Living on Topsail Time

Nearing the end of the month of June already! The Fourth of July is a week from Friday and I keep asking myself where the month has gone.

 Today has been one of those days in the real estate business. You've had them, we all have, I am sure. First, one of our clients who is all set to close had the moving company cancel. Closing is Monday. Fortunately, one of our very best brokers, Linda Blackburn was in the office and handled the situation as soon as she was made aware of the challenge by our client. With only a couple of hours and a few phone calls, Linda had a company from CBSCR's Concierge list all lined up. Then, a walk through ended with a client (not actually present) calling the closing attorney and refusing to close because all of the items on her punch list had not been completed. Well yes, they had been completed but her stand in on today's walk through added new items. Wait, let me get out my magic wand! Of course, that revs everyone up from the buyers agent to the listing agent (me). Our buyer was very gracious after we spoke with her and explained that all of the new items would be taken care of and we would have an addendum written and signed by our seller to that effect. Another seller, after having agreed to do so, decided not to clean the house after he moved out and or mow a yard full of weeds. So, just one thing after another. Small stuff, to be sure but aggravating for all concerned.

Check in for vacation rentals over the Fourth of July will begin on Saturday. We always marvel at how many people can find their way to this island on holidays. We are also amazed that Topsail Island doesn't sink under the weight. There will be a number of private fireworks set off by vacationers and we have a big fireworks display at the Soundside Park in Surf City. The grandaddy of displays is in Wilmington over the battleship USS North Carolina. We will be spending the night in the city and will have a front row seat. Some celebrations,you just don't want to miss!

We hope that all of you will be celebrating the Fourth appropriately and with friends and family.

It's a great time to be a real estate professional!

Used to be that a 720 credit score was considered to be pretty darn good. Now we hear from our lending partners that "we are taking a really hard look at a 720 score".

Here on the island, our primary buyer is shopping for a second or vacation home. As I have written here before, our prices have stablilized and are now at supportable levels. There are also some really great deals on Topsail Island and we are seeing some savvy buyers take advantage of those opportunities. One of our colleagues says that in two years, we will be hearing buyers say: "I could have (should have, would have) bought that house for $$$$ two years ago, now it's $$$$$."

How are all of you doing with your lending partners? Challenges? Successes? We also have a condotel on the island, does anyone know of a lender who will provide financing in North Carolina?

It is a great time to be a real estate professional!

We cannot be the only folks suffering in this heat - our friends in Arizona must be experiencing that "dry heat" (Hi Leolinda!). Our North Carolina heat is more like a wet towel that smacks you in the face when you walk out the door. Thankfully, since we are here on the coast on Topsail Island, we always have an ocean breeze to lessen the impact of the heat. As we move into the cities of Wilmington and Jacksonville, it becomes painfully apparent that all that asphalt and pavement really does add to heat index.

We are headed out for an outing with our office mates. Boat trip out on the ICWW. Should be cool out there.

The weather, while hot, does encourage a lot of the visitors here to spend more time inside just looking at the ocean or enjoying their porches OR giving a call to their friendly real estate professionals! The phones have been ringing this week.

Tomorrow is our day off and we are headed to the local farmers market for fresh veggies. Don't you love summer? It is a great time to be a real estate professional!

It was a very good week end for our agents at Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Realty and especially for those agents in our group! Judy Carlton is writing an offer to purchase on an oceanfront in Surf City and she has six other properties under contract. Topsail Landing, our condominium community just off the island has both contracts and reservations (on the third building). We have a number of properties due to close this month so we are extremely encouraged by the continued upswing in the market. Buyers are moving off the fence here, as the realization has set in that these prices are the best they will be for a long time. We are finding that our new listing clients are listening to us regarding our recommendation for pricing based on closed sales and not on what their neighbors house is listed for down the block.

Hang in there, Realtors! The turn has started and if you are positioned correctly, you WILL reap the benefits. Just remember the lessons we have learned over the past two and half years and apply them to what we will do in future. It is a great time to be a real estate professional!

  Well, isn't this what summertime at the beach is all about? Kids, waves, a couple of boogie boards and sun, sun, sun! It is beautiful today on Topsail Island and those on the beach are no doubt enjoying the water. The temperature, as it is in many parts  of the country is HOT! Wilmington, N.C. was expecting 100 degrees. We stay a little cooler out on the island, due to the ocean breezes. Topsail Island has a north to south orientation, so sunrises and sunsets are angled differently. Well, they would be, wouldn't they? All of us are looking for cool drinks, cool places and great air conditioning. Our island population expands greatly from June through Labor Day and although we are pleased to see so many enjoying the sun and surf, it is pleasant after the week end is over to return to a more normal traffic level. The day trippers head home to slather on lotion (or splash vinegar to take the sting out of the sunburn). The we are left with the cottagers, enjoying their week at the beach. We hope that once in a while, one of them will make the decision and take the opportunity during this terrific market to begin a Topsail Island tradition and own a home at the beach. It is a wonderful time to be a real estate professional!

Today, we are watching our niece, Skylar graduate from high school. We are not there in person but here in our home on Topsail Island in North Carolina. She is part of the 2008 graduating class of Patch American School in Stuttgart, Germany. We are watching via a live web cast being transmitted all aound the world to those of us interested in this one particular class of graduates. There is a father watching his daughter receive her diploma from his deployed position. There are grandfathers, other aunts and uncles, cousins and sisters and brothers who also could not be at the commencement exercises. It is amazing how far technology has come, isn't it? We have been able to see the pride on both my my sister-in-law and brother-in-law's face, and the reaction of our nephew  to seeing his sister walk under the crossed sabers of the ROTC on her way to the stage. All this we can see from a 26 mile long island an ocean away. All of a sudden, Topsail Island, North Carolina and Stuttgart, Germany are one and the same. We are part of a small world. Congratulations to Skylar and all the graduates of Patch!

We, along with members of our team will be touring seven homes in NSCC this afternoon, hosted by members of our Sneads Ferry office and Alpha Mortgage, our in house lender. The weather is beautiful, although really warm, so we are looking forward to getting out of the office early and having a bit of fun. Today has been one of those days when everything I started was delayed or pushed to the bottom of the pile. I had such good intentions! We did have a meeting with our team, discussed our projects and financing issues we are having, celebrated a couple of closings this week and spoke to clients. Actually, I guess that's a good day overall.

Hope all of you are continuing to see business improve. It is a great time to be a real estate professional!

Well, I am amazed! My wife Kathy has lived in North Carolina all of her life and I have lived here for more than 40 years and neither of us knew about the deep water coral reefs located just three hours by boat off the coast. The reefs have been known for decades but it is only recently that scientists and researchers have been able to get to them. Along with extensive coral formations, the reefs can include massive, million year old mounds formed by a mix of coral and trapped sediment, according to the South Atlantic Fishery Management Council. Wow. There is hope that President Bush will give the area a federal designation, which will open up more funding sources for exploration and research. What a fabulous opportunity for the President and for all of us, not only in North Carolina but the United States!

Thanks to everyone who read and commented on the Memorial Day post. It is just so great to hear from agents who are experiencing the same uptick in business as we are in coastal North Carolina. It has been a tough two and half years but looking forward is always the best direction. Sure can't change the past, but boy, have we all learned some valuable lessons for the future.

It is a great time to be a real estate professional!