The 5th Annual Justice 4 ALL day will be this Friday March 5, 2012 from 7 am – to 7pm. 

North Carolina residents may call in with any legal question they may have and they may be offered referral resources.  The NC Bar lawyers will have the phones manned with volunteers.  There are  7 call centers in NC.  These are the numbers to call for your area of the State.

Wilmington/Southeastern 1.888.442.3428
Greenville/Eastern N.C. 1.888.616.0614
Raleigh/Triangle Area 1.800.424.9725
Greensboro/Triad Area 1.877.391.6179
Charlotte Area 1.866.616.4255
Asheville/Western N.C. 1.800.289.0013

There is a Spanish-speaking number that may be called from any area of the State -  1.855.455.4255 from 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m.

If you need Real Estate advice, please call us 800-497-7325-3607 or email kaybaker@ec.rr.com – please visit  www.cbbaker.com

If you are selling an above-average-price property in an upscale neighborhood, you know your home is unique. You expect an upscale property to be marketed with the same professionalism you demand in every aspect of your life. That’s where our experience selling homes like yours really pays off.

Keep in mind, buyers who can afford your home lead busy lives like you and look for a hassle-free sale. Move-up buyers don’t need to buy now, so they wait and watch for that just-right home. It might be yours.

Unfortunately, even sophisticated homeowners sometimes make mistakes when they go to sell their upscale homes, netting less than the top-dollar price it’s worth. Or worse, the home just doesn’t sell at all.

Here are seven common pitfalls to avoid:

1. Underestimating The Competition in the Wilmington NC real estate market

Even though your property may be one-of-a-kind, there are other homes on the market being shown to the same potential buyers. Before you list your home, we’ll give you an “armchair tour” of comparable properties listed for sale in your price range. We’ll share our inside observations on how each home compares to yours and what special features stand out.

2. Overestimating The Value

When we tour the competition, you’ll notice how similar homes are priced. Features of interest to today’s buyers include location, house design and size, privacy afforded by the lot and acreage, special amenities, type of community, and quality of local schools and facilities. Together, we’ll help position your home at the right price. By avoiding the over-pricing trap — which often results in repeated price reductions making the property seem distressed — we’ll save time and net the full value of your home.

3. Relying On Location

Homes in the higher price ranges need to look magazine-perfect when shown to potential buyers. Today’s market demands that everything — doors to floors, fixtures to walls — be sparkling clean. Even minor faults loom large in what is expected to be a perfect home. In short, fix up, repair and polish like never before.

4. Over-Improving

Also, avoid over-individualizing the house or grounds. People tend to buy homes they see as an image of themselves. A home that’s too individualized with strong, personalized decorating won’t sell quickly. Avoid dramatic custom flourishes that may not suit many other people. Some buyers will mentally calculate the cost of removing the customization and deduct the cost from their offer.

Although you want your home to look its best, spending thousands of dollars to redecorate will not likely help it sell at a higher price — it may sell more quickly, though.

5. Making Your Own Marketing Decisions

The marketing plan for your home needs to reach out to the right potential buyers. We offer a first-class marketing campaign that requires careful advance planning to allow time for reserving appropriate advertising space, top-notch photography, brochure production, even special events, such as a top-broker open house.

Many homeowners overestimate the value of one-shot marketing such as newspaper or TV spot ads. What typically works better is advertising with a longer “shelf life,” in upscale publications, for example, where ads are directed at an ideal niche.

Let us help you decide whether your house could benefit from an open house or would be better shown by appointment only. Yours is not a home for curious, unqualified walk-ins.

6. Playing Hard To Get

No home sells sight unseen. Working together, we can create a plan to show the house to qualified prospects without disturbing your schedule. Details, such as the security system or guard dogs, may need to be worked out.

Rest assured, all buyers will be financially qualified, perhaps requiring an approval letter from an attorney or banker, before we will bring them to see your property.

7. Being Inflexible

You have a unique home, and you’re looking for a unique buyer. Chances are that buyer will have special needs and concerns. The most likely buyer will probably need to sell a current home to buy yours. Flexible terms, possibly including some extra time to settle on the old home, will help sell your home quickly at the right price.

Thinking of selling within the next 6 months? Call us to help get you started.  910-202-3607 or kaybaker@ec.rr.com

Crawl The Walls

Start going to the right when you enter the house, and keep on following to the right. You will check each wall that way. Do the same on every floor. Look for settlement cracks, separating joints, defective plaster or other signs of stress or damage. Check wallpapered areas for crinkling or gathering, which may mean walls are settling or shifting.

Look For Leaks

Loose or wrinkled wallpaper could indicate a water leak somewhere. Look for water stains on the ceiling and walls. You may have to look closely — bring a flashlight — in case they have been painted over or repaired.Spend time in the bathrooms and in every area with pipes, checking for leaks and drips. Also, run the shower and basin, then flush the toilet to check water pressure. Look for cracked or loose tiles and missing grout or mildew stains on the walls or floor, which could indicate a behind-the-wall leak.

Plug Into The Electrical System

Check every electric socket or outlet. Use a plug-in night light and turn every switch on and off. Look for extension cords and multiple plugs in sockets, which could mean insufficient or poorly placed sockets. Also check every appliance to be sure it works well.

Focus On Condition

Open and close every door and window. Look and listen for squeaking, sticking, or a tendency to close on their own. Check for evidence of shifting or settling around the front stoop, chimney and walks, and places where the driveway and the fence meet the house. Also check the deck for sturdiness and look for rotted wood. Go into the garage and check the walls, floors and doors — inside and out.

Pay Attention To Pests

Look for termites and ants. Especially look along the foundation, around doors and entry points of wiring and pipes. Check the grading of the yard to be sure water runs away from the house.If everything looks good to you and you decide to purchase the house, be sure to require a home inspection by a professional inspector before settlement. You will want a professional who will crawl into the crawl space, climb onto the roof and poke around with a flashlight in the attic. Your professional should also carefully inspect the major systems — electrical, gas, plumbing and heating/air conditioning.

You can and should insist on a written report detailing what the problems are with the house, how important each one is. You may have to consult a contractor to estimate repair costs on any problems found.

We have a list of local service providers that will help you with your inspections. View here….

For all your Wilmington NC real estate needs,  please visit www.cbbaker.com

According to Mortgage Match new rules will make it mandatory for Mortgage Lenders to give mortgage applicants credit scores and credit report factors used during the loan application process.  If a Mortgage Lender quotes an applicant an interest rate and points that the loan will cost and there is a difference between interest rate and costs quoted to other applicants the loan officers will be required by Federal law as of July 21 to:

“–Tell you that you received a less favorable offer because of negative information in your credit bureau files;

–Provide you the actual credit scores used for your rate quote;

–Disclose the name and contact information of the credit reporting company that supplied the scores that led to your less favorable quote;

–Provide consumer education materials explaining credit scores, how they are used, and how your own score ranks against other applicants, plus the credit file factors that may have depressed your score. For example, if maxed-out credit cards and late payments are in your files, they could play significant roles in lowering your credit scores” per Mortgage Match.

The applicants will be able to have access to their credit report and the whole loan application process will become more transparent for the applicant.  Consumer education materials will be available for the applicant, so they can see why they were turned down, or received a higher interest rate.  They will have the right to obtain a  free credit report if turned down for the loan.

Photo from DariusRucker.com

The party is getting started…. The 64th annual Azalea Festival will be held April 6- 10, 2011 in Wilmington NC.  Darius Rucker has been announced as the the headliner for the concert on April 6 at Trask Coliseum to open up the festivities.  Rucker was previously with Hootie and the Blowfish, before he set out on his own.  Deep voiced country music is what you will enjoy at the concert.  The other celebrities are Wilmington’s own  Tampa Bay Buccaneers place kicker and John T. Hoggard High School graduate Connor Barth; Miss North Carolina 2010 Adrienne Leigh Core; Emmy Award-winning actress and soap opera star Leann Hunley, who played the cougar-ish Tamara Jacobs on filmed-in-Wilmington TV series “Dawson’s Creek”; USS Gravely Commander Douglas Kunzman, making his second festival appearance; and Chris Lambton, who appeared on the ABC reality show “The Bachelorette.” The Avett Brothers are headlining a concert on April 8, and that show is sold out.

To listen to a hit “Come Back” song from Darius, click here.

The Azalea Festival is one of the biggest festivals in Wilmington NC and has for 64 years drawn many celebrities including headmaster Ronald Reagan.  Please join us in a great tradition.  Tickets for the concert are avaliable starting Saturday Feb. 12 at http://www.ncazaleafestival.org

While you are in town text 14059 to 44133 to search Wilmington NC real estate, or visit www.cbbaker.com.

This quote is from WWAY 3 from the president of Homebuilders “The possibility of homeownership is more obtainable for buyers in our market now than it has been for years,” said WCFHBA President John Lancaster of Venture Homes of the Carolinas. “More buyers are beginning to enter the market again thanks to renewed confidence as housing prices stabilize while the fed maintains all time low interest rates.”

Syracuse NY held the top spot on most affordable homes, with some smaller housing markets following close by Mansfield, Ohio; Bay City, Mich.; Monroe, Mich.; and Lansing-East Lansing, Mich.  Lancaster says “Our market is greatly influenced by what happens up north, so the numbers out of places like New York, Pennsylvania and Ohio are encouraging,”. 

That is encouraging news when the news lately has not been so positive.

Please take a minute to tour our website and search the Wilmington NC real estate area to find the house, neighborhood and price that you are looking for.  We have an inhouse Lender – Alpha Mortgage and an inhouse Insurance Agency – Real Mark Insurance and would be happy to give you contact information so that you have a “One Stop” Shop to buy real estate.   We make it easy for you.  Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Realty and Kay Baker and Associates.  Search all Wilmington NC real estate on www.cbbaker.com

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.

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.