Appraisals can do you a lot of good when you get ready to sell your property here in Murphy, North Carolina. Real estate prices are constantly changing, so it’s good to have an accurate analysis of what your value is.

Realtors are able to perform a CMA, or Comparable Market Analysis. When you’re ready to sell your home, this will give you a good idea as to where you should price your property. There is a difference between an appraisal and a CMA. Appraisals are often more detailed in valuation, yet they frequently do not take into account current market trends.

With real estate values going down, many people interested in selling are using old appraisals to try to hold onto former higher prices. This strategy is a stage of denial that will hurt your home’s position to sell. If you list it too high to start off with, your home develops a "stigma" to it that will make it stagnant on the market and ultimately sell for less than what you could have achieved originally.

Other times, sellers are using an appraisal from a refinance. More often than not, that appraisal is not necessarily useful in marketing your home. Sometimes the appraisal is biased toward a certain value, whether it is conservative or high. You can read more about inflated real estate appraisals here.

Old appraisals mean nothing. Think of it this way: it would be the same as printing off a stock quote from when Enron shares were worth $50 per share. Consider taking it to your stock broker now and expecting the same price. It won’t happen. Real estate operates the exact same way, just the numbers are larger and more difficult to determine. Unfortunately, your real estate does not have a "ticker" streaming across the front of it telling us the current market value of your home.

An accurate appraisal will help you sell your home. Leaving a current appraisal on your counter while trying to sell will help prospective buyers determine how you priced and the value of your home. When and if you get a new appraisal before selling, ask around to find a good appraiser. Get a good recommendation and call them in.  Be certain not to influence their pricing. You want an unbiased evaluation of market value to sell your home. Make sure they know that’s what the appraisal is for.

All that being said, it’s not necessary, but having an appraisal done can give you a great marketing edge. It can give you the competitive edge over the competition. An average appraisal costs about $400 and can be an excellent investment when you’re selling your largest investment.

John Poltrock, CRS - www.MyMurphy.com - JohnPoltrock@gmail.com - For Real Estate in the Mountains of Murphy, NC, Call The POLTROCK TEAM at (866) 687-7496

Over Memorial Day weekend, we held the first ever Land Expo! It turned out to be a great success with over 1/2 a million off that day on participating properties! With 82 people signing in (half of those were couples, so by rough estimation, I would say we had about 50% more than what signed in), there were many people shopping the properties, grabbing a hamburger or hot dog, and listening to the live 103.9 fm broadcast.

We’re getting geared up to do another one soon! It was a lot of fun and I believe shoppers enjoyed being able to see so many properties at one time.

John Poltrock - RE/MAX Mountain Properties - Visit our main Murphy NC Real Estate Site -  Homes and Land in the Mountains of Murphy, NC - Call Toll-Free (866) 687-7496 and demand The POLTROCK TEAM!

We've got our first cover! We're quite excited about having the cover of Southern Home Market magazine. I personally did the layout to ensure its going to be a great issue. It's a great prowl front chalet home that is great! I look forward to posting the image of the cover when it comes out.

I'll use this opportunity to explain the difference between many of the magazines in our area. We have currently two real estate magazines in the Murphy NC area: Southern Home Market and Homes for Sale in the Mountains. Homes and Land will also be reintroduced to our area. I'll be advertising a full page in their first issue to test their effectiveness.

Homes for Sale in the Mountainsis a larger, more expensive magazine. I advertised in it for 2006 and sold only one house from it. Sellers - it's gone. It doesn't bring enough focus to your property to keep it. Not only that, it's much larger and I feel that because of that, your property gets "lost" in all the others. It has too many strikes against it to be an effective advertising strategy for your house or land.

Southern Home Marketis the current real estate magazine I advertise. They are far more flexible, less expensive, get more calls, and is not so large to where your property is lost. Because of the increased interest in your property, it has been the hands down best choice. It's even available online at www.SouthernHomeMarket.com

Even though print exposure is important, it's far from the most important thing. Want to learn more about what to do for your home in Murphy, North Carolina to make it more appealing to a buyer? Email or call us and we'll be happy to share our marketing plan.

John & Jessica - RE/MAX Mountain Properties - Murphy, North Carolina - www.MyMurphy.com - 828-837-3002

Murphy, North Carolina has experienced quite a bit of new construction to come on the market in the past 4 years. Everything from chalets, log cabins, cabins, ranches - you name it. We should even have condos coming soon if the project takes off. We've been blessed with a great new inventory giving real estate buyers more choices on new homes.

Many builders have become a bit nervous and have drastically cut their inventories. This has left buyers with fewer choices on new construction homes. Even so, many of the reputable builders still have quite a few they are building as I write this. Those are the best to buy.

As I read the Wall Street Journal (August 1, 2007), it references that inflation rose just 0.1% in June from May. It also mentioned labor costs increased 0.9% last quarter. That number is a national number that even affects the local real estate market. However, I believe home builders will find that labor will drop as many sub contractors find less jobs are available. We may find general contractors will do more of the building process and sub out less.

I personally feel that would be a great change because the whole affect dominoes the cost of building a new home. A cost plus contractor (costs 100k to build a new home so the contractor would make, say, 15% of that) can do more and will not be paying a profit to a company that installs the hardwood floor for example. If you're not paying profit on profit, then your total building cost will go down.

All in all, it should be a good thing for labor costs in local construction to go down. It will weed out shady or fly-by-night sub contractors that should be there in the first place. If you are looking to build in our market, let us know! We would be more than happy to point you to a reputable builder who you can trust will be here for years to come.

John and Jessica Poltrock - RE/MAX Mountain Properties - Murphy, NC - (828) 837-3002 - (866) Murphy-NC

Realtors are an excellent way to not only buy homes or land, but to find out who the best sub contractors, vendors, stores, shops, dealers, and any other place to buy "Stuff" and services. This is very often taken for granted, and if you merely ask, you will receive.

For example, I can tell you the best grocery stores in Murphy. I know where to buy meat and where not to. Need a lawn service? How about a contractor to build a house? Garage? Best place to buy a washer? What about the best burger joint in town (and no, McDonald's doesn't count.)? What school district would you trust with your kids? You name it… we know it or can find out.

I can send you to the right person just about every time when you're looking for something in Murphy, North Carolina. Cherokee County is a big place, and so is every other county. No matter where you're at… save yourself the trouble… ask a Realtor.

Everyone seems to be talking about how "bad" the real estate market is right now. For those of you who like to gossip about it, I hate to break it to you. No the sky is not falling!  In fact, now is the time to buy real estate.  Interest rates are still at a historically low rate.  Remember back in the 80's when the interest rates were around 18%? Your $150,000 mortgage payment would have been a whopping $2,260.63 as apposed to today's much lower $923.58. How's that for a difference?

 Many of our local banks and mortgage brokers are true professionals. There are so many mortgages products available today compared to even ten years ago.  First time home buyers have it great with many of the incentive packages being offered right now - such as no PMI (read: fancy acronym for mortgage insurance) and 100% financing. Be sure to do your research and find out which bank offer you the best product BEFORE you fill out their credit application. Want good local bank references? Call me. I'll be happy to point you in the right direction.

If you think now is the time to sit on the fence - you're wrong. Ben Bernanke (Federal Reserve Chairman) is considering raising rates to cool rising inflation as a result of the stock market boom and other economic factors. What good is saving $1,000 up front when you're paying that much or more every year for thirty years on your mortgage? Think long term and you'll be better off than ever.

Not only that, there's a lot of choices on the market. Finding your new home is much easier than you think. Call me today at (828) 837-3002 to arrange an appointment to go over all the excellent options you have available. In less than 30 minutes, you can be well on your way to owning your own home.

Consumers - there's something you'll never hear from most real estate agents. Selling For Sale By Owner Works! Did you know that it works only 20% of the time? You can sell your property on your own and be successful, but the 80/20 rule is stacked against you. Regardless of whether its in my town of Murphy, North Carolina or the heart Washington state, 80% of sellers are unable to successfully sell their home.

Why do you ask? Think of your personal shopping experiences. Think about your largest investments. When you bought an engagement ring, where did you buy it? Where do you have your 401(k) or IRA? Did you buy your ring at a jeweler? Does a well recognized stock brokerage firm keep safeguard over your retirement portfolio? Most of you reading this will agree you work with professionals when looking to make a large purchase or investment. Some of you won't. Either way, it is the difference between shopping at the Mall and shopping at the Flea Market.

NAR Statistics show 90% of buyers work with an agent. That's a lot of buyers. The others look FSBO because they're looking to buy cheap just like you would look on eBay. They don't go to FSBOs to spend top dollar because they want to save money just like they would at the flea market! You should want quality buyers who are willing to go to the jeweler to find the perfect diamond. With a Realtor, you won't have to worry about marketing, signage, market statistics, deed preferences, contracts - any of that.

For Sale By Owner does work. You must ask yourself - do I want top dollar? Do I want to sell as quickly as possible? Do I want help from someone who knows the tricks of the trade? If the answer is yes, find a qualified Realtor. I'd be happy to refer you to a great agent in your area if you don't know one.

Now ask, Do I want to give someone a good deal? Sell cheaply? Go through all the marketing process? Price my home by what the neighbor says he sold it for? Hope the buyer who might come up doesn't walk because there's nothing to hold him? If you answer yes to that, try to sell your home yourself. Try it for a while, but when you see a poker player, ask him or her if they'd go all in on a 20% chance.

How much does a well cost? Who can I use to drill my well? Should I buy land without a well? How deep will I have to go to get water? What's the chance I won't get water? What happens if it goes dry? What kind of minerals are there going to be in my water? Will my water be good?

These are all questions I hear regularly when my clients and customers are looking buy real estate in Murphy, North Carolina. The truth is, these are all very pertinent questions that every buyer and investor should ask. The mountains make "hitting" water much different than flat land. The real advantage here in Cherokee County is that we have some of the purest, best tasting water come straight from a well and to your tap.

When it comes to wells, here's a good summation - there are no guarantees. There's good news though - experienced well drilling companies are a tremendous, and quite reliable, resource that can give you answers to your questions depending on the area you find your property. We frequently use and recommend Cherokee Well Drilling due to their extensive knowledge and many, many, many wells they have drilled.

Certain areas are prone to mineral deposits that can show up in your water supply. On the same note, certain areas are notorious for having deep and/or low yield wells. For example, parts of Hanging Dog, Wolf Mountain, Indian Rock Springs, and a few others are notorious for having deep and low yield wells. These really aren't the norm but illustrate how you can ask to make sure the piece of real estate you choose is in a "safe" location.

Here's the answers to many of those common questions. Yes - you can buy land without a well. People do it every day and end up just fine. Many swear they have the best water in the country. The answer to the rest of the questions? Ask your local well source, look at the neighbor's well, and find out the history. The beauty of well water is that it is clean, pure, and reliable source of water. I, too, have a well I use every day and love it! You can also send your water to the state for a nominal $25 fee and find out the mineral content and whether there is any contamination from bacteria.

To sum it up, wells are a great source of water. Just ask a professional when you find the land you love and you won't have to worry about sleepless, or thirsty, nights.