A Chapel Hill Real Estate Home Inspection Story or The Emperor Has No Clothes

The buyers agent told me the client was a 'worrywart" but that's not unusual. After all, a home is the largest purchase most people make and that's one reason to have a buyers agent. Let the agent take care of details so the client doesn't have to worry. 

I have found  the longer it takes to negotiate a contract the less chance there is of working things out. This one took over two weeks. I guess with that and the buyers agents warning I should have expected trouble.

The inspections went fine but a couple of days later water and "some nasty looking black stuff" was discovered in the crawl space under some plastic containers.

The BA said it had rained since the inspection and that's why the inspector didn't notice it. She thought she should get a couple of quotes from waterproofers to find the extent of and cost to correct the problem.

I was shocked when she sent me the two quotes, one for $3000 and one for just under that amount. One quote called for a sump pump. The waterproofers said that they could tell that it was a long standing problem because of the black on the block and the change in consistency of the soil.

Now, I've been in the real estate business in Chapel Hill  for a long time including 12 years as a home builder. Only once did a crawl space require a sump pump and that was a situation with a spring under the house.

I called the seller and asked if he had ever noticed standing water under the house. He said no, The area in question was were he kept the containers of oil for the turkey fryer and he had always just walked around that area.

The buyer was sure that there was an underground river under the house and wanted to back out of the contract.

My contractor son- in- law took a look and realized that it wasn't water at all and that black stuff was turkey frying oil that had leaked from the containers. He said he could remove the oil and fill the low spot for $100. Much better than the $3000 bids the BA gave us. 

The buyer didn't believe it wasn't water. How could two waterproofers be wrong? (I think they were just hungry, we've had a drought) so we hired an engineer to inspect the crawl space and write a report. He found no sign of water intrusion and a properly graded crawl space.

The buyers still wanted out, forfeited their earnest money and terminated the contract. Because of cooking oil they were sure was water!!!

We put the house back on the market and after about 10 days the BA agent called me and said I know this is strange but the buyers thought things over want back in the contract. The sellers decided to wait for a couple of second showings and as it turned out we had two very good new offers on the home and it sold for over the asking price.

I can't help but wonder what those nervous buyers will do if they buy a house with a real and not imaginary problem.

Should I use a buyers agent for new construction and if so will the builder pay the commission?

Should I use a buyers agent for new construction and if so will the builder pay the commission?

A similar question was posted on a city data forum a couple of days ago and I thought it was a good question. What you don't know really can hurt you! 

You should use a buyers agent when buying new construction. In the Triangle Area of NC builders welcome agents who bring clients and generally pay a half % less commission than resale homes although in this slower market there are often incentives that help with the difference. It is important to have your buyers agent before visiting the property because the builder is paying for the agent to bring the customer, not because you want representation. Sometimes if you have already been to a site and registered without an agent  the builder will go ahead and pay a commission to your after the fact buyers agent because they value the agents relationship and want future business. I would have your agent ask about this because the builder rep will just tell you no. 

You do need to research your agent. You don't want someone who brings you to the site and then just shows up at closing to pick up a check.

Now for the reasons you really need representation. There are so many I'm not sure where to start. I could write a book about this but here are a few reasons to start.

The lot-

There are several pitfalls here. Usually in a new home development you pick your lot from a pretty site plan. It really doesn't tell you much . An agent who is familiar with new construction will want to see the development construction drawings. These show the areas of cut and fill, location of erosion control basins, drain pipes and stone (these can be ugly and dangerous), location of utilities (do you want a big green box in your front yard?), streetlights and landscaping. There is usually a topo map with the existing grade and the new grade after development. The flood maps have been recently been updated in our area and you need to make sure your new home won't be in a flood plain.

Your agent should be able to look at the lot and see if there are any potential drainage issues. Water problems can be on going and affect the resale potential of the home.

Sure, you can research and find out if busy roads or power lines are planned, both the kiss of death for resale, but you may not be able to find out the inside information about what's going on nearby that isn't public record yet. 

The builder-

Sometimes even a good buyers agent can't protect you from a builder who is having financial problems. Builders are pretty good at hiding this but an agent who has been around will know the signs and may have heard from suppliers who's not paying their bills. Your initial deposit can be huge, sometimes as much as 10% and you need to be sure sure the builder isn't borrowing from Peter to pay Paul.

Get the best deal-

A good agent will know what builders will do with price and incentives. The on site agents job is to get the best deal for the builder but a buyers agent with a good relationship with the on-site agent and other agents who have sold in the neighborhood can usually find out the real story.

Financing-

There can be lots of options here for a pre-sale. Some builders want you to contract to purchase the lot from them then you go get the construction loan. Usually in this case you are responsible for the interest on the loan.

Others will want a large deposit with a contract, then they get the lot released from the bank and get the construction loan.

A production builder usually wants a deposit of 5% or so with a portion of upgrades pre paid and then the remainder at closing.

The plan-

I recently visited a site with a client. The on site agent showed us plans and  pricing for a home that hadn't been started yet. She offered to show us the same plan that was finished but sold. My client loved it. Looking around I noticed that the family room and kitchen looked  larger the floor plan we had seen in the office. The agent insisted that it was exactly the same.  I went back to the office, had her get the construction drawings of both houses and showed her the difference. My clients had not noticed this and if they hadn't had an agent they may have contracted for a different home than they expected. A good new construction buyers agent can read the plan and help you visualize what the final product will be.

  Options-

Your agent will know what options have the most perceived value for resale and will know what you can expect to pay for upgrades based on the builders standards. Your agent should help you with the selections.

 The contract-

 Builders contracts protect the builder not you. In my experience they won't change anything in the contract but you need to know hat you are agreeing to.It's usually a good idea to consult an attorney to go over the contract with you.

Construction-

Your agent should keep a close watch on the house during construction and inform you of anything that doesn't look right. Your agent should be a good sounding board and help you realize what it important and what isn't.

Inspections-

Just because the home is new doesn't mean you shouldn't have a private inspector.Your agent will know who is really good with new construction and should give you several names.

Closing-There are lots of details and your agent should make this worry free.

Then there are the unexpected things that always happen that your agent will know how to handle. 

Life and Real Estate in Chapel Hill and the Triangle ~Spartacus Restaurant

Besides being a day to visit construction sites and look at Triangle real estate Sunday is a good day to go out to lunch. The Triangle, Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill was written up in the November issue of Bon Appetite as the "Americas next culinary hot spot in the country" citing "reinvigorated downtown areas, rising star chefs, and local farms.".

Although not one of the ten restaurants profiled, one of our favorites is the Sunday buffet at Spartacus http://www.spartacusrestaurant.com/index.php in Durham. 

 We like to get there at 12:00 when it opens. It's usually a family affair for us with my daughter and husband, sister, brother in law and their children along with who ever might be in town visiting. It's also a family affair for the owners, the Kalfas family. Mrs. Kalfas thought it was pretty funny that I wanted to take pictures of the food.

I can't even begin to remember everything on the buffet. We started out with salads including chickpea, orzo, potato, pasta, green bean, Greek, tomato and cucumber, shrimp with cocktail sauce,stuffed grape leaves and, of course, hummus and Tzadziki. Here's a picture of the salads.

I.

After a short break we went on to the entrees. This week there were three fish dishes,  salmon with dill cream sauce, fried sea bass and grilled sea bass, steamed mussels, mousaka (with meat and without), grilled lemon chicken, gyro lamb, several kinds of pastas with seafood and cream sauces, and spanakopita. There were also lots of different vegetables, potatoes and rice. I'm sure I left some dishes out but you get the idea...

 I almost forgot desert: Petite Baklava and Galactobureko(Custard baked in phyllo dough with cinnamon and honey and rice pudding.

After THAT lunch we wanted a nap but needed exercise so we headed over to the flea market at the NC State Fairgrounds and spent the rest of the beautiful afternoon. I'll fill you in on the flea market another time.

Chatham County real estate~new developments~ part 1

Our art tour last Sunday turned out to be as much about real estate as art. We visited the art studios in Fearrington village and then took the next street past Fearrington, Mt Gilead Church Rd. This area of Chatham near HWY 64 is turning out to be the priciest area for new developments.

Be careful  around  construction

Sunday is the best day to visit construction sites because it's not nearly as dangerous. You still need to be very careful driving on roads under construction. It's very easy to run over a rock or a manhole cover sticking up and tear out the bottom of your car. I have found that AAA doesn't cover construction sites.

The Hamptons 

We have been watching the development of The Hamptons and took a better look Sunday. Windjam is developing 89 lots on 183 acres with lot sizes between 1 and 6 acres. The lot prices are in the two and three hundred thousand range. With those lot prices I would expect the homes to be priced at $1,000,000 and up. The first phase is just finishing up with a very attractive entry being completed now. The lots are very pretty with some mature trees and pasture. The home sites have wonderful vista views. If you prefer a more wooded lot phase two and three will be for you. The roads are just being cut in so it will be a while before the lots are on the market. We drove in the new phase and were impressed with the view from high on the ridge.

Windjam has specific archetectural gidelines for the homes. I especially like the design required for the drive entry for each home site.

Baldwin Peak 

Next we went a little way down Mt. Gilead and turned on Bynum Ridge. New lots in Baldwin Peak just came on the market and I wanted to see what you would get for the $600,000 and up lot price. It's advertised as an exclusive gated 10 acre estate lot community. I've heard that some the areas best homebuilders will be building in the neighborhood. There isn't much to see yet. I'll have more on the builders and plans as the information comes available.

If you are interested in a new home in the Triangle give me a call 919-274-4365 or email me Marianne@Howright.com. I'll fill you in with all of the inside information.

Chatham County Artists Guild Studio Tour ~The first weekend~Saturday

Chip

 Buddy

Kristin

What fun!!

My daughter Kristin Williams, my husband Chip, faithful dog Buddy and I had good intentions to get an early start Saturday. We did pretty well but had to go back home for my checkbook. It was necessary because most artists don't take credit/debit cards and you know what happens if you go shopping without money. I didn't want to take any chances of missing the art piece of a lifetime.                                 

We pretty much followed our schedule that I wrote about Friday and I thought I would report on what we found.

Our first stop at Rusty Sieck's Chicken Bridge Pottery was as expected. People lined up to buy. My husband saw a platter he liked, showed it to me, set it down when I didn't rave about it, and a woman quickly snatched it up. He found a small vase he liked a lot that he bought but it was the missed platter that he kept thinking about.

Chips Vase

On to Siglinda Scarpa's, where we stayed for a long time. I know one of her terra cotta cooking pots is in our future but we just couldn't bring ourselves to buy one. It was close.....

In my future?

We continued on the tour but didn't buy anything else until we came to Sally Resnick Rockriver's studio. She specializes in blown glass and ceramics. Kristin bought a wall hanging that also could be a platter. Chip and Kristin also bought blown glass ornaments. Chip likes to hang them in the window to enjoy all year long.Kristin's Wall HangingGlass Ornaments

We toured on stopping at Mark Hewitt,' to take a look at his new kiln . Chip talked with Mark a while and told me that he had a new insight into his work from the conversation.

Marks Pot

Our last stop was Rita Baldwin's. Kristin had seen her work on display at the new Carolina Brewery in Pittsboro and was interested in seeing her show and studio. Kristin's favorite painting of the Haw River was sold but she saw another she liked almost as well and took it home.

Kristin's painting

By then it was getting dark. We had visited ten studios and had a wonderful day full of interesting art and artists.

Chatham County Artists Guild Studio Tour

 It's the next two weekends

I'm really excited about the Chatham County Artists Guild Studio Tour this weekend December 1st and 2nd and next weekend December 8th and 9th. My husband and I have been going for the past several years and look forward to seeing the work of our favorite artists in their studios and also meeting and seeing the work of new to the tour artists. There are over 50 artists on the tour so it's kind of overwhelming to try and see them all.

On Friday night November 30th from 7-9 there is a free to the public artists reception at the Pittsboro campus of the Central Carolina community college. This is a juried show and the winners will be announced at 8PM.

I'll tell you about our favorite artists but be sure to check out what looks interesting to you. Art is personal and that'd what makes it so much fun. We tend to skip around on the tour so use the map to plan your route.

Our first stop will be at Siglinds Scarpa's studio, The Goathouse Gallery.

The Goathouse Gallery

680 Alton Alston Rd

Pittsboro, 919.542.6815

www.SiglindaScarpa.com

clay & mixed media

This is a picture of her studio minus the beautiful tame peacock that's usually in the yard. However we did get a picture of one of her goats.

 Siglinda does beautiful terra cotta cooking pots and platters that are meant to be used in the oven but are so beautifully decorated you might think twice. Please visit her web site to see examples of her work. She also makes exquisite tea pots. We bought a beautiful small tea pot with oak leaves and acorns on the handle and a little toad for the stopper a couple of years ago but haven't used it for tea because I like it so much I'm afraid it will go flying up in the air if I touch it.

Usually Siglinds serves some wonderful Italian dish that she has cooked in one of her special pots and had hot cider.

Next we'll stop by Rusty Sieck's studio.

Chicken Bridge Pottery

1469 Chicken Bridge Rd,

Pittsboro, 919.545.2077

www.ChickenBridgePottery.com

clay, stoneware & porcelain

We have several of Rusty's pieces and have given his work as gifts. Last year there was a line out the door of people waiting to buy so get there early. I'm not sure if he keeps things back to add as things sell so you might want to check about that.

My favorite stop for Xmas gifts is Norma Hawthorne's home/studio. Here is a picture of Norma and an artist friend. Norma and her husband built a really cool home a few years ago. It's stucco, passive solar with finished concrete floors. they have a wonderful country view.

110 Blue Heron Farm Rd. Pittsboro

919.274.6194

Her knitted scarves, hats and other pieces feature combinations of natural fibers and are beautiful and unusual. I usually buy quite a bit then decide what I want to keep and what to gives as gifts when I get home. It's hard to give anything away.

We really enjoy Forest Greenslades ,Forest Dwellers Sculpture Garden

149 Tinderwood
Fearrington Village
919.545.9743
website: www.forrestgreenslade.com

Another favorite potter is Mark Hewitt. Mark is pretty famous and his work goes quickly. We have a few  of his pieces but my favorites are the huge jars and pots. If we ever get around to building a new house we'll buy a couple of big pots for the front porch.

424 Johnny Burke Road

 Pittsboro
919.542.2371

http://www.hewittpottery.com/

Salt glazed and alkaline-glazed stoneware

Just down the street from Mark is Rita Baldwin of Hanks Chapel Orchids so be sure and stop by and take a look at her work and say hello.

2698 Hanks Chapel Road
Pittsboro
919.542.6076
email:rita@emji.net

There are so many more artists to see so plan on taking a day or two. Let me know what you like best.

Around Town~Chatham County Orchids

 Use orchids when staging a home

When I'm staging a home for sale I love to use live orchids. The blooms last at least 30 days, (usually enough time to get the house sold!) and add simple, large structural interest without being fussy. Here is an orchid arrangement in the dining room of my new listing at 107 Buckeye Lane, Sunset Creek in Chapel Hill. 

Today I took a drive through beautiful country side to my orchid supplier and orchid babysitter in Chatham County, Orchids by Hanks Chapel.

They sell many orchid hybrids and species and will arrange them for you in one of their containers or you can bring your own. The best part for me is that for a small monthly fee I can bring them back when the blooms are gone for orchid pampering until they come into bloom again.

I like having the same plant for years but always seem to buy new ones when I am there. They also do rentals and arrangements and rentals of live orchids for weddings and special events.

Orchids by Hanks Chapel is really a family business. Rital Baldwin, her son Jeff and wife Agustina are full of helpful information and Augustina is especially good at arrangements and suggesting good orchid combinations.

Jeff and Augustina's have been bringing their baby Otto to the greenhouses since he was born and now at about a year and a half he's running around trying to help with the business too.

Rita is also an artist and has just remodled her barn for her studio. It's a wonderful place to display her art of mostly Chatham County, NC country scenes.

Rita's work will be on display in her studio the first two weekends in December as part of the Chatham Artists

Chatham County is beautiful. Let me know if you would like me to help you find just the right country scene for you.

Always ask, and then ask again

Yesterday I wrote about this being the time of the year to get a bargain from a national homebuilder. Last year at this time I had an experience that really demonstrated this.

Lake Hogan farms is one of my favorite neighborhoods in Chapel Hill where I have sold many homes.

 David Weekley Homes was just finishing out the neighborhood with three lots for new homes remaining plus the model home left to sell. They wanted to move the on site agent on to another neighborhood and listed the last four with me. The model was to be returned to new condition before pricing and putting it in the MLS. It was a beautiful home so I had a list of people who wanted to be notified when it was listed on the market.

Only one of the three lots had a home started on it yet and I had been emailing with a ReMax agent, Dave, about it. He had a buyer that he was going to take out to the site on that Sat. but I wasn't able to meet him as I had another appointment. Dave said if his buyer liked the neighborhood he would call me and we would meet on Monday. On Sat I got a call from Dave who said he was at the model and it looked like it was being fixed up to sell. The workers were there and could they take a look? I told him to go ahead. It always helps to see a finished home. Later I got a call from Dave who said they wanted to make an offer on the model. I was confused because ReMax Dave had told me his buyer wanted to custom build. Well, that was when I realized that this was a different Dave! He and his wife just happened to be driving through the neighborhood and saw the dumpster outside the model. I told him that it wasn't officially on the market and wasn't for sale at that time. Dave said "does that mean I can't make an offer?" I said of course I would present all offers but for them not to get their hopes up as I had a list of names of interested buyers waiting for it to become available and the builder knew that.

We met at the house. I explained agency in North Carolina to the buyers who them chose to work with me as a dual agent. We filled out the buyer agency and dual agency forms and went on the discuss the details. As a dual agent in North Carolina I can't advise the buyers what to offer or the seller what to take but I could share with them the market analysis that I had just prepared for the neighborhood. They decided on an offer price and I wrote it up. It was lower than I had suggested to the builder for a sales price and I didn't think they had a chance to get the house but did spend the time to go through the house to make sure everything they wanted was on the offer. That's really important because with a builder once the house is under contract you can forget any changes/additions. I sent it over to the builder who called me the first thing in the morning and said if they could close by December 31st they had a deal. I was shocked and very happy for the buyers. Everything went smoothly and the house closed on time with buyers who got the house they really wanted and a deal too.

This is why I advise to ask for what you want, ask again and ask again in a different way because if you don't ask the answer is always no.

It’s time to get a deal on a new home!

 It's time to get a deal on a new home!

No, our Triangle market is not having a housing slump but there are deals out there and if you can close before the end of the year you can really save some money. In the past years new homes have almost always sold for the list price with builders offering small incentives for using their in house lender and attorney but no discounts or free options. This has changed not because the Triangle is experiencing a slowdown but from what the builders are experiencing in other markets.

Our market has been holding up very well and hasn't had the drop in prices seen in other markets. With a strong job market and responsible growth prices have continued to rise. According to the July 2007 issue of Forbes Magazine Raleigh is #1 on the list of best places to sell a home.

So, in an area like Raleigh/Durham and Chapel Hill that is still a sellers market how do you get a deal on a new home?

The answer is to buy a new home from a national homebuilder that is suffering from the down turn in other markets. In many cases the corporate offices in other parts of the country are calling for an across the board cut in prices to reduce inventory.

Here are a few examples of national homebuilders offering incentives in the Triangle:

Centex Homes~ Year end Event

M/I Homes is offering discounts and special financing incentives

Beazer Homes is having a special Unwrap a Home for the Holidays promotion

 Last week a representative from Hovnanian Homes came to our Coldwell Banker HPW Chapel Hill sales meeting with a wonderful breakfast to tell the agents of their huge price reductions and incentives.

Most national builders will have specials but be sure to ask, and then ask again and then maybe ask again in a different way and you'll get an idea of what they will do.

Close by the end of the year

You'll find deals in almost all new home neighborhoods especially if you can close before the end of the year. This really is the key to the most savings. The builders want to make their year end numbers and will sometimes give surprising deals. It will help if you have a knowledgeable (with new homes-it's a different business than resale) buyers agent to help you negotiate the best deal. The builder will not give you a better price if you go it alone and you may leave money on the table. Your agent should know how to find out from the on site agent, together with his or her knowledge of the neighborhood and market what the builder is likely to do with price and incentives.

It woud be my pleasure to help you with your new home search. Just call or email me and visit my web sites for lots of local information.

Marianne Howell Wright~The Triangles new home construction expert

919-274-4365

Marianne@TheSimpleMove.com

Coldwell Banker HPW

Chapel Hill, NC

Visit my Chapel Hill web site