Many buyers are still sitting on the fence, thinking that they will find an even better deal out there somewhere, that the prices are going to drop even more. I personally think that there is no better time to buy than right here and right now.
As Dean Hartman said last week, the purchase of a home is a personal decision. However, we want to give everyone four great financial reasons why you should not wait before taking the plunge into homeownership.
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If your house is on the market, you know how nerve-wracking it can be waiting for those buyers. You want your house to be in the best possible shape for every showing because you are competing with lots of others homes for those buyers. You don’t want your price to just be competitive – you want it to be compelling. You want the buyer to walk into your home and know that they have to have it. Pricing your house correctly is a great first step but it isn’t the only step you need to take. Your house must show incredibly well. Each buyer is looking at many homes. If you want yours to be the chosen one, it must be “Show Ready” at all times. This video will give you some great ideas and tips to help you make your house the “must have” one for the buyers.
Mortgage rates are at near-historic lows, but sinking home values are often lowering appraisals as well. If you are considering refinancing your home, what do you need to know about the appraisal process to help ensure you get the best possible appraisal on your home? Seasoned loan officer and mortgage industry insider Len Finelli shares ten important tips on understanding the appraisal process. If you are a homeowner seeking to refinance, heeding these important tips on appraisals before proceeding can improve your refinancing options and save you time and money.
Individual style, mixed with budget-conscious decorating will drive 2011 paint color trends, according to Debbie Zimmer, paint and color expert at the Paint Quality Institute.
“There’s no escaping the state of the economy, even for homeowners who want to beautify their homes,” says Zimmer. “Rather than diving into large-scale renovation projects, in the coming year, consumers will search for inexpensive ways to freshen and update their homes. Many will conclude that painting is the perfect solution.”
By incorporating a few new paint colors, either as accent walls or throughout a room, homeowners will be able to enhance their living spaces economically with paint, she says.
Zimmer shares three likely color directions for 2011:
A recent article by Carla Hill in Realty Times gives numerous reasons why buying a home – right now – is a good investment.
“Homeownership has been part of the American Dream for centuries, and it’s no wonder why. It rocks.
First, owning a home is an investment. No, it’s not a sure-fire way to get rich-quick. It is a long-term investment. Over the course of many years, even through times of economic upheaval, you can build wealth over time.”
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Daily Real Estate News | May 28, 2010
Mortgage Rates Might Not Be Low for Long
The near-record low mortgage rates seen during the past few weeks may not be around much longer.
Signs of improving economic conditions could lead Federal Reserve Chair Ben Bernanke to raise key interest rates, driving up mortgage rates, says Stephen Stanley, chief economist at Pierpont Securities LLC.
The evidence includes more consumers are paying their bills on time. Past-due accounts at American Express declined 34 percent compared to a year ago, and Target Corp. reported its lowest delinquency rate in two years during the second quarter.
In another sign of economic improvement, fewer banks reported tightening lending standards this month, one reason consumer borrowing rose for the second time in three months.
“If lending standards start to stabilize, that’ll be another reason to remove the emergency measures, including the zero rate,” says Jay Bryson, a senior global economist at Wells Fargo Securities LLC in Charlotte, N.C., who formerly worked at the Fed in Washington.
Source: Bloomberg, Bob Willis and Anthony Feld (05/28/2010)
Every time a major manufacturer considers making a move within the US, there are 15,000 Economic Development Directors sealing large envelopes containing a packet filled with lovely and inviting brochures hoping to win jobs through private investment.
Boeing’s expansion announcement for Charleston is the national coup of the year for the Lowcountry.
We don’t know if there were 15,000 involved in the recent site review by Boeing, but we have to believe the competition was fierce. The winner was the Charleston area, North Charleston to be exact. The loser was Seattle, Boeing’s hometown for decades.
Boeing plans to break ground on a 584,000 square foot expansion near its existing North Charleston factory within the next few weeks. They’ll begin rolling 787 
Dreamliners out of Charleston in 2011. The 787 is Boeing’s first new jet in more than a decade.
Boeing’s $450 million investment will produce at least 3,800 jobs.
The announcement is massively positive news for a state currently suffering one of the country’s highest unemployment rates and still reeling from recent political embarrassments.
Gooden + Faircloth welcomes Boeing and predicts everyone associated with the company moving into the area will love Charleston as much as we do.
I hear these statements every single day; “I can’t find a job”, “I can’t pay my bills”, “Can you help my child find a job”, “The phones aren’t ringing”.
There are plenty of people fortunate to have salaried positions, reasonably well isolated from the financial struggling so common for so many of our neighbors and their businesses. I personally see a great deal of struggling among my middle-class neighbors and friends.
A couple of thoughts for this period:
1) Think positively. There is going to be an end to this recession. There is.
2) Be kinder, gentler and more supportive to others. Most are having problems. Share a smile.
3) Shop locally. Avoid online purchases during this period. Money spent locally circulates locally.
4) Use this period to push yourself out of your same traditional line of personal and professional thinking. Get out of your box. Decide this downturn is going to have proven beneficial to you and your career.
Niels Bohr, the Nobel Prize-winning Danish physicist: “Every great and deep difficulty bears in itself its own solution. It forces us to change our thinking in order to find it.”
Reprinted from Charlotte Observer August 22, 2009
Charlotte-area home prices continued a slow creep upward in June, according to a closely watched index released this morning.
Area sales prices remain in negative territory compared with a year ago, but rose .7 percent from May to June, according to the S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index. While that was down slightly from the previous month’s uptick, it was the third monthly gain in four months and further evidence prices are stabilizing.
The increase comes as the broader index of 20 metropolitan areas also has been improving.
“For the second month in a row, we’re seeing some positive signs,” said David Blitzer, chairman of S&P’s index committee, adding “there are hints of an upward turn from a bottom.”
Home prices and sales remain well off their highs, locally and nationwide, but today’s Case-Shiller reading adds to a growing list of small improvements.
The index is especially meaningful because it tracks repeat sales of existing houses, the most precise broad measure of how home values are adding up. Charlotte’s run of rising values outlasted the 19 other markets for a long time. But in April 2008, the region turned to losses. This March, Charlotte saw a tiny gain, followed by an April decline and now two consecutive months of gains.
Charlotte’s prices compared with a year ago also improved, moving out of double digit losses, to a 9.6 percent decline. That remained the fifth smallest decline of the group.
Compared with a year ago, all 20 of the index’s markets remain down. But 18 areas had positively monthly gains in June, up from 13 in May. Phoenix, long the most depressed market, saw a monthly gain. Las Vegas registered the biggest monthly loss, which pushed it into last place, with prices down 32.4 percent from a year ago.
NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Sales of existing homes rose in July for the fourth consecutive month, lending support to economists who argue a recovery is near.
Sales of previously owned single-family homes were up 7.2% compared with June and 5% from July 2008, The National Association of Realtors (NAR) reported Friday. The monthly gain was the largest on record for existing-home sales, which NAR has tracked since 1999.
“The housing market has decisively turned for the better,” said Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist. “A combination of first-time buyers taking advantage of the housing stimulus tax credit and greatly improved affordability conditions are contributing to higher sales.”
July home sales hit an annualized rate of 5.24 million proprieties, marking the first breach of the 5 million annualized rate mark since last September, when they hit 5.1 million. Since then, they have stayed in a very narrow range, bouncing between between January’s low of 4.49 million and October’s high of 4.94 million.
The July performance far exceeded expectations: A consensus of real estate experts had forecast sales of 5 million.
