A Much Awaited Spring in Murphy, North Carolina – An Article for The Cherokee Scout by John Poltrock

Posted by I Love Murphy on

Spring. It’s finally here. After a much colder than normal Winter for not just us, but the entire Southeast and beyond. Spring holds promises of blooming flowers, hummingbirds, and Summer.

I love the Summer and everything about it. Folks are out and about gardening, meeting new friends, playing on the Lake Hiwassee (one of my favorites!), camping, hiking, ATVing (another one of favorites!), spending time at the John C Campbell Folk School, and so much more. The options and opportunities are seemingly endless here in the mountains so long as you’re willing to get up and go enjoy them.

Real estate, too, enjoys the Spring and Summer season.  Buyers excitedly shop around for the home or cabin they’ve been dreaming of and working to get for many years. Sellers anxiously anticipate the buyer who simply loves their home. It’s a great time that builds memories and changes lives for not just a season or a year, but for an entire lifetime.

I still speak to many pessimists who believe the world is crashing in around us… and I’m ready for Spring to change their mind. There’s no doubt I’m a full fledged optimist who believes last year was the year of positive change. That’s right – I did say and did mean last year. 2009. You got it. And its not just optimism, it’s facts.

2008 was simply the worst year we’ve had for real estate in more than a decade. Things changed so rapidly, you couldn’t possibly keep up. 2009 indicators and statistics show strong improvements. 2010 is already showing improvement over 2009. Life is good! We’re witnessing history in the making that historians are going to be talking about for hundreds of years. We’ve lived through one of the most challenging economies the U.S. has seen and must keep moving forward. If you’re still facing hard times, pick your head up and hang in there as best you can. Things are changing for the better.

As things change around us, give us a call and let us help you with your real estate and show you how the changes have affected you. If you’re facing hard times and there’s a home or some land in the way that’s hanging over your head, let us help. That alone can change your family tree faster than almost anything. If you’re doing great and don’t have to sell or just want to, give us a call. If you know now is the best time to buy and want to take advantage of a great opportunity that’s out there for you, give us a call. We’ll point you in the right direction, always be honest with you, and give you that Rockstar service you deserve.

The Poltrock Team at REMAX Mounain Properties – Murphy NC – www.MyMurphy.com – JohnPoltrock@Gmail.com – Call us Toll Free at 1-866-687-7496

Spring is Here in Murphy NC!!

Posted by I Love Murphy on

Yup, that’s right! Today is an absolutely GORGEOUS first day of Spring. The weather man, who is known for being right all the time 🙄 says its supposed to reach 71 and beautiful all day long. I’m supposed to show land in a couple of hours, and I couldn’t ask for a better day!

Now that Spring is here, we’ll really begin to see real estate take off! Home and land buyers are lining up their trips here to find the property they’ve been dreaming of for years. It’s an exciting time – there’s lots to do outside after a colder-than-normal winter, everyone is ready to get out and enjoy the great outdoors!

John Poltrock – The Poltrock Team at RE/MAX Mountain Properties – www.MyMurphy.com – Call us Toll Free 1-866-Murphy-NC or 1-866-687-7496

Click Here to see the average climate and weather for Murphy NC

Should I Sell My Murphy NC Home Furnished?

Posted by I Love Murphy on
Tastefully Decorated Cabin Decor
Tastefully Decorated Cabin Decor

There are a lot of home owners who wrestle with the question, “Should I list and sell my home in Murphy NC fully furnished?” When it comes to working with real estate buyers, this question doesn’t have a direct answer because there are a couple considerations that come in to play.

Is your furniture nice and will it target your likely buyer? Then you certainly need to consider the option of selling it furnished. If it’s cabin furniture in a nice chalet or something of that nature, then you’d better believe it will help. If you want to keep some pieces for yourself, you need to say so in the listing or leave a “Detail Sheet” that will specifically tell them what goes and doesn’t.

Does it clash? You don’t want Florida beach decor in a mountain cabin, and believe me, people try to. If it doesn’t fit the look and style of your home, it’s likely that it will hurt you and you need to get rid of it.

Is the furniture junk you don’t want to move? Although an abrupt and direct question, if its junk and you don’t want it either, the buyer probably doesn’t want it either. In fact, it may be advantageous to get rid of your furniture and spruce it up. You can donate it to many organizations who will appreciate it, like Christian Love Ministries. You’re paying for professional service, so ask your Realtor what to do – what to keep, get rid of, etc.

Not sure – it’s not junk and not sure if the buyer will want it either? Ask your Realtor. Also, I would encourage you to separate the furnishings from your listing. In other words, put “Furnishings Negotiable” on the listing. That way, if they want them, you can work out a separate agreement while keeping them out of the real estate side.

Each case can be different, so be sure to hire a professional who can not only sell your home in the mountains – but can also guide you through the process and coach you on how to capitalize the best from your investment. If you don’t have a Realtor, call us!

Sell your Real Estate with Murphy’s #1 Real Estate Team – Call The POLTROCK TEAM Today! Toll-Free 1-866-687-7496 – www.MyMurphy.com – JohnPoltrock@gmail.com – REMAX Mountain Properties in Murphy NC

John and Linda Tuttle Look for Realtors – and after many Bad Attempts finally get The Poltrock Team in Murphy NC

Posted by I Love Murphy on

If we had to sum up John Poltrock in one word, it would probably be integrity.  We came to John after having been with 2 other Realtors for 10 months.  The previous Realtors did almost nothing to promote or sell our house.  We did not see Realtors in a very positive light after our negative experiences with the previous ineffective Realtors. 

JT and Linda Tuttle
JT and Linda Tuttle

We read about the Poltrocks on the Internet, about their credentials and success rate, and hoped we were making the right decision in choosing them.  It was hard to stay positive when the market was so poor.  I believe when John took over our property, there were approximately 800 houses for sale in the Murphy area and over 200 were 2 bedroom 2 bath chalets like ours.  We were very discouraged at times and John kept us pumped up.

We were angry and annoyed at times when difficult decisions had to be made, but John always dealt very tactfully and professionally with us taking great patience to explain the housing market and the necessity of doing things to keep our house in the running.  We loved our house and had taken very loving care of it since originally we had planned to retire in Murphy.  Plans changed, however, and we had to put our house on the market in the worst of times.  It seemed like a very long struggle, and it was considering we paid an extra mortgage for 18 months (10 months before John took our house over, then 8 months until it was sold).

John got our house up and out there right from the start.  He used all kinds of techniques and was diligent in promoting our house.  We were very happy to see potential buyers finally coming through our house.  It still took a long time to get THE buyer, but there were so many times that we thought it would just never sell, even though it is a beautiful, new house in a great subdivision.  John’s efforts never wavered.

When the right buyers did come along, there were still difficult decisions to make.  But John continued to patiently explain things and encourage us in the direction that would complete the sale.  We are very happy that we listened to John because he knew what he was talking about and he gave us excellent advice.  My only regret is that we didn’t find him 10 months sooner.  My husband and I would wholeheartedly recommend The Poltrock Team to anyone who wants to get their house sold. 

P.S. John is a really nice guy, too.

 John & Linda Tuttle
Pinellas Park, Florida

The Poltrock Team – REMAX Mountain Properties in Murphy NC – Call Toll Free 1-866-Murphy-NC or 1-866-687-7496 – JohnPoltrock@gmail.com – www.MyMurphy.com

The Poltrock Team’s Bi-Weekly SOLD Real Estate Update for Murphy NC – August 2009 Edition

Posted by I Love Murphy on

Back to school! Even my daughter is excited to be back to school at Murphy Elementary – which is a true blessing! Schools are starting all over the United States, and as a result, folks are busy. Parents and grandparents alike are busy getting their children back into the “grind.” Every year, we see a drop in new buyers coming in for 2-4 weeks during August when schools are starting back.

Even with the “Back to School” effect, the past two weeks in the real estate market have been HUGELY impressive in Murphy NC! In the past 14 days, an astronomical TWENTY-SIX properties went under contract and are currently pending totaling upwards of $4.1 million in potential real estate transactions. Coupled with the 19 properties that have sold and closed in the past 14 days, which makes for a great August when over $2.7 million is already closed in a two week period.

Over the past month, the average selling price of a home has been fluctuating from $130,253 to $148,068. July yielded the highest average selling price at $188,683. With all this being said, it makes sense that 61% of our market activity has been on properties priced $175,000 and under. With that said, we’re seeing two “holes” in the real estate inventory where supply is dwindling.

  • Properties priced at less than $100,000 are selling very well – so well in fact that supply has dropped more than 36% in the past 12 months.
  • Properties priced from $125,000 to $150,000 have benefited from a 38.3% reduction in inventory in the past year.

Interestingly enough, our new system also finds developing demand as well as price points that do not have active buyers. For example, the price range of $300,000 – $325,000 has had no demand in the past year, indicating a need for homes in those ranges to get under $300,000, which is a significantly more active price range.

Land is another category that needs attention. In the first quarter of 2009, there seemed to be no buyers searching for land. In fact, it was the lowest land sales ever since July of 2002! With that being said, we had nowhere to go but up! Sales volume in land has literally more than doubled since then and Realtors are experiencing more land buyers than we’ve had this entire year. Sales have largely been attributed to tracts less than three acres. In fact, they account for 70% of the transactions and 55% of total land dollar volume.

You must be a subscriber of The POLTROCK TEAM’s
Bi-Weekly Real Estate Update to get the Link to
the sold properties for the past 14 Days.
See sold prices, pictures, and descriptions of what’s sold!
Email John at JohnPoltrock@gmail.com and join our SOLD Update!

Sold Home Statistics
(17 listings)

Low

High

Average

Median

Total

List Price

$69,900

$479,000

$205,666

$164,800

$3,496,325

Selling Price

$59,000

$475,000

$185,235

$160,000

$3,149,000

List/Sold(%)

79.81%

104.46%

90.21%

88.93%

–

Price/SqFt ($)

$0.00

$218.25

$91.10

$106.91

–

Days on Market

45

670

255

168

–

Sold Land Statistics
(6 listings)

Low

High

Average

Median

Total

List Price

$14,900

$218,020

$91,043

$48,525

$546,260

Selling Price

$11,100

$218,020

$108,337

$110,000

$650,020

List/Sold(%)

74.50%

318.69%

127.58%

91.47%

–

Days on Market

22

497

242

255

–

2009 is an exciting year for real estate and we look forward to a continually growing market. August has been a great month and we will continue to work for more to come! We appreciate your business very much, and if there’s anything we can do to help you or someone you know, please let us know! We’re in business because of you.

Written and researched by John Poltrock of The Poltrock Team at RE/MAX Mountain Properties can be reached at 877-837-3002 or by email at JohnPoltrock@gmail.com – You can read a summarized version of this article in the business section Murphy’s #1 Newspaper – The Cherokee Scout.

You can read previous editions of the Murphy NC Real Estate Market Solds and Update by Clicking Here

Andy & Margaret Strike It Rich with The Poltrock Team, Murphy, NC!

Posted by I Love Murphy on

We have the pleasure of working with such great people here in the Murphy, NC real estate business!  We feel so fortunate to get to meet so many great couples and families along the way – we feel like we make scores of new friends each and every year!  Here’s some feedback we received from one of our latest buyers (and now friends):

What a stroke of luck!  Having randomly selected The Poltrock Team to use for our Murphy, NC real estate needs, we soon learned that we struck it rich!  Our experience in land buying with John and Jessica was second to none and something that we will fondly remember for a long time.  They were both great to work with, and most certainly the most patient people we have ever come across – every detail and request we made was provided with a smile and enthusiasm.  What a team!

We would recommend John and his team to anyone looking to find their dream home here in Murphy, NC.  Their constant updates made us worry free and confident that our best interests were in the forefront of their minds during the entire transaction.  We would rate our experience with both John and Jessica with a ten out of ten, with Jessica getting the winning edge on her driving skills!  Biggest thanks goes out to The Poltrock Team.

Andy and Margaret
Greenville, SC

Construction Labor Costs Should Go Down

Posted by I Love Murphy on

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. You can even find a Recommended Contractor or Builder in Murphy NC Online at our Gotta Guy List!

John and Jessica Poltrock – RE/MAX Mountain Properties – Murphy, NC – (828) 837-3002 – (866) Murphy-NC – www.MyMurphy.com