Have you thought about what a tough time first time buyers are having these days? Buyers often have to come up with down payment dollars, closing costs, attorney fees and inspection costs, earnest money and sometimes even due diligence fees. As well, buyers often are responsible for hefty real estate agency fees as well. I don’t know about you, but I couldn’t have come anywhere near being able to do that for MY first home. Yes, times have changed, but a dollar is still a dollar.
There are efforts to help first time buyers. There are 100% financing options through USDA, but there are income limits. And there are loan packages with incentive dollars attached, often to be used for closing costs, but those often tie you in to the property for a period of time. I’m NOT a lender, but hopefully this will give you some ideas about what to ask a lender about. Don’t ever be afraid to ask a lender to help you figure out how to use the least money out of your limited funds (if they are limited), because this is what they do every day. And their advice is free.
And guys, make an appointment and go LOOK THEM IN THE EYE while you explore options to get you into your first home and out of the rental gerbil wheel. Remember your RENT can suddenly increase every year, but your mortgage payment will remain stable unless you opt for a balloon loan or an adjustable rate loan product. Balloon loans usually come with a low entry interest rate, as do adjustable rates, but it’s what happens AFTER that you must be aware of and prepare for.
Sellers, if your house isn’t moving and you’re considering a price drop, consider offering a rate buy-down instead. That can make a huge difference for buyers who are shopping payment, which many are.
I’ve said many times, my heart is always with first time buyers. I am always honored to help them with their very first home. If I can help you, I’m at thepremieradvantage.com, and search agents. I’m Brenda and I’d love to meet you.
No need to post a picture of condo developments; you know what they look like, right? They. Are. Everywhere. Throw a rock and you’ll hit one (well, don’t throw a rock). Well, so what?
“What” is that the number of resale detached homes is lower than it used to be, as builders swerve into the multiple housing structure lane. Look around you; these structures are going up all over the place, as the push to get people to walk everywhere plays out. Personally, I’m not seeing it for me; I have to have my AC in the summer heat and well, heat in winter. These grand, sweeping ideas work well for builders, who rake in the money; but in the real world, it’s not ever the best idea. My opinion, of course. And who’s gonna carry the GROCERIES? To be somewhat fair, more people can be squeezed into a square mile this way, which is usually the goal. And let’s put a pin in inadequate infrastructure to accommodate all the new cars, water usage, sewer usage…you get the idea.
Believe it or not, there’s still a housing shortage, particularly in detached, single family resale homes. Therefore, prices of those homes are not going down. Not going up like rockets either. What IS happening is that because condos and townhomes are ‘more affordable’, resale detached homes sit on the market a bit longer, up maybe 20 days more than a year ago. And, almost half of homes sold have sold below list price, which is unusual in our brains. In OUR brains, no buyer can ever offer LESS than list price, oh no. In OUR brains, our buyers had to offer more than list price. Not now, though. Not necessarily. Now, buyers are able to offer less…that is until we listing agents realize that the price structure has changed. I will say that I have encountered two multiple offer situations already, though. Both in detached, resale homes, by the way. I predict that will become more and more common. Some people don’t want to live in a stack, and they WILL pay above list price to make it so.
Now, buyers are STILL not really getting closing costs automatically paid all or in part by sellers. But it FEELS like there’s a bit more balance in real estate transactions, notwithstanding the new compensation law. In my business, I find things to be pretty much the same. I’m happy to say that NC has always done right by clients with respect to compensation. No hidden gotchas, no sleight of hand. Not in MY world and not in my companies.
Back to condos (and townhomes). They SEEM to be less expensive, until you factor in the high HOA dues these developments carry. It might seem like a way to get first time buyers into their own home, but often, that is not reality. The payment APPEARS to work, until you add in hundreds of dollars a month for HOA dues. This market is still a very tough challenge for first time buyers who are often trying to set up the rest of their lives at the same time. The home is just one piece of the picture. Now, I find many, many more disappointed first time buyer clients who just cannot make it work. And these are smart, hard working people. Look, if you are a first time buyer, just call me and let’s talk about it. The more you know up front, the better off you will be, and the less disappointed if you don’t know the whole story by the time you start looking.
Lenders try to keep a tool chest of ‘first time buyer’ products, but even with that, those HOA dues keep buyers renting. I don’t like that at all, and I wonder where this will all end up. I envision many empty buildings at some point in the future. Or buildings that were once condos becoming apartments… rentals, in other words.
Word on the street is that some of the Grand Poobah builders are going to lessen or eliminate incentives for buyers. I am not seeing that yet, but what I am seeing is big realtor bonuses offered by these same builders. What good does it do a buyer if their agent gets a big bonus? None. I think that should be illegal. The whole home buying process is about the BUYER, not their agent.
Some builders were offering low interest rates for a while, as they worked out of a pool of cheap money they borrowed during extremely low rates. But I have a feeling those funds might be running low? Not sure. But I’m not getting the low interest rate emails I got last year; I know that. No, I’m getting ‘realtor bonus’ emails now.
Some news outlets are reporting efforts by builders to change the laws to allow them to put higher density developments in. There’s a bill. With a number. Seriously. In other words, if you think the next door neighbor’s house is too close just wait. It will get worse. Builders are a huge, rich lobby. If you want a detached home with a yard, better not wait. I’m serious about that. If there is a push to get everyone to just rent, well the direction we seem to be heading might be working. Buy your yard now, is what I’m encouraging you to do.
Bottom line is this: Buying and selling homes has not gotten easier. For us agents, it is still critical that we keep our eyes open, particularly when dealing with ‘flip’ products. Just because everything inside is new, doesn’t mean the pipes are in good shape, floor joists and roof rafters are stable, you get the idea. Make sure you have a good real estate agent! We, who are good ones, are worth our weight in gold.
Make sure your agent is on top of the statistics and the news, too. That way your negotiation position is stronger. Knowledge is power. If I can help you, I’m here, not going anywhere. I’m Brenda, with Premier Advantage Realty. I’m online and I’m at 919-210-6113.
I feel sorry for today’s hoodwinked seller. Yeah, the one who hired an inept real estate agent to market their home for sale. If I look at your home online and see dark images and a reflection of the photographer taking your photos with a phone, I sigh in frustration. Then I click off of your home advertisement. That’s NOT marketing.
Listen, EVERYBODY uses the internet first. And FIRST, they look at your pictures, the ones of the spaces you want them to imagine living in. When I get the PING! notification that there’s a new listing to view and I see AWFUL dark pictures, my head explodes and then I shut down that file. People do not want to buy a dingy, dirty looking home. They just don’t. And I don’t want to work with an agent who is so slack they can’t even take a decent picture. I know they have to upload these images, and I KNOW they see how AWFUL they look. And they just go right along, doing what I consider scamming the seller who hired them.
I’m a real estate agent. I look at THOUSANDS of homes and pictures of homes every year. When I see postings of dark shadowy pictures, I immediately click away. Why? Because the seller doesn’t bother to hire a good agent to present their home in the best light. A good camera and a light attachment are not like buying a Cybertruck. It’s not expensive to do a good job. It takes a LITTLE more effort than grabbing a phone out of your back pocket, but for goodness sakes, these agents owe their client GOOD SERVICE.
Before you hire an agent, look at the pictures they’ve already posted, PLEASE. If they are not well lit, level, nice pictures, then they are hurting your sale. Hurting.
Want to know how easy it is to post great photos? Call me. I’m Brenda, with Premier Advantage Realty and I can help you.
Before you buy a townhouse or condo, make sure you check with the homeowners’ association management to find out what percentage of the development is owner occupied. In other words, what percentage of rentals are here? This matters.
Your lender may not want to grant you a loan if the percentage of renters is high, because your target community might be more like an apartment complex than a group of home owners who live there, take pride in owning the home, and protect the value of the property. Renters are transient. Renters bring in some level of uncertainty because they don’t show up as homeowners on record. Renters don’t have the same incentive to protect the property value as owners who live there, and that adds risk. Lenders don’t like risk.
Neither will you, if the first and last weeks of every month bring a parade of moving trucks to block the parking lot and interrupt the peaceful nature of your community. If you buy a townhome or condo in a high rental community, you will never know whom your neighbors are.
These things may not bother you. But be aware. Investors love townhomes and condos, but they do actual damage to property value by filling up these communities with renters. Talk to your real estate agent about this so you can make an informed choice.
I can help. I’m at Premier Advantage Realty,, NC 919-210-6113.
Real estate is local. I’ve said that many times here. But what does that mean?
It means that within your state, numbers might show a median home price of $300,000. But that’s statewide. Within your metropolis, the median might be $550,000. And then within your LOCAL market, even within your subdivision, or the one you want to move to, the median might be $355,000. Okay, so what?
Well, if you look at the statewide median price, you might lock that price in your brain and not be able to afford anything at all in the area you want to move to. Why? Because that price is not your LOCAL price. You see $300,000 when YOUR median price is really 50K higher. Get it? Gotta go local.
Now let’s talk about median. Median is not the MEAN, or average. Median means line up every house in a line and put a price above it, then find the middle of that line. There it is. That’s the median. Median is not average.
How do they come up with the numbers? Just like that: make a list, find the middle. No attention to amenities in the community, no attention to the age of the house, what kind of condition is it in, ‘popularity’ of the area…none of that. And I’m just going to say it: Popularity includes low crime rate. There it is. If you buy in a high crime area, you probably got a lower home price, but you’re going to feel it when you try to sell.
Okay, let’s look at the notorious ‘price per square foot’ check box. If a home has a higher one, it might have a TON of upgrades that you will never be able to afford, or won’t be able to wedge in, later. So that PPSF might be worth it! Note that the reasons for this higher factor is not called out for you; it’s just entered in the data. Lock in on the ‘median’ and you’re gonna miss that special three-seasons room you always dreamed of having. Take a few minutes to find out how much that extra 5 bucks per square foot actually effects your payment (or ask AI) and you might get a pleasant surprise. Don’t miss out on that dream home over 5 bucks a month. Remember, you want to be happy with your home. There’s not much better than that.
There’s so much information out there that it’s overwhelming. We feel like we’re in a sea of it. The important thing is to connect these data points in the way that makes your perfect home stand out for you. That’s why it’s important to have a realtor who knows the market, and who knows how to look for hidden issues while you imagine placing your furniture. Real estate agents do that.
We are in the age of information, but you know…you know…that a lot of it is bogus. Check and recheck. And there’s still nothing like driving by the home to get a feel for the community. How much shade is there for summer heat, how is the topography? Are you in the bottom of the bowl where all of the runoff will end up in a storm? Is construction uniform? That matters! It goes straight to your bottom line, and remember when you buy, you will also need to sell one day.
Do you hate being hand-shake distance from your neighbor? Well don’t look in the middle of the metropolis! Gotta go out into the ‘banished from the kingdom’ areas (my favorite). And even those are becoming impossible to find. Do you want an acre of land in the country? Well you’re going to have a septic tank and well, for you guys who hate them.
Food for thought. If you want to chat (chatting is free), contact me. I’m Brenda with Premier Advantage Realty. 919-210-6113. And I actually like talking. I know, who DOES that?
Have you ever wanted to actually meet this bunny, or were you just waiting for that basket of chocolate goodies? Heck, I never gave this guy a second thought. Until now. Oh, you know how I am. I’ve gotten quite contemplative in my recent years, and more than that, I love a tangent. It’s almost Easter!
The Easter Bunny gives gifts anonymously. Come on, you never see him. So I’m gonna call it anonymous. He never asks for anything in return. He gives you the amazing gift (talking chocolate here) even if you don’t need nor deserve it! He never forgets Easter. He’s always right there.
He loves you! If he didn’t, he’d leave rocks, or scare you awake. He gives you the things you like and even some you didn’t expect. And I think it would be very cozy warm and fuzzy to hug the Easter Bunny, don’t you think?
Yeah, I’d like to meet Mr Bunny. Just to say thanks.
There are so many seniors in the market now, looking to downsize into a more manageable space. Maybe the need is to live on one level, or maybe it is just to have less real estate to manage. Any way you look at it, it is a specialized place to be in life, and it requires a special real estate agent to help you navigate it. Times have changed, laws have changed, real estate and even how to get through it, have changed. And I find that my clients appreciate that I listen to them, that I have empathy for their fears and the sadness they feel when they have to choose what to take with them and what to leave. And importantly, I find that my clients love that I do not rush them. These kinds of late-in-life decisions are weighty and they deserve thinking through.
One of my specialties is working with seniors. I am one. I know how it feels to enact dramatic changes later in life, and I’m really good at helping my seasoned clients navigate through. The most important thing for them is to focus on the excitement they will encounter in finding that new home, getting to incorporate some of the things maybe they didn’t have in their last, long term home. Eventually, all of my clients settle in, embrace and even love their new life. That’s what you want. And that’s what I want for you.
I work very hard and with love for my seniors on this journey. I hope you will call me so I can be of service. I am Brenda, with Premier Advantage Realty, at 919-210-6113.
You’ll notice in this image that there are no cords, no batteries. This is the instrument that requires some thought to be in place before keys are struck. It is a typewriter. Purely mechanical, purely reliant upon ideas to come from the mind of operator, or someone plagiarized, which has become all too frequent. Once upon a time…relax, it’s not Snow White…people used these to produce written text: Letters, memos, books, reports, even tests for school. Remember tests? You know, before merit was killed off and education became indoctrination, before actual education was eliminated. There was a brief moment when it was ‘dumbed down’; but then it was snuffed out. This is why people at Harvard can’t do math, that statement I’ve been making for a long time now.
Once upon a time, people had to rely upon “The Big Three” (ABC, NBC, CBS) for news. Anchors on these networks were greatly respected, even revered. Why? Well you could never tell what their own opinions were. Why did that matter? Because we didn’t tune in to hear an editorial rant; we tuned in to watch news, not their OPINION of the news, and we got the truth. How we processed that was up to us; we had to think about it.
These days, all we get from Main Stream Media is garbage attempts to disrupt and indoctrinate. Main Stream is a misnomer now anyway. Main Stream is actually YouTube now. Now, there are thousands and thousands of places to get info about any single news story. So for thinking people (aka people with the ability to think), this is paradise. For thinking people, we are in our element.
The world is full of scared, lazy, time-out everybody gets a trophy for showing up generations. How do you like it, lazy parents? It’s a mess! I’ll tell you, I’m so tired of people in media saying julery instead if jewelry, saying ‘real-i-tor’ instead of REALTOR, and they are in the anchor chair!! In my opinion, if you cannot pronounce the name of your career, you should be kicked out of it. In any case, you advertise your lack of education when you cannot pronounce everyday words. You want to say it that way? Okay, just stay off of my radio and TV. Bottom line is that we are seeing the ‘I showed up’ crowd now in charge. No WONDER we have global issues.
On top of rewarding ignorance, we have allowed rampant violent aggression to become the norm. Whatever emotion pops up first is okay to act out, and more and more often, it is hate and anger. What is the solution? Who can say. I do think it would be a good idea for schools to teach logic, beginning right from the start. Teach teamwork, right from the start, and punish hateful aggression. We have to cure the cancer that has infected our world.
Not everything is a crisis.
Speaking of crisis (you know I have to talk about real estate), sometimes people need a realtor BECAUSE of a crisis. Okay I’m talking about divorce. I’m shaking my head. Now, most marriages end that way. Sad. But know, if you are heading that way, there are RULES in real estate. Better get an experienced agent…and one who will understand what you are going through. That’s me.
I’m Brenda, with Premier Advantage Realty. Call me at 919-210-6113
I’ve had a very busy two weeks, so much so that at the end of the day, all I want to do is turn on YouTube and fall asleep on the couch. I usually fall asleep with my cats and YouTube, and I have so many subscriptions there’s no way to give attention to all of them, every day. So I leave the TV on all night so I get subliminal YouTube. OMG I wake up to some strange videos, let me tell you.
One of my favorite themes is decorating, although my favorite style of decorating is with power tools. That’s a story for another day. Still, I have three all time favorite designers, all focused on aesthetics, and they roll through my feed often. These guys (yep, guys) are my favorites, so I help them with their algorithm by watching and liking. Tonight, it was about what’s new in kitchen trends. Again. I was HORRIFIED to discover that walnut cabinets are BACK. Ugh. I like my white cabinets, and oh my god, my kitchen looks like a blizzard. White cabinets, white countertops, white backsplash. It’s my style, my favorite look, and frankly, I don’t care what anybody else says is ‘in’. And it got me to thinking…Uh oh.
You know, if you’ve read my blog entries, you’re aware that I feel a great deal of disappointment about the lack of creativity in the following generations. I was part of a generation that made a lot of discoveries, invented a lot of stuff, created great movies, wrote great books! Every day there was something new. Like optical fiber, the internet, iPhones, smart TVs, blow dryers, microwave ovens, new building materials, great new tools. SO exciting. What happened? Where did the creativity go?
We have so much exciting technology now and, is it me, or is that tech focused on reinventing the wheel? Stay with me for a second. I saw TWO coming soon movies, one Jurassic World and another the Smurfs. What in the actual hell?? Can I say, putting the word ‘actual’ in that sentence is one of MY favorite new things. Anyway…again with the remakes. REMAKES! You know that I have griped about this before.
I have been around a long time, and I live in a world where seniors are all stupid and irrelevant, have no value, get overlooked and definitely discriminated against…and yet the younger ones copy us. WE WIN, damnit. We win! You have all of the cool technology to use and you can’t dream up a new, exciting plot? Come on. Again with the Jurassic Park crap? And Smurfs? Kill me now. Slow down, put down the gaming console and controller and USE.YOUR. BRAIN. Stop copying!!
So here’s my brain going in two parallel streams again, one with nothing new under the sun, and the other, don’t tell me what to like. Which got me to thinking…hahaha. You know how this works.
I’m a real estate broker and I see a LOT of kitchens. I can tell you that the classic look never turns buyers away. But if you go with a trend, a trend…by definition will go out of style next year. Remember these decorators make their money by getting you to hand over yours, and if you are a follower, you’re gonna redecorate. You’re going to find this year’s hot color, this year’s hot countertop style, this year’s hot cabinet color and style and you’re either going to spend money to put other peoples’ ideas into your kitchen, or you’re going to wallow in the self pity of not being able to copy someone else.
See I’m not wired that way. I don’t LIKE to copy someone else, usually, except with cars. Cars cars cars. I wallow in the self pity of not being able to afford to copy someone else’s choice. I do! Every day. LOL.
So there are ‘types’ when it comes to ‘project management’. One type builds the car with NO plans, NO supplies, just runs to the store building a parts list on the way, runs back home and builds builds builds. The other extreme…me…stares at the venue, thinks, imagines, goes looking for the stuff to build it but doesn’t buy it yet, goes back home, stares some more, and then like magic, it all comes together and OFF I GO to buy the stuff, then back home to build. Both ways get you to the same end, but just two different approaches. Neither is better, by the way.
Point is, if you choose a style for your home, however you get that style into play, there has been effort put into that decor. So own it! Don’t spend your life running around chasing trends. Oh, I forgot to tell you, I’ve seen MY white kitchen style come and go MANY time though the decor world. It ALWAYS comes back. Always. I win again.
Now back to creativity. Please, I beg you, no more dinosaur movies of the Jurassic type. For God’s sake come up with something NEW. Oh god I cannot bear to say Smurf. What you are doing is copying the old folks you don’t respect, taking our ideas and changing costumes, changing race and gender of the characters or heroes. That’s pretty cheap and pathetic and you should be asking yourself what happened to creativity? I think the answer will disturb you.
And can I just say, if I’m held hostage, I don’t want a girl coming to rescue me. I want a big, tall, muscular man. That is also my style and I also like it.
So there you go.
We can talk about these ideas and more when you call me to talk about the new stuff in real estate. Yep. Changes every year. I’m Brenda, with Premier Advantage Realty, at 919-210-6113.
There are a lot of reasons to feel optimistic about the future, but if you are expecting 3% interest rates again, you’re gonna be disappointed. What we have now in upper 6’s lower 7’s is still incredible rates. Full disclosure, my rate is 3% and I’m not going to go UP to 7%. BUT, if you haven’t had a 3% or lower rate, well, this is reality now. BTW my first mortgage rate was over 14% with a perfect credit score. Shew. Glad those days are over. For most people, though, it’s not about the rate; it’s about the resulting payment amount and that is tied to price.
When you hear a market report, and I’ve said this before, remember that real estate is local. Local local local. Example, if you life in Raleigh NC, you will be the last market to fall and the first to rise. Why? We are a fire ant colony, so there’s a lot of demand and that’s the lowest, simplest reason. Lots of people needing housing. But we are also full of universities, colleges, teaching hospitals, regular hospitals and healthcare sites, manufacturing, service providers and dare I say it? Wealth (not me). So we bring in, last metric I heard, 70 people every day. That creates demand and that’s good for a market.
Our market crashed in 2008 for a few months before it started climbing out. I describe it as bumping along the bottom and then suddenly, an uptick. I bought my house during the early stages of the climb, by the way. Other nearby markets stayed down lower and longer, by the way, because in some cases there was no market for their homes. No demand.
Let’s talk home prices. In my area the MEDIAN price has gone up about 2% to the 400’s. And folks, please know there’s a difference between MEAN and MEDIAN. Mean is an average of all prices. Median is just the middle of the scale, period. An increase in median means the prices have gone up overall and more homes in the higher prices are selling more often. Higher priced homes selling more can mean (and does in my market) that there aren’t any lower priced homes fit for most lower end buyers. The whole market has risen, in terms of price. Now I don’t like that because many buyers have been pushed right out of the market, had their dream of home ownership stolen from them. And I’m talking about hard working educated people. Very frustrating for me, because I love my first time buyers.
First time buyers used to find a home under 200K. Now, first time buyers have a 4 in the first number, very often, and few can afford that. The lower priced homes are often old, suffering from delayed or non-existent maintenance, or are a flipped home with lipstick on a pig, to steal that overused description. Sometimes what is hidden is a huge repair bill sleeping. So…better have a smart real estate agent who knows what to look for. Like me. Because these first time buyers area not aware of the market, they want an acre, 2000 square feet, fenced back yard, pool, clubhouse, modern look…no. They’re looking at a 5 or 6 in the first number there.
The outlying areas are the only places left to find ‘a bargain’. And ‘bargain’ might end up being a monster waiting to strike your bank account.
So in my market, and I know my market, it’s tough. You have to be prepared for reality. Yes, have a good credit score, but also have some savings. Remember, even if you find a seller who will go under contract with a 100% financing buyer, you will still have inspections and attorney fees to pay and that is in the thousands.
I’ve said this 100 times. TALK TO A REAL ESTATE AGENT. It is free to talk and gather information. A good agent can prepare you and even give you some ideas of good lenders to TALK TO, so you have that data point as well.
Notice I said TALK. You are NOT going to text your way through a real estate transaction. And besides, studies are showing how spending your time with your head bent down to a phone or computer is keeping you from getting good jobs. Why? Because you have zero people skills. So communicate by talking. Learn those ropes. And if I can help you, I’d be honored. I’m Brenda at Premier Advantage Realty. Call and ask for ME. I do not charge any ‘consultation’ fees.
I was on the phone with a car insurance person the other day, and she said, “You have such a pleasant voice.” Isn’t it interesting?
Hey, have a wonderful day out there! Thanks for reading!
brendabriggsrealtor 