Raleigh Real Estate

Clayton NC Active Adult Communities

Since opening last year, more than half of the homes have sold in The Village of Aversboro, a Garner Community that caters to the 55 + crowd.  In Clayton, developers have revamped plans for a new subdivision to attract a more mature crowd.  Even in a recession, the older population has money to send, some real estate agents say.  Often, they have equity from their current homes they can use to buy new ones.  And those in retirement don't have to worry about layoffs.  As they get older, some people are drawn to retirement communities' promises of lawn care, activities and fellowship.

"This is a real growth segment of the market," said Clayton Planning Direction Skip Browder.

Edith and Stan Conyers lived in a house off Buffaloe Road in Garner for more than 20 years.  Although the couple is active, the large property required a lot of yard work, and 78-year-old Edith decoded it was time to move on."  The Conyers were on of the first families to move into The Village last year.  Their house - just under 2,000 square feet - is the perfect setup for them, they say.  "It just feels so good to hear someone out there cutting the grass," Edith said.

While the Conyers are thrilled with their home, the transition wasn't seamless.  They moved to The Village in April 2008, before they sold their old house.  Although they no longer had mortgage payments on the other house, Stan was unhappy about paying taxes and insurance for two homes.  "I didn't think we were going to be able to sell it, "cause we didn't have many prospects," Stan said.  "I was sweating it out."  While the Conyers did sell the house two months after they moved to The Village.  But it's a hurdle for some folks who want to move to a retirement community.

Judy and Monroe Bruch moved to North Carolina a couple years ago, after they sold their home in the Albany, NY area.  They were lucky - the house stayed on the market only six weeks, Judy said.  They bought a home in The Village last year, although they weren't looking for a retirement community.   "We said, "You know what, that sounds like a good idea," Judy said/ "Your own space, your own yard."

Judy, a retired social worker, is active in The Village community.  She goes to lunch once a month with other women in the neighborhood, and she and her husband, a retired college professor, have gone to movie night.  They ride their bikes in their neighborhood.

Often, these kinds of communities strive to cater to active adults.  Clayton touts itself as a great place for active families, said James Lipscomb, an agent with HomeTowne Realty.  Eventually, those families get older, and they still want things to do, he said.  Lipscomb helped convince The Walthom Group, a development company in Clayton, to change its plans for a new subdivision near Glen Laurel to appeal to adults 55 and older.

Earlier this year, Clayton leaders approved plans for a housing development off Vinson Road.  The homes were to be similar in size to those in Glen Laurel.  But some real estate agents called for something new, said Jim Lee, a partner in The Walthom Group.  The town of Clayton's planning board has backed 51 new homes in the area for adults 55 and older.  The company also has plans for another senior-living community in Clayton, Lee said.

If they had stuck with the original plans, builders likely wouldn't have broken ground on the housing project for a year or two, Lee said.  If the Town Council approves the new plan, construction will get underway soon, he said.  Like the homes in The Village, the new houses in Clayton won't be cheap.  The average price would be $350,000 or so, Lee said.  At The Village, home prices range from about $265,000 to $350,000.

Older folks might want to downsize, Lee said, but they don't want to settle for cheap things. If the Clayton plans go through, the homes will have solid wooden doors, high-grade carpets and nice cabinets, he said.  In Garner, bulldozers continue to push dirt at The Village.  Eventually, the community will have 147 houses - mostly brick, with manicured lawns.

For Edith Conyers, who continues to work part time, it's perfect. She walks around the neighborhood while her husband rides his stationary bike in the house and surfs the Internet.  At Christmas, they host their large family in the community's clubhouse - a better setup, they say, than the garage at their old house.  "It makes sense," Stan Conyers said of their new home.

Six Reasons to buy Raleigh Real Estate with First Time Home Buyer Tax Credit

November 30, 2009 is coming up fast.  That's the deadline for closing a home using the first-time home buyer tax credit.  There isn't much time to find a house and close.

With housing prices the lowest they have been in a decade, now is a smart time to buy a home.  Here are six reasons why home buyers are running out of time:
 
The economy is improving
 
The worst recession since the Great Depression may be winding down, said The Conference Board on August 20, 2009. The analysts found that leading economic indicators rose 0.6% in July, following a 0.8% rise in June. That's two consecutive months of improvement halting 8 months of declines.
 
While the indicators can certainly slide backward new data, serious first-time home buyers should realize the days of wholesale bargains may be numbered.
 
Banking issues
 
Since May, 2009, Federal Housing Finance Agency appraisal regulations have slowed home sales transactions to the point that major lenders are telling loan originators that closings could be delayed by as much as an extra 15 days. The National Association of REALTORS® has found that 76% of its members reported delays in closing. 
 
As the first-time home buyer tax credit comes to a close, banks will be inundated with loan applications for an already narrow production pipeline. Home buyers should allow at least 45 days to close, and a few days extra in order to have time to correct errors or delays during the closing process.
 
That means with the pipeline full of mortgages being processed, now is the time to get in line and make the deadline of November 30, 2009.
 
Federal bailout fatigue
 
If the government concludes that additional stimulus is needed for the economy, it's likely that the first-time home buyer tax credit will be extended, but you're taking a chance to count on it.
 
From Cash for Clunkers to Making Home Affordable programs, and many more, the federal budget is at its limits. In total, the economic stimulus bill has added $787 billion to a federal budget already careening out of control.
 
The largest federal deficit ever reached $1.3 trillion in August 2009, says the Congressional Budget Office's monthly budget review. The deficit grew largely because of the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) $169 billion, in which $83 billion went to support Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Expenditures from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA) have totaled more than $125 billion.

Inventory is being absorbed
 
Nationally existing, or pre-owned home inventories are slowly being absorbed, and are at a 9.4-month supply in July, while standing builder inventories were at 8.8-months-on-hand in June 2009.
 
At their highest during the recession, new and existing home inventories hovered at 11 months on hand. A balanced market is approximately six months of inventory on hand. New home housing sales have improved three months in a row in June.
 
If the current rate of improvement in existing homes remains at a steady pace, (from 9.8 months on hand in June to 9.4 months on hand in July,) the existing housing market could be balanced (on a national basis) in approximately 8 months.  
Seller's market for affordable homes
 
Existing home sales in July 2009 increased four months in a row, says the National Association of REALTORS®. The national median existing home price was $178,400, 15.1% lower than a year ago.
 
Pressuring prices and inventories are foreclosures, which contributed to a 7.3% rise in inventory, which the sales pace absorbed, keeping inventory on hand at 9.4 months on hand for two consecutive months. Lawrence Yun, chief economist for the NAR says that improved affordability has driven sales with first-time home buyers taking advantage of the tax credit. "The demand for foreclosed and lower priced homes has spiked, and a lack of inventory is becoming a common complaint," he said in a statement to the media.
 
One-third of homes sold in July were to first-time home buyers.
 
Interest rates are going down 
 
The percentage of foreclosures in the second quarter 2009 were the highest ever recorded by the Mortgage Bankers Association, and the trade organization says that foreclosures will grow and peak at the end of 2010. 
 
One-third of homes sold in July were short sales or in some stage of foreclosure.
 
What's disturbing is that one out of three homes in some stage of foreclosures are prime fixed rate mortgages, suggesting that joblessness is impacting borrowers ability to pay their mortgages.
 
First-time unemployment filings rose mid-August, which indicates that the recession isn't over yet, and that housing inventories will continue to rise.
 
If that's the case, the Fed will strive to keep mortgage interest rates as low as possible to continue the momentum in housing sales.
 
Your competition is other home buyers
 
The accumulative effect of all these market conditions - rising foreclosures, low interest rates, jobless claims, government incentives and more are that home buying is going to be at its most attractive level through the end of summer and into the fall and early winter.
 
In July, housing sales transactions jumped 7.2 % - the largest monthly sales gain since 1999. Price-to-income ratios have fallen below historical trends, says Yun.
 
That means that home buyers at all price levels may jump into the market, crowding lender pipelines even more.
 
If you want a smooth transaction, and to take advantage of the $8000 tax credit, the time to act is now.  Contact one of our professional buyers agent for more details.

Raleigh Real Estate Market Ranks #6 on 2009 Healthiest Housing Markets

According to the Hanley Wood Market Intelligence Report, the Raleigh area ranked #6 for 2009. 

6. Raleigh, N.C. 2008 total building permits: 11,386

Another state capital with multiple universities, Raleigh was still adding jobs at a 1.9 percent annual rate though the third quarter of last year. With a population of more than 1 million, it also has one of the highest rates of population growth of any top metro market in the country over the last five years: nearly 5 percent annually. Though the price of a median home here, $221,900, is above the national average, it is well below other cities in the mid-Atlantic and Northeast. The metro area has added roughly 68,000 jobs since 2005, and employment held steady last year. With a glut of national builders in the market, locals such as Dixon Kirby have experimented with different looks and styles to keep sales alive.

AT A GLANCE

2009 Healthiest Housing Markets
1. Houston
2. Austin, Texas
3. Fort Worth, Texas
4. San Antonio
5. Dallas
6. Raleigh, N.C.
7. Seattle
8. Indianapolis
9. Fayetteville
10. Washington, D.C.
11. Nashville, Tenn.
12. Denver
13. Charlotte, N.C.
14. Wilmington, N.C.
15. Myrtle Beach, S.C.

Source: Hanley Wood Market Intelligence
To read about the top 15 area visit BuilderOnline.com

Radon Levels in North Carolina

According to the EPA, the purpose of this map is to assist local organizations to target their resources and to implement radon-resistant building codes. This map is not intended to be used to determine if a home in a given zone should be tested for radon. Homes with elevated levels of radon have been found in all three zones. All homes should be tested regardless of geographic location.  Important points to note:

• All homes should test for radon, regardless of geographic location or zone designation
   
• There are many thousands of individual homes with elevated radon levels in Zone 2 and 3.  Elevated levels can be found in Zone 2 and Zone 3 counties.
   
• The map is not to be used in lieu of testing during real estate transactions.

Home inspections can test for you and charge about $100-$150 for the service.  You can use charcoal canisters and do it yourself.
The most important step when testing is keeping windows and doors closed for the proper length of time, depending on the testing kit used.