Wilmington NC Real Estate Guide

Wilmington NC real estate median sold price continues its five month climb; we are 1.0% ahead of last month and 1.6% over last year this time. Our pending index is up 6.3% from last month. Our year to date we have a growth of 15.2% sold units over last year while our average sold price is just 1.9% behind last year. In our rolling 12 months we are 16.1% up in sold units and our average sold price is only down by 3.6%. This is the first month to break the string of sold units over the prior year; we had a string of 10 months. A key point to note is the average sold price is just a hair under last month by .03% or $707.00, but we are 8.4% ahead of last year this time.  The trend is our negative numbers and gaps keep getting smaller and smaller.
In the month of July, we saw a decrease of 125 Wilmington NC homes for sale, we have 5,604 homes on the market as of August 1st.  This continues to put us in a strong buyer’s market with a listing inventory of over a 16.0 month supply. With the low sales in July this affects our month supply with a change of 5 months from last month. Our average list price has stayed below the $400,000 range for eleven months; we are currently at $377,052. In July we saw a decrease in our seller concessions, it is now 21.7%. Our average days on the market are 121. The list to sold ratio is 94.8% and is up .4% from last month; this number needs to continue to get better. The number of homes that sold in 15 days or less continues to remain very low, 17.7% of July sold homes. The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 4.44% with an average 0.7 points for the week ending August 12, 2010. We are now hitting historic lows in mortgage rates.
Listing Inventory
In July we saw our first decrease in listing inventory of 125 units. We are about 204 units over August 1, 2009. We have 5,604 single family homes for sale in our MLS. The average list price of $377,052 is down by $3,515 from last month. The average list price has decreased by 8.1% from August 1, 2009. Read the rest of this entry

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.

Foreclosures Wilmington NC

The number of foreclosures listed in the Wilmington MLS are at an all time high of 75. These foreclosed home range in price from $28,000 to $2,163,055 in Porters Neck Plantation and everything in between including homes at Landfall, Northchase, Pine Valley, MacCumber Terrace and even waterfront communities such as Tangle Oaks.

Short Sales Wilmington NC

Short sales are even higher in numbers with a record 152 short sales listed for sale in the Wilmington, NC area. You will find short sales at prestigious Figure Eight Island, Landfall, Wrightsville Beach, NC, Carolina Beach, NC, Historic District, Waterfront communities such as Turtle Hall and Sandfiddler Point, Whitney Pines and Somerset Place. As you know a short sale is when the home is listed for less than the payoff due the lender. They are always subject to lender approval and the process is usually a very lengthy one.

For a complete list of foreclosures and short sales, please call 800-497-7325 Ex. 3607 or email me at kaybaker@ec.rr.com.  You can also search Wilmington NC real estate at www.cbbaker.com by map, neighborhood, price, zip code, schools and more.

Home sales are on the rise now for 3 months in a row. That is certainly a good sign that the real estate market may be rebounding, finally. And, the historic low interest rates and the $8000 tax credit have definitely given the market a boost.

New home sales have risen more in the last month than they have in 8 years. New construction is busier now than any month since last fall. But, new home sales are still down 72% from 4 years ago as inventories remain high.

Our own Wilmington, NC real estate market is seeing signs of improvement, as well. First time home buyers are jumping in to take advantage of a once in a lifetime opportunity. Second home and vacation home buyers are beginning to see the benefits of purchasing a dream home on the beach, whether it be Wrightsville Beach, Carolina Beach or Topsail Beach, NC real estate.  Now is the time to take advantage of this market. Everything is on sale now…

To begin your search for Wilmington, NC homes, please log on to my website at www.cbbaker.com or email me at kay@cbbaker.com. I can send you a detailed list of foreclosures, short sales and homes price under $100 ft.

Masonboro Island NC on July 4th

Masonboro Island is an 8 mile long uninhabited island on the southern North Carolina coast between Wrightsville Beach and Carolina Beach and is part of the National Estuarine Research Reserve. Masonboro Island, only accessible by boat, is enjoyed by campers, surfers, anglers, and bird-watchers alike. The reserve consists of about 5000 acres, which about 4400 acres are tidal marsh and mud flats.  The most northern end at Masonboro Inlet is the most popular area with its sandy beaches and protected waters. Any summer weekend you will see many boaters and campers prepared for a few days on the beach with tents, grills and water toys in to  Masonboro Island, normally calm and peaceful, has recently seen a little too much partying and alchohol consumption on big Holiday weekends such as July 4th and Labor Day. Boaters from all over the Southeast join in on a big party weekend.  So, if you plan to visit the island, be sure to keep your alcohol consumption to a minimum and take your garbage with you.

Masonboro Island is also located only minutes from the mainland where you will see prestigious waterfront communities with private docks, marinas, and boat ramps for homeowners. One of the most conveniently located communities to Masonboro Island is Shinn Point, located straight across from Masonboro Inlet, which is one of the most protected inlets on the East coast. From Shinn Point, you can be in the ocean in just minutes for a day of deep sea fishing or just cruise over to Masonboro Island and relax in the sun.

For complete details on all waterfront communities in Wilmington, NC or Wilmington, NC real estate, please feel free to contact me or go to my website at www.cbbaker.com.

Great Time To Purchase A Vacation Home

What a great time to buy the vacation home! You have always dreamed of owning your own cabin in the mountains or an oceanfront home or condo. Well now is the time to invest in this once in a lifetime opportunity. According to the National Association of Realtors the housing market may be already starting a rebound as contracts written in August jumped and home sales are up in popular vacation spots such as Florida and Arizona. Read the rest of this entry