The Week in Review
.....your Wilmington Connection
May 31, 2008
Welcome to Summer weather in Wilmington, the temperatures are rising with today a high of 87 great weather for cooling off at the beach. Activity in the real estate market has improved all be it that if you are planning on putting your home on the market then now is the time to do it. Let me know if you would like a free home market analysis so you can see what your home is worth in todays market.
Home Values steady, even rising in some markets
While residential real estate prices are declining as a whole on a national basis, new research from Forsythe Appraisals, an independent appraisal company, indicates that the national trends also show pockets of stability, and some with marginal increases in home values rising in some U.S. submarkets.
From Seattle to San Antonio, Milwaukee to Tampa, Connecticut to California, select neighborhoods in major markets have seen price increases of 5 to 19 percent from first quarter 2007 to first quarter 2008, according to the St. Paul-based appraisal company, which has 37 offices across the country.
"Our research continues to indicate that it's impossible to paint the national real estate market with one large brush stroke," says Tim Forsythe, CEO of Forsythe Appraisals. "While there is depreciation of national home values as a whole, there are areas that have not been severely impacted, or impacted at all. There are areas that continue to show positive growth."
"These valuation trends in local submarkets are simply not visible when comparing average sale prices for an entire metropolitan area," adds Alan Hummel, senior vice president and chief appraiser, with Forsythe Appraisals. "But when looking at certain sectors within an area, it's clear that there is stability, and even marginal growth."
While many homeowners throughout the country are still facing declining home values, Forsythe adds; "when looking at individual neighborhoods, housing types and price bands, the trends in these sub-markets can differ dramatically from the national averages."
Forsythe's staff appraisers took a close look at their local markets, using the firm's market data and in-depth database to focus on valuation trends in comparable homes in specific neighborhoods.
State to buy 23 acres on Masonboro Island
The threat from development might be small, minute in most cases.
But with a handful of private owners still with property on Masonboro Island, there's always the chance that someone's dream about living at the ocean could involve building on the 8-mile-long undeveloped island.
This summer, officials hope to reduce that possibility just a little bit more by purchasing nearly 23 acres, the largest privately held parcel left on the island, near Masonboro's southern tip.
"This is wonderful because every little bit helps," said Camilla Herlevich, executive director of the N.C. Coastal Land Trust, which spearheads the effort to take the island's private lands public.
For decades, state and local officials have tried to join the hodgepodge of private lots with the vast majority of the nearly 5,000-acre island that's already part of the state-run National Estuarine Research Reserve.
Job Picture in Wilmington Improves
The Wilmington area's unemployment rate improved in April, according to Bureau of Labor Statistics data released Wednesday.
The jobless rate here dropped to 4.5 percent from 4.8 percent in March, but was still a full percentage point higher than it was in April 2007.
The jobs picture here still compared favorably with the statewide unemployment rate, which fell to 5.1 percent in April from 5.3 percent in March. Wilmington had the fourth lowest jobless rate in North Carolina in April, with Durham and Asheville at 4.1 percent and Raleigh at 4 percent.
Greenfield Amphitheater gets 1.2 million makeover.
The 46-year-old performing arts center recently underwent a $1.2 million makeover that included the construction of dressing facilities, showers, concession stands, restrooms and an arch-ceilinged stage.
"The covered stage is probably the biggest change," said Amy Beatty, city recreation manager. "We've actually had some concerts out there that got interrupted because the equipment couldn't take the rain."
Performances kick off in June with the 16th annual Shakespeare on the Green Festival, which brings a month of free shows to the amphitheater.
Improved fencing at the 900-seat venue also makes it more attractive for pay events, Beatty said. On Aug. 24, Grammy-nominated singer Tift Merritt will play for the fifth-anniversary concert of the Penguin radio station, 106.7 FM.
Opposition to proposed international port gathering
Renovations were funded by the 2006 Parks and Greenspace Bond and the city's capital improvement program.
The opposition to the international port proposed near Southport is mobilizing ... albeit behind the scenes.
A group of citizens in Southport calling itself "No Port, Southport" is advertising its opposition and calling on others to join. But no members are yet willing to reveal their names.
This is the first movement since the Caswell Beach Town Council approved a resolution in March opposing the $2.3 billion port. The first phase of the project is supposed to be completed in 2017.
Caswell Beach Mayor Harry Simmons said other local officials privately have stated their opposition to the port, but no other board in Brunswick County has publicly come out in opposition. "There's absolutely no doubt the other towns see these same problems we see," he said.
Caswell Beach may be a small town, but it has a big goal: stop the proposed port.
"We think the port is a bad idea," Simmons said, noting the town plans to gear up its efforts after dealing with its upcoming budget.
...until next week in the Week in Review
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