Real Estate

Bill Sahadi, CRS, of Fore Properties talks about selling a home (home sales) in today’s market in the Pinehurst and Southern Pines area of North Carolina. It’s a buyer’s market and sellers need to make sure they have reasonable pricing expectations. Fore Properties is in Southern Pines, North Carolina. If you’re relocating, give Bill a call.

www.foreproperties.com

Experience Matters!
Bill Sahadi - Broker / Owner
1140 Old US 1 Southern Pines NC 28387
Office: 910.692.4211
Toll Free: 800.473.5037
Cell: 910.638.0888
Pinehurst Real Estate • Southern Pines Real Estate
Seven Lakes Real Estate • Moore County

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HOPE NOW, a private-sector alliance of mortgage firms, counselors and investors that is working to help prevent foreclosures, reports that lenders have helped more than 1.7 million homeowners avoid foreclosure since the program began in July 2007, including 170,000 homeowners in May 2008. Approximately 100,000 of the prime and subprime loan workouts in May were repayment plans while 70,000 were loan modifications, the agency says.

However, The Center for Responsible Lending (CRL), a Durham-N.C.-based nonprofit research and policy group, says that a closer look at HOPE NOW’s latest figures shows that the agency’s voluntary efforts to help homeowners avoid foreclosure cannot keep up with the growing number of delinquent mortgages.

HOPE NOW reports 85,000 foreclosures in May 2008, the highest one-month figure since the program began, and an increase of 35 percent over the past three months. The total number of foreclosures is now estimated at nearly 650,000 since July 2007. The group also reported 276,000 loans had either entered or completed foreclosure in May, while only 70,000 received loan modifications during the month.

CRL also cited the latest quarterly survey by the Mortgage Bankers Association, which finds that more than 16 percent of subprime loans were more than 90 days delinquent or in foreclosure. That’s double the 8 percent rate from a year ago. The number of prime loans becoming delinquent has more than doubled from a year ago, the MBA reports.

“As foreclosures keep piling on, it makes no sense to keep relying on ineffective voluntary efforts when better solutions are at our fingertips,” says Debbie Goldstein, executive vice president of CRL. “The market has shown that it cannot fix itself.”

NAR’s latest Pending Home Sales Index, which is based on contracts signed in May, fell 4.7 percent from April and was 14.0 percent below its May 2007 level, the association announced this morning. The May index fell month-over-month in all regions: by 1.3 percent in the West, 2.9 percent in the Northeast, 6 percent in the Midwest and 7.1 percent in the South. Year-over-year, the West posted a 2.0 percent increase from last May, but the Northeast, Midwest and South dropped by 16.4 percent, 13.8 percent and 22.1 percent, respectively.

In its latest forecast, which was also released this morning, NAR projects that existing-home sales will fall 6.1 percent in 2008 to 5.31 million, then rise 5.0 percent to 5.58 million in 2009. The median existing-home price is expected to fall 6.2 percent this year to $205,300, then rebound by 4.3 percent in 2009 to $214,000.

NAR currently projects new-home sales will decline 32.3 percent in 2008 to 525,000, then fall another 3.4 percent to 507,000 in 2009. The median new-home price is expected to decline 3.2 percent to $239,300 this year before rising 5.3 percent in 2009 to $251,900.

NAR chief economist Lawrence Yun says the performance of local housing markets varies greatly. “Some markets have seen a doubling in home sales from a year ago, while others are seeing contract signings cut in half. Price conditions vary tremendously, even within a locality, depending upon a neighborhood’s exposure to subprime loans.”

A Realtor’s Perspective on the Difference a Good Real Estate Attorney Can Make

reprinted from the N.C. Bar Monthly Newsletter - Dec. 2006

BY WILLIAM G. SAHADI, CRS

In the past seven years I’ve been involved in more than 400 real estate transactions. That is 400 first-hand opportunities to view the value that a good real estate attorney brings to the table. The majority of these transactions have involved the sale of residential homes. In no less then 40 per- cent of these transactions emotions, misunder- standings, egos, timing and legal issues have reared their ugly head.

Imagine a symphony without a conductor, or a wheel without an axis. From the start, careful and caring real estate brokers perceive themselves as the Gatekeepers of the Transaction. It is from their relationship with the client that the stream of guidance, advice, and assistance begins. Relationships with the lenders, insurance compa- nies, inspectors and attorneys follow. For all these relationships, the attorney and the realtor are the ones who touch base with all the players. Their good communication is vital to an expedient and successful closing. In one sense, the realtor runs the entire race with the client, but it is only the attorney who can help them cross the finish line.

The attorney’s main role is to deliver good title to the client, prepare and review the settlement statement, prepare the deed transferring owner- ship and oversee the steps necessary to ensure the seller has clear title to the property and that the funds for purchase are properly transferred. By no means is this high-dollar entertainment. Yet a good attorney can make the whole process work even better by adopting the rhythms of the relationship that the client and real estate broker have formed. In the unfortunate situation of a fractured broker/client, or seller/buyer relation- ship, their presence, awareness and understand- ing are even more vital.

At some closings, it’s not uncommon for attor- neys to don their referee’s zebra outfits replete with a whistle around their necks. They have picked up the baton from the real estate broker and it’s their demeanor, their guidance and their understanding that gets the deal done. So many times issues arise that require cajoling, negotiat- ing and reasoning with the client. In almost all of these cases, it is the attorney who takes center stage. It is the attorney who has to resolve the issues. Title insurance companies do not offer this service.

We live in a consumer-savvy environment. Our clients are more educated today than ever before. Their awareness of price shopping is acute, yet all the articles and arguments about why title compa- nies can offer the client a more cost-friendly fee to handle their closing (and this is questionable), misses the most important point of what matters and of what is of true value. Is it valuable to save money when your interests might not be properly served? Is it cost effective to save a few dollars on most people’s largest single lifetime purchase? Is it wise not to have a good attorney overseeing any possible issues or watching for missteps that might affect the bottom line of the clients’ trans- action?

Finally, many realtors walk a fine line in drawing up documents and giving their clients advice, legal advice that should only come from the attorney representing their interests. We have developed a strong relationship with two area attorneys who are there for us when we call. They are there for us when we are drafting documents. They are there for us to help us serve our client. Many of our contracts and communications with our client are written with attorney assistance/guidance.

Four hundred transactions have taught me the value of good representation for my clients. My solid attorney relationships have enabled me to serve my client better, thereby making me a better real estate broker. A successful real estate attorney should always align himself/herself with reputable real estate professionals. They should market themselves to us as liability reduction experts, and always try to personalize and under- stand the relationship we establish with our clients along the way, so that together, we are both equipped to help one another. In this scenario, everyone wins, especially our client.

SAHADI IS A BROKER AND OWNER OF FORE PROPERTIES REALTY INC. HE CAN BE REACHED HERE.

It’s a beautiful Monday afternoon in Southern Pines and Pinehurst, North Carolina (and surrounding areas, which include Whispering Pines, Seven Lakes and Aberdeen). The sun is peeking out between some clouds, but we’re seeing periods of bright warm sunshine. Spring is just around the corner. In other parts of the country, the snow is becoming a sooty, slushy mess! Not so here in the Sandhills though, which makes it an ideal place to relocate. Whether you’re looking for a retirement home, are being relocated to Fort Bragg by the military, have an interest in an equestrian community or are (or thinking of becoming) one of the lucky families who chooses to like in Moore County, NC, we’ll help you find the home that’s right for you.

Search our real estate database, give us a call or stop by our office! We look forward to meeting you!

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  1140 Old US 1
  Southern Pines, NC 28387
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  Tel: (910) 692-4211
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Experience Matters!

Listed by Golf Digest as number 19 of the 100 greatest golf courses in the United States and named by that same publication as the number one golf destination on the East Coast, Pinehurst No. 2 and the other fifty-some golf courses in the Sandhills have made the area a major center for golfers and golfing fans.

Nostalgia linksters who remember Payne Stewart’s last colorful 1999 Open round before his untimely death or recall Ben Hogan’s first tournament win in Pinehurst, or you care most for golfing today, the Pinehurst-Southern Pines area combines memories and excitement enough for all.

Pinehurst # 2, designed by the legend Donald Ross, has played host to the U.S. Open several times while nearby Pine Needles hosted the Women’s Open in 1996 and 2001, and other courses regularly host special events.

It is not accidental that this small golf mecca has grown up around the unique village of Pinehurst, a remarkable recreational and living spot designed by Frederick Law Olmsted, creator of New York’s Central Park. The locale was sufficiently appealing that Donald Ross dropped by at the turn of the 20th century to re-design a golf course and stayed for forty-eight years to design a handful of local courses and a hundred plus courses around the country, always calling Pinehurst #2 his “home course.”

These courses are accessible via Amtrak, airport limo from Raleigh, Greensboro, or Fayetteville, and several interstates. The Sandhills’ benevolent weather makes them playable almost daily throughout the year, and the area offers an array of remarkable restaurants and shopping for hours not spent on the course.

In 2006 the county had an estimated population of more than 83,000 with a population density of 107 individuals per square mile. In all, Moore County consumes 698 square miles with the median value of owner-owned houses about $131,000 in 2000.The median resident age was 41.8 years with a predominantly white population (83. %) with active community participation by African-American (15%), Hispanics (5.1%), American Indians and Asians (.8%). Persons older than 65 years accounted for 21.4% of the county population in 2005 with persons eighteen years of age or younger accounting for 27.6%.Eighty-two.six percent of Moore County residents age 25 and up were high school graduates with 26.8% of that same age group holding baccalaureate degrees or better. Foreign-born residents in 2000 accounted for better than 4% of the total population.Business data for 2002 can be found here

(link: http://www.city-data.com/business2/econ-Moore_County-NC.html).

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If you’re considering living in the Sandhills, health care options abound. You can make your Pinehurst real estate purchase with peace of mind.The Moore County Department of Health oversees public health, according to its director: “Striving to meet these challenges, the Health Department offers a wide range of services that are critical to the well being of our community. These diverse programs include those mandated by the State; such as communicable disease, public health planning, preparedness and response, environmental health and vital records. Other programs include a combination of direct health care services and community-wide programs.

In addition, Health Department staff play a prominent role in partnering with the community to create innovative programs to address specific health problems, such as breast cancer awareness, childhood immunizations, injury prevention and dental care.” The Health Check program is designed to meet the medical needs of Medicaid children.First Health of the Carolinas has Moore Regional Hospital in Pinehurst and major hospitals in two adjoining counties make up First Health of the Carolinas, a non-govermental and non-profit health care network that currently provides services in fifteen North Carolina counties.

Moore County is home to thousands of physicians, researchers, and auxiliary members of various health teams to provide cutting edge medical services to the community.Nearby Duke University (Durham) and the University of North Carolina Medical Center (Chapel Hill) offer additional options for those with medical needs.

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