Keith Smith

Fat Albert Fishing

November 3, 2015 By Keith Smith

Just like the changing of the leaves in October, this time of year a lot of the bait in the creeks, rivers and sound begin to migrate to the ocean. This phenomenon is called the “mullet run.” And once the migrating bait arrives at the inlets and along the shallows of the ocean, nearshore fishing fires off at the coast. Speckled trout arrive at the jetties. Our drum friends of August and September begin running the beaches. and the false albacores show up in large schools. Catching an albie is like hooking a runaway rocket; they are fast and powerful. To take advantage of this fishery, all you have to do is take a short boat ride down Adams Creek and exit the Beaufort Inlet. From the surf to a couple of miles offshore you can see bait fish getting knocked in the air and birds circling above for their future meal. Underneath this carnage are the albacores. Take your medium heavy / heavy poppin’ cork old drum rods, add a sling silver type bait, cast it into the school, reel in as fast as you can, and hold on tight. And…

…don’t let the big one get away

Capt. Bobby Brewer

The Ultimate Catch TV Show Films in the Area

October 1, 2015 By Keith Smith

Capt. Eric Ciocher and the Ultimate Catch TV Show were in the area last week filming a show for the 2016 season for The World Fishing Network. When Eric arrived on Monday, we had small craft advisories. A few days later when he left, we had small craft advisories. In between we fought high winds and rain but we still managed to catch enough fish for the show. During the filming we caught flounder, trout, redfish, stripers and bass. Eric and his cameraman love the area and want to come back again. Maybe we can provide them some Carolina blue skies next time.

…don’t let the big one get away

Capt. Bobby Brewer

www.baldheadedbobby.com

The Smart Way to Look at Home Improvements

September 22, 2015 By Keith Smith

By: Suzanne Gwaltney, Associate Broker, CENTURY 21 Sail/Loft Realty

What home improvements really pay off when the time comes to sell your house? That’s an important question for any homeowner contemplating moving or remodeling. And the only possible answer is a somewhat complicated one.

That answer starts with the fact that really major improvements – room additions, total replacements of kitchens and baths, etc., — rarely pay off fully in the near term. It ends with the fact that small and relatively inexpensive changes can pay off in a big way in making your home attractive to buyers if your decision is to move now.

It’s a simple fact, consistently confirmed across America over a very long period of time, that even the most appropriate major improvements are unlikely to return their full cost if a house is sold within two or three years.

Does that mean that major home improvements are always a bad idea? Absolutely not! It does mean, though, that if your present house falls seriously short of meeting your family’s needs you need to think twice – and think carefully – before deciding to undertake a major renovation. Viewed strictly in investment terms, major improvements rarely make as much sense as selling your present home and buying one that’s carefully selected to provide you with what you want.

Even if you have a special and strong attachment to the house you’re in and feel certain that you could be happy in it for a long time if only it had more bedrooms and baths, for example, there are a few basic rules that you ought to keep in mind. Probably the most basic rule of all, in this regard, is the one that says you should never –unless you absolutely don’t care at all about eventual resale value – improve a house to the point where its desired sales price would be more than 20 percent higher than the most expensive of the other houses in the immediate neighborhood. Try to raise the value of your house too high, that is, and surrounding properties will pull it down.

Here are some other rules worth remembering:

Never rearrange the interior of your house in a way that reduces the total number of bedrooms to less than three
Never add a third bathroom to a two-bath house unless you don’t care about ever recouping your investment
Swimming pools rarely return what you spend to install them. Ditto for sun rooms and finished basements.

If you decide to do what’s usually the smart thing and move rather than improve, it’s often the smaller, relatively inexpensive improvements that turn out to be most worth doing. The cost of replacing a discolored toilet bowl, making sure all the windows work or getting rid of dead trees and shrubs is trivial compared with adding a bathroom, but such things can have a big and very positive impact on prospective buyers. A good broker can help you decide which expenditures make sense and which don’t, and can save you a lot of money in the process.

Vacation Homes Are Becoming A Reality

September 22, 2015 By Keith Smith

By: Suzanne Gwaltney, Associate Broker, CENTURY 21 Sail/Loft Realty

Whether it’s a lakefront cottage or a log cabin in the woods, a vacation home often seems to be a dream that only the wealthy can afford. But these days, you don’t have to be a millionaire to own one.

A nationwide survey shows the median household income of second-home owners is $46,500. And, according to recent statistics, there were 7.2 million U.S. households in 1990 that owned some kind of recreational property or second home for vacation purposes. That number is expected to at least double and possibly triple over the next 10 years. With today’s continued low interest rates, the tax advantages a second home can bring, and a wide selection of areas experiencing solid home price appreciation, this is an excellent time to consider purchasing a second home as an investment – and a great getaway place.

When searching for your second home, remember to investigate the area thoroughly. Ask a REALTOR® and the local chamber of commerce to provide information packets, maps and brochures. Take time to visit our area several times – a few months prior to and during its peak season(s). You might try one of our vacation rentals to sample the rental process. Are the crowds unbearable? Is the weather unpredictable?

Speak with a local Realtor® regarding current and past home prices. Knowing the area’s sales history will help determine the market value of the homes and effectively predict their appreciation potential.

Once you’ve settled on a community, work with a Realtor and lending institution to determine how much home you can afford. Drive around the town and its neighborhoods. Experience the day-to-day activity around potential properties. Keep in mind you may decide to retire to the area one day. Will the property serve two purposes – that of vacation and retirement home? For an oceanfront rental stay, check out Carolina Beach vacation rentals in the Wilmington area. More and more Americans are purchasing vacation properties in areas where they plan to eventually retire.

Remember, vacation homes remain a good investment and provide substantial deductions on yearly tax forms if they meet certain criteria. As the laws are ever-changing, complex and detailed, consult your real estate agent, who will usually work with a tax attorney or certified accountant, to calculate the tax benefits of owning a second home.

Relaxing in your own home in that dream vacation spot is not out of your reach. More and more Americans are realizing that owning a vacation home is do-able – not to mention a good investment and a peaceful retreat for years to come.

Fixed Rate Loans vs. ARM Mortgage Loans

September 22, 2015 By Keith Smith

Along with other decisions you will find yourself making while shopping for a mortgage, you will be deciding whether to take a fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) or an adjustable rate mortgage (ARM).

As the name implies, the interest-rate of an FRM will remain the same throughout the life of the loan. If interest rates are low when you are buying or refinancing a home, an FRM is a good choice, because you can lock in that low interest rate. ARMs, however, will fluctuate as interest rates rise and fall. Your 6 percent rate today could drop to 5 percent next year or end up at 8 percent if the market rate goes up.

Exactly when the rate of your ARM loan will change depends upon the terms of your loan agreement, which could see rates change every three months, once a year, every three years, or not until five years. It’s not uncommon to find ARMs that start at a fixed rate and convert to an adjustable rate after several years.

ARMs also generally come with a “cap,” which limits the amount a lender can raise its rate. The cap for most ARMs is 2 percent, meaning a lender can only increase its rate 2 percent within a single adjustment period. But several adjustments can turn a 4 percent interest rate at the beginning of the loan into a 10 percent interest rate later on.

As you might imagine, FRMs are more popular. Most home buyers want the security of knowing how much their mortgage payment will be each month. An FRM will allow you to more easily manage your monthly and yearly budget. If you have an FRM and rates do drop precipitously, you may always refinance.

On the other hand, some homebuyers are drawn to ARMs, which often feature lower initial interest rates. For example, an ARM can be a good choice for a young couple purchasing their first home; they may not have a lot of assets now, but they anticipate making more money within a few years. An ARM can let them
take advantage of low rates now, and they will be able to afford a slightly higher rate in the future. And in a few years, they can refinance with an FRM to lock in a favorable rate.

Which type of mortgage is right for you? Basically, it comes down to two factors:

1. How comfortable you are with risk
2. How long you plan to live in the house

Clearly ARMs are riskier than FRMs, however, taking on more risk may result in a lower rate — at least temporarily. But if you plan on staying in the house for a long time, an ARM can be particularly risky –and potentially confusing –since rates will fluctuate many times over and there will be more adjustments. Conversely, if you plan to move after five or six years, you could take a 5/1 ARM, meaning the first five years are locked in (at a low rate), and it converts to an adjustable rate after that — right about the time you plan to sell.

Understanding Real Estate Terminology

September 22, 2015 By Keith Smith

By: Suzanne Gwaltney, Associate Broker, CENTURY 21 Sail/Loft Realty

Purchasing a home can be a complicated and confusing process, especially for first-time buyers. Throughout the process, first-time home buyers will encounter a variety of unfamiliar real state terms. There are several key terms associates with purchasing real estate that are helpful to learn.

For example, many buyers confuse the terms broker and salesperson. A Broker is a properly licensed individual, or corporation, who serves as a special agent in the purchase and sale of real estate, a Salesperson is an individual employed or associated by written agreement by the broker as an independent contractor. The salesperson facilitates the purchase or sale of real estate. However, the State of North Carolina recently changed its licensing laws so that every individual who goes to school to sell Real Estate will be a licensed Broker, not Salesperson.

Once you decide to purchase, a Broker will prepare a sales contract to present to the seller along with your earnest money deposit. The sales contract is the document through which the seller agrees to give possession and title of property to the buyer upon full payment of the purchase price and performance of agreed-upon conditions. The earnest money is a buyer’s partial payment, as a show of good faith, to make the contract binding. Often, the earnest money is held in an escrow account. Escrow is the process by which money is held by a disinterested party until the terms of the escrow instructions are fulfilled.

After the buyer and seller have signed the contract, the buyer must obtain a mortgage note by presenting the contract to a mortgage lender. The note is the buyer’s promise to pay the purchase price of the real estate in addition to a stated interest rate over a specified period of time. A mortgage lender places a lien on the property, or mortgage, and this secures the mortgage note.

The buyer pays interest money to the lender exchange for the use of money borrowed. Interest is usually referred to as APR or annual percentage rate. Interest is paid on the principle, the capital sum the buyer owes. Interest payments may be disguised in the form of points. Points are an up-front cost which may be paid by either the buyer or seller or both in conventional loans.

In general, there are two types of conventional loans that a buyer can obtain. A fixed rate loan has the same rate of interest for the life of the loan, usually 14 to 30 years. An adjustable rate loan or adjustable rate mortgage (ARM) provides a discounted initial rate, which changes after a set period of time. The rate can’t exceed the interest rate cap or ceiling allowed on such loans for any one adjustment period. Some ARMs have a lifetime cap on interest. The buyer makes the loan and interest payments to the lender through amortization, the systematic payment and retirement of debt over a set period of time.

Once the contract has been signed and a mortgage note obtained, the buyer and seller must legally close the real estate transaction. The closing is a meeting where the buyer, seller and their attorneys review, sign and exchange the final documents. At the closing, the buyer receives the appraisal report, an estimate of the property’s value with the appraiser’s signature, certification and supporting documents. The buyer also receives the title and the deed. The title shows evidence of the buyer’s ownership of the property while the deed legally transfers the title from the seller to the buyer. The final document the buyer receives at closing is a title insurance policy, insurance against the loss of the title if it’s found to be imperfect.

Buyers should plan on at least four to twelve weeks for a typical real estate transaction. The process is difficult and at times, intimidating. A general understanding of real estate terminology and chronology of the transaction, however, will help any real estate novice to confidently buy his or her first home.