It's as simple as supply v. demand. Currently, the local rental market is booming with tens of calls a day coming into our office as renters are on the prowl for suitable temporary housing. With the advent of foreclosures, short sales and job loss many folks who previously owned are looking for rental property in order to secure a roof over their heads while waiting for credit to rebound. These are a new breed of renters, used to the luxury and quality of life afforded by home ownership. In our market, which is historically made up of rental homes under $1000 per month, there are not homes suitable for the finicky tenant looking for a place to establish their family after a tumultuous couple of financially challenging years. These renters want cleanliness, quality, space and established neighborhoods that FEEL like home and unfortunately these are few and far between.
The upside is that as prices continue to settle, we are finding more homeowners opting not to sell before moving to that next job or home. This may in fact give rise to a larger availability of properties to choose from and allow high-end renters choices beyond the edges of college campus'.
As rents rise it has been predicted that housing price declines will slow and help to up-end the market.
www.calculatedriskblog.com/2011/04/forecast-rising-rents-to-slow-house.html
So as long as this cycle works itself out it may be in fact a good thing for real estate. On the other hand, if continued intervention and regulation from outside financial and governmental entities occurs, we may not experience the possibility of current homeowners opting to rent rather than sell due to fear of not being able to purchase without selling.
Much remains to be seen but the notion that you can hold on to your current home, allow the market pricing to adjust upwards AND purchase your NEXT home while rates are low, mortgage programs available and inventory is great is something that could help to shore up our shaky real estate foundation.
Friday, April 15, 2011
Tuesday, April 05, 2011
Demand Atlas Shrugged Movie Here in NC!!
You guys have read my blog on Atlas Shrugged several months ago and know how much Jake and I love the book and Ayn Rand...now the movie is out and due to the message, (which of course is adverse to everything promoted today in mainstream media), the movie is not being shown in many theatres nationwide. The website and facebook fan page have places where you can "demand" the movie in your locale but anti-Atlas Shrugged folks have hacked into the system to prevent gathering this info. Kinks are being worked out, but check out the trailer and find a way to promote and tell others to "demand" this movie be made available locally!!
http://www.atlasshruggedpart1.com/atlas-shrugged-movie-trailer
If this movie trailer doesn't get you excited, I don't know what will! Read the book!!
http://www.atlasshruggedpart1.com/atlas-shrugged-movie-trailer
If this movie trailer doesn't get you excited, I don't know what will! Read the book!!
Monday, April 04, 2011
It's Been A Long Long Time...I Don't Think We're In Kansas Anymore...
Certainly nothing is more frustrating than trying to find a blogger who posts regularly. Someone you can count on for accurate, up-to-date information. That someone was me, until recently! We have been swamped--not only new listings, buyers, marketing and other real estate related activities, but just life in general--family, soccer, school plays, chorus practice, church--you guys know the drill! Heck, I bet you've been so busy that you haven't even noticed that I hadn't posted in two weeks! Definitely a long time for me! So let me share with you my latest-non-real estate related story!
Stuck in Florida
I headed out to Florida last Sunday to catch up with my college roommate for her 35th birthday. We decided due to several factors (one being cost) that we would stay with my aunt in St. Pete Beach. We have both visited the area, which is steps away from the powdered-sugar shores of the Gulf and knew that this time of year was beautiful--low humidity, mid 80 degree days and inexpensive flights. Rough ride on the way down as we bumped and rolled through a front in southern Georgia, but we made it in one piece. First day was gorgeous as expected, but days 2, 3 and 4 were cloudy with major thunder and windstorms thrown in to boot! We would rush to put on sunscreen or run to get in from extreme lightning--one day it was so windy our nachos blew off of the plate! Nevertheless, we visited and made the best of our time together!
Fast forward to Thursday-time to leave. My aunt chauffers us to our respected airports, mine St.Pete/Clearwater and my friend's, Tampa. This is approximately 9 am. Around 10 am, my friend and I are texting back and forth about the major storm brewing. Rain blowing sideways, tornado watches, hail, windgusts up to 70 mph and the like. Lightning like we rarely see in NC cracked the sky wide open, followed by thunder that lasted for 10 plus seconds and shook the building around you...Then the airplane in front of my window begins to move up and down. The plane looked like something out of a Snoop Dogg video, as if it had hydrolics. Now we aren't talking a small plane, we're talking a 737 anchored to the ground. At one point, though I was only sitting 50 feet away, you couldn't see the plane's nose for the rain and wind. So, still texting in a panic and CRACK, lightning and suddenly no power! The Pinellas County Sherriff's department along with homeland security comes in and assures all of us waiting to board, that in oh, 30 minutes max that the power will be on shortly, as the generator gets up and running. Just then an odd, empty sucking sound and the doors from the terminal to the tarmac are forced opened--later it was determined that this was the pressure change (900mb-think hurricane pressure) as the tornado touched down four times around the airport and the immediate area--tossing small planes and destroying hangars. My friend is frantically texting me that she is in the bathroom in Tampa because the tornado was spotted skipping its way across the bay!
The power doesn't return in 30 minutues or 3 hours...at 4 o'clock, still no power and the airport authority announced that flights were being cancelled. The airport was great for providing free water and drinks but still no food and many people had been there since early morning. Now mind you during this time no one left the interior terminal because there was no way for homeland security to screen you coming back in. So hundreds of us are inside this 80 degree building, no way to get food (registers and service areas down) and no internet. My cell phone battery was waning with no way to charge it, so I made the decision to call my aunt to pick me back up. As I am waiting, more huge waves of this storm batter the airport and the workers trying to restore power-apparently, lightning hit the generator. Also, while waiting, no one is sure if flights will be resumed that evening since poor weather was being called for through the evening. All in all, the Tampa area recieved approximately 3-4 inches of rain during each of these storms over a 5 day period. The damage was described by some locals as worse than what is gotten during hurricanes.
Allegiant rescheduled my flight at no charge later that evening for the upcoming Sunday-a full three days later. Though it put me behind at work and I had never been away from Jake and Maddie that long, the next two days were what Florida weather should be. Skies with no clouds to be found, rustling palms overhead, 70 degree weather when you wake up and handcrafted sunsets!! I thanked God for allowing me safe returns and for knowing that I could use a few extra days to relax.
I am back, refreshed and re-energized and ready to take on the real estate market! The roomie did make it back safely as well, but only after spending almost a full 24 hours either on stand-by, on a tarmac, changing terminals, on a cancelled or delayed flight or driving. Unbelieveable, but an adventure that we won't forget for a long time!
Stuck in Florida
I headed out to Florida last Sunday to catch up with my college roommate for her 35th birthday. We decided due to several factors (one being cost) that we would stay with my aunt in St. Pete Beach. We have both visited the area, which is steps away from the powdered-sugar shores of the Gulf and knew that this time of year was beautiful--low humidity, mid 80 degree days and inexpensive flights. Rough ride on the way down as we bumped and rolled through a front in southern Georgia, but we made it in one piece. First day was gorgeous as expected, but days 2, 3 and 4 were cloudy with major thunder and windstorms thrown in to boot! We would rush to put on sunscreen or run to get in from extreme lightning--one day it was so windy our nachos blew off of the plate! Nevertheless, we visited and made the best of our time together!
Fast forward to Thursday-time to leave. My aunt chauffers us to our respected airports, mine St.Pete/Clearwater and my friend's, Tampa. This is approximately 9 am. Around 10 am, my friend and I are texting back and forth about the major storm brewing. Rain blowing sideways, tornado watches, hail, windgusts up to 70 mph and the like. Lightning like we rarely see in NC cracked the sky wide open, followed by thunder that lasted for 10 plus seconds and shook the building around you...Then the airplane in front of my window begins to move up and down. The plane looked like something out of a Snoop Dogg video, as if it had hydrolics. Now we aren't talking a small plane, we're talking a 737 anchored to the ground. At one point, though I was only sitting 50 feet away, you couldn't see the plane's nose for the rain and wind. So, still texting in a panic and CRACK, lightning and suddenly no power! The Pinellas County Sherriff's department along with homeland security comes in and assures all of us waiting to board, that in oh, 30 minutes max that the power will be on shortly, as the generator gets up and running. Just then an odd, empty sucking sound and the doors from the terminal to the tarmac are forced opened--later it was determined that this was the pressure change (900mb-think hurricane pressure) as the tornado touched down four times around the airport and the immediate area--tossing small planes and destroying hangars. My friend is frantically texting me that she is in the bathroom in Tampa because the tornado was spotted skipping its way across the bay!
The power doesn't return in 30 minutues or 3 hours...at 4 o'clock, still no power and the airport authority announced that flights were being cancelled. The airport was great for providing free water and drinks but still no food and many people had been there since early morning. Now mind you during this time no one left the interior terminal because there was no way for homeland security to screen you coming back in. So hundreds of us are inside this 80 degree building, no way to get food (registers and service areas down) and no internet. My cell phone battery was waning with no way to charge it, so I made the decision to call my aunt to pick me back up. As I am waiting, more huge waves of this storm batter the airport and the workers trying to restore power-apparently, lightning hit the generator. Also, while waiting, no one is sure if flights will be resumed that evening since poor weather was being called for through the evening. All in all, the Tampa area recieved approximately 3-4 inches of rain during each of these storms over a 5 day period. The damage was described by some locals as worse than what is gotten during hurricanes.
Allegiant rescheduled my flight at no charge later that evening for the upcoming Sunday-a full three days later. Though it put me behind at work and I had never been away from Jake and Maddie that long, the next two days were what Florida weather should be. Skies with no clouds to be found, rustling palms overhead, 70 degree weather when you wake up and handcrafted sunsets!! I thanked God for allowing me safe returns and for knowing that I could use a few extra days to relax.
I am back, refreshed and re-energized and ready to take on the real estate market! The roomie did make it back safely as well, but only after spending almost a full 24 hours either on stand-by, on a tarmac, changing terminals, on a cancelled or delayed flight or driving. Unbelieveable, but an adventure that we won't forget for a long time!
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