Robert Flinn's Real Estate Page

Tips For When The Power Goes Out

2011-01-10T07:21:00.003-05:00

Duke Energy has a few tips for you if your power goes out.

First always report the outages to your power company. Never touch or go near power lines that have fallen down or anything touching the down lines.

You should have an emergency or outage kit prepared in advance of a power outage. Place the kit someplace that is easily accessible and can be found in the dark.

The kit should contain: a flashlight with extra batteries, a battery-powered radio with extra batteries, canned or other foods that require no cooking, a manual can opener, First Aid kit, extra fuses, a battery-powered or wind up clock.

You should also consider any special items that you may need like prescription medication, baby food and diapers, additional warm clothing and a safe heat source to place in your kit.

Make sure your cell phone is fully charged.

Food safety is a big concern for people who have been without power a long period of time. Most refrigerators should keep food safely cold for about four hours if it is not opened. A full freezer should hold the temperature for about 48 hours and a half full freezer for about 24 hours if the door is not opened.

To help protect your food, keep refrigerator and freezer doors closed as much as possible to help maintain the cold temperature until power has been restored.

A generator is a nice backup power source if an outage lasts a considerable length of time. Emergency generators, either stationary or portable, should always be installed by a licensed electrician.

Every generator is a little different so always follow the manufacturer's instructions to ensure proper operation of your generator.

A few safety tips to keep in mind when using a generator: never operate a generator inside of a building or garage, always run your generator outside to avoid carbon monoxide poisoning.

Store gasoline only in approved fuel containers. Never refill your generator while it is running.

Have a fully charged fire extinguisher rated for electrical and gas fires ready at all times.

When using an emergency generator, plug appliances like your refrigerator directly into the generator.

For more power outage tips visit Duke Energy's web site. If you have an outage to report call 1-800-POWERON or 1-800-769-3766.

Appliance Tax Holiday November 5 - 7!!

2010-10-07T09:14:00.002-04:00

So, you think school kids are the only ones who get a tax holiday around these parts? Think again!

November 5 through 7, the State of North Carolina is offering its annual tax holiday on the purchase of an Energy Star-rated appliance. Typically, applaince retailers roll out some pretty hefty discounts in association with the tax break, so you can score a double discount if you plan correctly.

Items included are washers, freezers, refrigerators, central air conditioners and room air conditioners, air-source heat pumps and geothermal heat pumps, ceiling fans, dehumidifiers, and programmable thermostats.

Your Last Available Tax Credit

2010-09-28T09:11:00.003-04:00

You still have about 90 days to qualify for one of the last remaining tax credits available from the 2010 American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

When the law went into effect it increased the energy tax credit for homeowners who make energy efficient improvements to their existing homes, increased the credit rate to 30 percent of the cost of all qualifying improvements, and raised the maximum credit limit to $1,500 for improvements put in service in 2009 and 2010.

The credit applies to improvements such as adding insulation, energy efficient exterior windows and energy-efficient heating and air conditioning systems.

Since it was implemented, the program has suffered a bit from confusing marketing and regulatory issues. For instance, not every appliance labeled as “Energy Star” is eligible for the tax credit. Some replacement windows and doors qualify for the credit, while others don’t.

The best approach, say the experts, is to work with a vendor you trust and confirm purchases with the government’s official website at www.energystar.gov.

If you'd like a recommendation of a vendor for a particular part of your home (heating and cooling, general contracting, plumbing, etc.) give me a call. I have a list of fine folks with whom I've worked, and who have earned my trust. I'd be delighted to refer you to someone honest and reputable.

Robert Flinn
919-698-2040 (Direct)
919-402-1242 (Office)
rflinn@fmrealty.com

Learn To Love Your Crawl

2010-09-20T08:28:00.001-04:00

Yes, it’s dank and dusty down there. Yes, it’s icky… what with all the spider webs and other creepy crawly things that like dark, cool spaces. But regular visits to your crawl space can alert you to big problems that might be developing in your home, literally right under your feet.

In my work as a Realtor®, I see a lot of crawl spaces. Many of the problems a home inspector finds in a crawl space are the result of a circumstance or a condition that’s gone on for some time. And the sooner crawl space problems are dealt with, the better. Here are some of the things we all should look for, and take care of while we’re down there:

Look For: As a general rule, the dryer your crawl space, the better. The air down there will always have that “basement” feeling. But use your nose; be aware of unusually musty odors that can indicate excessive moisture. That’s bad news in an enclosed space. It can generate mold, or encourage rotting of wooden floor joists and sub-flooring. It can (and will!) also attract wood-destroying insects. Speaking of termites, they are a fact of life in North Carolina. Be on the lookout for tell-tale signs: earthen tubes about the diameter of your little finger leading upward from the ground along a wall of your crawl. If you see one, don’t disturb it… call a professional pest extermination company right away.

Dos: A clean crawl space is better than a dirty one. Twice a year, put on long pants and a long-sleeved shirt and crawl into your crawl. Knee pads are a big help, as is a hat– or head-mounted flashlight. Take a whisk broom and sweep off EVERY floor joist and piece of wood you can reach. You’re mission is to disturb the spiders and other bugs that are making your space their home. A commercial product by Ortho called Home Defense Maxx is an excellent residual deterrent. It’s available in spray or granular versions. Make sure your crawl space can breathe. Vents to the outside are designed to allow moisture-laden air to filter out of the enclosed space. Don’t close them or block them without the advice of a professional.

Don’ts: Don’t store wood-handled tools in your crawl space (they serve as bait for wood-destroying insects). Likewise, don’t stack material — particularly wood — against the wall of your crawl. That makes for a prime nesting ground for insects. If your inspection finds something unusual, call a professional to help you determine what’s going on.

Is there something unknown lurking in YOUR crawl space? Call me. I’d be happy to take a look and give you a free assessment.

Robert Flinn, Realtor/Broker
Fonville Morisey Realty, Inc.
919-698-2040 (Direct)
919-402-1242 (Office

Clean Mower, Happy Mower

2010-09-14T11:15:00.002-04:00

If there’s one piece of outdoor power gear that really leads a hard life, it’s your mower. Thanks to our friends at Popular Mechanics, here’s how to help it stay in top form:

Scrape under the deck with a putty knife to remove dried clippings.

Wipe Clean the area around the fuel nozzle and the oil fill

Use an old paintbrush or an air nozzle on your compressor and dust off engine fins.
Vacuum-clean the engine shroud.

Give a tune-up to include fresh oil, a clean air filter, fresh gas and a new spark plug.

Clean and sharpen the mower blade. Check it for knicks and dings from rocks and such. If it shows excessive signs of wear, replace it.

Fill the tank with fresh gas that’s rated at 87 octane or higher. Stale gas is prone to a build-up of moisture and a loss of octane, which can lead to gum deposits in the engine’s fuel line and carburetor. If you think you have stale gas in your tank, drain it and use one of the engine re-start additives available at home stores.

Inherited Property - What To Know When You Sell It

2010-09-07T16:12:00.001-04:00

The death of a parent can bring sudden and sometimes unconsidered responsibilities to children and family members left behind. Not the least of these is the settlement and distribution of real property that the parents acquired while they were alive.

Real property (land and the structures that sit on the land) as well as personal property (cars, jewelry, money, etc.) comprise what is known in legal terms as a person’s estate. A will is a legal document that is drafted prior to a person’s death that stipulates how his or her estate is to be distributed after death.

Intestate succession laws, administered through the North Carolina Court System, exist to ensure the smooth and correct transfer of real property from owners to eligible beneficiaries, if a property owner dies without leaving a will. But even with a will, certain procedures must be followed in order for property to be transferred effectively and smoothly from the beneficiaries to another owner.

The process begins with the assignment of an executor or an administrator and the assignment of authority to determine the contents of a person’s estate and how it will be distributed. This authority comes from letters of appointment called “Letters Testamentary” and “Letters of Administration” that are designated either by the decedent prior to death or by the court.

Handling a person’s estate, depending on the value of assets in the estate, your relationship to the decedent, and whether other people are entitled to some of the assets can be as simple as pie or so complicated that estate lawyers and tax professionals are required.

In general, handling someone’s estate means:

● Determining all of the decedent’s assets or property (land, automobiles, boats, money, stocks, jewelry, or other items of value);
● Identifying and notifying the creditors of the estate (the people or businesses to which the decedent owed money before his death (mortgage, car loan, credit cards)) and the persons or businesses who are due money as a result of the decedent’s death (funeral home, hospital bills);
● Identifying and notifying the persons or organizations entitled to a share of the estate (spouse, children, friends, charitable or religious organizations);
● Publishing notice to creditors in the local newspaper;
● Paying the decedent’s debts;
● Filing accountings with the Clerk of Superior Court, showing income and disbursements;
● Distributing the rest of the estate as required by the decedent’s will or by state intestacy law.

Such laws vary by state and even, in some cases, by county or municipality. In North Carolina, for instance, if a person dies without leaving a will and legal beneficiaries cannot be determined by the court, the value of the person’s holdings “escheats” to the state, which then donates the value to the to an authority which provides loans to worthy and needy North Carolina students in State-supported institutions of higher education.

Your first call should be to the Superior Court Clerk’s office in the county in which the decedent owned property.

The Power of Words

2010-09-05T08:26:00.001-04:00

A few Christmases ago my wife gave me a book, autographed by the author. He is a famous sports person from around these parts; you’d instantly recognize the name if I told it to you. But if I did that at this point, SOME of you would simply stop reading this article, or decide that everything I write from this point forward was somehow tainted. Silly, yes… but true. At least around these parts.

The writer of this book is a coach. He’s a motivator, a teacher, a counselor. The nature of his job requires him to discern and understand how to get the very best out of each player, in order to reach a common goal for the whole team. He’s pretty good at it. One of the primary tools he uses to accomplish this is language, and this coach is clearly a lover of language. The whole book is about the way that the words we choose to use can either build up or tear down… create or destroy… amplify or obliterate.

When I unwrapped the present that Christmas, it was a nice surprise. It wasn’t a book I would have looked for at the bookstore. In fact, I didn’t even know that the coach had written it; my wife found out about it through a book-signing event at her work. “Look inside the cover,” she said.

What I saw there spoke to me. The coach had written: “Robert, always believe in the power of words.”

Like the coach, my mother was also a lover of language. She was an English major in college, and she taught me the ways that words can work together to create literal works of art. My mother planted the seeds of language in my soul when I was a child. Two other women, both teachers – Mrs. Eubanks in the 4th and 5th grades and Mrs. Tennant in the 8th grade – cultivated those seeds and helped grow them strong. And so now I’m a lover of language, too.

So… why did the coach’s note matter? It’s not because we’re friends. I can count on one hand the number of times we’ve been within 100 yards of each other. It’s not because he’s well known; my career in television taught me that famous people can often be the most plastic and shallow individuals on the planet.

The coach’s words matter simply because they are true. Words ARE powerful.

One of the things most important to my work in Real Estate is clear and effective communication. It’s what brings parties together. It keeps things on track. It’s what keeps transactions moving forward. If you know someone looking for help in buying or selling a house, I hope you’ll ask them to give me a call.

I’ll use the best words I know in order to help them.

Robert Flinn, REALTOR®/Broker
919-402-1242 (Direct) - 919-698-2040 (Cell)
rflinn@fmrealty.com (email)

Agent of Change

2010-09-04T16:22:00.002-04:00

In May of 1975 I graduated from Nathan Hale High School in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Earlier this summer some folks from my graduating class celebrated the (gulp) 35th anniversary of our graduation. It was a casual reunion and I wasn’t able to join them. But as a run-up to the event — and also thanks to the social networks like FaceBook that make such things possible — I have been able to reconnect with many of my classmates from high school.

It’s amazing to see how almost everyone has changed! Hairlines have receded. Waistlines have expanded. Age and life and experiences have taken the fresh young teenagers that I remember and turned them into people who look a lot like my parents looked when I was in high school. I would recognize only a handful of them today if we ran into each other at the airport.

I wish my memories of that period of my life were more clear. They might be if I had stayed in Oklahoma and had kept in touch with my fellow former Hale Rangers. But, even still, my wife and I often realize that things we knew well when we lived in Tulsa or Oklahoma City or Lincoln or Greenville or Cedar Rapids or Las Vegas are now getting dusty in our memories.

Sometimes I envy folks who manage to stay in one place for most of their lives. My sister and her family have lived in the same place for nearly 25 years. Friends I have here in North Carolina grew up in several places within the community but have never left the area. Some of my friends from high school still call Tulsa home.

I’ve said it before in these pages: Transitions are difficult. Change can often be uncomfortable. But in a world where it sometimes seems that the only constant is change, the measure is not about how or when changes happen, but rather about how we deal with them when they occur. Some changes come suddenly; an accident, a death, or an abrupt shift in our well-laid plans for our lives. Some changes take more time; and our challenge then is to deal with the uncertainty… the NOT knowing… which can be equally as hard, if not even harder.

As a Real Estate broker, I’m in the change business. I regularly help folks uproot everything comfortable in their lives and — for a brief period of time — venture into chaos. And I think it’s hallowed ground. Few things have a stronger hold on our emotions than the places we call home, and the fortunes we’ve invested in them.

Understanding that… honoring that, I think, is an important part of what I do.

Robert Flinn, REALTOR®/Broker
919-698-2040 (Direct) - 919-402-1242 (Office)
rflinn@fmrealty.com (email)

What's Your Name Again?

2010-09-02T06:36:00.004-04:00

When I’m hosting an Open House, I like to ask my guests if they’re working with a real estate agent. Sometimes they say “no” and that may give me an opportunity to offer my assistance when they need it. If they say “yes,” my next question is to ask them the name of the agent with whom they're working. I think it’s important to follow up with that agent and let them know that one of their clients visited my listing.

Often, though, my question of who they’re working with is met with something of a deer-in-the-headlights look and a prolonged “uuhhhhhh…”. According to the way I run my business, something is definitely wrong with that picture. Allow me to illustrate.

A little over four yeas ago I bought a new car. Just about every day since then, I’ve gotten into that car, turned the key, and driven it somewhere. My car is a vital part of my live… just as your car is probably vital to your life. We couldn’t get along very well without them, could we? And yet, as important as that car is to me and my business, I don’t remember the name of the guy who sold it to me. Why? Because I’ve never heard from him since the day I bought the thing. Our relationship ended the instant I drove away from his dealership.

Would I like to have a continuing relationship with someone in the car-selling business? Absolutely. I Would appreciate having that person as a resource if I had a question about anything related to automobiles. He might not immediately know the answer, but he could point me in the right direction. I would value that relationship.

I very firmly believe that the real estate business is a relationship business. The transaction that initially connects me with a Buyer or a Seller is the catalyst to that relationship. For a relatively brief period of time, I’m collaborating very closely with a client to help them achieve something very important — the buying or selling of a home. But after that — after the transaction is complete — it’s totally up to me to keep that relationship alive… to keep in contact with folks that I’ve helped in the past, with the intent to help them or someone they know in the future. I want to be a resource for folks about ANYthing having to do with real estate, at any time… not just when there’s a home to buy or sell.

That’s what it means to me to be “working” with a real estate agent. And those folks who came to my open house and couldn’t bring their agent’s name to mind? Well… they just don’t know what they’re missing.

Robert Flinn, REALTOR®/Broker
919-698-2040 (Direct)
919-402-1242 (Office)
rflinn@fmrealty.com (email)

Help That Matters

2010-09-01T13:17:00.002-04:00

The Friday before Memorial Day is something of an anniversary date for me. Six years ago on that very day my 20-year career in television marketing came to a screeching halt, without fanfare or ceremony. Maybe it was a fitting end for an inauspicious beginning.

I got into the television business through a side door, as a news producer. I doubt such a thing would ever happen the same way again: a News Director friend of mine hired me — with ZERO experience — to produce weekend newscasts. I liked the technology but hated the news business. For two years I was just this side of miserable. “But hey,” I’d say, “those people upstairs in the Promotion department sure seem to be having a good time.” So I landed a creative services job in an even bigger market, found my niche, and — just like that — my rocket was lit.

Commercial television is a high-octane business. That’s part of what makes it fun. But it’s also incredibly transitional, filled with what has to be a disproportionate number of really bad managers. In order to move up, one usually has to move on. Sometimes that’s by choice and sometimes it’s not. Consequently, my wife and I moved 9 times in 13 years. But well before that fateful Memorial Day weekend I decided that I wasn’t going to “move on” from North Carolina. My family liked it here, we had found a cherished church and we had developed an invaluable circle of friends. I decided it was time to reinvent myself.

And so in the spring of 2004 I earned my real estate license and joined Fonville Morisey. My 6th year anniversary was earlier this summer. But here’s what else happened this summer: I closed on my 100th transaction for someone buying or selling a home in the Triangle. For me, that’s something to celebrate.

One of the things I like about my work in Real Estate is that I get to get involved in the hopes and dreams of my clients. I get to make a difference. In commercial television, despite all of the meters and ratings books and other ways to measure one’s impact, my work just didn’t ever seem to matter. Not so any longer. I know my work has mattered to at least 100 folks since June of 2004. I’m not sure I tallied that same number after 20 years in TV.

And you know what? You’re reading these words today because YOU matter. You’re someone who I’ve helped in the past, or someone who I hope to help in the future. And If you know someone else who can benefit from my assistance, I’d love it if you’d pass my name along.

Robert Flinn, REALTOR®/Broker
919-698-2040 (Direct)
919-402-1242 (Office)
rflinn@fmrealty.com (email)

DEATH AND TAXES

2010-08-30T14:21:00.002-04:00

The headline is from a famous quote first credited to Benjamin Franklin in 1789, and appended ever since by endless pundits, politicians, and comedians. But for me, there was nothing funny about my recent trip to the North Carolina Department of Motor Vehicles.

The occasion? Earlier this year I decided to purchase a vehicle I had leased from Nissan, and I needed to transfer the title to the bank as collateral on the loan they had issued for the purchase. Now folks, I’ve lived in six different states over the last thirty years or so. And in almost every state where I’ve resided, trips to the DMV can be prefaced by three words: “Pack A Lunch.” And so I was prepared to face disappointment, and probably the need for a second trip to accomplish my mission. What I wasn’t prepared for was something called a “Highway Use Tax.”

In order for me to transfer the title for a car that I’ve driven in this state every day since January of 2006, the state of North Carolina wants to charge me three cents on the dollar of the purchase price, just to fund the coffers over in Raleigh. I was prepared to fork over 50 bucks or so. I wasn’t expecting an ad hoc fee nearly ten times that amount.

I’m not complaining about the figure. Lord knows, our roads and highways need all the pot-hole filling dollars they can get. I’m not complaining about the tax. I think it’s entirely appropriate that the people who use our state’s roads and highways should support the good folks who build and maintain them (if that’s indeed where this money goes). What I don’t like is the fact that this apparently well-established revenue stream was completely unknown to me until the moment I was standing at the window, ready to complete my transaction. As one of my colleagues puts it, I felt hoo-dooed.

Like many states, North Carolina charges a number of assorted and sundry charges and fees to folks who are wishing to transact business here. Every home Seller that I represent pays “revenue stamps” to the state – most easily determined by dividing the purchase price by 500 – just for the privilege of selling their home to a ready, willing, and able Buyer.

The difference is that I make sure, and double-sure, and then triple-sure that my Sellers understand that this fee will be a part of their expected costs once their home is headed for the closing table. No surprises. No “oh, by the way.” And no hoo-doo.

It’s called communication, folks. And if you or someone you know wants to work with someone who believes in the power of that simple little tool, give me a call. Hopefully I’ll be out of the line at the DMV then.

Robert Flinn, REALTOR®
919-402-1242 (Direct Line)
919-698-2040 (Cell)
rflinn@fmrealty.com (email)

Newton's Cradle

2010-08-28T12:31:00.001-04:00

A Christmas gift when I was a kid was sort of an educational toy called “Newton’s Cradle.” It was constructed of five in-line steel balls suspended from a frame. To play with it, you’d lift one or two of the balls and allow them to swing back against the stationary balls in the middle. Lift and drop one ball and the one ball opposite would swing out and back. Lift and drop two balls and — voila — two balls at the other end would swing out and back in tandem. It was advertised to be endlessly fascinating. It wasn’t.

I’ve since learned that the toy was designed to illustrate Sir Isaac Newton’s third law of motion; that every action has an equal and opposite reaction. I think it was also supposed to inspire me to want to learn more about physics and science and stuff like that. That didn’t happen either.

I had a number of such toys growing up. One I remember the most was a box with springs and wires and electrical doo-dads like resistors and switches that let me experiment with low-grade electrical circuits. But that didn’t qualify me to be an electrician. The time I spent watching the steel balls click-clack back and forth didn’t turn me into a physicist or an engineer. And I can’t call myself a chemist because I spent a few afternoons mixing tiny spoonfuls of bizarre elements in a test tube on my parent’s front porch.

That’s why it’s puzzling when people will read a few things on the internet or garner a few facts from a talk-show host and then come to think they’re experts in something as complicated as the buying or selling of real estate. Over and over in the past few years I have seen Buyers – usually Buyers – bring a set of expectations to a transaction that are dramatically off-kilter. Sometimes they insist on wildly underestimating the value of a property. Sometimes they make decisions based on erroneous information. Other times they’ll take a stand on an issue that is so far away from a reasonable compromise with the Seller that the two sides can’t agree on a solution.

All of this usually results from a know-it-all attitude, combined with an unwillingness to listen to experienced counsel or a voice of reason. And sometimes the counsel those folks are receiving isn’t particularly experienced or reasonable.

I spend a great deal of time with my clients helping them understand the process of buying or selling a home. I say quite often that an important part of my job is to provide the information a Buyer or Seller needs to make a smart decision. Who’s the next person you can think of who needs that kind of Real Estate broker? I’d appreciate it if you would give them a call and tell them about me.

Robert Flinn, REALTOR®/ Broker
919-402-1242 (Direct Line)
919-698-2040 (Cell)
rflinn@fmrealty.com (email)

JOINING THE CLUB

2010-08-27T16:22:00.001-04:00

One of my managers at the Fonville Morisey office at Hwy 54 says that all of us who provide real estate brokerage services to our clients should move every four or five years… just so we can fully understand what our Sellers and Buyers are going through. But that’s not the reason that my wife and I have put our home on the market.

When our son, Cole, was finishing up his middle school years we looked for an upper school environment that would suit him well. We found it in Orange County at Cedar Ridge high school. We lived in Durham at the time and, after a year of making two 40-minute trips a day to and from Cedar Ridge, we decided to move to Hillsborough. Cole is now nearly half-way through his college career at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis. After graduation he won’t be home for quite a while and my wife and I find the home we live in is now a little too big and a little too far away from church and work and such. So we’re moving. Call it downsizing and centralizing.

Not that that makes it any easier. Like many of the Sellers I represent, I’ve gone though my quite comfortable home and intentionally made it w-a-y less comfortable. I’ve given my family the same counsel I give clients concerning “clutter,” and how distracting it is to a Buyer (and I now have a whole new perspective of how that counsel sounds to the Seller’s ear!). I’ve made that list of chores — big and small — that I’ve intended to get to forever but always found a way to put off. And — although it’s only been a few days at this writing — I’m experiencing the anxiety that Sellers feel regarding showings on their home: First, when am I going to have some, and Second, what might they NOT like about the place that I care for so much?

I tell clients all the time that the emotional ties we have to the places we live are strong… stronger than we might realize. Homes, I believe, live and breathe and communicate and knit themselves into the very fiber of our souls. Our homes represent safety and security, protection and love. The intentional rending of ourselves away from that — no matter what the reason — can be painful. So… for the 92 families that I’ve shepherded through this process since 2004…

I’m getting a new appreciation for how you might have felt along the way.
So maybe my manager is right. And I intend for this experience to make me a better representative for my clients in the future.

Robert Flinn, REALTOR®
919-698-2040 (Direct Line)
919-402-1242 (Office)
rflinn@fmrealty.com (email)

Dawn Of A Decade

2010-01-01T12:30:00.000-05:00

Maybe I haven’t been paying close enough attention, but I haven’t heard a great deal being made of the coming New Year. (Maybe we’re just sooo ready to be rid of this current one!) Still, when the clock strikes midnight on December 31st, we will all unhesitatingly march into the second decade of the new century.

A new year, marked by the replacement of two digits this year instead of just one. 2010... Two-thousand-ten… Twenty-ten... It’s various iterations seem to roll off the tongue more easily than its older brothers. Maybe that bodes well for a continuing improvement in the overall state of things.

And what a difference a decade makes! I clearly remember the anguish and anxiety that marked the march into the new millennium ten years ago. The “Y2K” programming bug was threatening to undermine everything that was connected to, operated with, or controlled by a computer. I recall countless hours devoted to the “what if” scenarios of the supposed threat. And — of course — just over a year-and-a-half later, the horrific attacks of 9/11 provided a much more realistic and palpable and lasting fear.

What if the amount of time and effort put into preparing for the Y2K bug had gone into awareness and prevention of terrorist activities against our homeland? Would we have been able to blunt the work of the masterminds of that terrible attack, saving thousands of lives? And what if the frenzied work currently underway in Washington is an equivalent effort in an equally wrong direction? What crises might be awaiting us next year… or the year after that… for which we’re not prepared?

Ah, but look what I’ve done. I’ve gone and slipped into “what if” mode. I’ve taken something that happened in the past and tried to put it into reality for the here and now, and for the future. It’s a poisonous exercise, and one that I sometimes have to counsel my Buyers and Sellers through during a real estate transaction. Twice in 2009 I had transactions fall apart because Buyers “what-iffed” themselves into a frenzy over what was really nothing. Like Y2K, the focus on the imagined outcome took away from what was really there. It resulted in weeks of wasted effort on everyone’s part.

So instead of “what if,” let’s focus on “what will be.” Perhaps that’s why imagery of New Year’s often shows the gnarled old man handing off the hourglass of time to the fresh, young baby. Because what we know from our past — what we’ve learned through our experience — is for the benefit… not the detriment… of what’s to come in our future.
Happy New Year!

Robert Flinn, REALTOR®
919-698-2040 (Direct Line)
919-402-1242 (Office)
rflinn@fmrealty.com (email)

Bleeping Oaks

2009-04-04T14:43:00.003-04:00

I live in a place that’s surrounded by beautiful trees. It’s one of the benefits of living in the hills of North Carolina.

In the summer, the canopy of trees around my house is a rich, soothing green and the rustling of the breeze moving through the leaves is peaceful. In the fall, the canopy turns into an astonishing palate of yellow, orange, and red, followed shortly by an avalanche of vegetation as A-L-L those leaves cascade down into my front yard and back yard.

I read somewhere this year that the average tree drops somewhere around 200,000 leaves in the fall… making a leaf harvest in the multi-millions a pretty real possibility at my house.

Except for the oak trees. Oaks, as you probably know, hold on to most of their leaves all winter long. Unless it’s dislodged by a particularly strong gust of wind or a squirrel or something, the dry oak leaf only falls when the new leaf bud forces the old leaf to let go of the twig to which its attached. I have a selection of oak trees around my house, and they tease me. Usually about a day after I get all the other leaves out of my yard, the oak trees casually drop a couple of hundred of their leaves, just to mess with my head... the bastards.

So I’ve been waiting and waiting for the last of the oak leaves to fall so I can finally finish the harvest. This morning, when I looked into the rich, blue Carolina sky… I noticed that all of the oak leaves were gone… replaced by the little strings of new growth that will eventually become a new green oak leaf.

I’m taking this as a good sign. Something is going to change. After days and weeks and months of dry, brittle, tasteless anticipation just hanging around, rustling for no earthly good and trashing up the place, I believe that something positive is going to happen.

You just wait. You’ll see.

Certain Doom In Uncertain Times

2009-04-01T10:00:00.003-04:00

Heard any good news lately?

Probably not, if you’ve had the television or the radio tuned to any of the local or mainstream news outlets or had the newspaper open to anything other than the recipe pages. Without question this has been a long and fertile season for near-hysterical news coverage. With my 20-year background in television, I might be more attuned to — and critical of — the ins-and-outs of broadcast news than other, more “normal” folks. And in my view, we’ve been under an absolute avalanche of negative news, dating back almost two years or more to the sub-prime mortgage meltdown. I, for one, have heard enough.

Several months ago, in an editorial in the Raleigh News and Observer entitled “Whoa On The Woe”, small business owner Matt Cook also suggested that we were hearing too much about “how bad things are” and questioned if things were really that bad to begin with. Mr. Cook writes “those who say we are in the worst shape since the 1930s must prefer interest rates in the teens (late ‘70s) and inflation in double digits (‘79-’80) to what we have today.”

Since Mr. Cook wrote his article, elements that define this recession have unquestionably gotten more severe. But in my opinion so have the ways that media outlets continually and incessantly report each and every negative bit of news related to the economy. Seriously, do we need to hear a report on each and every quarterly loss in American business… in each and every newscast? Is it necessary to begin each and every story with a paraphrase of “here’s another sign of our faltering economy”? Do we need to hear incessant arguments from legions of competing economists… none of whom really know whether any particular plan or strategy is going to work against the ever-shifting forces of businesses, brokers, and bureaucrats?

In the midst of the Great Depression, with the nation in far worse economic shape than it’s in today, newly-elected President Franklin Delano Roosevelt delivered the oft-quoted line from his inaugural address: ”...the only thing we have to fear is fear itself...” That sentence ended with “nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.”

I’m not an expert, but one doesn’t have to look too far or too hard to see that folks are reacting to what they hear by “hunkering down” and holding on to what they’ve got. And if consumer confidence is an element of any pending economic recovery, doesn’t it seem reasonable that confidence might go up — even just a little — if there were fewer reports of gloom and doom from every side?

In 1933, FDR used the relatively new thing called “radio” to break new ground and speak directly to the American people… his “fireside chats” were successful in blunting the “nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror.” Today, the media is everywhere... constantly tabulating every hiccup and sneeze of both our nation's economy and its leadership. Maybe our approach to reaching the same end as FDR should involve just turning the darn things off.

Robert Flinn, REALTOR®
919-698-2040 (Direct)
919-402-1242 (Office)
rflinn@fmrealty.com (email)

First-Time Home Buyer Tax Credit Details

2009-02-19T13:05:00.003-05:00

The $787 billion stimulus bill that President Barack Obama signed into law Tuesday includes measures designed to help revive the real estate market. Here are six things you need to know about the freshly-enacted $8,000 first-time home buyer tax credit.

1. Eight grand, new buyers: The tax credit included in the economic stimulus legislation is much narrower than the $15,000 proposal floated by the Senate. This credit is equivalent to 10 percent of the purchase price of the home--although it's capped at $8,000--and applies only to first-time home buyers and principal residences. But unlike the 2008 $7,500 home buyer tax credit, this one does not have to be repaid.

2. First time buyers defined: For the purpose of this legislation, a "first-time home buyer" is someone who hasn't owned a principal residence for three years before buying a house. (The date of purchase is considered the day that the title is transferred.) That means if you've owned a vacation home--but not a principal residence--within the past three years, you would still qualify for the credit.

3. 2009 buyers only: Only those who purchase a home on or after January 1 and before December 1, 2009 are eligible for the credit. Anyone who bought a home last year won't be able to take advantage of it. If the home is purchased and closed prior to April 15, 2009, the credit can be applied to 2008 taxes.

4. Income limits: The tax credit is subject to income limitations. Single buyers need a modified adjusted gross income of $75,000 or less to qualify for the full credit, that's $150,000 for married couples. Those earning more than these thresholds may be eligible for reduced credits.

5. Refundable: Because the tax credit is "refundable," qualified buyers can take advantage of it even if they don't have much tax liability.

6. Recapture: Buyers have to own the home for at least three years in order to capitalize on the credit. If they sell the home before then, they will have to return the credit to the government. (Exceptions will be made in certain cases, such as death or divorce.)

Source: U.S. News & World Report/usnews.com

Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan

2009-02-18T13:33:00.002-05:00

Here’s the summary of the Obama administration’s plan aimed at helping Distressed Homeowners. Key components of the Homeowner Affordability and Stability Plan are:

1. Affordability: Provide Access to Low-Cost Refinancing for Responsible Homeowners Suffering From Falling Home Prices
· Enabling Up to 4 to 5 Million Responsible Homeowners to Refinance: Mortgage rates are currently at historically low levels, providing homeowners with the opportunity to reduce their monthly payments by refinancing. But under current rules, most families who owe more than 80 percent of the value of their homes have a difficult time refinancing. Yet millions of responsible homeowners who put money down and made their mortgage payments on time have – through no fault of their own – seen the value of their homes drop low enough to make them unable to access these lower rates. As a result, the Obama Administration is announcing a new program that will help as many as 4 to 5 million responsible homeowners who took out conforming loans owned or guaranteed by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac to refinance through those two institutions.
· Reducing Monthly Payments: For many families, a low-cost refinancing could reduce mortgage payments by thousands of dollars per year:
Example: Consider a family that took out a 30-year fixed rate mortgage of $207,000 with an interest rate of 6.50% on a house worth $260,000 at the time. Today, that family has about $200,000 remaining on their mortgage, but the value of that home has fallen 15 percent to $221,000 – making them ineligible for today’s low interest rates that now generally require the borrower to have 20 percent home equity. Under this refinancing plan, that family could refinance to a rate near 5.16% – reducing their annual payments by over $2,300

2. Stability: Create A $75 Billion Homeowner Stability Initiative to Reach Up to 3 to 4 Million At-Risk Homeowners
· Helping Hard-Pressed Homeowners Stay in their Homes: This initiative is intended to reach millions of responsible homeowners who are struggling to afford their mortgage payments because of the current recession, yet cannot sell their homes because prices have fallen so significantly. Millions of hard-working families have seen their mortgage payments rise to 40 or even 50 percent of their monthly income – particularly those who received subprime and exotic loans with exploding terms and hidden fees. The Homeowner Stability Initiative helps those who commit to make reasonable monthly mortgage payments to stay in their homes – providing families with security and neighborhoods with stability.
· No Aid for Speculators: This initiative will go solely to helping homeowners who commit to make payments to stay in their home – it will not aid speculators or house flippers.
· Protecting Neighborhoods: This plan will also help to stabilize home prices for all homeowners in a neighborhood. When a home goes into foreclosure, the entire neighborhood is hurt. The average homeowner could see his or her home value stabilized against declines in price by as much as $6,000 relative to what it would otherwise be absent the Homeowner Stability Initiative.
· Providing Support for Responsible Homeowners: Because loan modifications are more likely to succeed if they are made before a borrower misses a payment, the plan will include households at risk of imminent default despite being current on their mortgage payments.
· Providing Loan Modifications to Bring Monthly Payments to Sustainable Levels: The Homeowner Stability Initiative has a simple goal: reduce the amount homeowners owe per month to sustainable levels. Using money allocated under the Financial Stability Plan and the full strength of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, this program has several key components:

§ A Shared Effort to Reduce Monthly Payments: For a sample household with payments adding up to 43 percent of his monthly income, the lender would first be responsible for bringing down interest rates so that the borrower’s monthly mortgage payment is no more than 38 percent of his or her income. Next, the initiative would match further reductions in interest payments dollar-for-dollar with the lender to bring that ratio down to 31 percent. If that borrower had a $220,000 mortgage, that could mean a reduction in monthly payments by over $400. That lower interest rate must be kept in place for five years, after which it could gradually be stepped up to the conforming loan rate in place at the time of the modification. Lenders will also be able to bring down monthly payments by reducing the principal owed on the mortgage, with Treasury sharing in the costs.
§ Incentives to Help Borrowers Stay Current: To provide an extra incentive for borrowers to keep paying on time, the initiative will provide a monthly balance reduction payment that goes straight towards reducing the principal balance of the mortgage loan. As long as a borrower stays current on his or her loan, he or she can get up to $1,000 each year for five years.
§ Reaching Borrowers Early: To keep lenders focused on reaching borrowers who are trying their best to stay current on their mortgages, an incentive payment of $500 will be paid to servicers, and an incentive payment of $1,500 will be paid to mortgage holders, if they modify at-risk loans before the borrower falls behind.

· Institute Clear and Consistent Guidelines for Loan Modifications: Treasury will develop uniform guidance for loan modifications across the mortgage industry, working closely with the bank agencies and building on the FDIC’s pioneering work. The Guidelines will be used for the Administration’s new foreclosure prevention plan. Moreover, all financial institutions receiving Financial Stability Plan financial assistance going forward will be required to implement loan modification plans consistent with Treasury Guidance. Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will use these guidelines for loans that they own or guarantee, and the Administration will work with regulators and other federal and state agencies to implement these guidelines across the entire mortgage market. The agencies will seek to apply these guidelines when permissible and appropriate to all loans owned or guaranteed by the federal government, including those owned or guaranteed by Ginnie Mae, the Federal Housing Administration, Treasury, the Federal Reserve, the FDIC, Veterans’ Affairs and the Department of Agriculture.
· Other Comprehensive Measures to Reduce Foreclosure and Strengthen Communities
§ Require Strong Oversight, Reporting and Quarterly Meetings with Treasury, the FDIC, the Federal Reserve and HUD to Monitor Performance
§ Allow Judicial Modifications of Home Mortgages During Bankruptcy for Borrowers Who Have Run Out of Options
§ Provide $1.5 Billion in Relocation and Other Forms of Assistance to Renters Displaced by Foreclosure and $2 Billion in Neighborhood Stabilization Funds
§ Improve the Flexibility of Hope for Homeowners and Other FHA Programs to Modify and Refinance At-Risk Borrowers

3. Supporting Low Mortgage Rates By Strengthening Confidence in Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac:
· Ensuring Strength and Security of the Mortgage Market: Today, using funds already authorized in 2008 by Congress for this purpose, the Treasury Department is increasing its funding commitment to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to ensure the strength and security of the mortgage market and to help maintain mortgage affordability.
· Provide Forward-Looking Confidence: The increased funding will enable Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to carry out ambitious efforts to ensure mortgage affordability for responsible homeowners, and provide forward-looking confidence in the mortgage market.
· Treasury is increasing its Preferred Stock Purchase Agreements to $200 billion each from their original level of $100 billion each.
· Promoting Stability and Liquidity: In addition, the Treasury Department will continue to purchase Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac mortgage-backed securities to promote stability and liquidity in the marketplace.
· Increasing The Size of Mortgage Portfolios: To ensure that Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac can continue to provide assistance in addressing problems in the housing market, Treasury will also be increasing the size of the GSEs’ retained mortgage portfolios allowed under the agreements – by $50 billion to $900 billion – along with corresponding increases in the allowable debt outstanding.
· Support State Housing Finance Agencies: The Administration will work with Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to support state housing finance agencies in serving homebuyers.
· No EESA or Financial Stability Plan Money: The $200 billion in funding commitments are being made under the Housing and Economic Recovery Act and do not use any money from the Financial Stability Plan or Emergency Economic Stabilization Act/TARP.

From: Wall Street Journal, WSJ.com Washington Wire

Straight Talk - What The Media Doesn't Want You To Know

2009-02-14T15:42:00.002-05:00

Every morning I spend at least a few minutes — and sometimes more than that — scanning selected news and information sites concerning the economy, and the real estate business in particular. I don’t need to tell you that news about our economy isn’t particularly pretty. But I do believe it’s important to recognize that ALL of the information that we read, see, and hear is passing through different filters, and in the process the impact of what we learn can be manipulated. In some cases the real truth can be — and is being — obscured.

Case in point: The daily news concerning besieged mortgage markets.

Julie Straub, Senior Loan Officer for F-M Lending said it well a few weeks ago: “If you listen to the media you would think mortgage money was not available,” Julie wrote me. “I can tell you after almost 23 years in the mortgage industry, that is just not true. We have an amazing number of different loans available with rates at unheard-of lows.”

Mortgages are in the news a lot these days. But here are some facts about the housing and mortgage industry that you might NOT have heard:
● 30% of all real estate in this country is owned free and clear of a mortgage. Putting that in perspective, of the 10 houses that surround you on your block, the homeowners in 3 of them own them outright.
● 93.9% of homes with mortgages are current in their payments. Subtracting those three homes that are paid off, only one homeowner around you has been late or missed a payments to his lender.
● 97.2% of homes with mortgages are NOT in foreclosure. But even that one neighbor isn’t so far behind that he’s in trouble with the bank.
● 40% of foreclosures nationally are non-owner occupied properties (rentals, investments, or second homes). There is a reason that Nevada, California, and Florida are constantly topping the lists of states with the highest foreclosure rates. Those states are meccas for vacation homes or investment and rental property. When the exotic mortgages written to purchase those homes started triggering higher monthly payments within the last two years, the owners quickly went into default on their payments.

The burden for cleaning up the mess falls on all of us, but the media never talks to those four out of ten who walked away from their commitment to their lender just because they decided to give up their vacation home.

Without question, we are under a blizzard of bad news, and I believe we have been for the past two years. Julie Straub has some more encouraging words: “This is probably the best time in most of our lives to purchase a home. Interest rates are at historical low levels. Not since the 1950’s have we seen rates as low as they are today. In addition, we live in an area that is constantly looked at as a place people want to move. North Carolina was the fourth fastest growing state last year. The Triangle is constantly listed on the ‘best of’ lists.”

Also, please remember this: Real Estate is an incredibly local business. The state of things in one part of the country does not translate to ALL parts of the country. What might be true in one area might not be — and probably is not — true in another area. The next time you hear a news report concerning “how bad things are” in the Triangle real estate market, please call me for some perspective… and for the truth.

Robert Flinn, Realtor/Broker
Fonville Morisey Realty, Inc.
919-698-2040 (Direct)
919-402-1242 (Office)

Good News!

2009-02-09T07:22:00.001-05:00

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Pending home sales increased as more buyers took advantage of improved affordability conditions, according to the National Association of Realtors®. Big gains in the South and Midwest offset modest declines in other regions.
The Pending Home Sales Index, a forward-looking indicator based on contracts signed in December, rose 6.3 percent to 87.7 from an upwardly revised reading of 82.5 in November, and is 2.1 percent higher than December 2007 when it was 85.9.
Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said the index shows a modest rebound. “The monthly gain in pending home sales, spurred by buyers responding to lower home prices and mortgage interest rates, more than offset an index decline in the previous month,” he said. “The biggest gains were in areas with the biggest improvements in affordability.”
NAR’s Housing Affordability Index rose 10.9 percent in December to 158.8, the highest on record. The HAI shows that the relationship between home prices, mortgage interest rates and family income is the most favorable since tracking began in 1970.
“Significant uncertainty still clouds the housing market despite improved affordability conditions. For a sustainable housing market recovery and, hence, sustainable economic recovery, we need a significant housing stimulus and mortgage availability for qualified borrowers,” Yun added.
NAR President Charles McMillan, a broker with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage in Dallas-Fort Worth, said the rise in contract signings is encouraging. “However, housing activity remains weak compared with potential demand, and the market is fragile given the economic backdrop,” he said.
“We can’t take our eye off the need to stimulate housing, which can set the foundation for an economic recovery,” McMillan said. “Last week’s actions in the House to eliminate the repayment feature on the first-time home buyer tax credit, and to raise mortgage loan limits, are helpful. However, we need to take additional steps to meaningfully draw down inventory and stabilize home prices.”
Yun said the outlook for housing and the economy is murky. “Although Congress and the Obama administration are taking steps to help the economy, the stimulus package must deal with the root cause of the economic downturn, and apply the right fix to turn it around. If housing is ignored, a significant downward overshooting of home prices would continue to drag the economy down independent of the scale of the stimulus,” Yun said.

Risky Business

2009-01-09T08:20:00.003-05:00

What's the most dangerous thing you've ever done? Friends of mine have snapped tendons, blown out knees, and broken various bones while pursuing their individual passions. And while I admit to my share of risky behavior, I can’t claim my friends’ level of glory; I've been fortunate to have only suffered a broken wrist when I was 7 and a cut forehead that required ten or so stitches when I was about 12.

Things that are dangerous are usually also intensely thrilling… and that’s probably the basis of their appeal. The rush of adrenaline that comes from an activity that most of your friends would call insane can be addictive. There’s also something about facing — or ignoring — your fears that many folks find exhilarating… and liberating.

Through much of 2008, my business has been all about living with people’s fears. Specifically, the fears that Buyers have had this year concerning their perception of the real estate market in the Triangle. Very early in the spring market, I called it right. When folks would ask “how’s business” my response was that it felt as though Buyers were nervous… fearful… and seemed to be holding back. And that was long before the economy started its current freefall.

So what’s next? An adjustment. A reset. A recovery.

Here in the Triangle, we are currently seeing a drop in the number of homes on the market. There were 18,600 homes listed in TMLS at one point in September. The numbers fell in October, November, and December. As I write this, there are 17,619 listings currently on the market in the Triangle. This drop in inventory is a good thing. One very smart person I know anticipates that inventory will get low enough again in the next year or so that we could even be looking at a housing shortage because many builders are no longer building. When this happens, the value of resale homes will begin to increase again as demand outpaces supply.

But in my view, it’s only going to begin when people get over their fear. At some point, the log-jam that is paralyzing consumer spending has to break. Rates are low. Inventory is available. Millions and millions and millions are waiting to be lent. Bargains are waiting to be had. But Buyers are still nervous.

Maybe the tide will begin to turn in a few weeks when a new base of power takes the helm in our nation’s Capitol. Our new Commander-In-Chief became just that by convincing folks to hope. So… okay, Sir. That’s mine. Get to work on it… and God be with you.
My hope for you is that your New Year is happy and prosperous. And my promise to you is that we’ll ride this thing out… together.

Robert Flinn, REALTOR®
919-698-2040 (Direct Line)
919-402-1242 (Office)
rflinn@fmrealty.com (email)

The Short Sale

2008-12-30T22:45:00.004-05:00

Will you see more "Foreclosure" signs in your neighborhood? It depends on whether the homeowner learns about an alternative called "The Short Sale."

Mortgage loans during the first half of this decade were deceptively easy to get. Now, as the impact of the sub-prime mortgage crisis is becoming more and more clear, thousands of homeowners are resorting to a method to sell their home for less than they owe on it as a means to escape foreclosure.

The process many distressed Sellers are using is called a “short sale,” and if done properly, it allows for a “win-win” between the lender and the beleaguered homeowner.

Before exploring the process further, let’s look at the numbers… they’re staggering. The mortgage industry says that sub-prime lending practices between 2001 and 2004 raised the mortgage default rate to between 3% and 6%. The good news is that upwards of 94% of all borrowers are making payments on their mortgages, but that 6% of borrowers who are in default amounts to $548 billion (with a “B”) in property nationally headed to foreclosure.

So what is a short sale? Simply put, a short sale is when an owner who’s in default on his or her loan sells the home to a third party for less than the amount owed, and the bank forgives the difference. The primary winner is the owner, because the transaction reads as a paid lien or judgment — rather than a foreclosure — on his or her credit report. But the bank also wins because they capture as much of the non-performing loan as possible. And neighbors and communities win because the stigma of a foreclosed property can have a negative impact on other homes on the market nearby.

Homeowners who are having difficult making their mortgage payments and who may be considering a short sale must generally meet three qualifying criteria: 1) they must be at least two months behind on their payments, 2) they must be able to prove a legitimate hardship, and 3) they must have little or no equity in their home.

So why don’t more short sales happen? Some homeowners don’t realize that their home qualifies for a short sale. (By definition, if the amount owed on a home is more than the current market value, the property is a candidate for a short sale.) Further, many homeowners already behind on their mortgage payments don’t realize that a short sale is an option. According to Freddie Mac, of homeowners who have loans that enter into the foreclosure process, 50 percent did not have contact with the lender before foreclosures began. Others might only have talked with the loan servicer’s collection department — whose income is based on collecting a debt… not finding ways to “work things out.” A short sale is also a great deal more complicated than a “normal” real estate transaction. In addition to the normal cast of characters (Buyer, Seller, two agents and Buyer’s lender), a short sale can also include the Seller’s loan servicer, the loan servicer’s loss mitigation department, housing counselor, junior lienholders, mortgage investors and mortgage insurers.

The first step for a homeowner is to determine if a short sale is an option. Contact a professional Real Estate Broker — like me — who is certified to participate in a short sale transaction. After consultation, a plan can be put into action to guide the homeowner through the short sale maze. If you have questions concerning short sales, please don’t hesitate to call me at 919-402-1242 or e-mail me at rflinn@fmrealty.com.

Does Population Growth Equal Housing Growth?

2008-12-28T21:55:00.011-05:00

The headlines were abuzz a week or so ago, talking for once about a positive story: North Carolina's population continues to grow. More than 180,000 people moved to the Tarheel State in the year that ended July 1, 2008. Since last summer, our state grew at a rate of 2 percent -- the fourth-highest in the nation and more than double the national growth rate.

Why is this good news? Because population growth mandates that people have to live somewhere. Statistically speaking, nearly 70% of people who live in our area own the homes they live in. So, of those 180,000 folks moving here, 126,000 of them will be looking for a home to buy in the near future.

Real Estate colleagues of mine in other parts of the country would do just about anything to be able to claim statistics like that.

Here in the Triangle, we are seeing a drop in the number of homes on the market. There were 18,600 homes listed in TMLS at one point in September. And the numbers fell in October, November, and December. At this writing, more than 17,600 listings are currently on the market in the Triangle. But this drop in inventory is a good thing. One very smart person I know anticipates that inventory might get low enough again in the next year or so that we could even be looking at a housing shortage because many builders are no longer building. When this happens, the value of resale homes will begin to increase again as demand outpaces supply.

With the firestorm of negative news concerning the economy, I thought you'd appreciate a glimmer of hope.

I hope everyone has a very happy and prosperous New Year!

Robert Flinn, REALTOR®
919-698-2040 (Direct)
919-402-1242 (Office)
rflinn@fmrealty.com (email)

What Good I Have Done

2008-12-21T20:28:00.003-05:00

When the Christmas tree goes up at my house, it’s accompanied by a televised holiday classic that we’ve recorded at some point over the years. It might be “A Charlie Brown Christmas” or “Rudolph The Red Nosed Reindeer” or the “Saturday Night Live Christmas Special” that’s playing in the background while lights and decorations go on the tree. Most of these shows were recorded directly off the air — with commercial breaks intact — and so spots from 10, 15, and 20 years ago are saved for posterity on VHS.

My career before Real Estate was in the local television business…. making TV commercials that tried to convince viewers how great the News team was or how accurate our weathercaster could be… or even what was going to be on Oprah tomorrow at 4:00. I spent 18 years in that line of work and yet, of all the television shows we’ve saved in our Christmas archives, not one of them has any of my work on them. It’s like all of that effort… all of that time invested… simply didn’t count for anything in the long run.

By contrast, this week 11 families will be celebrating their first Christmas in a new home that I helped them acquire this year. 9 others will open gifts under their tree for the second Christmas, 8 more will celebrate their third Christmas and 12 more will be celebrating their fourth yuletide season after buying a home with my help. And that doesn’t include the folks who sold houses through my affiliation with Fonville Morisey and who are now living in other places.

I much prefer the latter legacy.

One doesn’t have to look too far to realize that the world can often be a pretty crummy place. Difficult circumstances, evil people, or just plain bad luck can rain down on us at any given moment. The place we call “home” is where we can come at the end of a rotten day, close the door and shut out all of that conflict. “Home” is oursanctuary… it’s our refuge. It’s where love resides. It’s where care endures.

In my work, I have the privilege of being able to help people find that special place for themselves and their family. It’s a wonderful moment when I open the front door for someone, they walk into the home for the first time, and they get a sense that they’re welcome there… that there’s peace and contentment there… that they’re “home.” And I helped put them there.

And believe me, that’s way better than having a commercial on television!

Robert Flinn, REALTOR®
919-698-2040 (Direct)
919-402-1242 (Office)
rflinn@fmrealty.com (email)