I’m experimenting with a marketing idea, and I’d like some feedback. I took some time this evening to make a blog for my house. You can find it here. Basically, it’s a place I plan on posting to maybe once a month or so as events happen. For example, I might post some pictures of the first [or only] snowfall this year, and some pictures of the Christmas tree and so on. I’ll also make sure to post some pictures of any major repairs/improvements.

The idea here is twofold. first of all, it lets me document all the repairs that went into the house. So when I want to sell the place in 2015, I won’t have to remember when I had that water heater replaced — I can look it up! Secondly, if I do it right, it can tell a good story. Think about it — how many times have you seen total crud sell on EBay for three or four times what it is worth because the seller told a good story about it? Now I have a product that is worth something, and a backstory that spans years.

So what do you think. Would a series of blog posts like make a home in Woodcroft or Hope Valley stand out? Could it call attention to those developments that don’t see a lot of sales like Villages of Cornwallis or Penrith? Or is this just a waste of time and self-indulgence? I’d like to hear your thoughts.

I wanted to introduce you to my new listing. This beautiful home is on 1824 Birmingham Avenue, right across from Durham County Stadium. From there you’re minutes away from I-85, Northgate Mall, Duke University and Downtown.

This 4 bedroom/1.5 bath home was built in 1939 and has all the quality you would expect homes from that era. The home has a sun room and two porches plus a large living room with a fireplace – great for entertaining. The kitchen has granite countertops and is ready for a new set of appliance. Plus, the property has just over a half-acre of land — something you won’t find in many parts of Durham.

As with any 70 year-old home, it does need a little work and modernizing. This is a great opportunity, however, to quickly convert some TLC into equity. Offered at $129,000, this is a great chance to own classic home and a large lot without leaving Durham.

For more details about this property, click here. To arrange a showing, please email me.

I’ve had a chance to go through the 2009 Parade of Homes booklet, and one thing really struck me. Where are all the starter homes? Being an accountant is a previous career, I went through all the homes on the N&O site. Here’s what I found

• Less than $100,000 ——– 0
• $100,000 to $150,000 — 4
• $150,000 to $200,000 — 10
• $200,000 to $300,000 — 38
• $300,000 to $400,000 — 30
• $400,000 to $500,000 — 29
• $500,000 to $600,000 — 8
• $600,000 to $700,000 — 11
• $700,000 to $800,000 — 9
• $800,000 to $900,000 — 3
• $900,000 to $1,000,000 – 9
• more than $1,000,000 —- 7

I certainly understand that these are supposed to be “show homes” that have all the bells and whistles. 47 of these homes, however, would require a jumbo loan to purchase [even with 20% down] and those loans have been almost impossible to get at a decent interest rate. In another words, they are houses that [almost] won’t sell.

The segment that has been driving the housing market, however, has been the starter home market with first-time buyers using the $8,000 tax credit. Homes in Hassentree and Colvard Farms are really beautiful, but I always thought at least one builder would have tried to promote to the market that is actually moving. Or am I missing something?

In a bit of long overdue maintenance, the booklist has been updated. There are some great real estate books there, so go take a look.

If you have a favorite real estate book you think I should read, please leave a comment. I’ll be the first to admit I haven’t read every book available.

Normally, the housing market starts to slow down when school starts in the
fall. Will that cycle repeat itself in 2009, or will the $8,000 tax credit
continue to drive the market? Let’s take a look at the numbers for September

For all of Durham County there were 1950 houses listed at the end of
September. 199 sales closed in August, so at that pace the currently available inventory would be sold in 9.8 months. This is another step backwards from the previous three months, which have seen us move from a six-month supply of homes to almost ten months. Again, the decline is driven almost entirely by a 10+% drop in the number of homes sold in September.

For the 27713 area code there were 351 homes listed at the end of September. 43 homes sold during September [a drop of almost 20% from August], so the current listings would be sold through in 8.2 months. This means the adsorption rate has almost doubled from the numbers we had in June/July. It does, however, still show that strength that South Durham has in leading the general Durham real estate market

Here’s a look at the communities we’re tracking. If you would like to see data from your community, please let us know in the comments.

This month’s sales figures were much more spread out than in many pervious months with thirty different communities recording at least on sale in September. And Woodcroft did not come back like I predicted last month.

The question is still the same one I asked in the first paragraph. Will the
$8,000 tax credit, which expires in just 60 days, be enough to overcome the tag team of mortgage issues and the end-of-year slump. We’ll see in 30 days.

[Data for this post was pulled from the Triangle Multiple Listing Service on
September 30 at about 10:30 PM]