Archive for the 'Alpharetta Real Estate' Category
The BIG Number: August
categories: Alpharetta Real Estate, Crabapple, Johns Creek Real Estate, Milton Real Estate, Roswell Real Estate, The Big Number
72
The number of homes in all of North Fulton that are on water (river or lake).
On the last day of each month I post a “Big Number” or interesting figure related to real estate in our area.
Posted by Bob Strader | Currently 3 Comments »
Milton Meets Monticello In This Estate Home In The Heart Of Milton
categories: Alpharetta Real Estate, Luxury Homes, Milton Real Estate
Someone once said “A bargain isn’t a bargain if you don’t need it”. I don’t know if anyone really needs this Gorgeous Estate Home in Milton, but it is a bargain.
LOCATION: Milton, GA
PRICE: $11,500,000
SIZE: 13,043 square feet (approx.), 9 bedrooms, 9 full and 2 half bathrooms plus a 3 bedroom, 2 bath caretaker home.
Sited on 67 acres of meticulously manicured and landscaped land it’s truly a marriage between home and property. Designed by Stephen Fuller, it is a Jeffersonian estate home rivaled by no other in Milton. Details include 12 foot ceilings, 6 car garage, gated entry, 850 feet of lake frontage, walking/hiking or horseback riding trails, pool, tennis, basketball, multiple equestrian pastures and a guest cottage. For your review:
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Posted by Bob Strader | Currently 3 Comments »
Approved For Your Loan? It Ain’t Over Yet….
categories: Alpharetta Real Estate, Miscellaneous
A long, long time ago in a place far, far away….2005; the time of easy loans. You spoke to a lender and they pulled your scores, asked you some questions and said “you can afford a mortgage up to $$$”. More importantly, you were 100% sure that there were not going to be any problems moving forward with that loan. Pre-qualified was synonymous with cash-in-hand.
Lending requirements have tightened a bit and now you have to actually put money down on the home you’re buying. You have to have a decent credit score and income as well. But hearing your lender say “clear to close” a week before the closing doesn’t really mean anything anymore. That’s because last month Fannie Mae implemented the “Loan Quality Initiative”. This is to reduce bad loans and by verifying more information in a more thorough way. It places the responsibility on the bank doing the lending to verify the reliability of the borrower. But there is on particular change that can come back to bite even the most qualified of buyers.
The Last Minuet Credit Re-Check
Basically Fannie Mae requires that lenders check to see if an applicant’s credit profile changed while the loan was in underwriting. If it did change then Fannie Mae can refuse to purchase the loan which will require the bank to bear the burden with the loan on its books.
So, the bank will take your credit report and do a complete re-pull just prior to closing to make sure nothing changed, sometimes a day or two prior to closing. They are looking for new credit cards, a run-up of current credit card debt, updated or previously un-reported credit info or any major new purchases like cars, boats, etc.
Where It Gets Interesting
Regardless of the information that comes up, if underwriting sees anything they don’t like they can ask for more paperwork, deny the loan or require the process to start over from scratch. At this point, it’s usually past the due diligence period so the buyers earnest money is at stake.
So, when you’re applying for a loan to purchase a home - be smart and be prepared. Don’t do anything that will change your debt-to-income ratio, don’t apply for more credit, and don’t close any accounts. Do have access to all of your financial, work and tax information at all times (don’t pack up the house and put your files on the truck).
Posted by Bob Strader | Currently 1 Comment »
More New Construction in Crabapple
categories: Alpharetta Real Estate, Crabapple, Milton Real Estate, New Construction
Recently I wrote about Anthem homes building 4 single family homes on slabs in the mid $300’s and 4 garden style attached homes on slabs in the high $200’s in Crabapple Crossing. All these floorplans are in the 2800 - 3000 sq. ft. range Not only is it good news for Crabapple but it’s no surprise. Crabapple is a great walkable community and while shops are somewhat limited right now I’m sure they are not far away. Additionally the restaurants in Crabapple are a big draw for the community and Milton area as a whole.
I think those people who bought (or buy) the remaining distressed properties there will end up doing very well. In fact, I’ll go so far as to say the buyers who purchase new construction in there now will end up doing well down the road too. Crabapple is the best option in North Fulton for a “Virginia Highlands Like” lifestyle in homes that are modest in size with very nice finishings.
Breaking Ground in Braeburn
Now John Wieland is breaking ground on three lots in Braeburn - this is the community behind Crabapple Crossroads that has the developed lots but has been sitting vacant for a couple of years. Originally they were going to build 45 homes in the 4500-4800 sq. ft. range in the high $600’s on 1 acre lots. The have re-configured the interior lots and will now build 52 homes in the 3000-3800 sq. ft. range. The lot sizes will range from .75 acres to 1 acre and the prices will range from the high $400’s for homes on slabs to the high $500’s / low $600’s for basement homes.
The home styles will be similar in style to Crabapple Crossroads and come with granite counters, tile in master bath (not secondary baths), hardwoods on main (not bedrooms), tall windows, transoms and mixed material exteriors (stone, brick, cedar shake and hardy-plank siding) and front porches.
Does Wieland know something we don’t?
Based on inventory and Anthem’s price point I have to admit, a 4/5 bedroom on a slab in the high $400’s seems like it’s pushing the envelope on price - although they do come with 3-car garages. I know Wieland has a very good product and is a long-standing, well respected builder in Atlanta. He is offering a 5yr / 20yr warranty and the community will have their own amenities (which will probably be in place before the homeowners in Crabapple Crossroads ever see their amenities).
I’m not sure that the market will bear the price quite yet though - but maybe they know something I don’t. Especially when Sharp Residential just went into Milton Place and is building in the high $300’s / low $400’s for a very similar product. Granted, you won’t be walking to shops and restaurants from Milton Place, Braeburn is in a stellar location, but - it’s a very competitive product. I hope Wieland gets what they want, I know they have sold one already and are working on another, but it may take some time.
Posted by Bob Strader | Currently 1 Comment »
The BIG Number: July
categories: Alpharetta Real Estate, Local Market Conditions, Milton Real Estate, Roswell Real Estate, The Big Number
20%
The percentage increase in sales of existing homes in North Fulton County for Q2 2010 vs Q2 2009.
On the last day of each month I post a “Big Number” or interesting figure related to real estate in our area.
Posted by Bob Strader | Currently No Comments »
Foreclosure Sales Trend Down Helping Equity Sellers
categories: Alpharetta Real Estate, Metro Atlanta Statistics, Milton Real Estate
Because I’m on vacation this week I’m slacking on the blog. I have two interesting charts that reflect a positive trend in foreclosure sales and the results due to those declining numbers of foreclosure sales.
In the first chart you see Foreclosures as a percentage of Total Sales. In the 2nd Qtr. 2010 24.4% of all sales in Metro Atlanta were Foreclosures - the lowest number in the past 18 months.
As a result of fewer Foreclosures being available (or more desirable) to buyers, it has allowed the median sales price for non-foreclosure properties to begin rising - as show in the second chart.
As the number of foreclosure sales (red trend line) increased, the median sales price (gold trend line) of non-foreclosure properties has declined. Consequently, the number of foreclosure sales have been decreasing resulting in an increasing median sales price for non-foreclousre homes. If you have questions about these charts or want to get information on your community, just let us know: info at thenorthgroup.com
Posted by Bob Strader | Currently 2 Comments »
Housing Starts Down In June?…..Not Really
categories: Alpharetta Real Estate, Metro Atlanta Statistics, Milton Real Estate, New Construction
Let me see if I can make this really confusing….
Housing starts nationally for June are down 5% which the media purports as bad news..but I say it’s really good. But the real facts are that single family starts aren’t down that much, which sounds good but I say it’s bad. Confused yet? Stick with me.
When the Census Bureau releases housing starts the media will grab that number and pronounce it good or bad, but they never tell you what that number means. A start is really a ground-breaking and includes homes of all types — single family, condos buildings, apartments, and multi-units housing. For June that number was down 5% from May. I don’t know about you, but I don’t really care if apartment and multi-unit starts are down. I know it may effect the overall economy but they don’t mean a whole lot to Mr. and Mrs. Seller down the street.
But the number gets reported in the news as a big drop so that must be a bad thing. Is it really? If there are fewer housing starts then there will be less inventory on the market. Less competition for the re-sale market who wants to make a move. So in my book, a big number might be a good thing. However, when that 5% number is dissected it turns out that the majority of it is in fact multi-unit housing.
The Real Housing Start Number
For June, Single-Family housing starts were only down 0.7 percent from May….essentially flat. That’s a good thing, right? We’ll it certainly says that builders are being very cautious and not carrying too much inventory. The more inventory on the market the more they have to offer incentives and the more the re-sale market has to try and compete with heavy builder incentives. What it really indicates is that new construction has stabilized now that the home buyer tax credits are behind us.
We still have a lot of inventory on the market. Across all price ranges we have about 10 months of inventory in North Fulton and 12 months of inventory in Forsyth County. A buyers market is defined as anything above 6 months of inventory so controlled construction and growth is a good thing in my book. The one constant in this market right now is that rates remain extremely low. While inventory levels aren’t going to change quickly - we don’t really know how long rates will remain at such historically low levels.
Posted by Bob Strader | Currently No Comments »
A House Grows in Crabapple
categories: Alpharetta Real Estate, Crabapple, Milton Real Estate, New Construction
Eight of them to be exact. You won’t see them until they go under contract as they are pre-sale only - but I don’t expect that to take long. I’ve been wondering for a while now why we haven’t seen a builder come in and breath live back into the new communities of Crabapple Crossroads and Crabapple Crossing but finally some builders are stepping up to the opportunity and I think they will do just fine.
Anthem Homes
Three veteran builders; Gregg Goldenberg, Jon Roby and Thomas Olson have come together and founded Anthem Homes & Neighborhoods and plan to build 4 single-family homes and 4 attached garden homes in the Crabapple Crossing community. The product will be very close to the existing homes in both look and size. Anthem is currently building in Cobb, Forsyth, Gwinnett, Jackson, Fulton and Cherokee Counties and has a solid track record.
The Product
There are 2 options for the s ingle-family homes , which are both 4 bedroom / 3.5 bath homes with 2-car garages and come in a little under 3,000 Sq. Ft. All bedrooms will be upstairs. And the good news is the pricing will be in just under $350,000 . I’m sure this will be the last time we ever see new construction under $350k in North Fulton - and certainly in Crabapple.
The attached garden homes will also be 4 bedroom / 3.5 baths around 2800 Sq. Ft., with 2-car garages and priced just under $300,000 . One plan will have a master on the main, the other will have the master up. Both will have a bonus room and some room for potential expansion in the upstairs un-finished attic space.
Crabapple
The businesses in Crabapple continue to be a draw for residents around the area, with Scoops Ice Cream Shop as a new addition. Both the retail and residential will continue to feed off each other so I expect to see more growth in the coming months. For buyers who have purchased in the area recently - I think they got a great deal and will not only reap the benefits of price appreciation in the future, but will love living in the area too.
Let us know if you have any questions about the communities or available properties.
Posted by Bob Strader | Currently 3 Comments »
