EMBRACING THE SOUTHPORT REAL ESTATE PRICING

Understanding the reasoning behind a home’s price tag can make you a smarter buyer—and help you know exactly what you’re getting for your money. Here are five factors that experienced real estate agents consider before slapping that “For Sale” sign on a home.

1. What’s happening in your local housing market at any particular moment

Low inventory creates a seller’s market with aggressive listing prices. Southport inventory is currently LOW to NON EXISTENT!!!

2. The (extremely specific) location of the house

Yes, you’ve heard the old location adage) but,did you know how granular the idea of “location” gets? East side of town, West side of town, Walking or driving distance to the Waterfront all affects selling price.

3. The comps

Your real estate agent will do a comparable market analysis—what similar homes have recently sold for in the last six months—before determining how to price a property.  Southport sold prices have been on the biggest rise since pre 2008!

4. The amenities (and overall appeal) of the home

Size might not be the major factor for in town home, but could be all about have that highly desired Southport Cottage look. Layout and functionality are huge, but curb appeal also affect the sticker price.

5. Age and condition of the home

In town you can have a range of homes from centuries old to a few years old. Expect to always have to do some work unless you are buying new construction. Don’t expect to automatically see a discounted price tag because repairs are needed. It all depends on the home’s location (see No. 2) and other factors listed.  It is a Sellers market now in Southport, Buyer’s have to accept that fact while it lasts longer and longer.

Embracing Rental Investments

Brunswick County’s residential real estate market is as healthy as you can get, demand on new housing plus shortages slowing down new construction starts. Add in factor of rising existing home costs is vital to increasing our rental demand in our county. Demand is strong and our inventory remains elusive. Continued low interest rates could help make this time still good for making that rental investment. A few tips to consider first from the experts.

– Invest in Single-family Homes. First Invest in single-family homes first since it’s the simplest way to get started as a new real estate investor. The upkeep is easier than multifamily or commercial properties.

– Know Your Marketing Strategy. Before purchasing be sure you know ahead how and who you will be renting with. A vacant rental loses money. The best places to advertise your rental property are going to be major online real estate marketplaces. We have a number of rental agencies that specialize in this area to get you prequalified tenants.

– Have a Written Lease in Place. Have a very clear lease in place with all details written out so that there’s no confusion about the tenant’s expectations, including smoking or pets allowed. Many rentals have been left severely damaged without clear and written agreements in place.

– Invest in a Vacation Rental Property. Evaluate a potential vacation rental property and look at comparable rental rates on sites like HomeAway and VRBO. Additionally, verify local zoning laws how to properly register your vacation rental and any HOA regulations or local ordinance that may limit
renting out your home to guests.

-Bottom Line
Utilize a local and experienced Real Estate Agent to help you avoid costly mistakes and find answers to all the multitude of questions that pop up during the
investment process. No one knows a local area better than an experienced real
estate agent, and for the buyer this priceless service is usually “free”!

Embracing Buying Trends

1646 Nichols Avenue, Southport

Our world circumstances are not only changing our current daily lives and likely our future living circumstances as well.   Zoom and like visual technology have been come the necessary link between home and the outside world.  Working from home, attending classes, or communicating to family and friends from home, a space that is quiet and allows us to focus is becoming a home feature priority.

The coveted open floor plan mostly relates to the kitchen, dining room, and living room blending into one large space is ideal for the public area of the home and had been the trend for last few years.  An office or a private space will likely strongly influence our future home buyers A recent Harris Poll found 27% of potential home buyers surveyed said they would consider moving to a home with more rooms — one of the top reasons for considering a move — after spending more time at home because of coronavirus safety measures.

Open floor plans may just be changing.  Buyers may be looking for more privacy, doors and insulation for noise control. Could that lead to a demand for more traditional homes with walled-off spaces?  What we are seeing throughout the country is more folks are fleeing the densely populated areas like New York and Chicago.  Relocation of these fulltime telecommuters is causing an upturn in home sales that is feeding a movement to our area.  Be it the person who can now work from home, or the folks that decided to retire early because their house sold quickly, the buyers are streaming into our coastal coveted area. 

In conclusion, this is all great news for our resales.  Your older home, with the many spaces may just be coming back into fashion.  What goes around comes around they say.  Lets just hope this buying trend continues but the root cause can go away.

Embracing Creative Selling in 2020

This is no normal year when it comes to the housing market, there are some very real obstacles to selling because of the pandemic.  Buyers and sellers both need to go into the process with an open mind. If you must sell your house in these unprecedented times, you’ll need to embrace sales strategies that are more high-tech than high-touch.  The plus side of the current timing is for our local Southport market the buying demand is HIGH. The lower inventory is keeping prices stable and aids sellers in quicker to get a deal done. Also, low rates are fueling a fast recovery in the housing market.

How to do Sell Creatively:

• Health & Safety first.  Be sure to adhere to protocols to keep seller and buyers safe.  Be sure your Realtor has proper virus containment items for all viewings.  The realtor should be only one touching surfaces during the client show.
• Be more high-tech than high touch.  Instead of holding open houses, have your Realtor provide virtual open house.  Realtor acts a narrator and walks thru with a video while buyers watch virtually from home.
• 3D home tours. If a picture is worth a thousand words, then a panoramic 3D image tells an even better story. Your agent will upload to Zillow to tell a home’s story without a potential buyer ever stepping inside.
• When selecting a realtor, review their prior listings online.  Their choice of photography speaks volumes. Are the pictures showing property in its best light, literally? I stage and declutter my client’s listings prior to the photos, using owners’ own furnishings to accent the home’s highlights. And never take photos on a dark day!  Selling starts with those first impressions of that home, and that begins with the photos.
• Finally, do not overprice your home if you want to move it quickly, and in this rapidly changing time, it is best to do just that.

Our world is now adjusting and a trigger for shifting family dynamics.  With our area serving as a coveted destination.  Attention is on us again with USA Today nomination for Best Coastal Small Town.  https://www.wwaytv3.com/2020/06/10/vote-today-southport-nominated-for-best-coastal-small-town-by-usa-today/ Buyers are more at home now and online,  making those life altering decisions.  This just could just be the ideal time to sell your home…Creatively. 

Embracing Downsizing

Downsizing is both a financial as well as an emotional decision.  Of course, it can be wrenching to consider a move from a home filled with family memories.  Financially, the gains from that sale could add to your nest egg and reduce monthly housing costs thus enabling more enjoyment for adventures outside the home. Memories and experiences actually are quite portable and stay with you forever.

Or downsizing may be one of those future plans, perhaps when a situation forcibly demands. Consider for a moment instead the moves you can make today will save money now and make it easier on your retirement later.  Why gamble with what the market could be in a few years when the current buying market is strong with low interest rates?  From my own personal experience, the younger you are for the move, the less stressful it will be both emotionally and physically. No matter what you have planned, chances are it’ll cost money. And if you’re already spending too much on housing expenses to afford your dreams while you’re working, you’ll have even less cash to spare when you retire.

The decision is a personal one. Crunch the numbers. Calculate the upfront costs of moving, and compare them to the yearly savings you’ll realize. A small gain probably isn’t worth the trouble, but substantial savings might make selling the best option. Talk to your local realtor to do a market comparison of what your home is worth today.  If downsizing makes sense then make that new location somewhere where you can comfortably age in place.  Consider insurance expenses, property taxes, HOA dues, layout,  a lower physical burden in maintenance, and now too …. a place you can quarantine comfortably.  Will this home allow you to stay for as long as like without having to make modifications for your later years?  So when packing up those memories of your well-loved home; do bring that bucket list of dreams too, everything you can now work on making come true with the extra time and funds created.  

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Embracing the perfect home for whom????

My advice to my buyers is always think resale.  You may be picturing this move to our coastal area of NC as your ‘forever home’ for retirement but life has a way of being unpredictable as we are all experiencing very well right now.  We have to stay flexible as well as practical.

To maximize your home investment, picture yourself as the eventual seller.  Things you need to consider, is this a growing, active area, does the neighborhood have enough variety to attract the next age group of millennial buyers?  Is your new home the most expensive and largest in the neighborhood (it should not be).  Traditionally in our local area, the larger the house the less price per square foot when sold on resale.  The trend now seems to be a smaller footprint with our future generation of buyers also. Unlike previous age groups, millennials aren’t looking for sprawling square footage; rather, they prefer smaller homes that focus on quality over quantity. They’re also tending toward eco-friendly and energy efficient properties.

 Be a smart consumer but not just for today’s purchase but for tomorrow’s sale too, you will be thankful.  Remember to consider the next generation of buyer’s impact and emerging buying trends, especially when considering a target market for selling a home.   

Embracing Timing for our Local Sellers

Too many opinions along with too excuses to delay, so I prefer to stick to
the facts. Looking at Brunswick County residential real estate market stats
for 2019, the total sales volume was up 8.4% than year before. The 
Association of Realtors for the county reports that avg sales price and the number of units sold were all higher than the year before. The county has
surpassed $1 billion in total sales for the third straight year. Looking at our 
local market the average days on market in 2019 was 85 days and houses 
are selling for approximately 96% of their listed value.

The first month figures for the first month of 2020 have been released, 
Brunswick County saw a sharp increase in homes sold, and total sales
volume. The market had a 60.1% spike in total sales volume over last 
January. The number of units sold jumped 42.3%, and average sale prices 
increased 12.5% from $257,555 to $289,675. The absorption rate, which is 
the amount of time it would take to sell the current inventory of homes, 
is holding steady at less than five months.

For our local city of Southport market, those numbers are even better for 
Sellers and our current inventory is LOW, LOW, LOW. New home buyers 
have been arriving in a steady stream to our beautiful coastal area, 
especially with these low rates, looking for that perfect home to
relocate to.

So when is the best time to list your home? NOW!

My First Blog Post

Be yourself; Everyone else is already taken.

— Oscar Wilde.

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