Archive for the ‘Charlotte Area Info’ Category

Home Buying Program for Charlotte Law Enforcement

Police officers, Sheriff Officers and any Law Enforcement Officer in Charlotte have the unique opportunity to purchase a home for half price! That’s right… Charlotte law enforcement officers can buy a HUD home for 50% off the homes sale price!

HUD offer the Good Neighbor Next Door program to Charlotte’s law enforcement officers to help build and secure the areas they serve and protect. For example, a CharMeck Police Officer could purchase a HUD home worth $140,000 for only $70,000! And using our special mortgage programs for Charlotte police officers, you can get 100% financing with only $100 down!

These special homes are HUD homes listed in Charlotte’s “revitalization” areas (which surprsingly covers most of Charlotte) and are offered through this program for only 5 days before being opened to the general public! To jump on this special home buying program for law enforcement in Charlotte, you must use a qualified Charlotte Realtor. (we can offer a referral if you need it!)

The map below shows the areas these homes are found in. Notice the red colored areas… Most of Charlotte falls into this!

To qualify, you must be employed full time as a law enforcement officer sworn to protect and have the ability to make arrests for violations of laws. Additionally, you must be willing to live in the home for 3 years to get the 50% dicsount on the home’s price. (there are a few other details… ask for more info)

So how do you get started?

First, you will want to get pre-approved for your Charlotte Good Neighbor Next Door mortgage loan through Residential Mortgage, a HUD approved mortgage lender. Once approved you will be in the driver’s seat to make an offer on the perfect home when it becomes available. Only HUD approved Realtors can make the offer for you, so we will get you connected with the right real estate agent in Charlotte. Once you have found the right home and have an approved offer, we can close your mortgage loan in just a few weeks!

This is a unique program that offers Charlotte’s Finest the opportunity to own a part of the city they serve, and rewards them for it! Just imagine doubling your money on a home in such a short time!

So what are you waiting for? Get approved now and let’s get you connected with a HUD approved Realtor to find your Half Priced Home in Charlotte!

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Charlotte Teachers Buy Homes at 50% Off!

Teachers looking to buy a home in Charlotte have a great opportunity before them! Using the Good Neighbor Next Door program, and working with a qualified real estate agent (ask for a referral) teachers have the opportunity to pick up select HUD homes for half of the listing price!

For example, HUD lists a home for $150,000. Using this program, a Charlotte-Mecklenburg teacher can purchase that home for $75,000. After living in the home for 36 months as a primary residence, you can sell the home and make an instant $75,000! Add to that the appreciation value and you can make out big!

So what’s the catch?

There are a few things you need to be aware of. First, this must be a HUD home in an area designated as a “revitalization area.” Don’t worry… most of Charlotte and Mecklenburg county is designated as a “revitalization area!”  (see red colored area of map)  Second, it has to be a home that HUD is offering as a GNND home. These homes are posted once a week and only open for this program for 5 days! Third, you must occupy the home as a primary residence and actually live there! Fourth, you must live there for 3 years or pay back the other 50% you were discounted. And finally, you must use a qualified Realtor in Charlotte to make the offer.

Imagine buying a home for half price, needing only $100 down and getting great low mortgage rates in Charlotte! This is a great program for Charlotte school teachers to take full advantage of!

So how do you start?

First, you need to get pre-approved for your Charlotte Good Neighbor Next Door mortgage. Since the window of opportunity to snag these home is limited to 5 days, you will want to make sure you can qualify to buy one of these homes. Once you are qualified, we can connect you with a HUD approved Realtor to help you find the perfect home for half price! From there, the Realtor and I will work together to get your home purchase and mortgage loan closed quickly. Then move on in!

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Why do you do that?

It’s a common question asked. When compared to Snakes, Liars, Politicians and Cheaters it’s easy to see why people ask me why I do what I do. But for me, the answer is easy! I love helping people!

I love helping a first time home buyer realize a dream they never imagined would happen! I love assisting a family buying their “move up” home because they have outgrown their starter home. I love helping a family refinance their home mortgage and save hundreds of dollars, allowing them to breathe a sigh of relief! I love helping our military veteransown a piece of this great country they have served!

In short, I love what I do!

Sure, there has been a lot of bad press about the mortgage industry as of late. Much of it, although somewhat misleading, is deserved. Over the past several years, mortgage companies offered ill-advised loans to the wrong borrowers. And with so much “easy money” flowing and over inflated profits realized, even the most reserved of mortgage lenders jumped too far in. So now the entire country is having to correct itself and many people are paying the price.

However, with all the bad news, there is good news too. The Charlotte North Carolina real estate market is still very strong. Charlotte mortgage rates are still at all time lows. And if you have been on the fence about buying a home, Charlotte FHA and VA mortgage loans could make this the best time to buy ever!

So when seeking a Charlotte mortgage company to work with, be sure to find someone that loves what they do. It should be their passion, not their job.

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The Hottest and Greenest Trend
in Real Estate Hits Charlotte!

The the latest in Home Design hits Charlotte NC– a design which is both friendly to the environment — AND cuts down on the rising cost of your monthly food bill. Yes folks… its a real Gingerbread House!

The designer and architect of this project was proud to offer a scaled model (see right) for display. Now made from double reinforced and glazed gingerbread, these 1 or 2 story homes can be custom made to meet the needs of your busy family. These life-size homes feature economical frosting and gumdrop roofs — which are only an issue in hot climates, such as Florida. The Charlotte climate can safely sustain these great homes!

If you have young kids, you will want to consider upgrading to the marshmallow flooring that can be easily installed for just a fraction more cost. …

Charlotte mortgage loans for these homes are still in the works!

Oh yes, and a happy April Fool’s Day to ya!

Good News Surfaces in a Crazy Market!

Enough Already!

It’s time for GOOD NEWS! And while this news does not directly impact Charlotte mortgage loans, this is still good news for us all.

A major (and I mean Major) lender has lowered the required credit score for FHA mortgages using down payment assistance in “declining markets.” This is a great positive thing to see!

A declining market is one that is seeing home values decline rather than increase. With FHA mortgage loans, the minimum down payment is only 3%, which in all reality does not place the mortgage company in any tremendous equity position! When you consider that down payment assistance pays for the buyer’s downpayment, you have a home owner with virtually nothing invested in a home located in an area that is seeing declining values. That would scare anyone lending home purchase money!

So to help ensure that only the best credit risks were able to buy these homes, many FHA mortgage lenders have imposed high credit score requirements. This one major lender placed a credit score requirement of 680 for this type of FHA mortgage loan using down payment assistance. Well, today they announced the score will be lowered to 620!

Could it be that the declining markets are not declining as much? Maybe there is a returning back to sanity and a realization that someone with mid 600 scores is still a good credit risk? I don’t know the exact reasoning, but I sure like to see this being relaxed a bit.

As I said, this does not affect FHA mortgages in Charlotte. Since Charlotte is not a declining market (due to Charlotte’s solid real estate market), we have not had to face this higher credit score requorement in order to use down payment assistance programs. However, if this is an indication of things to come, we may begin to see a relaxing of the credit market, which has gone a little too far in tightening up!

Again, it may not directly affect Charlotte’s FHA mortgage loans, but it’s good news and I will take it!

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Big Increase in Number of Union County $1 Million Homes

The number of $1 million homes in Union County has more than tripled since 2004. In 2004 Union County’s tax records indicated 306 homes valued over $1 million. As of the last real estate property valuation, Union County now has 1,010 million dollar properties! That’s tremendous growth!

As recently reported, Union County NC was ranked the 7th fastest growing county in the nation. With its close proximity to Charlotte’s major banking industry, its no wonder there are so many new million dollar homes!

There are many prestigious neighborhoods in Union County that have homes worth over $1 million. Weddington, NC alone  has 228 homes valued over $1 million. Roughly half of those homes are located in the Highgate subdivision.

With such growth in the region, coupled with the lower county taxes and better schools, Union County will surely see more of these types of properties. However, one should note that the median home priced for sale in Union County is around $173,000.

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Davidson NC on National Map

Thank you Davidson Wildcats for showing the rest of the world what Davidson North Carolina is all about. The class and determination in which you played in the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament was inspiring to all of us, even those outside the general Charlotte area.

Davison North Carolina is a small college community north of Charlotte, located around Huntersville and Lake Norman. The town of Davidson is absoultely charming and wonderful. And now with the Davidson Wildcats’ run towards this year’s Final Four, the entire nation is looking at Davidson, NC.

I expect this will be a good thing for Davidson College, but even more so for the Davidson community as a whole. As people are “Googling” Davidson Wildcats and Davidson NC, they will begin to find out how great the area is. People looking to move towards Charlotte will seriously consider the Davidson area. Other local communities like Huntersville and the entire Lake Norman area will also see great benefits from this exposure.

With the news that Charlotte’s real estate market being the only major market to improve in values last month, there is no doubt the Davidson real estate market will heat up! So if you are considering buying a home in Davidson NC, contact me for a free Davidson NC mortgage pre-approval. I can get you approved for a Davidson mortgage loan and introduce you to great Davidson NC real estate agents and Realtors.

Charlotte New Home Buyers get Better Deal!

Most large home builders today also own mortgage companies. This is an additional profit center and until recently, they have forced their home buying customers to provide the additional mortgage profits. These builders will typically offer tremendous “savings and discounts” when buying one of the builder’s homes, but ONLY if you use their mortgage company. And that is when the mortgage company will hit them with more fees and higher rates, all as an attempt to get back what they “gave away” with the home’s “discount.”

This is one of the down sides to “affiliated arrangements.” When your real estate company or builder owns your mortgage company, title company, insurance company, and attorney’s office, one must proceed with caution. All of these areas are potential profit centers, and while I have nothing against profit (profit allows a business to stay alive and help others) I do have a problem with the extra profit being “sold” as a way to “save” you money!

Recently, Ryland Homes / Ryland Mortgage agreed to make changes in how they conducted these “discounts.” In an settlement with the North Carolina Commissioner of Banks, Ryland Mortgage has agreed to not inflate mortgage rates and fees to cover the “discounts” of buying a Ryland Home. Ryland also agreed that “discounts” would be true discounts and that if any discount requires use of their mortgage company, it would be fully disclosed to the buyer.

The NCCOB believed that Ryland had over charged homebuyers beyond the legal limits in North Carolina. While not willing to admit “wrong doing”, Ryland Mortgage did agree to refund approximately 850 home buyers to settle the allegations. On average, these home buyers should see about $250.00. (Don’t spend it all in one place!)

The good news this brings to Charlotte home buyers is the knowledge that the North Carolina Commissioner of Banks is aware of the problem and is going after these types of arrangements. And with the pressure the NCCOB can bring, we may begin to see changes in the practice of “fake discounts” and required services!

This also means that buying a New home in Charlotte does not mean you have to use the higher cost builder’s mortgage company (at least with Ryland Homes)! You are free to work with the mortgage lender you feel most comfortable with, and that can mean a world of difference in your experience!

Charlotte’s Real Estate Market Shines!

Today, Bloomberg reports that the S&P/Case-Shiller home-price index dropped 10.7 percent from January 2007. In 20 major US metropolitan markets, property values dropped overall. The drops were dramatic and many economists are predicting tough times ahead.

Yeah yeah, we have heard all of this time and time again!
“The sky is falling, the sky is falling!”

And yet again, Charlotte NC real estate remains one of the bright spots in the nation! This report went on to say (very briefly I might add) that Charlotte home prices defied the averages yet again! Read this excerpt:

All but one of the 20 cities in the index showed year-over- year declines in prices in January, led by drops of 19.3 percent in Las Vegas and Miami. Prices rose in Charlotte.  (view report)

This is further proof that Real Estate is local. While other areas in the country that saw “crazy - stupid” property value increases are resetting themselves to reality, Charlotte’s real estate market, which has remained steady, is continuing to grow. Remember when your economic’s professor said “slow and steady wins the race”??? Well, here is your proof!

Charlotte NC has the best real estate market in the Country! Those of us that live here already know this is the place to live. The rest of the nation is seeing this too! If you are thinking of moving, you should seriously consider moving and buying a home in Charlotte NC!

A Step Forward 

Dear friends, clients and partners;

It is with great excitement and anticipation that I am pleased to announce that the Carolina Mortgage Connection has joined Residential Mortgage Center in Charlotte, NC.

Residential Mortgage Center is a licensed Mortgage Lender serving both North and South Carolina and is located at 205 Regency Executive Park Suite 200 Charlotte, NC 28217.

With this move to Residential Mortgage Center, we will continue to offer the best mortgage rates and service in the Charlotte area! In addition to that, there will be on site loan processors to get your mortgage loans closed faster than ever!

Greater Flexibilty

Working with a mortgage lender will give us greater flexibility in the marketplace. In today’s volatile mortgage market, flexibility will be a key difference in getting results! With the ability to adapt mortgage programs to fit the individual needs of our borrowers, the Carolina Mortgage Connection can custom tailor the right program just for you! And because you are working directly with the lender, mortgage rates will be more competitive than ever!

Focused on You 

Change can be a scary thing. But in this case it is very exciting! This business maneuver will allow us to focus on providing our clients and partners with unparalleled service while allowing us to pursue our mission of educating, inspiring and assisting in the American Dream!

As always, you can always contact us by calling 877-411-9327 or via the website at www.EdNailor.com

Sincerely,

Ed Nailor