Lake Norman Real Estate ~ Diane Aurit

It probably does not surprise you that the Lake Norman real estate market is still feeling the affects of our serious national economic challenges as well as the struggling housing markets throughout the U.S. both emotionally and statistically.

To give you some real examples, I currently have about 20 extremely well-qualified buyers relocating to the Lake Norman area from throughout the country ranging in price from the $200,000's up to $5 million. About one third are waiting for their homes to sell before they purchase their Lake Norman home but plan to move here as soon as possible once their home sells. The rest of my buyers are able to buy at anytime. They are either in the final stages of deciding whether to buy a home in Lake Norman or they are waiting to see signs that our market has hit bottom and/or the U.S economy has stabilized.

It is very important for everyone in the Lake Norman area, whether business owners or home owners, to understand that we have a very strong pipeline of future buyers and people planning to relocate here. Our future is truly very bright, we just have to be patient!

IMPORTANT FINDINGS

• Active Listings dropped slightly from our second quarter but still represent a 19.9 months of supply of homes for sale when factoring in our current number of home sales per month. Our number of homes for sale is 23% higher than one year ago.

• We have 96 pending sales at this time versus 154 at this same time in 2007. This 38% drop indicates a continuing slowdown for the near future at least.

• The number of Lake Norman homes sold in the past three months dropped 39% when compared to the 3rd quarter of 2007.

• The 19.9 months of supply of homes for sale is more than double our 2007 number of 8.4 months of supply of inventory at the end of the third quarter.

3rd QUARTER LAKE NORMAN HOME SALES BY PRICE RANGE

*All statistics are computed using data from the Charlotte Regional Multiple Listing Service

This chart is extremely useful to both Lake Norman home buyers AND home sellers as it enables you to focus on your own price range and size up the competition, the strengths and weaknesses, and trends that help to better position you to make an offer based on facts or determine a listing price that will generate the most showings and a quicker sale.

For example: If you are listing your home and it is valued at about $400,000, it would be much better to price it in the high $300,000's than in the low $400,000s. Why? Because 46 homes in the $300,000's sold last quarter and there are currently 233 homes for sale in the $300,000's compared to only 35 homes that sold in the $400,000s and 265 homes currently for sale. Wouldn't you rather be in a price range where there are more sales and less competition?

Home buyers can also use this chart when determining where the greatest values are and what price range might provide the best opportunity for you to get a better "deal". Let's say you can go as high as $800,000. You might want to look at homes in the mid $800,000's as well as the $700,000's because the homes in the $800,000's are taking much longer to sell and there is a 34.3 months of supply of homes for sale. These numbers indicate that this is a very slow price range and sellers may be willing to come down further on their sales price.

The good news: 63.6% of all Lake Norman home sales last quarter were under $500,000 compared to 70% last quarter. While our higher priced home sales are still struggling far more than the lower price ranges, the Lake Norman luxury home market has improved slightly as has our average sales price.

My advice? Sellers, price your home to sell, even if that means below the last sale in your neighborhood...don't "chase" the market down by starting high and then having to do numerous price reductions. Homes that are priced properly are selling. The rule of thumb is that if you aren't getting showings, especially second showings then chances are your home is priced too high or it is not "staged" to be in move-in condition.

Buyers, prices are coming down. Builders as sitting on too much inventory and are motivated to sell. Homeowners who have to move are motivated to sell. Do your homework and you will find some great values in our Lake Norman real estate market!

RELATED ARTICLES

Lake Norman Real Estate: 2nd Quarter 2008 Sales Analysis

Lake Norman Real Estate: "The Point"; A Case Study

Lake Norman Water Front Home Sales Update 9/15/08

The Truth About Lake Norman Real Estate Market: A Case Study of "The Farms"

Thanks to such great success last year, once again Mooresville is holding The Second Annual Historic Mooresville Tour of Homes on Oct 17-19. Sponsored by the Mooresville Historic Preservation Commission and DEJ Realty, this event was created last year as a way to promote Historic Downtown Mooresville. Proceeds of the event benefit the Mooresville Historic Preservation and The Mooresville Museum which is in the process of restoring their new home in Downtown Mooresville.

VIP Reception

This year the VIP Reception is being held in the spectacular J.A. Stewart house located on 832 North Main Street on Friday evening, October 17th from 6-9pm. Soiree Restaurant (located in Historic Downtown Mooresville) and Say Cheese at the Grapevine will be catering the evening reception. Tickets are limited and may be purchased for $40 at the locations on their website: Historic Mooresville Tour of Homes.

The Home Tours

All of the homes on the tour are located in downtown Mooresville. The tour hours are:

• Saturday, October 18th: 10am - 6pm
• Sunday, October 19th: 1pm - 5pm

Tickets are $12 in advance or $15 on the day of the event. Parking and ticket information is also on their website: Historic Mooresville Tour of Homes.

The Homes on Tour:

1. 334 West Center Avenue: The Ernest Henry Miller House (1898)
2. 318 West Center Avenue: The W.M. Lentz House (1884)
3. 351 West Center Avenue: The Zebulon Turlington House (1906)
4. 832 North Main Street: The J.A. Stewart House (1896)
5. 329 South Academy Street: The Annie Rankin Carr House (1902)
6. 335 South Academy Street: The Mary Howard Rankin Turlington House (1902)
7. 354 South Academy Street: The C.L. Emiston House (1920's)
8. 318 West Wilson Avenue: The Davidson House (Turn-of-the-Century)
9. 419 Harris Street: Mooreville Mill Village (1917)
10. 328 Messick Street: Mooresville Mill Village (Early 1920's)

This group of homes will provide an opportunity for historic home enthusiasts to see everything from small Mill homes to the grand estate on Main Street. Visitors can start and stop at any home on the tour. The tours are given in groups led by an experienced docent (I did this last year and it was great fun!) so that you learn about the special characteristics of each home as well as some fun history.

If you have been visiting this Lake Norman Real Estate Blogsite for very long you know I love our Historic Downtown Mooresville and I truly hope this opportunity to see so many wonderful historic homes will encourage more of our Lake Norman home owners to venture east a bit and learn more about our historic part of town!

RELATED ARTICLES

Lake Norman Real Estate: Our Schizophrenic Communities

Does Lake Norman Have Affordable Housing?

Mooresville on Money Magazine's Best Places to Live!

LAKE NORMAN RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE HOT SHEET

September 26, 2008

My sixth bi-monthly Lake Norman market at a glance

Above is a chart with our Friday's "hot sheet" numbers from the Charlotte Multiple Listing Services for all single family homes in Lake Norman (area 13). For comparison, I have provided numbers from two weeks ago and earlier this year. Here are some highlights:

• Our pending and number of closed sales were both down to all time lows. Pending home sales dropped by -18% compared to two weeks ago and closed sales dropped -12%.

• New listings were down to an all time low. Inventory is continuing to inch downward which is a positive sign!

• The number of Lake Norman listings coming back-on-the-market dropped significantly after a spike two weeks ago. It is good to see this number drop back to about the same levels as August and the lowest so far since I started doing these reports. While our home sales have gone down, it looks like those that are selling are "sticking". Perhaps our current Lake Norman home buyers are more qualified, having less difficulty getting financing and more committed to purchasing the homes.

• The number of price changes also dropped to a new low. Are sellers reaching a point where they can't or won't drop their prices any further? I actually saw a builder RAISE the listing price of one of their estates in The Point. According to the listing agent, the builder decided to put the home price back to where it was and wait out the market rather than take a loss/break even.

• Pending home sales dropped -18% as I stated above. This may be an indication that we are not going to get our usual September/October bump up in sales before the holiday slowdown.

• Solds (Lake Norman home sales contracts that closed in the past two weeks) dropped -12%. This summer we have been seeing an average of about -50% in sales versus the same periods in 2007. Clearly, the Lake Norman real estate market is a buyers' market!

• Contingent and Conditional Sales dropped to another all time low; down 20% from the last Hot Sheet. These numbers are Lake Norman home sales just put under contract which would seem to indicated that our overall Lake Norman real estate market is still be trending downward.

The good news is that the inventory of Lake Norman active listings is dropping. Most pundits conclude that until the inventory of homes for sale drops back down to a 8-10 month supply on hand, we will continue to be in a buyers market. Considering the incredible national financial crisis playing out today in Washington DC, I am encouraged by the drop in the number of homes that went back on the market.

Despite it all, homes that are priced properly and are in excellent condition or a great "buy" are selling. Personally, I showed 3 sets of out-of-state buyers homes this week. Short term we will continue to struggle but there is no doubt that there are many buyers looking forward to moving to Lake Norman in the future.

Have a great weekend!

For home buyers 55+ years old looking for a retirement home in a small Lake Norman housing community, The Villages at Isle of Pines just may be exactly what you are looking for, especially if you want new construction and are not ready to compromise on the size and sense of privacy and independence!

The Villages at Isle of Pines is a new construction, age qualified (55+) community nestled in the heart of Lake Norman's Brawley School Peninsula. They offer 7 single family home floor plans on 24 2/3-acre home sites that range in size from 1517 to 2694 square feet and offer 3 or 4 bedrooms and 2-3 car garages.

Features of these homes include:

• Open floor plans
• Low Maintenance Designs
• 2 and 3 car garages
• Cathedral or Tray Ceilings
• Floored Attic Storage
• Cable and Telephone Ready
• Separate Laundry Area
• Natural Gas Heat and Hot Water
• RV and Boat Storage options available

Homeowners at the Villages of Isle of Pines own their own home and land yet the outside yard maintenance is provided by the Homeowners Association. You can lock up and go any time without worrying about your garden.

At the same time, you are close to public boat access for Lake Norman and all of the Lake Norman recreational activities from sailing to fishing, golf (Memberships available at The Point Lake and Golf Club), Mooresville's wonderful shopping and restaurants, health care and services and you are located about 35 miles from downtown Charlotte.

There are three homes currently available from $343,500 to $393,990 as well as a number of lots if you wish to build your own home.

If you are going to be new to the Mooresville Lake Norman area, I highly recommend that you visit the beautiful, new Mooresville South Iredell Senior Center which offers an amazing array of sports, recreation and social activities as well as senior services and counseling.

With approximately 100 home sites, the new Orleans development Chesapeake Pointe located down Isle of Pines in Mooresville is one of Lake Norman's larger new construction home sites on the east side of the lake. The completed roads wander through the forest of trees from Isle of Pines to the North Shore waterfront subdivision. The up to 1 acre home sites are literally carved out of the trees. It's hard to tell since it is brand new just how many trees will remain once completed but I'm hoping it will retain it's private, woodsy feel.

Chesapeake Pointeis currently offering 9 different models ranging in size from 2799 square feet to 3727 square feet. The floor-plans offer 3-6 bedrooms and 2.5 - 3.5 bathrooms and are priced in the low $400,000's although I must admit the starting price in our MLS is $547,225!

9' ceilings, large master-suites with over-sized closets and 2-car attached garages are standard but customization features include grand morning rooms, gourmet kitchens and Velux skylights.

Aside from several completed model homes, the home on the left and the two below are some of the few currently under construction. As you can see there is gentle sloping to the lots as is the case with most of their home sites.

Community amenities which have yet to be built include a pool, clubhouse and playground. While Isle of Pines has some busy times of day when you will have more cars going by, Chesapeake Pointe is set off in it's own world of winding roads so I expect the neighborhoods to be tranquil and conducive for walking and cycling.

For a buyer looking to build their own home or at least be able to choose from many different options, who wants the good Lake Norman Schools and/or to live close to the lake itself without paying waterfront prices, Chesapeake Pointe is one new option!

RELATED ARTICLES

Lake Norman Real Estate: The Exciting New Westport Village Blends the Best of Old and New

Lake Norman Real Estate: Discover Fern Hill Road, Part 2

Lake Norman Real Estate: Discover Fern Hill Road, Part 1

The Silent Majority of Lake Norman Real Estate Part 1

The Harbour at The Pointe; A Popular Lake Norman Subdivision

The Farms, A Crescent Community with a Country Feel

Lake Normans waterfront communites: North Shore and Pine Isle

Relocating to Lake Norman: Subdivision or No Subdivision