Charlotte Homes for Sale
Nina Hollander
(704)779-0813

The passing of another year gives us time to pause and reflect all that has been and all that will be.  Here’s wishing you and your loved ones a very happy, prosperous and joyous New Year.

Carolinas Realty Partners are pleased to offer our special Real Estate CyberTips E-Newsletter, which, in very concise form,  provides you with monthly Cyber tips and tricks along with our pointers to Internet places of special interest to real estate owners, investors and related professionals. 

Please click here to access your copy of the December Issue of  “Real Estate CyberTips.”

 This month’s issue includes the following tips:

* YOU ARE NOW FLUENT IN 45 LANGUAGES!

* ORGANIZED AT LAST!

* HERE’S A LIST YOU WANT TO BE ON!

* HOW TO COOK ANYTHING!

We hope you enjoy this latest edition of  “Real Estate CyberTips.”

We wish you and yours the happiest of holiday seasons this year.

Happy holidays from our families to yours!

At a new asking price of $399,000, it’s a great buy for this executive home in Charlotte’s prestigious Ballantyne area. Home is in move-in condition and located in Bridgehampton, an award winning community with great amenities including a clubhouse, pool, tennis courts, fitness center, and basketball court. Home is minutes from shopping, fine dining, golf, I-485 and primary local roads. Enjoy all the Ballantyne amenities with low Lancater, SC taxes.

17015 Laurelmont Court, Fort Mill, South Carolina Price: $399,000.00 Beds: 5 Baths: 4 Sq Ft: 3791 Description: Situated on a wooded, fenced and beautifully landscaped .39 acre lot, is this stately, brick-front home 5 bedroom/4 bathroom home with an elegant, columned entry and dramatic architecture inside. The …. View this property >>

Now is still a really good time for Real Estate in Charlotte, Waxhaw, Fort Mill North Carolina areas. Buyers can, and do, get serious during this busy time of year. Lots of sellers take their homes off the market during the holidays, assuming no one will be buying at this time. But with serious buyers still out there and a lower inventory of homes, your home has a good chance of standing out. With fewer homes for sale, competition is decreased. There are good reasons to sell your home during the holidays.

Buyers are more serious during the holidays. Anyone shopping for a home during the holidays probably has to buy before a certain deadline. Therefore some buyers may be looking to relocate before the new year. Investors may also want to close before the end of the year for tax reasons. If you live near a university, students and staff may be looking for homes between academic sessions, and if you live near a military base, servicemen and women may be moving to the area. Work with me, Nina Hollander, your agent to target these motivated buyers. Buyers have more time to house-hunt. Buyers who are looking at this time during the holidays are serious about making a purchase. Some buyers purposely wait until their families are together for holiday vacations to start looking for a home. Homes show better in the winter. Decked out in lights and garland, homes often look their best during the holiday months. Take advantage of the Holidays and spruce up your homes to make them more festive. Deck the halls, but don’t go overboard, just enough to make your prospects feel at home and your home still looking spacious.

Home sellers can’t always take a holiday from keeping their house on the market. Instead, they should consider ways to turn the holidays to their advantage. By holding a holiday-themed open house – maybe instead of the traditional Sunday afternoon open house; your home could be open in the evening to take advantage of a festive holiday light display. Keep in mind to not block or cover up important selling features such as fireplace mantels, stairs, stained-glass windows. Tone down the size of tree. In place of a 10-foot tree, try decorating a table-top, four-foot version. Set a plate of cookies on the counter, next to festive paper napkins for guests. Giving house hunters a place to escape from the cold is another excellent way to get them inside your home.

The holidays are stressful enough without having to think about staging and open houses, so if you’re not truly motivated to sell, it’s probably best to wait a few months. But if you absolutely have to sell, don’t be discouraged. A good agent like myself can take the burden off of your shoulders, giving you more time to enjoy the season.

With these tips in mind, it is possible to enjoy the holidays and still successfully feature a home for sale on the real estate market. Now is still a good time as ever in the Charlotte, Waxhaw, Fort Mill North Carolina areas.

Preventing holiday break-ins by increasing your  home security during the holidays should be part of your plan during a busy and hectic season of shopping and gift-giving, decorating and celebrating with friends and family. Unfortunately, it’s an equally busy time of year for home burglars. Nearly 400,000 burglaries occur in the U.S. from November through December each year, according to the FBI. Some things to do (or not to do) to reduce your chances of a burglary include:

• Don’t leave empty gift boxes from expensive electronics, appliances, etc. on the curb. Instead, break down the boxes and place them in large garbage bags to conceal these items. Better yet, take boxes directly to a recycling center after gifts have been opened.
• Don’t openly display expensive decorations and gifts where they can be seen from the street. Intruders often see the holidays as the perfect time to break in, especially if they see a huge tree with lots of gifts surrounding it in the front window of a home that appears to be unattended.

Break-ins also often occur when homeowners are away on a trip. A good way to protect your home is to make sure your house doesn’t look unoccupied while you’re gone. Some things to do to increase security around your home when you travel:

• Install a burglar alarm system.
• Stop deliveries of mail and newspapers.
• Control indoor and outdoor lights with automatic devices.
• Ask a trusted neighbor and/or your local police to periodically check your home.
• Make sure all entrances and windows are securely locked.
• Eliminate hiding places such as overgrown shrubs and bushes close to the house.
• Keep your possessions insured and have a current, detailed inventory of valuables.
• Don’t leave answering machine messages that say you are out of town for the holidays.
• Don’t hide door keys under rocks, flowerports, above door ledges. Burglars know about all these “clever” hiding places. Leave a key with a neighbor instead.
• Don’t post your family name on the mailbox or home. Burglars call directory assistance for your phone number and check up to see if you’re home.

Following these simple tips will help protect your home and make your homecoming a happy one. Happy holidays!

If you are thinking about buying a home in 2010, here are a few good reasons to do so sooner rather than later!

First of all, the current first-time and move-up home buyer tax credit expires on April 30th, 2010… so you’ve got less than five months to get into contract for a home.  All sources indicate that the tax credit will not be extended again.

Second, the FHA has proposed significant changes to their loan program (and with well over 75% of first-time buyers loans these days being FHA loans you need to know about these changes), which will impact borrowers. The proposed changes include:

• Increasing the minimum down payment required on FHA loans from 3.5% to 5%. That means more money down required on your part.
• Increasing the upfront and monthly mortgage insurance premiums on FHA loans.
• Reducing the total closing costs allowed for seller to pay from 3% to 6%. Again, this means more money out of pocket at closing on your part.
• Requiring minimum FICO credit scores (which FHA has not required to-date).
• Requiring more control of FHA appraisals.
• Requiring FHA lenders to demonstrte higher minimum net worth to ensure ability to repurchase bad loans. This could reduce the number of lenders out there who can offer FHA loans.

Speak with your lender and your Realtor about these proposed changes and work on a game plan to ensure you can buy a home sooner rather than later.

Great home in move-in ready condition in Charlotte’s prestigious Ballantyne area. Situated on large cul-de-sac, featuring a master bedroom suite on the main floor, formal, dramatic great room, and cook’s kitchen. Three more large bedrooms and huge bonus/rec room on the second floor. Wonderful community with resort-style amenities. Close to shopping, golf, fine dining. Low Lancaster County taxes!

23004 Norwalk Lane, Fort Mill, South Carolina Price: $460,000.00 Beds: 4 Baths: 3.5 Sq Ft: 3944 Description: Situated in the center of a beautifully landscaped .61 acre cul-de-sac is this stately home with an elegant, columned entry and dramatic architecture inside. The home shows like a model with neutral, …. View this property >>

‘Tis the season to do shopping… and get bombarded with offers to open credit cards!   The deals are very tempting, too. ”Open a charge card today” and save up to 20% on your purchase!  But if you are in the market for a new home, taking advantage of in-store savings could prove be a long-term money loser.  Every time you apply for a credit card, your credit score drops.

According to myFICO.com, “new credit” accounts for 85 out of 850 possible credit scoring points.  A credit score is worth protecting because of how mortgage rates are determined.  A conventional mortgage applicant with 20% equity, whose FICO score is 720-739 will be offered rates 0.125% higher than a comparable applicant with a 740 credit score.  For a $200,000 conventional loan, you could face the following rate increases based on your credit score:

• For 700-719 Credit Score: Rate increases by 0.375%  OR $750 more in closing costs.
• For 680-699 Credit Score: Rate increases by 0.750% OR $1500 more in closing costs.
• For 660-679 Credit Score: Rate increases by 1.250% OR $2500 more in closing costs.

Having a low credit score can be expensive in the long term.  So, while it’s okay for you to take advantage of in-store savings during the holiday shopping season, it’s also important to be aware of how your credit score may be affected. Short term savings may prove to be way less than long term costs if you plan to be buying a home in the next several months.