Apex Ranked 14th Best Place to Live in USA & #1 in North Carolina

Apex Ranked 14th Best Place to Live in USA& #1 in North Carolina
For Immediate Release July 16, 2007

CNNMoney.com - Best Places to Live: Top 100
WRAL.com - 2 Triangle Towns Among Money's 'Best Places to Live' List

CNNMoney.com reported today that the editors of Money Magazine had ranked the Town of Apex as the 14th best in their annual list, 2007 Edition, of the 100 Best Places in America to Live. This year’s list had focused on smaller communities under 50,000 in population that offered the best combination of economic opportunity, good schools, safe streets, things to do, and a real sense of community. The web article highlighted the Town’s “impressively intact” “turn-of-the-century” Historic Downtown District. This designation gives Apex the distinction of being the best in North Carolina as only two other, but lower-ranked, North Carolina municipalities were on the national list.
Mayor Keith H. Weatherly expressed his appreciation for this recognition as he said, “We are all so pleased and proud that our Town has attracted this kind of positive national attention. Our Town Council and town employees have really worked together with our citizens, our businesses, our schools and churches to make this community one of the best places in all of America to have a home, to raise a family, to go school, to start a business, and to enjoy a safe and happy lifestyle.”
As news of the national ranking of Apex spread, calls and inquiries poured into Town offices and the local Chamber of Commerce. “We’ve had a deluge this morning of people from everywhere wanting to know more about Apex,” said Apex Town Manager Bruce Radford. “We are always glad to share all we can about opportunities in Apex. This is a very welcoming community,” added Radford.
Mayor Weatherly continued by saying, “We have tried to maintain a delicate balance of managing our growth, holding development to high standards, keeping taxes low, creating attractive and affordable neighborhoods, supporting local schools with high academic achievement, offering diverse recreation programs, and keeping crime out of our Town with a strong public safety program. Our water towers all feature the slogan APEX -- THE PEAK OF GOOD LIVING. Today that’s not just a goal, it’s the truth."

The 5 Best Places To Sell A Home

The 5 best places to sell a home

Home sales are in a slump, but not everywhere. These five cities, because of lack of room to overbuild or a population influx, are still seller's markets.

By Matt Woolsey, Forbes.com

If you've got property for sale, chances are you're in a bind: Nationwide, prices for existing homes keep falling, and new homes started a few years ago continue to come on the market, increasing inventory.
On top of that, the fallout from subprime lending, the subsequent tightening of credit and lending standards and the recent rise in long-term Treasury yields have shrunk the pool of eligible buyers.
Yet, not every market follows national trends, and despite the industry's overall problems, there are still cities where sellers have the upper hand. The best way to judge a buyer's versus a seller's market is a simple supply-demand analysis of housing stock: At the current rate of sales, how long would it take to sell off the inventory of single-family homes or condos? If that measure comes back high, houses sit on the market longer. If it is low, the market is tightening, which is good news for the seller.
To measure inventory glut, we used Moody's Economy.com and National Association of Realtors data that tracked a market's current sales rate by projecting the amount of time it would take to sell off the excess housing stock at the current rate of sales. We also looked at the change in sales rate over the past year to measure the relative tightening or loosening of the market. Finally, a measure of price stability was applied so as to prevent the list from being a rundown of upstart markets.
The measurements left out a few cities that lacked comprehensive data. Seattle, for example, has incredibly strong market fundamentals -- the lowest vacancy rate of major metros at 0.9% and a small geographic area not conducive to overproduction. It is a good seller's market, but for tracking what we were after, Seattle data were incomplete for our analysis.
Moody's Economy.com chief economist Mark Zandi points out that the best-performing markets are those that had barriers to overproduction during the housing boom.
In the case of San Francisco, which ranked second on our list, it's an issue of geography: There is little space for growth or new development, and the local government doesn't do much to encourage new construction.
Strong in-migration stemming from local economic strength is another factor keeping demand high. New houses being built isn't a problem if new people are moving to town.

This scenario is playing out in Raleigh, N.C., the No. 1 city on our list. Moderate growth and disciplined building over the past five years prevented the market from developing a significant glut. Additionally, a strong local economy has helped contribute to the city's healthy 1.6% vacancy rate.
What's more, the rate of home sales against home inventory was healthy in Raleigh; in this category, it ranked fifth best of big cities, according to Moody's metrics. Even though the market has low vacancy to begin with and displayed strong construction restraint during the housing boom, Raleigh still has the eighth-best rate of tightening.

Similarly, strong in-migration and local economic pop make Austin, Texas, a seller's market. It finished fourth overall in sales rate to inventory size and has the fifth-best home-price appreciation figures of the large markets Moody's measured. Its mediocre 14th-best market-tightening ranking can be attributed, in large part, to its small inventory excess. Austin's vacancy rate is 1.5%, which is also where the national average stood during the most recent housing boom. In other words, that low a vacancy rate indicates a housing market at close to full capacity.
While the market isn't going gangbusters for investment, sellers in these markets are faring much better than their counterparts across the country.

Top cities for home sellers:
Raleigh, N.C.
San Francisco
Austin, Texas
San Antonio
St. Louis

I Don't Know How You Do It...

Buyers, I really don't know how you do it. I mean, 'buy', that is. How do you guys buy homes? Seriously, my wife and I started looking for homes in Apex, NC this past weekend. Yes, I am a Realtor, and yes, I should know all the ins and the outs of the business. While that is true, I know all the ins and the outs, perhaps I know too much. Nonetheless, that does not mean that I have the innate ability to find whatever I like, let alone have the financial prowess to purchase whatever I want.

Maybe I have seen too much, maybe I know too much. But heck... we can't seem to find anything that we both like. Or rather, we can't find anything that we both want.

'We need room. Lots of room.' I have heard that before.
'We want a good area'. I have heard that before.
'We want good schools'. Tell me about it!
'We want a nice lot with a backyard'. Who doesn't?
'We want large upstairs rooms and a large master'. Go on...
'We want a deal'. Of course we do.

Oh, brother! I have heard all that before and then some! So, I swore to myself that I would not be another one of those people. Always telling me what they want, and then not being able to find it... and then stopping the search, staying put, and never buying anything. Yep... that seems to be me! I AM one of those.

So... Buyers... I now empathize with you. I understand the complicated thought processes that you go through. I understand how hard it is to make a choice - to find the right house - and to find it in a price range that is acceptable. A neighborhood you can feel proud of, with lots of trees, good neighbors, a pool and playground. Yep, I want that too.

Let me know when you find it!

Cost Vs Value Report

Thinking of remodeling? Many people ask me how much they think they will get back after they add 'this' or remodel 'that'. Really, I have no idea - it depends upon the market. Check out this link to a nationwide study of cost vs value: http://www.costvsvalue.com/index.html

In sum, projects with highest national percentage of costs recouped:

• 88%Upscale siding replacement
• 85%Wood deck addition
• 81%Wood window replacement
• 83%Minor kitchen remodel

Of course, it also depends upon the quality of workmanship too. Just because you replaced your siding from materials purchased at Home Depot or Lowes, does not mean you will get 88% back.

Housing Slump Article

Here is a link to an article I read on the housing slump:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22065972/

Read it and then come back here.

The last paragraph reads: "Keep in mind that in any housing market there is always a buyer — if the price is right. One reason houses aren’t selling well in some areas is that some buyers who are waiting for prices to recover are unwilling to acknowledge that they may have to settle for a little less. If asking prices remain stubbornly higher than recent sale prices, it will take longer for the level of home sales to pick up again. "

I assume that the writer meant to say that "One reason houses aren't selling well in some areas is that some SELLERS who are waiting for prices to recover are unwilling to acknowledge that they may have to settle for a little less."

This is the truth. Until Sellers get the hint that the real estate boom is over, prices will remain high. Buyers think it is a buyer's market and sellers still think their homes are worth more than they are. Until the two meet at the same mindset, we will remain at an impass, and you will continue to see inventory rise.