Archive for November, 2007
Vasrity Men’s Wear | Specialty Men’s Clothing in Raleigh North Carolina
November 30th, 2007 Categories: Local Businesses, North Raleigh
As a Realtor in Raleigh, NC, I’m expected to dress fairly nice. The public has this expectation of most professional service businesses. And besides, the clothes one wears has a big impact on first impressions. Making a good first impression is important in the real estate business just as it is in all other walks of life.
Men, if you live in Raleigh and want to make first impressions that last, you need to shop at Varsity Mens Wear!
Varsity Mens Wear is located in Crabtree Valley Mall at Glenwood Avenue and I-440. This amazing company has been at Crabtree since 1972 offering personalized service and some of the top names in mens fashion. Varsity has a great inventory of off the rack and custom mens wear from top brands such as:
Hickey-Freeman
Samuelson
Gitman
Ike Behar
Robert Talbott
Tallia
Zanella
Before I go on about all the great mens clothes available at Varsity, let me take a moment and comment on what really sets Varsity Mens Wear apart from other places you men could shop for clothes.
The competitive advantage that Varsity has is a knowledgeable sales staff who aim for total client satisfaction and really care about how their clients look in the clothes they purchase. In my real estate business I pride myself on delivering world class client service, so I’m a bit more discerning than most when it comes to this all important matter. Varsity Mens Wear has nailed world class client service!
A Personal Testimony
I recently needed to add several pairs of trousers to my wardrobe. A quick trip over to Varsity and I once again found myself immersed in that experience that only comes from the perfect combination of great products and sharp people who truly enjoy what they do. I had the absolute pleasure of being served by Sammy Thompson, one of the most knowledgeable mens fashion consultants you will ever meet.
I have a particular body type that causes most pants to not fit me well, right off the shelf. I explained what I disliked about the fit of some pants I have bought in the past and Sammy went right to work coming up with a solution for me. We ended up going up a couple of waist sizes to get the right fit through the seat and legs, and then taking each pair of pants in through the waist. The result was that Sammy was able to find me off the rack pants that could be easily modified to meet my particular needs.
Sammy did something that is all too uncommon these days. He listened to his client and applied his years of experience to solve my problem. I now have several new pairs of reasonably priced, off the rack pants that fit similar to much more expensive custom made pants.
One other thing that helped make all this come together is Varsity’s in-house tailor. Having control of the entire process allowed Sammy to use his skill in fitting mens clothes to its maximum potential.
The Bottom Line
I just cannot say enough about the level of performance by everyone at Varsity. They order the right merchandise. Keep a very good inventory. Apply years of experience in personalized service and skills in helping men dress sharp. And provide expert tailor services to get the fit just right. You simply have to experience shopping at Varsity for yourself. You will not be sorry.
If you want to look your very best, go see Sammy Thompson over at Varsity Mens Wear. Upscale mens clothing. Unequaled personal service. These guys make it easy to get the fit and look you want.
Varsity Mens Wear
Crabtree Valley Mall
Raleigh, NC 27612
919–782–2570
| Discussion: No Comments »
North Raleigh Real Estate | Bedford Homes for Sale
November 26th, 2007 Categories: Bedford, Buying a Home, North Raleigh
Last week I did an article on Falls River homes for sale and received lots of requests for a similar post on activity in a sister neighborhood, Bedford. So, here’s your Bedford homes for sale update.
Price appreciation is a little hard to estimate in Bedford right now because the community is so new. In 2004, there were 255 homes sold in Bedford at an average price of $286,468. Compared with the YTD home sales shown below, that looks like a $83,517 (29%) increase in average sell price, over a 3 year period. Just keep in mind that this number could be skewed somewhat simply by builders choosing to build in higher price points. That being said, Bedford seems to be appreciating at or just ahead of the Raleigh real estate market in general.
$369,985 Average Sell Price
2,747 Average Square Footage
245 YTD Home Sales in 2007
92 Average Days on Market
The price points are a little above the average for the North Raleigh real estate market; however, the product and the neighborhood are outstanding. Here’s how the current inventory breaks out.
DETACHED SINGLE FAMILY
3 Bedford homes for sale under $300,000
9 Bedford homes for sale between $300,000 – $350,000
10 Bedford homes for sale between $350,000 – $400,000
11 Bedford homes for sale between $400,000 – $450,000
6 Bedford homes for sale between $450,000 – $500,000
6 Bedford homes for sale between $500,000 – $550,000
16 Bedford homes for sale between $550,000 and $600,000
9 Bedford homes for sale between $600,000 – $700,000
14 Bedford homes for sale over $700,000
All 14 homes for sale over $700K are in the Bedford Estates section and are priced all the way up to $1 million.
TOWNHOMES
7 Bedford townhomes for sale under $200,000
4 Bedford townhomes for sale between $200,000 – $250,000
2 Bedford townhomes for sale between $250,000 – $300,000
3 Bedford townhomes for sale over $300,000
Many of the Bedford townhomes offer garages and have access to all the great amenities that make Bedford such a special place.
If you’re considering moving to Bedford in North Raleigh, and want to know more about the neighborhood, give me a call or send me an email and I’ll be glad to answer any questions you have. I can also schedule private showings of homes in this great neighborhood for you.
| Discussion: 3 Comments »
I’m Thankful For…
November 21st, 2007 Categories: Odds and Ends
I’m getting ready to shut down for a day or two and enjoy some time with family and friends. Reflecting on the holiday, I thought of a few things I’m really thankful for and wanted to share them with everyone.
In no particular order, I’m thankful for…
A wonderful career where I get to do what I enjoy
My incredible clients
All of my loyal blog readers
My fellow bloggers, the Tomato, and the friendships that have developed
My Keller Williams family
My amazing wife, Diana
We all have so much to be thankful for! Please consider sharing your gratitude for the things in your life in the comments section below.
And, have a very happy Thanksgiving!!!
| Discussion: 5 Comments »
Raleigh Gets Trader Joe’s
November 21st, 2007 Categories: Inside the Beltline, North Raleigh, Why Move to Raleigh?
Finally, clients relocating to Raleigh won’t have to give up their weekly trips to Trader Joe’s! It’s been rumored for months, but now it’s official. Trader Joe’s is opening a store in Raleigh. The specialty grocer has confirmed that it will open the Raleigh store in Holly Park shopping center, which is located on Wake Forest Road near I-440.
All the company is saying right now is that the store will be approximately 12,000 square feet and will open by 2009. I’m sure many of the loyal Trader Joe’s fans who have moved here from other parts of the country they served will be pleased when the store opens. I hope they hurry!
This will actually be the third Trader Joe’s location in the Triangle area. I think this says good things about our area! There is also a store in Cary and one in Chapel Hill. I personally don’t live close enough to the Cary location to make it a regular stop for day-to-day shopping, but the time or two that I have stopped in, I was quite impressed. The store was full of great foods, many of which cannot be found in the more traditional grocery store.
Trader Joe’s is regarded as an upscale grocer and this should be really good for the Holly Park shopping center. The strip style shopping center has languished for years without any big draw names. Trader Joe’s could change that. And it doesn’t hurt that the shopping center was purchased a few months ago by Lat Purser & Associates who has plans to give the center a much needed overhaul.
The renovated shopping center could easily serve home owners from Raleigh’s Inside the Beltline area and Midtown neighborhoods. Any comments from readers in cities where Trader Joe’s is located?
| Discussion: 5 Comments »
North Raleigh Real Estate | Falls River Homes For Sale and Neighborhood Overview
November 19th, 2007 Categories: Buying a Home, North Raleigh
There are currently 22 homes for sale in Falls River in North Raleigh. This awesome neighborhood has a variety of housing that will meet just about any need. And the amenities are pretty good too! This eleven year old North Raleigh neighborhood features community parks and playgrounds, sidewalks on both sides of tree lined streets, and a super convenient location.
The average home price has increased by $48,483, or 21%, over the last 5 years. Here are the current 2007 market statistics for Falls River.
$277,859 average sell price
2,175 average square footage
75 YTD home sales in 2007
41 days on market, average
Now is a great time to buy a home in Falls River. The 22 homes for sale break down as follows.
DETACHED SINGLE FAMILY
4 Falls River homes for sale under $250,000
6 Falls River homes for sale from $250,000 - $300,000
3 Falls River homes for sale from $300,000 - $350,000
2 Falls River homes for sale from $350,000 - $400,000
1 Falls River homes for sale over $400,000
CONDOS
3 Falls River condos for sale under $150,000
TOWNHOMES
1 Falls River townhome for sale under $200,000
2 Falls River townhomes for sale from $200,000 - $250,000
As you can see, there is a home for sale for just about every budget in Falls River. And it’s a great place to live too. I lived in Falls River for 8 years and there is much that we miss about this great neighborhood.
If you are looking for a place with a real community feel and distinctive architectural style, Falls River might just be the place for you. Leave your comments below, or give me a call if you want more info on homes for sale, or the Falls River community in general.
| Discussion: 5 Comments »
Realtors Who Understand And Use Technology Can Serve Clients Better
November 16th, 2007 Categories: Buying a Home, New Construction Homes
I have a client who has relocated to the Raleigh area and purchased a beautiful new home in nearby Creedmoor. The home is under construction and is at the sheetrock stage. We made a visit to the site last week to check on the progress. A couple of things happened relative to the implementation of a few simple pieces of technology that made our visit very efficient and enabled us to get some serious work done with a minimal amount of effort and trouble.
Technology use #1
As I always do, I sent an email to the on-site builder’s agent ahead of time letting her know we were going to drop by. I offered that if there was anything that from the builder’s perspective which needed to be discussed with my clients or me, that this would be a good time because everyone would be there.
She replied that she didn’t have anything that needed to be discussed and gave me the superintendent’s mobile number in case we noticed anything that should be called to his attention. One simple, well timed email and everyone involved had the opportunity to serve our client in the best way possible by being aware of their visit. As an added bonus I now had the job superintendent’s mobile number and permission to communicate directly with him regarding any issues we encountered.
We found a few things that needed attention
When we arrived, we noticed a few things that needed attention. One was a plumbing drain that had been overlooked and the other was ceiling fan rough-ins that had been forgotten. Noticing these things while in the sheetrock stage of construction is great because they can be corrected with minimal impact on the finished product.
Because of my email to the on-site agent, the superintendent stopped by to check with us and see if we needed anything. We pointed out what we had found and he agreed that both items needed to be corrected. He was on his way to another site and asked if I could email what we had found to him so that he could make sure to follow up.
Technology use #2
I took out my Blackberry and started an email to the superintendent with a cc to the client and the on-site builder’s agent. I just filled in the body of the email with the two items we had noticed.
As we walked around a bit more we noticed a couple of other things that needed clarification and possible corrective action. I just added them to the email I was composing on my Blackberry. When we were done I pressed send and the superintendent had an email waiting for him when he returned to his desk. The client and the on site builder’s agent had been copied and of course I had a copy in the sent folder of my email. Now it would be very easy for anyone in the process to communicate and follow up on what we had noticed on our visit.
The advantages of technology in the real estate business
In this real life example a couple of pretty cool things happened that are worth pointing out.
- Because of the advance written notice of our visit, the builder’s people could easily accommodate us and were able to be involved, real time, in the process of taking action on the issues we noticed with my client’s new home
- The on site agent and the superintendent were appreciative of our clear and open communication and had a very good, positive attitude towards our visit. We invited them into the process in such a way that it was easy for them to cooperate.
- No one had to spend any “extra” time outside of the actual visit with reporting our findings and following up to clarify the communication. The superintendent was right there and saw the issues first hand. And he had a written record of everything waiting in his inbox. Everything was documented, to everyone, as it occurred.
I use technology throughout my business. This blog you are reading is another example. It allows me to give away free information to my readers about the process of buying and selling homes in the greater Raleigh area, and information about various neighborhoods and what it’s like to live here. It also allows a way for readers to communicate with me about any of the subjects through the comments section at the end of each article, or by sending me a private message.
Several other examples are my free home search and free home value analysis. As time goes on I will be adding more and more features and tools to help readers understand the home buying and selling process. Be sure to check back regularly and look for more articles to help you move locally or relocate from out of town.
| Discussion: 13 Comments »
How Many Detached Single Family Ranch Homes Are For Sale in Wake County
November 15th, 2007 Categories: Buying a Home
I get a lot of clients who want to find a single story, ranch home for sale in the Raleigh area. This can be a little bit of a challenge because there aren’t too many to choose from. We usually end up finding what the client wants, it just takes some serious searching and being ready to make an offer when we find the right ranch style home.
One of my fellow real estate bloggers, Terry McDonald, did an interesting article about ranch homes in Charlotte, NC. I thought I might use Terry’s concept and report to my readers on how many ranch homes there are for sale in Raleigh.
Actually, since Raleigh is in such close proximity to other popular real estate markets such as Cary, Apex, Morrisville and Wake Forest, I thought it might make more sense to give you guys the numbers for all of Wake County.
Compared to Charlotte, we have a little more inventory in this important category; however, it’s only 16% of the market. There are a total of 6044 detached, single family homes for sale in Wake County.
The bottom line is that there are opportunities to buy a ranch home in Raleigh and the surrounding towns in Wake County. You just have to have someone willing to take the extra time to find them.
Typically, ranch homes in good condition do not stay on the market long. I’m sure this is due to the relatively limited supply. The demand appears to be fairly strong. I can tell you that more than 16% of my clients at least start out looking for a ranch style home. A few change their mind when they cannot find all the features they want in a ranch floor plan.
If you’ve been frustrated with trying to find a single story home for your family, give me a call or drop me an email. So far, I’ve had a pretty good track record when it comes to locating these somewhat rare gems.
| Discussion: 3 Comments »
Lender Tricks - Watch Those Hidden Fees
November 13th, 2007 Categories: Mortgage and Finance
When selecting a mortgage company to finance that new Raleigh home, be sure to make your comparison carefully. Buying a home requires most people to get a mortgage. If you don’t get a mortgage very often, it can be a little confusing. Or maybe a lot confusing. Mortgages have lots of moving parts. There are a bunch of fees and costs that are typically accounted for at closing. These costs vary from lender to lender and comparing offers from mortgage companies is not always easy.
Here’s an example of what I’m talking about. I just had a client select the builder’s “preferred lender” primarily because of some closing costs they were going to pay for them. As always, I recommended a lender who I know and trust to take care of my client. The quick comparison my client did between the two lenders resulted in a $1,000 advantage to go with the builder’s recommendation.
The offer from the builder’s preferred lender was for $1,000 of lender paid closing costs. After applying for the loan, the client asked me to look over the good faith estimate and let them know if everything looked okay. The rate was in line with what is currently available. All the usual fees were present and accounted for. Then I noticed, shall we say, an unusual item that caught my eye.
The $1,000 lender paid closing costs had turned into $1,146. Hey, when an amount someone is going to “give” you is larger than expected, that’s a good thing, right? Not in this case. I immediately began looking to see if I could figure out why this was such an odd amount.
It turns out there was another odd amount on the good faith estimate. The loan origination fee was 1.56%. Hmmm, why wasn’t this amount 1.5%? Or better yet, what wasn’t it 1%, which it is most of the time? Well, a quick check of the math revealed that 0.56% of the loan amount was exactly $1,146.
So, what had actually happened here was the lender had taken an extra $1,146 from my client and simply given it back. The original $1,000 closing costs that the lender offered to pay did not exist. It never existed. It was my client’s own money.
Maybe even worse than that is the fact that this lender has much more to loose by disappointing the builder that he does by disappointing my client. One loan versus many loans. They don’t call him preferred for nothing.
The moral of this story is; Remember that old saying… “If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.” Or how about the one that goes, “there’s no such thing as a free lunch.” Okay, enough with the old sayings already. You get the point. Be careful when making comparisons and seek the advice of someone you trust.
| Discussion: 5 Comments »
Investing in Raleigh Real Estate - Buy and Hold Earns You Big Bucks
November 9th, 2007 Categories: Investing in Real Estate
The Raleigh real estate market is just about perfect for a solid buy and hold strategy. And if you pick the right neighborhood, you can make a very large return on your investment.
In the first 2 parts of this series we basically explored every aspect of fix and flip. I don’t know about you, but to me, fix and flip looks risky and requires lots of working capital. Fix and flip demands that you somehow outsmart the market and find properties that are way under value.
The market will resist you on this. The market will do its best to make every transfer of real estate happen at full value. As long as we have strong demand and relative low supply, you will be forever frustrated trying to find the elusive “good deal.” So what is a real estate investor in the Raleigh area to do?
Quit swimming against the current. That’s what savvy investors do. They look at the market dynamics and use them to their advantage. What’s the key dynamic in the Raleigh market? Steady appreciation in value, over time, that runs just ahead of the rate of inflation. It’s this predictability that makes buy and hold the winning strategy in the Raleigh real estate market.
Here’s a quick example of what would have happened with a modest investment in a townhome community near Research triangle Park (RTP) over the past 4 years. This scenario is based on a highly popular product (a maintenance free townhome), in a great location for rents from young professionals (RTP), and a steady upward rate of appreciation (the Raleigh market).
This is an example using a townhome that was actually sold as brand new in 2003 and resold 4 years later in 2007. The 33% appreciation is right on the average for the neighborhood. This neighborhood is full of townhomes that costs approximately the same when they were new in 2003 and have sold for approximately the same price as our example in 2007.
I checked rents for a 3BR apartment in this area and the average is $1,100 per month. The principle and interest payments are based on a 20% down payment of $24,000 and an interest rate of 6.5% for a 30 year term on a loan amount of $96,000.
Sorry about all the numbers, but if you’ve been following along you may be beginning to realize that this example gives us a 167% return on investment, cash on cash! When this townhome was sold in 2007 the owner got the original investment of $24,000 back plus a cool $40,000 for their trouble.
Does this sound like a good investment strategy? I certainly think so. You would be hard pressed to make this kind of return in any other investment.
Sure you would have had a few maintenance issues to deal with over the years, but how bad could that be on a new home? Just get a good inspection to make sure you are getting it in good repair from the builder. And you would probably have a few months vacancy with a negative cash flow.
Okay, to allow for some vacancy, let’s reduce the profits by $6,600 ($1,100 x 6 months) or so, just to be on the conservative side. But let’s don’t forget that this scenario actual had cash flow of $262 ($1,100 – $838) per month. Any way you figure it, this strategy works… and it can make you lots of money.
Want to talk about getting into the real estate investing business here in the Raleigh area. Give me a call or email me and I’ll be glad to schedule an appointment to meet with you and help you better understand how to acquire wealth through real estate investing.
Related Articles
Investing in Raleigh Real Estate – Let’s Make Money on Foreclosures
Investing in Raleigh Real Estate – Fix and Flip is a Challenge
| Discussion: 9 Comments »
Investing in Raleigh Real Estate - Let’s Make Money on Foreclosures
November 8th, 2007 Categories: Investing in Real Estate
Is there money to be made buying and selling foreclosures in the Raleigh real estate market? Maybe. Is it easy? Making lots of money typically isn’t easy. This explains why there aren’t more rich people. Can it be done? Yes, but you have to find the right one! In this 2nd installment of a 3 part series on investing in the Raleigh real estate market we’ll discuss the truths of buying foreclosures at a bargain.
Truth #1: Making money on foreclosures cannot be done by looking for oportunities in the usual places. Let me get the bad news out of the way first. In part 1 I explained how I get lots of calls from people who want to approach fixing and flipping houses in a casual, part time manner. It’s difficult at best to do fix and flip with such an approach. Chasing foreclosures as fix and flip opportunities doesn’t make it any easier.
The real challenge with foreclosures is to discover the ones in which the bank has a good finiancial position. More about that in a minute. Or, you could try to get involved before the bank has spent lots of money in the foreclosure process. Go to the courthouse auctions, but expect lots of company. Big discounts usually attract big crowds. Big crowds tend to bid prices up. That being said, there are those who successfully buy their investment properties this way.
By the time a foreclosure is listed in our Multiple Listing Service (MLS), the bank has tried everything they can to minimize their losses. They have also spent lots of money getting to that point. That’s right. Banks typically loose money on foreclosures. Once you understand this, what I’m about to tell you makes a lot more sense.
Truth #2: Banks do not necessarily sell foreclosures at bargain prices. One of the other calls I frequently get is from a home buyer who just wants a “good deal.” Nothing wrong with that. I want a good deal too. Everybody does. This person usually isn’t looking to invest in real estate. They just want to buy a home for less than it’s worth. At some point in the conversation the buyer will suggest that we look for a foreclosure because it will be less expensive.
Please understand. There is nothing about a foreclosure that suggests it is a bargain. Many foreclosures come from highly leveraged buyers who fell on financial hard times. It is not at all uncommon for the loan amount to be equal to the market value of the house. Sometimes the loan amount can even be more than market value. Here’s why that’s a problem.
Banks are terribly inefficient home sellers. The internal cost of the foreclosure process to a bank would probablly surprise you. I’ve heard that it can cost a bank 10%, or more, of the loan amount to take foreclosure all the way to collecting money from the sale. That makes sense. The selling costs for you or me could easily be 6–7%. Regulations can make up the other 3–4% of the cost of selling for the bank.
If the bank forecloses on a $200K property that has a 100% loan amount, they might have to sell for $220K just to break even. Of course that won’t happen because the market will not deliver a buyer at that price. If they sell at $200K, or market value, then they loose $20K. Do you see how this could be a problem? This is why foreclosures, especially highly leveraged ones, are not sold at bargains prices.
Truth #3: You will have to look at a huge number of foreclosures to find the right one. Basically, you are going to have to find a house that had something like an 80% loan balance. Now the bank can sell this one for 10% below market value and break even. Will they? Maybe, but I’ll bet you will have to negotiate them hard. They would probablly like to turn a profit on one of these to cover losses on others.
Truth #4: Foreclosures should be considered just as you would any other investment oportunity. When I get the calls from the non-investor home buyer looking for a good deal, I tell them that we will look at foreclosures, just not exclusively. The advice is the same for real estate investors. Don’t get too hung up on the elusive bargain priced foreclosure. Just be ready to move quickly when it comes along.
I’ll admit that the first 2 parts of this series have made investing in real estate look like something that takes lots of time, capital, and expertise to do it right. Well… it does. That’s thruth #5.
But I have some good news for you! In part 3 we will discuss a stategy that anyone can use to make lots of money. And you will not have to work near as hard finding a suitable property. These properties are plentiful. It’s called buy and hold and it works pretty well in the Raleigh real estate market.
Related Articles
Investing in Raleigh Real Estate – Fix and Flip is a Challenge
| Discussion: 3 Comments »
