The Week in Review ....your Wilmington Connection September 7, 2009 The week in in review coming to you a day late. My family and I were rertuning from family vacation and we were in flight all day yesterday. We had a wonderful time in Los Angeles visiting family and of course visiting the best friends of my children.  "Mickey Mouse". So here it is a day late. Enjoy your day of Rest! Wilmington Real Estate Currently in Wilmington there are 2392 single family homes on the market and 328 homes are under contract.  510 homes have sold in the last 3 months.  I think we are experiencing an upturn in the market and with a warm welcome i might add.  Pending Home Sales Activity for pending homes sales has risen for 6 months in a row, this has not been seen the case since the history of the inde... 09/13/2009

This weekend there is a lot to do in Wilmington.The Downtown Wilmington Artwalk will take place along Front Street. The artists will set up along Front Street from 10 am to 5 pm. It is a great chance to see some very talented artists in town and enjoy this great day along the river. On Sunday the Sunday Scene Arts and Crafts Fair will take place with new hours 12 pm to 6 pm along the river. Food vendors and arts and crafts. For a hilarious time stop by City Stage at 21 N Front St to see "Grey Gardens". The story of a mother and daughter in the Jackie Kennedy ear. Edie Bouvier Beale was a cousin to Jackie O. see their crazy escapades brought to stage.. Sept 11-12, 18 - 19 at 8 pm. 09/12/2009

 A Lot is going on this weekend in Wilmington and its area beaches.Tonite is Fourth Friday Gallery Night downtown where a group of art galleries open their doors for tours, with refreshments to encourage art lovers and tourists to take in some culture. Galleries encourage people to attend and use this as an opportunity to expose new artists to the community.   Free Summer Concert Series At Fort Fisher Military Recoreation Area, Kure Beach tonight from 6- 8 pm. Bands to include classic blues and jazz band - Port City All Stars. Bring something to sit on - no pets or beverages...   The Chickenhead blues band will play blues at 6pm behind Ulta and World Market. They will be small rides for kids. Bring something to sit on , picnic baskets and coolers ok. Tomorrow at Hanover Center on Oleand... 08/28/2009

The Week in Review .....your Wilmington Connection August 23, 2009 Hope you all had a nice weekend. It turned out to be a nice weekend overall.  With plenty of sunshine overall.  Welcome back to school, all schools will be in full tilt tomorrow marking the end of the summer. The housing market still shows signs of promise. Wilmington Real Estate Market Currently in New Hanover County there are 2401 single family homes, and 330 homes are under contract. 509 Homes have sold in the last 3 months thats an increase. Im sure the race to take advantage of the $8000 tax credit has something to do with it.  An amazing leap in existing home sales. For the first time in five years, existing-home sales have increased for four months in a row, according to the National Association of Realtors®. Not ... 08/23/2009

Wilmington, NC's public pool at Legion Stadium is going to the dogs!  Let your dogs beat the Summer heat by participating in the "Pooch Plunge" Legion Stadium Pool, 2131 Carolina Beach Rd.Monday August 24, 2009 - Friday August 28, 2009 (4:00 pm to 8:00 pm)Saturday August 29, 2009 (10:00 am to 2:00 pm)The cost is $5.00 per dog per day and proceeds benefit the Pender County Humane Society.  Remember, this event is for dogs only.  No humans will be allowed in the pool. Join the City of Wilmington's Stormwater Services Division to learn more about the Canines for Clean Water program on Tuesday August 25th and Thursday August 27th from 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm at the event.  Canines for Clean Water is an interactive program for dogs and their owners.  Dog owners sign a pledge promising to be respo... 08/18/2009

The Week in Review ....your Wilmington Connection August 16,2009   Whew....a rainy week in Wilmington, but it finished with a blast of sunshine. Its nice to have a break. Summer is coming close to an end, its the best time to look at homes and I wont even bring up the fantastic deals that are awaiting you.  Give me a ring or drop me a line if you would like to start looking.  Wilmington Real Estate Currently there are 2376 single family homes on the market and 329 homes under contract in the greater Wilmington Area. There have been 518 homes sold in the last 3 months.  Thats a definate increase to celebrate. Some home prices are still falling, the majority are homes that are overpriced, but there are some forclosures and short sales that are doing some damage. If you are thinking of put... 08/16/2009

Below is a recap of 2nd quarter 2009 activity in the 28403 zip code area of Wilmington, NC.  With lots of inventory to choose from, great interest rates, and the $8000 tax credit available through 12/1/09, you may want to consider purchasing a home. 2nd Quarter 2009 - 28403 Zip Code Average selling price - $228,909, down 6.5% from year-end 2008 average selling price of $244,932. 11.2% of sellers in 2nd quarter paid a concession compared to 16.5% in 2008.  Average list price - $245,395 down 7.1% over year-end 2008 average list price of $264,105. Average Days on Market for 2nd quarter - 166  days; 112 days for year-end 2008.  Median sold price of $182,938 for 2nd quarter has decreased 6.2% from year-end 2008. Sold homes in 2nd quarter received 93.2% of the list price, up from 92.4% year-e... 08/06/2009

The Week in Review ...your Wilmington Connection August 2, 2009 Great Weekend here in Wilmington.  The weather forecast predicted rain....but there has only been short downpours and then sunshine again. Great summer weather!  Wilmington Real Estate There definately has been many homes go under contract in the $300,000 range and under. The end of the $8000 dollar tax credit is drawing near,I'm sure that has something to do with it. It sure is a pleasant change from 6 months ago. Currently there are 2353 single family homes on the market. 332 homes are under contract and in the last 3 months 527 homes have sold. Those are the kind of numbers we are looking for! Housing Index shows some Hope The Case/Shiller Home Price Index reported its best reading in nearly twelve months and the first m... 08/02/2009

  Yes here they are in all their glory - nudists doing their thing to promote their idea of a fun weekend in our greater Wilmington area. We do have a nudist camp in Southeastern NC.  Are you in this picture? Then you know how much fun it was or how much fun I missed. In an effort to promote our area and show all its " good traits" and happenings I wanted to include this. The warm weather allows us all to have fun and "take it off" for a good cause..... 07/24/2009

A friend of my in North Caroline is doing a great job, He helps owners out of their unwanted houses check out this news release on them: Forget about Renovating - Home Buyers looking for Ugly Houses in Wilmington, North Carolina HomeVestors philosophy is Improving the Community one House at a Time   (EMAILWIRE.COM, July 20, 2009 ) Wilmington, NC – Rich Morgan has found his career rewarding since purchasing his franchise with HomeVestors of America, the company who is famous for its “We Buy Ugly Houses” billboards. Since graduating from HomeVestors intensive two-week training program Rich has been searching for ugly houses he calls diamonds in the rough, to rehab and sell to improve the look of neighborhoods saturated with vacant houses in disrepair.Formerly a business manager in the pl... 07/24/2009

Beach Town Brokers Team of Priudential Laney Real Estate is hosting a First Time Homebuyers Seminar on Tuesday, July 21 at 7:00pm.  The event will take place at the Laney School of Real Estate at 803 S College Rd. beside K-Mart and UNCW.  We will have guse speakers on the topics of mortgages and home inspections.  We'll talk about the beneifts and risks of purchasing a home, the process of buying, how to find a good deal, the $8000 tax credit and more...  Pizza will be provided by Incredible Gourmet Pizza of Wrightsville Beach.  Call Kenneth @ 910-616-2123 for more info.  Hope to see you there. 07/20/2009

On Sunday I rode a very conservative ride of 10 miles, and just kind of cruised along.  My husband rode the Southport-Fort Fisher Ferry and then bicycled from Fort Fisher to downtown Wilmington to a coffee shop for a bit of re-fueling before the ride back to the ferry.  This 50 mile round trip is a bit more than I wanted to do so I know I made the right decision to stick to Oak Island. 07/07/2009

The Week in Review ...your Wilmington Connection June 28, 2009 You can definatly tell summer is here, Hot weather, thunderstorms, BBQ's, open houses, vacationers and outdoors sporting events. This morning I did a double sprint Triathlon in Kure Beach the warm weather and ocean were very inviting. Great to see so many people out there and having fun. If you are visiting here and thinking of relocating to the Wilmington area, drop me an email or give me a call and we can discuss your options. Wilmington Real Estate This week in Wilmington we have seen some rumbling in the real estate makret. Currently there are 2394 single family homes homes on the market and 797 condos on the market. There are 406 single family homes under contract and 74 condos. Solds in the last 3 months are as follows... 06/28/2009

    Just another day on the water ... This weekend there is the tour of Art Galleries in downtown Wilmington. All the galleries are open for evening viewing and there is a scavenger hunt to follow for Wilmington folks.   Head downtown to see. The Quilters by the Sea will entertain their 27th Annual Quilt show at Temple Baptist Church Activity Center on George Anderson Dr in Wilmington. OVer 150 quilts will be on hand and ther will be ongoing quilting demonstrations. This is Friday, Saturday and Sunday this weekend. Admission is $5.00. The Sunday night movie at Carolina Beach lake is Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. IT starts at 8:45 pm. 06/26/2009

Me fail English? That's unpossible. - Ralph Wiggum (The Simpsons)I've gone on this mini-rant before, so please forgive me for repeating myself, but I continue to be perplexed that the general public, as well as many of my colleagues, cannot properly pronounce what we do for a living. We're REALTORS, two syllables; not REAL-A-TORS. Nobody calls a doctor a DOC-A-TOR or a plumber a PLUM-A-BER. What's the prob-a-lem here?Our training director stopped using the phrase "sphere of influence" in her classes and, instead, uses the phrase "center of influence" to describe the group of people upon whom we have some influence just because they know us. Why the change? Too many people were saying "spear of influence." Things might go a little smoother for me sometimes if I DID have a "spear of infl... 06/23/2009

Does experience matter? It does for the clients of local Realtor Vance Young. We just completed a series of HD videos for Vance that will primarily be used on line to introduce new visitors to some the areas most beautiful areas to purchase a home. The series includes an Experience Matters video, and 5 videos that focus on specific areas of Wilmington, Figure Eight, Landfall, Wrightsville Beach, and Wilmington proper. Each video gives Vance's unique insight into these exclusive communities.   See the complete video series on Vance's web site www.vanceyoung.com For more information visit the Wilmington Design site HERE   06/20/2009