Why Are So Many Buyers Paying Cash?

So how many buyers are paying cash for properties?  According to the National Association of Realtors 28% of all residential sales in 2010 were cash deals.  Is that a large percentage?  Oh yeah!  For instance, in October 2008 only 14% of home purchases were cash.  Those are national numbers.  And look where the really big volumes of cash sales were. All Cash Deals in December … [Read more...]

What Is The Best Time To Sell A House?

What is the best time to sell a house?  The simple answer to that question is that there is not a bad time to sell a house. But some seasons are certainly less of a challenge than others. There is a seasonality that is very consistant for home sales.  The graph below shows the typical shape of the sales curve for home sales in Wake County. The first thing you'll probably notice about … [Read more...]

How Long Before The Real Estate Market Comes Back?

How long before the real estate market comes back?  That is the question on everyone's mind these days, isn't it?  Experts expect it to take well over a decade. Anyone who has a home to sell has a big decision to make.  Or so it would seem.  Do I sell now, or wait for the real estate market to come back? Let's take a look at the facts, on a local basis, and see if we might be able to … [Read more...]

Why The Raleigh Real Estate Market Will Thrive In 2011

We did it again!  Raleigh was just listed in an article by online publication The Business Insider as one of the top 10 real estate markets that will thrive in 2011.  It seems that Raleigh is always making these types of lists.  Best quality of life.  Best place to live.  Best place to start a small business.  You get the idea. I know we're all ready for the Raleigh real estate market to … [Read more...]

The Tax Credit Robbed Buyers From The Furure

What was the impact of the Home Buyer Tax credit?  It definitely had an impact on the local Raleigh area real estate market during the first half of this year.  Was it a positive or negative impact?  Was it good for buyers?  Was it good for sellers?  Let's  see what the numbers tell us. As we try to understand the impact of the Home Buyer Tax Credit, the first place we should look is … [Read more...]

The 2009 American Housing Survey From HUD

The 2009 American Housing Survey has just been released. Since 1973 HUD has surveyed American households to gather statistics on what the typical American home is like. This important data is used by the department to shape policy and better understand the typical standards of the American home. Here are a few of the key stats from this most recent American Housing Survey. There are … [Read more...]

So How Is The Raleigh Real Estate Market?

How is the Raleigh real estate market doing?  I get asked this question many times every day.  I've tried the short answer.  You know the ones... great... awful... better... up and down.  But no quick answer really paints an accurate picture of the Raleigh real estate market. The best way for me to reply is probably, "why do you ask"?  The Raleigh real estate market is actually made up of … [Read more...]

Spring And The 2010 Wake County Real Estate Market

How will the 2010 Raleigh area real estate market be affected by the Spring season?  Looking at historical data for the Wake County real estate market will give us some pretty good insight. First though, how do we know Spring is officially here in Raleigh, NC?  We could check the calendar.  Or we could go with more scientific proof. I thought about washing my car on Friday.  Within 30 … [Read more...]

Welcome To The 2010 Real Estate Market

Ahhh.  The new year is here.  Have you seen all the articles out there calling the past 10 years the lost decade?  From a personal perspective I'm not sure I would go quite that far.  There's something unsettling about the idea that the last 10 years were wasted.  But I do know quite a few home sellers who are ready for something different than what 2009 offered. So what will 2010 look … [Read more...]

Wake County Real Estate Appreciation Over Last 10 Years

This chart shows a real clear picture of what's been going on with residential real estate prices over the last 10 years. The numbers from 2006 forward are particularly interesting. As I help great clients buy and sell homes, I hear lots of buzz in the marketplace about how much homes prices have fallen recently.  I've had lots of clients, and even some fellow agents, tell me their perception … [Read more...]