Charlotte Real Estate, Foreclosures, Short Sales

Days on market has increased from an average 119 days in May of 2007 to an average 131 days in May of 2008.  Yes, I know, I know... "THE MARKET".  Does the term "the market" have a meaning, or is it just something a broker or homeowner says to give an excuse for an expired listing or a home with little to no traffic.  Guess what?  Homes ARE selling for Charlotte real estate.  We've been through dozens of real estate cycles.  It's similar to the mortgage cycles we've gone through as well.  Home buyers have purchased homes during cycles of high interest rates in the 1980's, so the big blow-out with ARMs will not curb a buyer from wanting to view or put an offer in on the purchase of your home.

Increase Realtor Response with Pricing.

What will ease the traffic on a buyer viewing your home is having too many homes to look at. For Charlotte area real estate, our inventory levels are just too high.  We are currently at 10.6+ month inventory levels.  Price it right, price it right they say.  How do you know HOW to price your home when the mindset of today's buyer is not fair market price.  It's not a fair market.  One of the best ways to increase Realtor and buyer response to your home is rock bottom pricing.  If you are a serious seller and need to sell, forget about your improvements, new landscaping and curb appeal efforts, staging costs, and neighborhood comps.  If your competition has beat you by a couple of thousands dollars, your house will not receive an offer.  $2,000 means a lot to a first time home buyer in additional closing costs.  So you ask...."how do I price my home when my competition can lower their pricing daily without me being able to keep track"

Home Auction and Online Bidding!!!

Sure the MLS is fine, but online bidding is great!  Why:

• Online bidding will drive up the price of your home.

  Buyers will not be turned off by an initial "listing price" and the market will determine what the buyer will pay.  You have the final say so as to agreed price.
  

• Home sellers will get more traffic directed to their home during preview days.  Preview days allows the buyer to gain a perspective on the home and their idea of value.  A fanstastic way to get the buyer through the door.

• It creates a competitive bidding environment.

• It more cases than not, the National Auctioneers Association states that an auction will bring a fair market price or higher. 

Drive more value to your home with home auction.  Charlotte real estate is selling.

Need to know if your home makes a good online bidding home. 
Get the facts with a home value report.

The northern corridor of Mecklenburg county has some fantastic neighborhoods and has always been a favorite area for home buyers relocating.  The cities included in north part of the county include: Davidson, Huntersville, and Cornelius.  

Today I will give some real estate market information on the town of Cornelius

Real Estate Sales Statistics

The average sales price for homes last year in the town of Cornelius was $426,691.  So far according to the Charlotte Regional Realtors Association Multiple Listing Service, this year there has been a slight decrease in sales price to $422,803.  There has been a total of 166 homes sold with sales price ranges from $145, 000 to $3,420.000.  Average days on market were 116 days, which is below the county area average.

Low Incidences of Foreclosures

Foreclosures have been minimal with only one pre-foreclosure listed in Heritage Green. 11104 Aprilla Lane was listed at 169,900 and was sold in 57 days for 165,000.  The short sale did not cause too much of a decrease in value for the neighborhood.  A great foreclosure that went really fast was a 4,000 square foot home in The Penisula listed for $799,000.  It was only listed 5 days with an apparent bidding war that sold at $905,000!

From a Small Mill Town to Posh Upscale Living

Beautiful waterfront houses lace this town that was once a mill village and abundant famrland. 

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Well there's certainly a lot of homes for sale in the Charlotte and surrounding areas.  According to the Charlotte Regional Realtors Association MLS, there were 30,975 active homes for sale between April 5th and May 6, 2008.  It's good to know that sellers aren't staying away from trying to sell their home despite dark outlooks from the media.  The point is, if you have to sell, sell.  Some homeowners need to sell for relocation, a rising adjustable rate, divorce and separation or they just want to move up to a larger home when many of the new home builders are cutting deals due to 11-month inventory levels.

With the 30,975 homes for sale during the previously mentioned time period, 2400 homes sold.  Below are the numbers:

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Well, when you think about it, it may sound bad.  Maybe it is, or maybe not.  55 homes have expired in the University area since June 5th.  Some were staged perfectly, lots of media pictures and some were in somewhat stable neighborhoods.  You are going to have expired homes when the supply outweighs the demand.  With a current 2624 homes for sale alone in the University, if you are a serious seller, you and your broker need to know what you are doing.  The longer your home sits, the less attractive it can become with the description "market worn".  Okay your broker says "everything is going to be market worn in a down housing market".  I would then say good-bye.  If you don't have a plan of attack with a particular date in mind to close, just get comfortable lingering out in the universe until the perfect buyer skips along.  

Now lets discuss some reasons why some of these homes expired:

1. 2 story home on Aberglen Drive - OVERPRICED!  It sat on the market for 184 days.  It shouldn't take 6 months to discover pricing may be an issue :)
   
   

2. Back Creek Church Road - 99 Days and no pictures?

3. Shuman Court, no interior pictures

4. Most of the other homes...boring, canned descriptions.

Is Your Listing Description BOOORING???
The one thing among all the homes that was a constant was the description.  Each home had a gorgeous this, and a beautiful that.  And?  I'm sure it is, but what's in it for me?  Are you paying my buyer's discount points?  Throwing in a year of landscaping?  Security?  Paying a few month's mortgage?  Okay I know you're saying "I'm paying 6 percent commission and plus I need to pay their kid's first year of tuition?" 

Yes, you are correct.  That's traditional real estate in a down housing market.  

So, if you are selling during our current market, know HOW to market to engage today's buyer without giving everything away.

The National Association of Realtors has recently reported U.S. pending homes sales have moved higher in April. This is the highest since October 2007. But is this news false information for the homeowner. When I say false, I don't necessarily mean untrue, but does it headline news without going into what TYPE homes are going under contract?

Have You Seen the Bargain Hunters on Your Block?

The bargain hunters are here! They've finally put down the remote from CNN and other news sources that have been keeping buyers away with scary market reports. Now we can have negotiations. "Bargain hunters have entered the market en masse," said NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun, remarking on the pending sales increase, especially in the most troubled markets.

Are Foreclosures Causing the Spike in Sales?

What may be another good reason for this jump in pending sales? Global Insight economist Patrick Newport tempered his enthusiasm for the surprising increase in April's pending sales. "It's good news, but I'm not jumping for joy because I'm not convinced that it's telling us things are picking up," he said "It's telling me that banks are dumping properties at fire sale prices, spurring home sales."

Latest Charlotte Area Statistics:

For June 14, 2008, our Charlotte regional statistics show 82 homes pending a closed transaction. We currently have 23,185 active homes for sale.

It gets back to how to make sure your home stands out. What can you do? What is your Realtor doing? Do you know? How can you tell?

HELP, WHY DIDN'T MY HOME SELL?

Please view our report, 21 Questions to Ask Yourself to Make Your Home Sell Faster and gain a competitive edge on thousands of other home owners in the Charlotte and surrounding areas.