

I am always amazed at the amount of negative news that is out there on almost every topic. As we have seen over the last months real estate has been talked down by just about everyone. Home selling stats are used to generate uncertainty and that uncertainty generates fear and fear affects what is bought and sold.

I do not mean to downplay the effect of the national downturn in real estate, but some in the news media jump on every statistic and then spin the worst case scenario. Today, I am happy to report positive news regarding real estate.

Today, the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) released the results of its Weekly Mortgage Applications Survey for the week ending November 30, 2007 and the mortgage volume soared after Thanksgiving. There had been an error in reporting due to Thanksgiving shortened week and the numbers had to be revised.

Read the full article: Weekly Mortgage Application Survey

Most of this increase appears to have been a result of refinancing as a result of lower interest rates. However, this still is good news for home sellers and home buyers. Lower interest rates are a good thing for real estate sales.

Visit our website and see our new home search tool or try in out by clicking here: Best Home Pro Search