Career Opportunity!!! A great position that will get you pay re-location expenses.

Unemployment rate Rises...AGAIN!

Unemployment may be up…but it doesn’t mean you cannot have a great career! Here is a career opportunity for the right person. A great friend of mine has an opening for a CFO for a local assisted living company. If you or someone you know may be interested in this position, please let me or Veronica know. It may be the opportunity you have been seeking.

CFO for an assisted living company headquartered in Raleigh, NC.  The company operates 14 facilities in NC serving 1,000 residents and has five additional facilities currently under development.  BA/BS degree and a CPA. Minimum 7 years of experience as a CFO, Controller, or VP of Finance operating a business of at least 25 MM in revenues. Preferably with a Real Estate, Health Care, or Hospitality company.  Great Plains and FRx Software required.  Will relocate…. Call for more information…Veronica Chittum 919-521-4564

Remember, after you have gotten this job to call me to help you find the perfect home for you and your family. With Back Nine Homes, it’s not just a Lifestyle…it’s Life, with Style!!!

Happy Thanksgiving from Back Nine Homes

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

I wanted to take a few moments of your time to wish you a wonderful Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is a time to reflect on the past year and appreciate the positives and negatives that happened throughout the year. It is easy to be thankful for the wonderful experiences you have had, but more difficult to appreciate the failures of the year. We all have failed in one way or another throughout the year. Personally, I did not come close to my weight loss goals for the year. This is a failure for me. However, I need to appreciate this downfall and learn from it. One thing I have learned in reflecting on this lack of success is that if I want to be successful, my weight control efforts must be a daily and even an hourly attempt. Too often this past year, I had a successful week only to fall backwards the following by giving myself a weekend off. This does not work and I need to be vigilant daily.

I am sure there are areas in your life where you were not as successful as you would have liked this year. These are the keys to personal and professional growth. If we were successful in everything we attempted, we would never learn how to improve ourselves. And let’s face it, nobody is perfect and we all have short-comings. Learn from these and prepare yourself for success in the future.

I would like to wish you all a happy Thanksgiving. We all need to take the time to appreciate the blessings in our lives that God has given us. In reality, we should be thankful every day of our lives, but at the bare minimum, we need to use this day to reflect and be thankful. By the way, we should not keep our thankfulness to ourselves. Life is too short, we need to let those in our lives who enhance our lives know that we are thankful for them and appreciate them. This is the day we really need to let them know.

I hope you enjoy your holiday feast and remember that not everyone will have the same feast. Take a moment to give back to the less fortunate in our society. We are in this world together and nothing makes you feel better than giving. Just think about Christmas…we often are more excited to see someone open our gifts than we are to open our own. This is because nothing makes you feel good about yourself than sharing and helping others. Help someone this week.

In closing, I hope you enjoy your Thanksgiving Day. If your wish is to have your own home for Christmas, it is not too late. We can still get you into a home before Christmas. Call or email me today to get that home.

Have a safe and wonderful Thanksgiving Day!

Latest Golf Courses I played!

Swing into Golf this Fall!

I was fortunate that I was able to play two courses last week, none so far this week. The two that I played were Wildwood Green and Wil-Mar. Each of these courses has its benefits and negatives, but they are both challenging and fair courses. I wanted to give you a brief update as to the condition of these courses in the event you are planning on playing one or both of these courses soon.

Wildwood Green, which I played a week ago Sunday was in amazing condition. The greens were very hard and very fast. Speaking to one of the club professionals after my round, he informed me that they were keeping the greens fast for the Pro-Am that was being played the following day. I imagine they have adjusted the speed of the greens to make them more fair for the amateur golfer since then. With the fast greens, it was a challenge to play these greens, until I was able to get the feel of the greens. The front nine, I actually had 19 putts, which is high for me. I finally got the feel of the greens on the back and had only 14 putts. For the first time in years, I four putted the first hole, but then again, I hadn’t realized the speed of the greens at that point.

The fairways and tee boxes at Wildwood was also in pristine condition. I did not see any instance of muddy fairways throughout my round. Lately, the fairways have been playing very well for this course. Of course, I am sure they will be doing work throughout the fall and winter months to maintain the conditions and get it ready for Spring. I would highly recommend this course and if you are not a member, please contact me and I will get you on the course to check it out. Membership at Wildwood is very modest and not very expensive. They recently had a minor increase in dues, but it is still affordable, especially considering the improving conditions of this course.

Wil-Mar is a semi-private course that is more public than private. It is located near Knightdale and is a great course to work on some aspects of your game. When I played it last week, the course was in very good condition. The tee boxes needed some work, but the fairways and greens were solid. The greens were not very fast, but faster than they have been in the past. It had been at least 3 months since I played this course, and the greens were much slower at that point. Recently, they re-seeded many of the greens there and they have bounced back better than ever.

Wil-Mar is very reasonable in price and the last I saw, they had a program that if you purchase one round of golf, you can play all day. This makes it very appealing. Wil-Mar offers memberships at very reasonable rates, great if you live in the area. Wil-Mar has a very unique setup as it has 6 Par 3s and 5 Par 5s. You do not see this much, but the additional short holes allows you an opportunity to work on your short game. A couple of the Par 5s are reachable in two if you get off the tee well. I would recommend this course as it is a great, inexpensive place to play a round of golf while working on many areas of your game.

Is the Real estate market improving or not?

Banked Owned homes have increased in Wake County from last year!

The questions I get the most when I am about Raleigh is “How’s Business?”; to be followed with “Hows the market?” Everyone seems to be concerned and interested in the state of the real estate market. The story is the same, that the market is holding steady, but not really growing. Looking at the numbers, it backs my assessment in terms of some positive numbers, but nothing compared to the numbers we experienced during the real estate “boom”.

According to the Triangle Area Residential Realty (TARR) report, the number of active listings has decreased over last year by 21% from the 3rd Quarter 2010 with new homes down 23% and re-sale down 21%. 49% of all listings currently in the Triangle Multiple Listing Service (TMLS) have had price reductions, down from 58% from this quarter last year. The average days on the market is 144, up from 130 a year ago.

Showings were up modestly by 4% from last year and pending sales have increased 22% from the 3rd Quarter 2010 to 2,985. Closings were up 28% from 3rd Quarter 2010 to 2,953. Of course, this number is considerably less than the boom years when we were seeing this many closings in a single month. The Wake County Register of Deeds reported a 9% increase in the number of deed transfers from 3rd Quarter 2010, but a decrease of 9% year to date. Of those that have closed, 53% had some seller concessions up slightly from the previous year and the average sales price was $246,300, down 7% from 3rd Quarter 2010.

Foreclosures and distressed properties account for 9% of current active listings, up from 7% last year at this time. Third quarter foreclosure fillings fell 26% over last year.

I know I have given you a lot of numbers and it can be difficult to understand them, but the bottom line is good news for the market, but maybe not enough good news. The 3rd Quarter was good for the Triangle and Wake County, but the numbers are a far cry from our best years. The number of sales have increased considerably, but home prices have continued to struggle. If you are selling your home, you need to understand that the home should be priced very competitively from the beginning if you wisht to sell your home quickly.

As a general rule, homes that are priced right at the beginning of the listing will typically sell for more than homes that start high and reduce more often to get to the final price. To understand this concept, you need to think like a buyer. If you see a home that has been on the market for 200 days, you know that the sellers are beginning to tire of having their home on the market and thus, have become even more motivated to sell the home. Thus, the negotiating position has shifted dramatically towards the buyer.

If you have additional questions about the market, please feel free to email me at Steven@BackNineHomes.com.  Be sure to subscribe to this blog as I update often.

Follow me on Twitter  twitter.com/Back9Homes

Friend me on Facebook at http://facebook.com/Backninehomes

Connect with LinkedIn at http://www.linkedin.com/in/stevenwnelson

Brier Creek Countyr Club-Discover a New Lifestyle

18th Hole at Brier Creek Country Club

Yesterday, I had the opportunity to play for the first time at the Brier Creek Country Club and it was an amazing experience. Brier Creek is located in Northwest Raleigh, near the border of Durham County. This Arnold Palmer designed course offers challenging, but fair holes that are breathtaking with spectacular views on every hole. Your handicap will not inhibit your ability to enjoy this well-designed course. As a high handicap player, I had several opportunities for pars and even an opportunity for a birdie on this course. The more challenging holes offered the better golfers an opportunity to make difficult shots while leaving the lesser golfer spots to lay-up for a better approach shot to the greens. This course, unlike some I have played in the Triangle, is truly a fair and challenging course.

Brier Creek has been ranked at a Top 40 course in North Carolina as the conditions were near perfect. The fairways were well maintained and drained well despite heavy rain the prior day and drizzle on the day I played it. Of course, there were some saturated spots on the course, but very few. Most of the fairways offered safe landing areas for your tee shots despite your length off the tee, but with enough hazards for the very poor tee shots. Several fairways had water hazards and natural growth areas that had to be negotiated throughout the round, but very forgiving for the occasional poor shot.

The greens were well maintained with some speed, but not to the extent that makes it difficult for the amateur golfer to make putts. Many of the greens offered challenging putts, but not like a Donald Ross green where it is nearly impossible to make a simple put. The most challenging and breathtaking green is the 18th. It is an amazing finishing hole with the green being protected on three sides by a lake. The solid tee shot will give you the opportunity to reach this Par 4 in regulation, but a poor tee shot is not a deal breaker on this hole as there are ample areas to lay-up to give you a better shot of getting over the water.

My favorite hole on this course is the Par 3 16th. This hole is difficult, yet very fair. From the back tees, you will have 195 yards, but the blue tees will give you a 178  yard shot to this green. It is all water carry as the green is just off the lake’s edge with some tall grass between the water and the green. The green is elongated and not very deep. Go to long and you may end up in a sand bunker, giving you a delicate shot to hold the green without running off the front of the green. I was fortunate to land on the green from the tee, but with the elongated green, I had a forty-foot put to birdie. Unfortunately, I three putted this hole, but a boggie for me is a good score.

Brier Creek Membership

Brier Creek is a private club with membership opportunities for both residents and non-resident members. Initiation is not as high as you may imagine and Signature membership will also give you access to The Hassentree Club. Club amenities include the golf course, a 40,000 sq ft luxurious clubhouse, driving range, locker rooms, steam rooms, fitness center, banquet facilities, swim and tennis pavilion and much more. For the money, it is a good value, especially if you live in or near Brier Creek. I am not a member, but if we lived closer to this area, my wife and I would have to consider this as an option.

Living in Brier Creek

Living in Brier Creek has its benefits that few areas in Raleigh can compare. With easy access to I-540 and I-40 the conveniences is unmistakable. The conveniences do not end with this as all of the shopping you would need is near by with nearly all of the national retailers within minutes from your front door to include (but not limited to) Target, Best Buy, Wal-Mart, and Dicks. There are also several restaurants nearby with choices such as Wild Wings, Carolina Ale House, Red Robin and many more.

The community has all of the benefits you would imagine to include the golf course, clubhouse, pools and tennis courts and social events throughout the year. It is truly an environment that your family can live and thrive with resort style amenities that will make for a pleasant home life. This community has everything you could ever want in a community.

Raleigh, North Carolina

Raleigh is a 2nd largest Metropolitan city in North Carolina. The economy is diverse with several technology and drug companies located in the Research Triangle Park (RTP). It is one of the fastest growing cities in the Southeast due to the lifestyle this area offers its residents. Real estate in the Triangle has always been a solid purchase as this area has benefited from stable growth over the past several years. Currently, the real estate market in the Triangle has declined due to national trends, but this area remains a mecca for families looking for quality of life along with strong schools and outdoor living. There are nearly 20 golf courses in Wake County alone with several more within the Triangle region and North Carolina. Raleigh and the Triangle has consistently been ranked among the Best Places to Live in the U.S.

Hasentree-An Amazing Golfing Experience

Welcome Home to Hasentree

Last week, I have the opportunity to play one of the area’s most prestigious golf courses when the Downtown Clubs of Raleigh organized an outing to Hasentree. I have to admit, Hasentree, a Tom Fazio designed course, is an experience that all avid golfers in the Triangle should have. The course was immaculate and the greens in top-notch condition. The greens were a little quick, but not too quick.

Despite having a very poor outing, I could not help but appreciate the course. The challenges start on the first hole with a dogleg left and fairway bunkers along the left side of the fairways. It made for an exact shot to get up in regulation, of which I did not accomplish.

Another memorable hole was the Par 4, #10 that actually has two greens. On this day, they were utilizing the right green  which was below the fairway. It made for a challenging hole. The finishing hole is one of the more challenging holes where there were few areas to land your tee shot without danger of hitting a fairway bunker.

Speaking with the pro shop after my round, I gathered that they have openings for members and it appears to be affordable. Hasentree is offering membership with the initiation of $10,000 and monthly dues of $385. Click on the link to learn more about membership at this inspiring course.

Several great shots were made by my group, but not enough to score well compared to some of the other teams. Paul Pratto, one of the organizers of the Downtown Links group, was the big winner as his 2 person team had the lowest score while also earning the cigars that my company, Back Nine Homes, offered for the closest to the pin on one of the par 3s on the front nine.

Hasentree Community

Recently, Toll Brothers purchased this project from the bank and have made strides to make this a successful project. They have lowered the prices that the original developers had placed on the homes and you have several options to get into this community. The Golf Villas Collection prices start in the low $300s with most of the floor plans having first floor master bedrooms. Of course, the prices go up to the $2+ Million dollar with many of the Executive homes starting in around $700,000. In the past, it was difficult to find a home in this community for less than $700,000. It would appear that the new price point has been successful as they have started to sell homes despite the economic times.

Some of the community features in addition to the golf course include resort-style pools, tennis courts, hiking and biking trails and planned activities. For more information or a guided tour of this great community, please contact me as I would be happy to show it to you.

Unemployment levels rises for 91 of 100 NC Counties

Unemployment rate Rises...AGAIN!

North Carolina Unemployment rate jumps to 9.9% amid 7600 government jobs being cut to include community colleges, universities and other state and local government jobs. It is up from May’s rate of 9.7% where it had been stable for several months prior.

The number of newly unemployed rose by 9500 to nearly 450,000 workers statewide. Government has cut over 10,000 jobs in June.

Over last year, the number of unemployed claims fell by 28,000, but this number does not include those who have quit looking for a job or have taken part-time jobs.

In Wake County, the unemployment rate is 8.3% and is comparable for the entire Triangle area. The areas that are hurting the most are the rural counties of NC. For a look at the county-by-county numbers, WRAL has a map that can be accessed at County by County Rates.

There are several reasons why the unemployment continues to be high. Personally, it appears the high rate coincides with small business fear to hire due to rising cost to hire new employees and the uncertainty of future cost.

The unemployment affects the real estate market since the unemployed have a difficult time getting qualified for a mortgage. Additionally, the unemployed homeowner is having increased difficulty paying their monthly mortgages.

I don’t think the employment situation will get better until the local, state and national government decides to lower taxes and remove some of the restrictions they have on business. It is hard enough for a business to be profitable than to have additional expenses that can be quite extensive.

With the lower unemployment rates in the Triangle, it has not affected our real estate market as much, but it still has an effect. Despite the lower rate, it is still high compared to the rates that were present before the recession began. Housing prices have stabilized to some extent, but can possibly fall more if the market does not pick up soon.

Newly Renovated Hedingham Golf Course

Notice the plush grass on the #1 Fairway

I spent last Friday afternoon on the newly opened Hedingham Golf Course to see the difference after a nearly 2 month renovation. The results were very promising in some respects and not so much in others.

As far as the renovations, they did not re-design any of the holes as it basically plays the same as it always has. Of course, I don’t think I was expecting too much difference in this regard as you are looking at a major expense to re-design a course…money that I don’t think they wanted to spend. However, they did accomplish some wonderful things in the 2 months it was closed.

The tee boxes were in pristine condition, especially considering the playing rates for this course. The grass was plush and very green. Additionally, the fairways and roughs were in very good condition. They played very well and you did not have the issue of taking your shot off dirt while being in the middle of the fairway as you possibly could have done last year.

One aspect that made it very difficult, but in a good way is the rough off the greens. The grass was very thick and it made it difficult to get it out of the rough at times…especially until you realized this issue and made adjustments in your swing. On the first hole, my approach shot landed just shy of the green and rolled down the hill into the tall grass. If you do not know this course, you realize that there is a creek-type area that protects the green on the front side. It took me three shots to get the ball out of the tall grass and onto the putting surface. Of course, on future holes, I made the adjustments and did not face the same issue when chipping from the rough.

The Par 5 #9 Fairway

The one area that was somewhat disappointing are the greens. The greens were not fully grown and you had some splotches throughout many of the putting surfaces. I know they are trying to correct this issue and it is probably due to the simple fact that they need to grow more grass on the greens, which in a common issue with our courses as the summer heat often makes it difficult for the shorter grass to survive.

Overall, I was impressed with the conditions of this course considering the green fees and the typical conditions of this course when I have played it in the past. I am concerned whether or not they will keep the course in the same condition going forward. In fact, a resident of the community was saying the same thing to me while we played a few holes together. This will be the real test for this course.

On a side note, I had received an email stating that Hedingham would be charging $25 green fees and cart throughout the month of July. So, this would be an excellent time to visit to see the newly renovated course.

Mid-Year Market Analysis of the Triangle Real Estate Market

Note: This is an opinion piece from a local Realtor who works in the Triangle market. All opinions and comments are welcomed and encouraged.

Today’s Market

Homes for Sale across the Triangle

As we have reached the midway mark for 2011, I wanted to take a few moments to reflect on the year and give my assessment to the condition of the market and give my prediction to the recovery. I am not a professional economist or analyst, but have several observations as a real estate professional. In a word, the market is still bleak. However, there are encouraging signs for the recovery that is underway.

The market is currently struggling along with moderate sales and reducing prices. Most of the homes that are listed for sale in the Multiple Listing Service has experienced price reductions throughout the year. This tells me that we are still trying to find the bottom of the market in terms of prices. It is not encouraging for those hoping to sell their homes in this market, but it is part of the recovery process.

If we look to markets like California and Nevada, you have seen an increase in sales over last year. However, prices have fallen in many areas to 2002 levels. This tells me that they were well overpriced and the prices have just recently gotten to a level where buyers can both afford to purchase or feel that the prices have hit bottom. Remember, it is all supposition and emotionally driven. Most of the markets crashed because of emotion due to the claims made by major media outlets that the housing market was bad. So, would-be buyers stayed out of the market. Of course, it was also emotion that caused many markets to appreciate as such high rates during the boom. Buyers were afraid they would not be able to buy if they waited too long or simply wanted to get in on the high appreciation rates. They did not make a sound business decision or they would have realized that a market that goes up too quickly will correct itself. Look at the Dot.com craze of the 90s.

As everyone should know, we are in a buyer’s market, which is another way to say a down market. On the surface, it sounds like a buyer’s market would be good, but in reality it relates to not enough buyers for the homes on the market. This means sales will be down.

If you are looking to be an investor in real estate, then now is a great time to buy. As Warren Buffet has said many times, you buy when others are selling and you sell when others are buying. This is how you make money in real estate. Since very few are buying and more are selling today, it is a great time to buy. If you can afford, buy now and hold or rent until the market shifts upwards, then sell for the profits.

Forecast for the future

My humble opinion says that we are not yet in recovery. There are still more sellers than buyers and that trend has not yet changed. There are some encouraging signs in that a recent article that I read showed that residential rental rates have gone up. This is good for the market because it means that at some point in the near future, it will be more affordable to buy than rent since housing prices are going down. Where that price point for rent is located, nobody really knows, but as it approaches, we can expect renters to turn back into homeowners.

My gut tells me that we will not see any substantial recovery until after the 2012 elections. There has been too much instability in our nation’s economy that people are concerned about the future. If they are concerned about tax increases or a change in the tax code, they are going to be more leery about making such a large purchase. Traditionally, the real estate market has not been tied to national elections as real estate in its essence is local. However, with people becoming more transient and the federal government holding more mortgages, it has become more of a national trend and as such, tied to national issues such as elections.

My assessment is that if you are financially able to buy and ready for the responsibility of homeownership, now is  a great time to buy and you need to get off the sidelines and get into the market. Prices may go down some more, but there is no telling how much lower they will go or if they have hit bottom. In a year or two, the market should shift back to a seller’s market and prices should begin to appreciate.

Please comment on this article if you have anything to add or detract. Like I said, I am not a professional analysis so I do not guarantee that my assessment is correct, but I am confident in my assessment of the situation.

Alzheimer’s North Carolina Golf Tournament

2011 "Stand by Me" Golf Tournament

Last Monday, I had the privilege and honor to play and support the Alzheimer’s Association of North Carolina by participating in their annual golf tournament. This event was held at the prestigious Prestonwood Country Club and the event was well-organized. It is good to be able to do two wonderful things at once; play Prestonwood and support Alzheimer’s research.

As with nearly everyone, I know someone who has been impacted by this dreaded disease as my wife’s godmother suffered from it near the end of her life. “Alzheimer North Carolina is dedicated to providing education, support and services to patients, their families, health care professionals and the general public while raising awareness and funding for research for a cause, treatment, prevention and cure for Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders”, according to their mission statement.

This organization was founded in 1980 at Duke University and relocated to Raleigh in 1985, thanks to a generous grant from Kate B. Reynolds Health Care Trust. This moved them to the Cameron Village area. Due to growth and a need for more space, they later moved to Navaho Drive, near Wake Forest Drive.

All of the proceeds raised will go to the organization to support its efforts. The tournament boasted a putting contest, driving contest where you attempted to call your distance and several hole-in-one and closest to the pin competitions. After the event, they had an auction and raffle drawings. I am not privy to the amount of money they raised, but I plan to add this event to my calendar every year as it was very rewarding to me.

I would encourage anyone who likes golf and good causes to consider participating in this event next year. They have been doing this tournament for 23 years, so they know what they are doing and are doing it well.

For those who do not know, Prestonwood Country Club is one of the premier golf communities in the Triangle. Prestonwood offers an amazing clubhouse, 54 championship holes, dining, tennis and aquatic facilities. It also boast a state-of-the-art fitness center and an active Kids Club.

Prestonwood is surrounded by fabulous homes of varying sizes to accommodate nearly every buyer. The community is established and offers walking trails it is one of the most family friendly communities in Cary. Located in the heart of Cary, just minutes from downtown Raleigh it is truly a place you can call home.

For more information about this community or other Triangle golf communities, please feel free to contact me directly.