Total Properties on the market were 741.

The number of new listings for the period was 68.

The number of sold homes was 23.

The number of expired listings was 48.

The number of properties taken off the market was 45.

And the number of pending sales was a respectable 42.

The average listing price was $233,893 and the average sales price was $220,411.

All in all the market continues to move forward.  We are still seeing pain in the high end sector.  First time home buyers continue to be a large part of the market.  With the renewed tax credits and the extension to existing home buyers we feel the spring sales should start to pick up.

Posted via email from triangle’s posterous

Buying proper, land, is not as complex a transaction as buying a home in Chapel Hill, Apex, Cary, and Chatham County.  However there are some things you need to know concerning erosion control rules.  Recently, new ordinances have gone into effect that deal with how you have to control erosion on land you own when you go to clear that land to build your home on.  In the past, you simply cleared what land you needed for your driveway, home, and yard and went about building your house.

Nowadays, you must use good stewardship when disturbing your land for clearing.  As a general rule, if you clear more than 25,000 square feet of your land you should consult with an engineer to obtain an erosion control plan.  Under 25,000 square feet, you should consult with the Chatham County Erosion Control Department.  The link to their website is at the bottom of this article.  You can easily have 25,000 square feet of cleared space for a driveway alone if you have a large tract of land you are building on.  Include your home footprint and yard and you are over the 25,000 square feet.

It is always a good idea to have someone knowledgeable of the rules for your particular area to walk you through the process.  I always meet with my clients to make sure they are introduced to the proper departments and individuals.  A good Realtor in your area should do the same.

Click here to go to Chatham County Planning Department for more information:  http://www.chathamnc.org/Index.aspx?page=127

Posted via email from triangle’s posterous

Here’s the boat ramp at the end of N. Pea Ridge Road at Jordan Lake.  One of the largest bodies of water in the area, Jordan lake is a major recreation point, offering fishing, sailing, swimming, wakeboarding, windsurfing and all types of water sports.  Although you cannot buy land in Chatham County on Jordan Lake to build on, many communities offer an “as close to the lake as possible” experience.

The Haw River flows into Jordan Lake from the North.  Here the Haw River runs beneath the Highway 64 bridge between Jordan Lake and Pittsboro.  Another great recreation area, both finishing and canoeing or kayaking are very popular on the Haw River.  There are areas you can buy land in Chatham County that are on one of the many rivers or streams running throughout the County.  Many people come from Chapel Hill, Apex, Cary, and Raleigh to enjoy the many areas of Chatham and to buy land or homes in the Pittsboro or Chatham area on or near the many water features.

The Preserve at Jordan Lake offers many homes and home sites lining this Bluegreen Golf Community.  One of two Bluegreen Golf Communities in the Chatham County area (the other is Chapel Ridge on Highway 87), The Preserve features a Davis Love course and rolling terrain.  Convenient to Chapel Hill, Apex, Cary, and Raleigh, many property owners enjoy the rural Triangle living and conveniences of shopping at Southpoint Mall or other area shopping centers and working in the Research Triangle Park.

This view of the rolling countryside was taken just off Highway 64 in Pittsboro, between Pittsboro, Jordan Lake, and the Cary and Apex areas.  Buying land or a home in Chatham County is still relatively less expensive than many other areas of the Triangle.  Relatively low taxes and a low cost of living bring people looking to buy land or homes in Chatham from all over the Country.

Downtown Pittsboro, with its quaint shops and restaurants, offers that small town rural character with the modern conveniences of Chapel Hill, Apex, Cary, and Raleigh just up the street.  You can mingle with Roy, the host of the “Woodwright’s Shop” TV show in his shop and school on main street or take in ice cream at the Soda Shoppe.  When buying land or a home in Chatham County, we always recommend you spend time in downtown Pittsboro.

Located between Pittsboro and Chapel Hill sits Fearrington Village.  Boasting one of a very few 5 star restaurants in the Southeast, The Fearrington House offers world class accommodations and eating along with specialty shopping, bookstores, and other restaurants.  We always send our visitors looking to buy property in Chatham County or Chapel Hill to stay at the Fearrington House at Fearrington Village.

Posted via email from triangle’s posterous

A copy of the full report can be downloaded here http://www.remaxchatham.com/reports/RealtorSurvey10-8-2009.pdf

Traffic for first time homebuyers and investors looking for foreclosures and deals continued to lead the traffic. First time homebuyers looking to take advantage of the tax credit at the last minute have been some of the most active buyers in the area.

Home prices continued to slide. The length of time needed to sell also increased slightly month over month.

As the Triangle area tends to be the last region to go into an economic slowdown, it may lag some other areas now in recover as well. Although the Triangle did not make it into the top 20 markets in the U.S. this period, it was still rated as a market to watch.

Not to sound cliché’ ish, but location is one of the single most important features of a home. Select wisely and you can be rewarded with the quiet and serenity of the deep woods. Select poorly and you may find a four lane avenue passing in front of your house in the coming years. Do your homework and select a good location and you can find your nest egg has grown nicely when it is time to move on to your next destination. Choose without some due diligence and you may find after years of improvements and paying your mortgage down that your dream home has turned into a nightmare and in order to sell you may have to practically give the house away, and it may take a long time to do that.

Why is this? There are many reasons and factors that go into what someone would call the “perfect” home. There are as many opinions as there reasons of what makes the “perfect” home. Many people come to what I refer to as the “Rural Triangle” to get away from it all. Get away from the traffic, the hustle and bustle, the noise, basically get away from people. While others come for the greater value and reduced cost of living, but still expect to find all the conveniences of Apex, Cary, or Chapel Hill. And still some want to be in a location early to take advantage of the market upswing in that area. All are good reasons in their own right, but they have different objectives, different location feature requirements, and way different outcomes especially when choosing well or not.

Let’s look a few of these in more depth. We will focus on the Eastern section of Chatham County, especially in and around Pittsboro as that is the area I know most about and can offer the best advice. Let’s first focus on the person moving out to Pittsboro and Chatham County to get away from it all and live out in the country as this is the person likely to be the most impacted by what is happening now and in the near future.

So your driving through the “Rural Triangle” part of Chatham County and come upon this sleepy little town called Pittsboro. You think to yourself, why this is Mayberry, that mystical little town once seen on TV in the 1950s and 60s whose North Carolina native Andy Griffin patrolled the quiet streets with his trusty sidekick Barney. Parking downtown you might opt for dinner or ice cream at one of our quaint eating establishments or shop in one of our unique shops. But sooner than later, if you wait just a little bit, like Dorothy found out in the Wizard of Oz, you might not be in Mayberry. At least not for long.

You see, change was in full swing in Chatham just prior to the economic downturn. And while that downturn has led many developers and developments to head for higher ground, the fact is those tracts of land will one day house many newcomers. That is a fact. No matter what the situation is today, we are still likely to have others pick up where previous developers left off. Some with deep pockets, like Newland Community’s Briar Chapel, staid the course and have continued to prod a long. That pace is also likely to quicken as the economy rebounds and new growth pops up.

But perhaps the biggest reason we will likely see growth continue again at a brisk pace really has less to do with the rebound in the economy and more to do with software, computer software that is. Because when things started to go south for many developers in Chatham, another group started quietly making plans. That group was Preston Development, backed by SAS Software’s Jim Goodnight, one of the richest men on the East Coast. No one really knows what is planned with the more than 6,000 acres the group has quietly amassed. Yes there are plans that have been floated around. But I think what we are likely to see is something very special, different but very special. For this reason we are likely to see renewed investment and growth, not only in Pittsboro, but the entire area, the likes that have not been seen.

Understanding where growth is likely to take place and what type of growth is likely to occur will go a long way in knowing where to buy or build your “perfect” home. It will help you determine where on this growth path you want to be and what is the best place for you live, based on your wants and goals.

Watch for Part 2, where we discuss what is taking place in Chatham and around Pittsboro and how with a little planning on your side you can find your “Dream Home” and live happily ever after.

Looking at the numbers in more detail, we see that the average home sold square footage dropped by 154 sq. ft. indicating a continuing trend to smaller homes as well. The average sales price in Chatham for August 2009 was $348,274, down $58,064 from $406,338 for last August.

The average days on the market was up slightly from 122 days last August to 154 days for August 2009 for homes that sold. Homes were selling for 4% less as a percentage of asking price, from 96% in 2008 to 92% this year.

There were pockets of better than average performance and pockets or worse than average performance. For the most part, homes priced correctly were selling in all price ranges. Homes in what would be termed “First Time Home Buyer” market were the most active on the market, followed by land, and finally by luxury homes.

The first and most basic thing is to determine if the current zoning of the property is applicable for what you plan to use the property for. As we are talking about mostly residential readers here we are going to limit the discussion to residential purposes and not talk about rezoning, special uses, or business zoning.

For the most part, most rural land will be zoned single family residential and agriculture. This means using the land for farming or to build a single family house on is permitted. Check to make sure the land around you is also zoned the same way or you could find a business going up nearby that may affect your value or at least you quality of life. Again the local county planning department or your Realtor can check on the zoning for you.

Once you are sure the land is zoned for the use you want, the next thing to check on is whether or not the property is a buildable lot. Many factors go into this, but the most important and basic factor is water and sewer. Unlike many surrounding Counties, Chatham for the most part does not have County wide water or sewer. There are pockets of areas in Chatham where County water may be available, but no where in the County is waste water treatment service available. While it is true that within the town limits of towns in Chatham there may be sewage service available, for this discussion we focusing on rural undeveloped land out in the County. Private sewage service is available in some developments in the County and in rare instances may be made available to an adjoining property. But again we are focusing this discussion on rural undeveloped land and not lots in a subdivision.

This means that for most of us interested in buying or selling land in the County, we must then obtain water and sewer permits from the County. Sewage permits, more commonly known as improvement permits are usually the one most coveted as it is dependent upon soil quality and soil types found on the land. The process of testing the soils by a County Soil Engineer for a septic system is called Perking or a Perk Test. I have heard in the past that only about 32% of Chatham County is suitable for a conventional type of septic (sewage) system. While given enough well depth, water can usually be found but not always. It is the soil quality on the property and not the absence of water that usually makes the property unbuildable or at least much more expensive to build on due to the requirement of a more complex septic system for poor soils.

The County information for application and fees associated with obtaining a perk test can be found at this link: http://www.chathamnc.org/Index.aspx?page=1054.

Why? Because most businesses still look at demographics and population when choosing to open a new site. Right now, Chatham County does not have the rooftop count to draw most of the major chains. Today that is. There is still a lot of planned development in the County and especially around Pittsboro, in spite of the economy and increased restrictions due to new ordinances. This is especially true for the Southeastern part of Chatham and Pittsboro, where the developers of Preston Development in Cary have amassed thousands of acres around Pittsboro. This is in anticipation of opening a new multi-use development that will supposedly feature both commercial and residential development the likes that have not been seen in the area for quite some time.

So what does the liquor by the drink passing mean to existing and new residents of Pittsboro and Chatham County? In the short term it means you may be able to walk into your favorite restaurant and enjoy a mixed drink with your meal. In the long term, it may mean that as growth and development return to the County we may see more major restaurant and hotel chains considering a location here. But again, this is not likely to happen overnight as Chatham County still has a way to go in order to build the rooftops up to attract the attention of these major chains.

Another important consideration is to understand where growth and development in the county are likely to occur. If you or your clients want convenience and don’t mind a little traffic in the future, you may want to know where key commercial points are likely to be and where the closest residential will be. On the other hand, if you enjoy the rural character that is Chatham County today, you may want to avoid those areas for both you and your clients. Studying development plans at the county and town planning departments will give you a good idea where all this is going to take place.

The 2nd septic system permit is an application for a Construction Authorization (CA). Basically, this permit allows the septic system to be constructed and installed on the site. Many times this permit can be granted at the same time the IP is granted, but not always. If the type of septic system is a conventional type system that requires very little design, then the CA can be granted at the same time as the IP. However, if the type of septic system is more sophisticated (i.e. low pressure pipe, subsurface drip, pre-treatment, etc.) and requires a design by a NC L.S.S and/or a NC Professional Engineer, then the design must be completed and approved by the local health department prior to granting the CA.

The 3rd permit is an application for an Operations Permit (OP). Basically, this permit allows the septic system to be placed into operation. The local health department and designer(s) (where applicable) must view the installed system prior to the system components being covered with soil. This insures that the system is installed according to the design and will operate properly. Once the local health department and designer(s) (where applicable) have evaluated the installed system and are satisfied that the system has been installed properly, then the OP can be granted.

Jeff Vaughan, NCOWCICB Certified Inspector and NC L.S.S.

Senior Soil Scientist

AWT Land Development, Inc.