Average WNC Home Sale Price is Up- July 2007

Average Western North Carolina home sale price is up
Oringinally published at http://www.blueridgenow.com/

By Jim Wooldridge Special to Friday Homes Preview

Entrance to The Preserve at Eagle Crest-Lake Glenville, NC

Home sales in Henderson, Buncombe, Transylvania and Haywood counties, plus an average for the 10 surrounding counties. In the first six months of 2007, the Henderson County real estate market looked like an island in an ocean of declining sales and slow movement.

The local market stood out in comparison to the 10 counties in this region of the state, including Buncombe, Transylvania and Haywood.

"Unit sales were off 3.5 percent here compared to the first half of 2006," noted Judd Richardson, president of the Hendersonville Board of Realtors, "but remember that 2006 was our second best year ever. Only 2005 was better."

He said it's possible for this season to become the third best, which would be outstanding in comparison to most markets around the nation.

Records of home sales are released monthly by the Multiple Listing Service of the Hendersonville Board of Realtors, which keeps computer data for other realty boards in the region.

Average price is up

A special feature of the first six months here was the stable price level, as shown by the ratio of the listing price to the actual closing price. In Henderson County, the average closing price was 97 percent of the price when the property was listed for sale.

Over the 10 county region, this ratio dropped 19 percent from 2006, led mainly by price cuts in Buncombe County.

Despite some price cutting after listing, the average home sold in Western North Carolina cost more than the average home sold six months ago. The average price increase over the region was 6 percent, with a 6.7 increase in Henderson and a 9.8 increase in Transylvania.

"I think the price increase in Transylvania was caused by more sales of upscale properties in the Highlands and Cashiers communities," Richardson said. "It's important that prices were higher in all counties because it shows owners are unwilling to cut prices to move their property, even in a slow market.

The main weakness in the local market was the increase in time between listing and selling. The number of days on the market increased 33 percent to 92 days in Henderson County, more than twice the increase in the region, where the average wait was 103 days.

National market is down
Hendersonville's market has remained stronger generally than the national market, which weakened significantly last year. Although unit sales fell slightly here near year end, the drop was not as severe as it was across the country.

"National sales have an effect here, because there are people who want to buy locally but can't afford to until they sell the house they are leaving," Richardson said.

How the Florida Market Effects Western North Carolina
"This is especially true of the Florida market where a lot of people sell before moving to this county," he said. "We hear improvement there is coming slowly because of the large number of listings hanging over the market."

Richardson said Florida recently passed changes to its property tax system, limiting assessment increases to 3 percent per year regardless of changes in market value.

"Compare that to our increase of 37 percent in four years, which is 9.2 percent per year," he said, adding that the local adjustment in the tax rate did not fully compensate for the increased assessment.

For more information regarding Listing or Buying Real Estate, Communities in the area, and Lots for sale mailto:info@carolinapg.com or call 888-277-2006 x2

Market Growth in Cashiers, North Carolina

Real Estate January 5, 2007, 12:01AM EST

Luxury Real Estate Snapshot: North Carolina

With its hearty economy, varied landscape, and ideal climate, North Carolina has rapidly become a magnet for wealthy homeowners
by Maya Roney

Ask a North Carolinian about the housing bubble bust, and you might get a quizzical look. Bubble? What bubble? It never happened here. In any conversation about local real estate, they will, however, be happy to tell you about "half-backers." Not a football player, but a name for affluent professionals and retirees who move from the Northeast to Florida and halfway back again, to North Carolina.

This migration pattern has contributed to the state's recent population boom and continued home sales growth, even as the U.S. housing market gets whacked due to years of speculation. North Carolina has moved past New Jersey as the 10th most populous state as its population grew 2% in 2006 to 8.8 million, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. In 20 years, it is expected to be the country's seventh most populous state.

The influx seems to be keeping North Carolina's housing market afloat. Existing home sales in the state were up 4% year to date as of November, 2006, vs. a 4.4% year-to-date decline nationwide. Compared to November, 2005, North Carolina home sales slipped 4% in November, 2006, while U.S. sales fell 10.7% in the same period.

Business Bait
"[The population growth] bodes well for real estate, both for real estate investors and practitioners," says Tim Kent, executive vice-president of the North Carolina Association of Realtors (NCAR). "We have every indication that 2006 was the sixth straight record year for home sales in North Carolina."

There's something addictive about North Carolina, the site of the first English colony in the Americas. And it's not the state's abundant tobacco crop. North Carolina's strong economy might have something to do with the recent population boom (and vice-versa). In the 2005-06 fiscal year (July 1 to June 30), the state's gross domestic product grew 3.9%, outpacing the country's 3.5% growth. North Carolina also added 120,000 jobs in 2006. Roughly 20,000 were in construction, and about 10,000 were in financial services at firms like Wachovia (WB) and Bank of America (BAC), both based in Charlotte.

"We have a migration of people, profitable banks, a good university system, and a strong military presence," says Harry Davis, chairholder and economist for the North Carolina Bankers Association. "When you put all those factors together, it creates a good economic environment, and a strong real estate sector."

Forget Florida
Another feature attracting masses to the Tar Heel State? Value. Whether you are relocating for your job or purchasing a second home, as a general rule, you can buy more house in North Carolina than you can in Palm Beach. And you'll still get the ocean view.

"I see a lot of people saying, 'As soon as I can get my home in Florida sold I'll move [to North Carolina],'" says Pat Handley, a realtor with McKee Properties in Cashiers.

The Outer Banks, with its 100 miles of beaches, has always been a popular destination for homeowners and vacationers from the Northeast. The climate is more temperate than in coastal areas further south, and the houses, though costly, are not unattainable. The most expensive beach homes on the market will run you about $5 million. In the case of our featured house in Wilmington, that price buys seven bedrooms and eight bathrooms on the ocean.

The New Aspen
As half-backers make their way to the undervalued mid-Atlantic, another kind of migration is going on within North Carolina—homeowners are fleeing the hurricanes and sweltering summers of the coast, and taking refuge in the mild weather of the western mountains.

Cashiers, a tiny resort community in the Blue Ridge Mountains, was settled about 200 years ago by pioneers from the south looking to escape the summer heat. Today, it still has four livable seasons and some stunning luxury homes. Cashiers also has plenty to do recreationally, with golf courses, streams for kayaking and canoeing, miles of unspoiled forest for hiking, and even skiing.

"Our area has been likened to Aspen as it was in the '50s, before it was developed," says McKee Properties' Pat Handley, who is marketing one of the community's highest-priced properties—a private mountaintop estate with valley and mountain views from every room—for $4.48 million.

Growing Market
Homes over $5 million are still a rarity in North Carolina, especially when you leave the secluded mountains or the coveted coast.

"Emerging is a good word for it," says Ed Willard, an agent with York Simpson Underwood, who has a 10,000-sq.-ft. home on the market for $3.895 million in one of Raleigh's most desirable neighborhoods. The average house in Raleigh, a burgeoning business center, goes for about $250,000, Willard estimates.

The relative inexpensiveness of North Carolina homes can make selling at the highest end a challenge. "The high-end market down here is a little rough," says realtor Martha Bick, whose 15,000-sq.-ft. chateau-style listing near Durham, at $7.763 million, is the second most expensive property in the state. "But it might be $20 million in New York," she adds.

For questions regarding the real estate market in North Carolina, Land Developments, and Golf Course Communities contact The Carolina Plateau Group 888-277-2006 x2 or send us an email