Team Jodi - Chapel Hill Real Estate, Durham Real Estate

With credit markets tightening, Chatham County officials say their plans to build a fourth high school in the northeastern part of the county have been delayed as very few of the 12,000-14,000 homes approved there have been built. The County is focusing its school infrastructure investments in renovations to Northwood High School in Pittsboro and completing a new middle school in the Briar Chapel area. Chatham County Schools Superintendent Robert Logan says the renovations to Northwood should be finished by August 2009 and the new middle school will be done by August of 2010. Here is the full story as reported by Lisa A. Young of The Herald-Sun.

Chatham County officials say that while hard economic times have definitely had an impact on capital projects, the news isn't all bad. With banks holding onto money, school boards and governments across the country are struggling to fund projects like buildings and renovations. Chatham County Schools Superintendent Robert Logan said that while that the county has a good bond rating, loans simply aren't available -- and some projects may be delayed. "Nobody is lending money. Even if they were, interest rates have jumped sky high," he said. Logan said the district's first priority is completing renovations to Northwood High School in Pittsboro. The renovations have an anticipated completion date of August 2009 and are expected to ease some of the overcrowding at NHS, which is about 200 students over capacity. A new middle school in the Briar Chapel area is next on the district's list of priorities. That project would be complete by August 2010, and would create the first school in Chatham with grades 6-8. Logan said two of the district's K-8 schools, North Chatham and Perry Harrison, also have a serious overcrowding problem -- North Chatham has about 20 modular units, while Perry Harrison has four.

Slowing growth

District administrators had planned to build a fourth high school in the northeast portion of the county by August 2011, but trouble in the housing and credit markets has slowed growth in the county -- fewer homes mean fewer students -- and eased the need for a new high school for now. George Lucier, chairman of the Chatham County Board of Commissioners, said some 12,000-14,000 homes have been approved, but won't be built until homeowners can secure the financing. "It's given us some breathing room, but we do need to get that middle school done as soon as we can. [North Chatham] is 40 percent over capacity and there are too many trailers," Lucier said, adding that the middle school will stay on schedule and the Northwood renovations will move forward as planned.
Lucier pointed out that many school district needs -- restroom renovations, repairs to unsafe bleachers and science lab improvements, etc. -- can still be paid for out of the county's general fund. Logan said one advantage of a bad economy is that building costs have gone down, making it easier for the district to get competitive bids. "We're very appreciative of the commissioners' understanding," Logan said. "They've prioritized the needs of education in this district and they're doing all they can to get these facilities approved." Lucier said he's "fairly optimistic" the county will be able to accomplish its goals once the credit markets improve. "We may have to delay, but I don't think [a delay] will have a permanent adverse effect on the county," he said. In addition to school improvements, Chatham County has several capital projects planned or under way, including a judicial building and a library in Pittsboro.

Contact Jodi Bakst, Broker, CRS, GRI, ABR, Certified Distressed Property Expert, and Certified Luxury Home Specialist in Chapel Hill, NC at 1-88-TeamJodi (888-326-5634) to list your property for sale or to purchase a property in Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Durham, Hillsborough, Pittsboro or Orange, Durham or Chatham County North Carolina. Team Jodi is accepting referrals.

Click here to learn more about Team Jodi and our services.

Click here to view Team Jodi's listings click here;

Click here to Search listings throughout Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Durham and the surrounding Triangle NC area.

If you are looking to list your home in Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Orange or Durham County North Carolina, call Team Jodi toll free at 88-TeamJodi (888-326-5634), email us at Jodi@TeamJodi.com or visit us at www.TeamJodi.com

From the Orange County/Chapel Hill Visitors Bureau

Johnny's restaurant has opened in Carrboro at 901 West Main Street. It was formerly known as Johnny's Sporting Goods (mainly bait and tackle) and now serves gourmet coffee, pastries and bread from Durham's Guglhupf Bakery, seasonal produce and microbrew beer. Shula's 347 recently opened in the Sheraton Chapel Hill on Europa Drive. Shula's serves breakfast, lunch and dinner at the full-service hotel. The restaurant's atmosphere is casual and chic, sporting dark woods, flat panel TV's and a sleek sports bar. Shula's 347 Grill has everything from gourmet salads to fresh specialty fish, and exclusively serves The Shula Cut-the same custom cuts and aging process from the legendary Shula's Steak House.

Contact Jodi Bakst, Broker, CRS, GRI, ABR, Certified Distressed Property Expert, and Certified Luxury Home Specialist in Chapel Hill, NC at 1-88-TeamJodi (888-326-5634) to list your property for sale or to purchase a property in Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Durham, Hillsborough, Pittsboro or Orange, Durham or Chatham County North Carolina. Team Jodi is accepting referrals.

Click here to learn more about Team Jodi and our services.

Click here to view Team Jodi's listings click here;

Click here to Search listings throughout Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Durham and the surrounding Triangle NC area.

If you are looking to list your home in Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Orange or Durham County North Carolina, call Team Jodi toll free at 88-TeamJodi (888-326-5634), email us at Jodi@TeamJodi.com or visit us at www.TeamJodi.com

The Chapel Hill Town Council gave the Cary firm The Design Response mixed feedback at a public hearing on Monday night. The firm is considering a mixed-use project along Homestead Road on the Fraley Property that would include 32 townhomes-- five "affordable" -- and two two-story buildings featuring up to 49,000 square feet of office space. Members of the Town Council offered suggestions, including improving traffic patterns, maximizing the proposed retail space and mixing the affordable housing throughout the project. Here is the full story as reported by Daniel Goldberg of The Herald-Sun

Firm offers four options for development

As a matter of process, the Chapel Hill Town Council gives developers an opportunity to get direct feedback on proposed building projects. During a Monday public hearing, Cary firm The Design Response fully embraced the opportunity to get direct feedback on proposed building projects. During a Monday public hearing, Cary firm The Design Response fully embraced the opportunity: Jack Smyre, a principle in the company, presented four options of a concept plan for the Homestead Road area referred to as the Fraley Property. Smyre told the council that The Design Response favors the third option, a mixed-use approach that would include 32 townhomes-- five "affordable" -- and two two-story buildings featuring up to 49,000 square feet of office space. Members of the Town Council offered suggestions regarding the orientation of the concept: Bill Strom noted that the affordable units should be mixed with the rest of the townhomes, Mayor Kevin Foy said the parking deck supporting the commercial buildings looked "uninviting." Councilwoman, Laurin Easthom, who lives in the area, was particularly concerned about traffic and the placement of commercial space in a largely residential part of Homestead and Weaver Dairy Road Extension. She said there is commercial development in both directions on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and "it's not like we need" more. Fellow Councilman Matt Czajkowski had a different take, recommending that the developer maximize the retail space, pointing to the need for more commercial tax base in Chapel Hill. He asked Smyre what kind of stores he envisioned at the Fraley Property. The developer said those decisions have not been made, but he anticipates "neighborhood scale" businesses like a Subway or an insurance office. "My notion of success in terms of retail in Chapel Hill does not include a coffee shop, a pizza place, a drycleaner and a Subway," Czajkowski replied. "I would like us to be a little more creative than that." The council's agenda was thinner than previously expected. A concept plan for a proposed hotel in Southern Village was pulled from the agenda at the request of developers, who are working with a committee formed by the Southern Village Homeowners Association on a compromise for the site. "The chairman of that committee asked us to postpone because they had not had enough time to look at the material or work with us," developer D.R. Bryan said Monday. Some Southern Village residents oppose Bryan and developer John Fugo's proposal of a four-story hotel or other building on the site where a parking lot sits. More than 80 residents have signed a petition against the development and dozens of people have written to the Chapel Hill Planning Department.

Contact Jodi Bakst, Broker, CRS, GRI, ABR, Certified Distressed Property Expert, and Certified Luxury Home Specialist in Chapel Hill, NC at 1-88-TeamJodi (888-326-5634) to list your property for sale or to purchase a property in Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Durham, Hillsborough, Pittsboro or Orange, Durham or Chatham County North Carolina. Team Jodi is accepting referrals.

Click here to learn more about Team Jodi and our services.

Click here to view Team Jodi's listings click here;

Click here to Search listings throughout Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Durham and the surrounding Triangle NC area.

If you are looking to list your home in Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Orange or Durham County North Carolina, call Team Jodi toll free at 88-TeamJodi (888-326-5634), email us at Jodi@TeamJodi.com or visit us at http://www.TeamJodi.com

• Year-to-date, showings are down 30%.
  

• Contract pendings are down 21%.  The trend in the Triangle area overall is 22% so Durham County is tracking with the rest of the area.

• Closed sales are down 25% overall as compared with the Triangle where closings are off 33%.  I also broke this down further:  sales of Single Family homes are off 23%, sales of new construction are off 30% and sales of condos and townhomes are off 26%.

• Days on market have increased from 79 days to 81 days for properties that have closed through September, 2008.  This sounds pretty good but days on market for houses currently active is 110.  It is very critical for sellers to look closely at the most recent sales data when pricing their home.  More than ever this is the time to price a home realistically.

• The current supply of all housing located in the county is  7 months as compared with 5 months at the end of the third quarter in 2007.  This is better than the Triangle overall which has 8 months of inventory.  

• The average sales price in Durham iis $198,402, which is essentially flat with last year.

• In Durham, Average Sales Prices for single family homes ($194,707) and condos and townhouses ($159,411) is also essentially the same as 2007.  The Average Price for new construction, which is doing better than any other place in the Triangle, are down only 2%.

• When we look at these numbers, however, it is difficult to separate out how many times a price may have had to come down before the house has sold.  In many instances, sellers are having to back off prices anywhere from 5-10%.

• In the coming months, buyers should take advantage of good inventory to choose from and low interest rates.  If you are gainfully employed with moderate to great credit, this is an excellent time to buy.  Sellers need to realize that is is a great time to buy and price their homes based on sales over the last 3 months because this is the best indicator of current value.

Also see my Third Quarter Summary for Orange County, Chapel Hill and Carrboro.

Contact Jodi Bakst, Broker, CRS, GRI, ABR, Certified Distressed Property Expert, and Certified Luxury Home Specialist in Chapel Hill, NC at 1-88-TeamJodi (888-326-5634) to list your property for sale or to purchase a property in Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Durham, Hillsborough, Pittsboro or Orange, Durham or Chatham County North Carolina.   Team Jodi is accepting referrals.

Click here to learn more about Team Jodi and our services.

Click here to view Team Jodi’s listings click here;

Click here to Search listings throughout Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Durham and the surrounding Triangle NC area, click here.

If you are looking to list your home in Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Orange or Durham County North Carolina, call Team Jodi toll free at 88-TeamJodi (888-326-5634), email us at Jodi@TeamJodi.com or visit us at www.TeamJodi.com.

• Year-to-date, showings are down 27%.
  

• Contract pendings are down 19%.  The trend in the Triangle area overall is 22% so Orange County is doing somewhat better.

• Closed sales are down 31% (and new home sales are off 52%).  This is a bit slower than the Triangle overall where sales are off 27%.  In Chapel Hill and Carrboro (only), sales are off 23%, which is slightly better.  If you look deeper, sales of Single Family homes are off 23%, sales of new construction are off 41% and sales of condos and townhomes are off 24%.

• Days on market have increased from 79 days to 80 days for properties that have closed through September, 2008.  This sounds pretty good but days on market for houses currently active is 126.  It is very critical for sellers to look closely at the most recent sales data when pricing their home.  More than ever this is the time to price a home realistically.

• Good News, Bad News:  The current supply of all housing located in the county is 8 months as compared with 5 months at the end of the third quarter in 2007.  This is a significant change in the amount of inventory since last year, but overall inventory had decreased from 10 months which is what we had earlier this year.

• The average sales price in Orange County (including Chapel Hill & Carrboro) is $325,677, which is down 5% from last year at $340,376. 

• In Chapel Hill/Carrboro only, Average Sales Prices for Single Family Homes are down 1% from last year and up 3% over 2006 average prices.  New Construction lost the ground made between 2006 and 2007 with a 5% gain in that time frame and  since last year average prices have declined 5%.  The biggest impact has been in townhouse and condo average sales prices which experienced a 5% decline from 2006 to 2007 and another decline from last year at this time of 11%.  Since 2006, average prices for condos and townhouses in Chapel Hill have declined 16%.

• When we look at these numbers, however, it is difficult to separate out how many times a price may have had to come down before the house has sold.  In many instances, sellers are having to back off prices anywhere from 5-10%.

• In the coming months, buyers should take advantage of good inventory to choose from and low interest rates.  If you are gainfully employed with moderate to great credit, this is an excellent time to buy.  Sellers need to realize that is is a great time to buy and price their homes based on sales over the last 3 months because this is the best indicator of current value.

Also see my 3rd Quarter Real Estate Market Summary for Durham, North Carolina.

Contact Jodi Bakst, Broker, CRS, GRI, ABR, Certified Distressed Property Expert, and Certified Luxury Home Specialist in Chapel Hill, NC at 1-88-TeamJodi (888-326-5634) to list your property for sale or to purchase a property in Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Durham, Hillsborough, Pittsboro or Orange, Durham or Chatham County North Carolina.   Team Jodi is accepting referrals.

Click here to learn more about Team Jodi and our services.

Click here to view Team Jodi’s listings click here;

Click here to Search listings throughout Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Durham and the surrounding Triangle NC area, click here.

If you are looking to list your home in Chapel Hill, Carrboro, Orange or Durham County North Carolina, call Team Jodi toll free at 88-TeamJodi (888-326-5634), email us at Jodi@TeamJodi.com or visit us at www.TeamJodi.com.