Coldwell Banker real estate continues to receive awards for their innovative marketing especially in the Wilmington NC real estate market.  The Latest award was for “On Location” YouTube Channel, for the Real estate Category.  Below is the letter from Corporate headquarters for Coldwell Banker Realty.

Coldwell Banker Sea Coast realty and Kay Baker and Associates continue to strive for new ideas and creative outlets for marketing of Wilmington NC real estate.  Visit http://www.cbbaker.com/

COLDWELL BANKER REAL ESTATE WINS COMMUNICATOR CREATIVE EXCELLENCE AWARD FROM INTERNATIONAL ACADEMY OF VISUAL ARTS

Brand’s ‘On Location’ YouTube Channel Honored in Real Estate Website Category

PARSIPPANY, N.J., (July 7, 2010) – The International Academy of the Visual Arts has named Coldwell Banker On Location, the brand’s YouTube channel, a recipient of this year’s Communicator Awards for Creative Excellence in the real estate website category. The category honors the best site for the sale or rental of residential or commercial property.

“We were the first national real estate brand to add streaming video to our website. Today, our agents across the globe have posted more than 15,000 videos to our On Location channel,” said Mike Fischer, chief marketing officer for Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. “The most exciting part of On Location is that we have only just begun – there’s a lot more to come.”

On Location has been rated among the top 10 most-viewed brand channels on YouTube. In April, just 11 months after launching On Location, Coldwell Banker announced it had received over 1 million views. The site was launched in May 2009 and was produced in collaboration with FD Kinesis.

“Home buyers would much rather see a home than only read about it,” Fischer said. “Our On Location videos empower them to get a feel for a home, a community or a real estate professional that they could not get from photos or a text description alone. Equally important are the home sellers who are now expecting video to be a part of marketing their property.”

With thousands of entries received from across the United States and around the world, the Communicator Awards is one of the largest and most competitive awards program honoring the creative excellence for communications professionals. The Communicator Awards are judged and overseen by the International Academy of the Visual Arts, an invitation-only body consisting of top-tier professionals from acclaimed media, advertising and marketing firms.

About Coldwell Banker®

Since 1906, the Coldwell Banker® organization has been a premier provider of full-service residential and commercial real estate. Coldwell Banker is the oldest national real estate brand in the United States and today has a network of more than 98,000 agents working in more than 3,600 offices in 50 countries and territories. The Coldwell Banker brand is known for creating innovative consumer services as recently seen by being the first national real estate brand to augment its web site www.coldwellbanker.com for smart phones, the first to create a iPhone application and the first to fully harness the power of video in real estate listings, news and information through its Coldwell Banker On LocationSM YouTube channel. The Coldwell Banker system is a leader in specialty markets such as resort, new homes and luxury properties through its Coldwell Banker Previews International® marketing program.

© 2010 Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. All Rights Reserved. Coldwell Banker® is a registered trademark licensed to Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. An Equal Opportunity Company. Equal Housing Opportunity. Each Office Is Independently Owned And Operated Except Offices Owned And Operated By NRT Incorporated.

Rendering by Creative Illustration Media, INC. LS&P Architects

Wilmington NC is going to get it’s own state of the art  Convention Center.  After waiting for approvals and site plans, an opening date has been set for the Historic Downtown Wilmington Convention Center on the Cape Fear River. 

The grand opening is set for Thursday January 13, 2011 at 9:30 am.  The public is invited and there will be a ribbon cutting ceremony with the mayor and other community leaders.  Following the ceremony, there will be a BizTech Expo with technology and business vendors.  On January 15 a black tie event will be held by the Greater Wilmington Chamber of Commerce, with proceeds benefiting the Cape Fear Future initiative.  

A couple of big companies have signed contracts to hold their conventions here for the next couple of years.  This will bring added revenue to Wilmington NC and expose our area and all it’s natural treasures and great Wilmington NC real estate opportunities.  

Please explore our website for the most up to date listings of all Wilmington NC real estate and waterfront properties.  www.cbbaker.com or call us and we will personally select properties that will fit your real estate needs or portfolio.

If the low prices and the low interest rates have you wishing you could buy a new home but cannot because of your debt load, there is still time to reorganize your finances to make your wish come true.  Take a realistic look at where you spend your money.  Write everything down and where you spent it.  Is there a $4.00 Latte everyday? Make a budget and try to do away with some of the extras that you buy on a whim.  There are budget tools online, like Suze Ormans expense tracker that will help get you started.   We also have a credit repair company that can help you earn additional points for your credit score, so that you can qualify for lower interest rates.  Before you know it, that new home can be yours.  Be patient and work towards what you really want.  We can help you achieve this.  For all your Wilmington NC real estate needs please visit www.cbbaker.com or www.kaybakerwilmington.com

To view the home pictured please visit www.AskMeAboutWilmington.com

Kay Baker & Associates is excited to announce our Greater Wilmington NC School Guide.  Your one stop shop for all the information you need on New Hanover County, Pender County and Brunswick County schools.  This innovative digital magazine is the first in the Wilmington NC area.  Useful information is at your fingertips when selecting the best school for you or your child from Kindergarden to Higher College Education, whether it be a public school or private school.  We have it all here for you.  Please take time to visit, and explore the links to each school system.  All the information about registering for schools, what each library has on it’s shelves, special need centers in each school and contact numbers are all put together for you in an easy digital magazine.  There is also a link for Wilmington NC real estate to search for homes in a certain school district.  We want to make your life easy, especially when entertaining a move.  Click here for the Greater Wilmington NC School Guide. Search all Wilmington NC real estate on www.cbbaker.com and let us know if we can help.

Spring is right around the corner in Wilmington NC. What a great time to get a jump start on your spring cleaning.  If you are considering putting your home on the market, this might be the time to hire a cleaning professional.

Some of the things you need to keep in mind are:

1. Make a list of things that you would like to have done to the interior and the exterior of the home. 

2.  Do your homework and ask friends for referrals of cleaning companies.  Check out references before you hand over the keys to you home.

3.  Make sure that the cleaning company handles taxes for their employees, has insurance and is bonded.

4. Get an estimate for services and make sure it is detailed.  Your idea of a cleaning might be different than theirs.

5.  Make sure that the company can schedule days to fit your schedule and whether or not they supply the cleaning equipment and supplies.

6.  A professional cleaning job can make your home shine and show well. 

7.  Call us to help you sell your home!

So, start your real estate search today at www.cbbaker.com.  You can find a new home as well as get seller advice.  You can search by price range, map, schools, neighborhoods and more.

Fantastic positive news was released from the National Association of Realtors today.  The news release stated that the historically low interest rates combined with the $8,000 credit for first-time ( or homeowners who have not purchased a home in 3 years) helped raise the pending home sales contracts, for the third consective month.

The Pending Home Sales Index a “pending prediction” indicator based on contracts signed in April, rose 6.7 percent to 90.3 from 84.6 in March,
which is even above the April 2008 index of 87.5.

To get the first time home buyer credit of $8,000, contracts must be firmed up by November 30, 2009 to receive the credit, so we look forward to an increase in home sales.

The Wilmington NC real estate market has also enjoyed an increase in pending sales contract and still is in a a strong postion to continue this trend.

To search all Wilmington NC real estate and find out about the $8,000 tax credit please read more about the Wilmington NC real estate market here.

The Regency at Landfall

The Regency at Landfall is truly a place like no other. With its legendary beauty, old world charm and unmatched amenities, you can truly enjoy luxurious living on the coast of North Carolina.  

Landfall offers golf and more golf… The unsurpassed Jack Nicklaus 27 hole and the 18 hole Pete Dye course are stunningly designed and border glassy lakes, wetlands and dramatic views of the Intracoastal Waterway. And both of these are just steps from your front door at The Regency at Landfall.

In addition, Landfall offers an Olympic sized pool, walking paths, tennis complex, fitness center, two clubhouses and two pro shops.

The Regency at Landfall offers the best of all worlds, being located convenient to the port city of Wilmington, NC and less than 5 minutes to Wrightsville Beach, NC and Mayfaire Town Center. 

The Regency at Landfall offers wooded homesites available now for building and prices range from $250,000. Lenders are offering very aggressive mortgage terms for the remaining homesites at The Regency with up to 95% financing. And there are special incentives for builders, for a limited time only. 

The Regency’s lovely wooded neighborhood is an array of elegant homestyles to Mediterranean. Come enjoy this relaxing coastal lifestyle at The Regency at Landfall.

For more details on The Regency, to search for all homes for sale in Landfall , or Wilmington, NC real estate,  please contact kay@cbbaker.com or 910-497-7325 or www.cbbaker.com .

Figure Eight Island swing bridge may soon be only swinging once an hour instead of twice. Figure Eight Island is a private oceanfront island only minutes north of Wrightville Beach and Wilmington, NC. It is only accessible by a swingbridge. Figure 8 Island is a popular vacation destination for the elite due to little traffic or tourists. You will find miles of pristine sandy white beaches, a yacht club and marina, tennis courts and a boat ramp. Visitors can enjoy swimming, fishing, skiing, birdwatching or just relaxing on the gorgeous beaches.
The change in the swing bridge schedule would make it the same as the one hour opening for the Wrightsville Beach, Surf City and Sunset Bridge.

There are several custom homes  for sale at Figure Eight Island. They range in price from $1,995,000-$4,475,000. Many of these custom homes are located on the beautiful white beaches of Figure 8 Island. There are also homes on the sound front with private boat docks for easy access to the

intracoastalway or the ocean for deep sea fishing. For complete details on Figure Eight Island real estate, please go to www.cbbaker.com or contact me directly at 910-232-0363. You can also text message 44133 textcode 14041 and you will receive mobile virtual tours to your phone!

The timing could not be better than right now to be thinking about the purchase of a vacation or second home. Homes are on sale everywhere; Interest rates are at an all time low; Abundance of inventory gives you many choices; and many sellers are offering incentives. Read the rest of this entry

Google Street View

Well, Wilmington NC has made the news again!  Google has added Wilmington NC  to their list of “Special Cities” for their new “Street view”.  Realistic  360*  views of streets  at eye level.  Last December the google truck was sited in our area, and one of the locals ran outside to take a picture of the truck with google logo and a camera perched on top, and sure enough he is in the google street view online. Read the rest of this entry