Real Estate Information Archive

Purchases of new homes rose 11% in June 2009, the biggest gain in eight years, underscoring evidence that the deepest housing slump since the Great Depression is starting to stabilize.

Sales rose to a 384,000 annual pace, higher than every forecast and the most since November 2008, figures from the Commerce Department showed today in Washington. The number of houses on the market dropped to the lowest level in more than a decade. Check to see Charlotte houses on the market and sort out the great values.

While this news means the drag on economic growth will turn to a stimulus in the second half of the year, property values are likely to continue falling nationally and rising unemployment will temper the general economic recovery. However, economists are now speculating that this new data means the pricing bottom is not far off, somewhere in the next three to six months. There is light at the end of the tunnel.

The Commerce Department earlier this month reported that builders began work on 582,000 residential properties at an annual rate in June, the most since November. Home construction has subtracted from U.S. gross domestic product every quarter since the start of 2006.

The jump in sales signals the U.S. economy is on the way to recovery. Across the board this is good news. It’s what you would expect to see at the beginning of a recovery.”

Pulte Homes has agreed to buy Centex Corp. for $1.3 billion to create the largest U.S. homebuilder by revenue. Both companies have a large presence in the market for Charlotte homes, Pulte listing 13 neighborhoods where they are actively building and selling while Centex has 20.

Pulte agreed to pay 0.975 of a share for each Centex share, valuing Centex stock at $10.50 per share, 38% more than yesterday's closing price of $7.62. The transaction, approved unanimously by both companies' boards, includes $1.8 billion in net debt.

The two companies are betting that by combining they will be better able to survive the soft housing market for new construction. The deal also will give Pulte access to states with stronger new home sales, including Texas and the Carolinas, especially the Charlotte NC region. The combined company we will have considerable presence in more than 59 markets across America.

To see listings actively marketed for sale in the Charlotte area by these two builders and others, visit our Charlotte Homes for Sale website and request a search be setup for you for new construction, the price range you require, the bed and bath configuration you desire, as well as many other variables.

Our efforts were recognized in a Charlotte Observer article by Nancy Stancill, Home Editor on Friday, Mar. 13, 2009. An excerpt from that article is below:

The best in the neighborhood

John C. Walker, a Charlotte Realtor with Wilkinson & Associates, listed his house in Commonwealth Park near uptown for $195,000 last July. No takers.

Walker, who had lived in the house for 20 years before moving to Mint Hill earlier, knew the three-bedroom, two-bath home was in good condition. But it needed to stand out.

He took it off the market and went to work pressure-washing the vinyl siding, walkways, decks and garage floor. He and some relatives painted it one neutral color throughout and added plants and fresh mulch to the landscape.

Then he put it back on the market at $175,000 – $20,000 less this time.

Within 10 days, he was talking to the couple who eventually bought the house at the new price. The deal closed in December.

“I wanted and needed to sell the house,” he said. “I knew we needed to offer the best deal and the best-looking house in the neighborhood.

Two builders active in the Charlotte home market, Toll Brothers and Lennar, are offering their versions of a buyer-protection plan. The plans seem inspired by South Korean automaker Hyundai, who has been advertising a program that allows customers to return cars within a year of a lease or purchase if they lose their jobs. The builders' are offering a mortgage protection plan that will cover a buyer’s mortgage for up to six months if there is a job loss.

Toll buys involuntary unemployment insurance on behalf of buyers who use Toll’s financing subsidiary to close and fund their home loan. The plan will cover up to six months of mortgage payments, including principle, interest, real estate taxes and homeowner insurance — up to $2,500 per month — if the borrower incurs a job loss within 24 months of closing on the home. There are other requirements, such as buyers can’t have knowledge of a pending job loss at the date of settlement. With Lennar, qualified homeowners enrolled in their "Peace of Mind Mortgage Protection Program" can have their mortgage payments of up to $2,500 per month paid for up to six months.

The trees are starting to show little green leaves, the Bradford pear trees are blooming, there is a warmth in the air... OK, maybe not today, but soon. Yes, these signs can only mean one thing... it's spring time again! And with this season returns to Charlotte the Southern Spring Home and Garden Show 2009 for the 49th time.

Discover beautiful landscapes created by top professionals, inspiring designer rooms from the Interior Design Society, exquisite displays of bonsai, Ikebana, and orchids, and over 300 companies with the best and latest in building and home improvement, outdoor living, kitchen and bath, decorative arts and crafts, green building, and interior décor.

Most importantly, you’ll discover ideas, inspiration, information and experts all designed to help you create the home and garden you have always wanted to make your Charlotte real estate become the envy of the neighborhood. See you there!

Freddie Mac says that the benchmark 30-year mortgage plunged to 4.96 percent in the week ending January 15. That is the lowest level ever since the beginning of the mortgage agency's weekly rate survey in 1971. A year back, it averaged 5.69percent.

Mortgage lenders are busy with queries as interest rates on home loans drop nearly 1.5 percentage points in the last two months. The dive resulted from the recent cuts in interest rates by the Federal Reserve, as a part of its commitment to acquire huge blocks of mortgage-backed securities during the first half of this year.

Existing and potential homeowners are snapping up the opportunity that will bring savings, or a chance to pay off homes faster. As such there is a rush of applications from homeowners who are excited to refinance. The Mortgage Bankers Association says, since November, there has been a more than fivefold jump in the index that calculates applications for refinance mortgages countrywide.

To view information on recently listed homes in the greater Charlotte NC area and see what you could buy with these historically low interest on mortgages, go to SECharlotteHomeSearch.com.