Greenville, NC

The summer sales season in Greenville NC has been better than many may have expected. As I often do I was looking at the numbers this morning to see how well the market is doing. Today's plan was to see how the summer sales season has been when compared to the number of listing available. These numbers are based on sales from Memorial day 2009 to today, 8-18-09. Many sellers are waiting to list their homes once the prices have started to go back up in this market. That will happen once the supply and demand has leveled off. Now for the good news, from 100k -150k , based on the current active listings 52% of that number has sold since Memorial Day. From 150k - 200K the percentage is 41%, and from 200k - 250k the percentage is 31%, 250k - 300k is 26% , 300k - 350k is 17%. Once we get above those numbers the results are not quite as impressive. So bottom line is we still have a ways to go but we are making progress moving the large inventory of homes so that the prices can start going up again.

Hey Pirate Nation!

East Carolina University starts in just over a week and we all know what comes along with school - the late nights (studying, right?), pizza, first tastes of alcohol (yeh, right) and lots of good southern food! To help you avoid the "Freshman 15" - www.HealthyPirates.com is now full of useful information for you!

Just like Deryck Wilson & RE/MAX Preferred Realty - Healthy Pirates is part of Pirates Supporting Pirates!

Parents & Students - Why RENT when you can BUY! Establish credit history, take advantage of a $8,000 possible TAX CREDIT, pick your own roommates, amazing tax write-offs! Loans via the "Kiddie Condo" program are easy and hassle free and there is a HUGE inventory of affordable condos and town homes as well as single family residences CLOSE to campus! Walk to School! Buying can easily be LESS EXPENSIVE than renting, especially with roommates.

DERYCK WILSON, BROKER, REALTOR
Student Living Specialist

Owning and Financing the Student Property

Talk to your accountant and attorney to determine the ownership method that works best for you. Some parents will buy as owner occupied property; others will treat it 100 percent as a rental property for additional tax benefits. There are many ways of holding title, including creating a Family Limited Liability Company (LLC).

Several options are available for financing your student property.

• FHA "Kiddie Condo" loans. If you want your student to be in title to the property and you want to pay the minimum amount down, using FHA financing is the easiest way to purchase a property. The FHA "Kiddie Condo" loan program helps students qualify for loans by allowing them to co-borrow with a blood relative. Down payments for this type of loan can be as little as 3 percent of the total purchase price, and interest rates are lower than those on investment properties. Maximum FHA loan limits vary by location so check to see what they are for your county.
• Non-owner occupied loans. Some parents will choose to own the property as investment property by putting 20 percent down and using non-owner occupied conventional financing. The Chase Family Opportunity Mortgage allows parents to classify the property as a second or vacation home, therefore allowing them to pay less in points than on a rental property mortgage.
• Interest-only loans. An interest-only loan, rather than a fully amortized loan, is another option. The advantage of using an interest-only loan is that it reduces the monthly payment.

If you're buying a condo, check the owner-occupancy ratio of the complex. This may affect the type of financing you can secure.

Help Your Child Establish Credit

If you decide to have your child on the mortgage and deed, help your child establish credit before you apply for a mortgage. Obtain a credit card in the student's name, preferably a year prior to your purchase. Also, if the student has a car, it's a good idea to have a small loan on the car in the student's name which can also help their credit rating.
By Duane Duggan and Shannon Petrie, FrontDoor.com

Visit your local condo and townhouse connection for more info: www.GreenvilleHomeTeam.com