The Week in Review Wilmington NC August 23, 2008

The Week in Review

.....your Wilmington Connection

August 23, 2008

Wilmington this week we had UNCW start their classes with the rush of school starting their are so many things to think about. School supplies, clothes and more importantly where are you kids staying while in University? Did you know by paying a monthly rent you are losing money in more ways than one. Why not buy and investment home for your student and that way you can make a return on it when they finish college. Let me know if this is something you would like to discuss.

Real-estate appraiser regulation is a failure

As soaring home prices set the stage for America's great housing meltdown, a critical step in making sure those home sales were a fair deal - the real estate appraisal - was undermined from within.

After the nation's last major banking disaster, Congress set up a system to catch rogue appraisers. Their game: inflating the value of homes at the direction of equally unscrupulous real estate agents and mortgage brokers, whose commissions are determined by the size of the deals.

But a six-month Associated Press investigation found that the system is crippled by both the bumbling of its policemen and their inability to effectively punish those caught committing fraud.

And despite ample evidence appraisers are pressured into inflating home values - sometimes to prices in support of loans that are more than buyers can afford - the federal regulators charged with protecting consumers have thus far made a conscious choice not to act.

Wilmington council approves higher buildings downtown

The north side of downtown Wilmington could one day be home to skyscrapers that dwarf PPD's headquarters, according to regulations approved Tuesday by the Wilmington City Council.

But new buildings in the city's historic core would remain on the current scale, or smaller.

The changes were part of wide-ranging revisions to the city's downtown development regulations.

Under the new rules, developers can generally build higher than has been allowed provided they offer community benefits such as public parking, park space or even wireless Internet access.

The greatest height could be reached in the area north of Red Cross Street where buildings could top out at 240 feet, 28 percent higher than is currently allowed.

By contrast, the PPD building, the dominant feature in downtown's skyline today, is just over 190 feet tall, said Kay Graybeal, the city's planning director.

But while some limits rose, the maximum height dropped in some of downtown's most historic and well-traveled areas. South of Market Street, for example, the maximum height fell from 62.5 feet to 50 feet.

The change is designed to reduce pressure to redevelop historic structures by offering the less-storied North End as an alternative.

"If there's the desire to build a really tall building, they have the ability to do that in the North End where it won't affect the historic context of the city's core.

Wilmington area home sales

Home sales rose in July to 507 from 441 in June, according to data from the Wilmington Regional Association of Realtors, whose multiple listing service covers New Hanover and Pender counties and parts of Brunswick, Onslow and other area counties.

But that still was 17.5 percent lower than in July 2007, when 618 homes sold.

....until next week in The Week in Review

Tina