Real Estate Information

Almost every day, we get the question, "What is the difference in a foreclosure and a short sale?"  Aside from the fact that they are both distressed sales and the banks are involved, that is about all as far as similarities.

A foreclosure is owned by the bank.  They have completed all the legal requirements to regain legal ownership of the property as well as a clear and conveyable title.  Since the bank owns the property outright, they are much easier to purchase and closings can occur relatively fast. 

Short sales are not bank owned properties.  The sellers still own the properties but due to a hardship, they must sell the property and it is no longer worth the amount owed.  The seller typically does not have the ability to bring money to closing to cover the difference.  In this case, the property is advertised for sale at a price that induces an offer.  The offer must be contingent on bank approval.  Once the contract is signed, it is sent to the bank for their approval.  The process of waiting for bank approval is what frustrates most buyers (and sellers).  There is no guarantee that the bank will accept the short sale offer or any offer that is less than what is owed.  Months can pass before the bank responds so if the buyer needs to close on a home within 2-3 months, a short sale may be an exercise in frustration and futility.

In either case, buyers need to understand that the property is typically being sold "as is."  It can be wise to have licensed contractors or inspectors survey the property prior to getting involved.

Wilmington NC Real Estate:  Buyer In a Multiple Offer Situation

More and more buyers are finding themselves in multiple offer situations and buyers are losing out.  Why? 

Foreclosures, short sales, and even equity sellers are providing wonderful opportunities for buyers. With pent up demand and high affordability, buyers are really coming out and snatching up good properties.  Investors are also scouring the deals daily. Here is how to avoid multiple-offers and how to deal with them if you find yourself in that situation.

If you find a really good home, be prepared to move immediately.  Funds should be relatively liquid or pre-approvals for loans should be in place.  

Low-ball offers can kill a deal quickly.  If you are not picky about your home, you can risk more.  However, finding the right home for you is not always easy and a low ball offer can cause a seller to refuse to deal with you-even if you up the offer.

If you are notified that there are other offers on the property and you still want to give it a shot, make a clean offer.  Offer no more than you are willing to pay and no less than it is worth to you.  You want to feel good about it if you win the bid and OK if you lose (because it simply was not worth any more than you offered).  It can be heartbreaking to lose the perfect home so be reasonable.  You agent should provide you with market data so you can be assured it is a fair deal.

One of the best ways to be first to a property is to sign up for a listing notification account.  We offer such a service in our Wilmington NC Real Estate area on our Home Search Site: www.HomeSearchWilmington.com

Hello and happy Friday!  

We are still settling in to 2012 with a busy start to the year.  I want to thank you for your calls, emails and interest.  I am sure 2012 will be a famous one indeed as this is THE year to take advantage of home prices and affordability.  

David Flory of Cunningham and Company writes:

• Currently our year end numbers are very close to last year this time – our units are up by 18 and our average sold price is only down by $8,583 or 3.7%

• Our Median sold price increased this month by 10.9% from last month. 

• Market Absorption rate – The number of homes sold in December, 371 divided by the current listing inventory, 3,751 gives us a 10.1 month supply of single family homes. This decreased 2.3 months from last month. We need to keep this inventory under 12 months supply. With rates where they are and plenty of inventory; we can get this number down even more.

• List to Sold price ratio – the average list price of the sold properties is $228,470 and the average sold price is $215,056 for December which gives us a 94.1% list to sold price ratio – an increase from last month.
• Seller Concessions – We had 29.6% of sold properties report a sales concession for December, a decrease of less than 1%. We want this number to go lower.

• Days on Market – The average days on market for the sold properties are now at 152 for December a 13 day decrease from last month. Only 12.9% of the properties were placed under contract in less than 15 days for the month of November.

• Wilmington MLS Quarterly Average Sold Price – I have charted each quarter average sold price and our peak quarter was 2^nd quarter of 2007 with an average sold price of $280,354 and our the last quarter or 2011 was our lowest at an average sold price of $214,224 which gives us about a 23.6% decline in our average sold price spread over almost 5 years.

• Foreclosures as reported by the North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts, I have added all three counties and worked it as a moving five month average, our peak seems to have been about August of 2010 and we are down about 42% since then. This is looking better.

Once the foreclosures have flushed out, the prices will begin to increase again.  We are already seeing signs of stability-long term signs.

Whether you are looking for a home to live in, or an investment property, I urge you to get your radar turned on and tuned in. If you have not already done so, get on our Instant Property Email Notification program.  You can customize your own search and get updates immediately as properties come on to the market. Click here to begin: www.HomeSearchWilmington.com

Have a great weekend and stay safe!

Happy New Year and welcome to 2012!  We are very excited about all the plans we are implementing for our clients and team.  We have seen steady activity over the holidays and a surge of business since the first of January.  Let's take a quick peak at how December 2011 stacked up to the previous month as well as the previous December.

We can see the evidence of price/ value adjustments that have continued over the year.  Prices were down roughly 7% since last year and units sold was down 4%.  This directly affects total dollar sales volume which is down 13%. 

Once you look at December 2011 vs November 2011, however, we see an increase in price, units sold and total dollar volume.  We also see a decrease in listings and this is critical.  When supply decreases, prices increase.

We will have  more detailed look at 2011 once we have completed analyzing the data. Check out my brief video below:

Christmas is upon us and we need to have an update on the market!  Here you can see the Wilmington NC Real Estate reports for November 2011.

The first thing you will notice here is a lot of negative signs!  While we want to see positive percentages here, we have to remember that this is partially due to the seasonality of real estate.  Prices are lower and inventory drops this time of year.  Foreclosures and short sales continue to influence the market and banks (and Realtors) are getting better at processing short sales.  (I said better-not great!)

Monthly fluctuations are not what we want to focus on but rather the long term trends.  Interest rates are phenominal and properties are selling.  We will keep you updated on the trends so stay tuned!

I hope you have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!  God bless!

Here we are close to Thanksgiving and we need to squeeze in an update on the market!  Here you can see the Wilmington NC Real Estate reports for October 2011.

Overall we are still bouncing up and down with average sales price up by over 4% from last month but down almost 3% since last year this time.   Units sold are down 8% from September but up 10% from October 2010.  I would like to continue to see a reduction in homes inventory in order to bring supply and demand closer and balance out the market.  We are maintaining a 12.5 month Absorption rate.

Interest rates continue to decline and averaged 3.99% for October.  With excellent affordability and availability of homes, we are looking at an outstanding opportunity for buyers!  Have a great week and give us a call if you have any questions!

"...what a long strange trip it's been."  I think that pretty much sums up not just the real estate market, but the whole economy as well!  So-let's take a look at how we fared in August:

Total units sold (and total dollar volume) continues to be up in double digits from the previous month as well as one year ago.  This is important as it shows our region is doing things that many parts of the country are not-and that is selling houses. 

The average sales price vaccilates up and down around each month.  This seems to indicate stability or a "leveling" of values. If prices are indeed bouncing along the bottom, we will only be able to tell when it becomes history.

The Days ON Market (how long it takes a house to go under contract) is up from last year but down slightly from the previous month.

Pending sales are those in which a purchase agreement has been signed by a buyer and seller but it has not closed yet.  The pending sales are up slightly from July and up 11% from one year ago.

For the chart people:  Go to the Wilmington NC Home Sales Market Report for more details.

From July 2011 to August 2011

• Total units sold: +12%
• Average sales price: -3%
• Median sales price: -2%
• Total dollar volume: +9%
• Days on the market: -4%
• New listings: +4%
• Pending Sales: +2%

From August 2010 to August 2011

• Total units sold: +13%
• Average sales price: -0.34%
• Median sales price: -6%
• Total dollar volume: +13%
• Days on the market: +17%
• New listings: -20%
• Pending Sales: +11%

Remember this quote:

My prediction for the next two to three years is that we are going to have a very strong investor market.  We are analyzing sales and we are seeing a big increase in cash buyers and investors.  These folks recognize the opportunities and are getting in on them before it is too late.

We are ramping up our Investor Agents designations (CIAS) and are building a great business model helping folks build generational wealth for them and their families.  More on that to come so stayed tuned!

Wilmington NC Real Estate Sales - Chris Baynes REALTOR Chris Baynes and Associates is one of the areas most successful Realtor Teams.  We specialize in helping buyers and sellers with real estate services in the greater Wilmington NC area including Wrightsville Beach, Carolina Beach, Kure Beach, Castle Hayne, Hampstead, Leland, Belville, New Hanover County, Brunswick County and Pender County, and all Wilmington NC Real Estate.  (910) 470-4408

We hope you are enjoying your Labor Day with your loved ones. I just wanted to give you a brief history on how we came to celebrate Labor Day. Labor Day, the first Monday in September, is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country. The first Labor Day holiday was celebrated on Tuesday, September 5, 1882, in New York City, in accordance with the plans of the Central Labor Union. The Central Labor Union held its second Labor Day holiday just a year later, on September 5, 1883. Please be safe on this holiday and remember to call us for all your real estate needs.

Wilmington NC Real Estate Sales - Chris Baynes REALTOR Chris Baynes and Associates is one of the areas most successful Realtor Teams.  We specialize in helping buyers and sellers with real estate services in the greater Wilmington NC area including Wrightsville Beach, Carolina Beach, Kure Beach, Castle Hayne, Hampstead, Leland, Belville, New Hanover County, Brunswick County and Pender County, and all Wilmington NC Real Estate.  (910) 470-4408