Although mold growth has been an issue in the Cary NC area in the last five years, the presence of mold growth in homes has been reported since biblical times. The tiny spores produced by mold are found reproducing outdoors and indoors. The growth of mold outdoors is necessary to decompose organic matter. Most species are not harmful or toxic. Various mold spores are always present to some degree in home microenvironments such as wall cavities and crawlspaces. Sensitive individuals can have an allergic reaction when these spores are inhaled or ingested. The industry has not yet agreed upon what is an acceptable amount of exposure.

Mold inside your home is a moisture problem

Mold is usually not a problem in the indoor environment unless these mold spores settle on a wet or moist surface and are allowed to multiply. Cary NC is in the heart of the warm, humid southeast so we must be proactive to keep the growth of fungal spores in our home and crawlspace under control. A mold problem inside a structure is a moisture problem. Mold can grow within 24 to 48 hours if it has a food source (e.g. sheet rock, wood, and wallpaper glue), the right temperature (between 59°F-122°F optimally) and moisture.

How can you be proactive?

• If you have a water leak, find the source, repair it, and dry the affected structures immediately.
• Keep indoor humidity between 30% and 60%.
• Have proper ventilation in showers and laundry areas and in the kitchen while cooking.
• In areas where water is used frequently, use aerosol products that kill mold (e.g. Lysol).
• Inspect your crawlspace for standing water and look for standing water on vapor barrier, wet joists,     subfloor or damp insulation. Monitor the humidity in your crawlspace.

Mold growth can be cleaned and the problem can be corrected. If you need air and surface testing for mold, the EPA recommends that “Sampling for mold should be conducted by professionals who have specific experience in designing mold sampling protocols, sampling methods, and interpreting results.”   If you are in the process of purchasing a new home, pay particular attention to your inspection report and if the inspector suggests a mold evaluation.  At LG Real Estate, we take this concern very seriously on behalf of our buyers and sellers.

If you have questions or concerns, contact our friends who are local professionals at LRC Indoor Testing & Research in Cary, NC at 919-342-4936 or visit their website at http://www.lrcresearch.com

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NO DOC LOANS ARE NO LONGER AVAILABLE

Borrowers are no longer able to secure no documentation or stated income loans. We now need paystubs or tax returns.  It’s still possible to get approvals with budgets that are stretched though.  Good credit and a good down payment usually overcomes income issues.

Down payments are back in style. Most home loans require at least 5% down again.  Government sponsored loans like FHA and VA loans require less, but have restrictions.

CREDIT SCORES ARE CRITICAL

Good credit is critical.  There is a great website that explains credit scoring.  Please visit www.myfico.com. Lower scores can cost you money or even an approval.  It’s important to know where you are.  We would be glad to give you a free credit report with your three credit scores.  Mortgage companies use the middle score.

Pre-approvals are good to have when making an offer. It’s easy and free too.  All we need is to pull your credit report, get your paystubs, and bank statements to prove you have your down payment.  It takes less than a day to get an approval and you’re done except for the appraisal.

So, before you get in a real estate agents car to view properties, call me for a quick pre-approval so that you know you can qualify when you find your dream home.

Eric Routh
Loan Officer/ESI
919-678-1133

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As the office manager, so much of my time at LG Real Estate is spent supporting buyers and sellers in selling a home or choosing the right Cary area house to make their home.  I’ve lived in my Preston home for about 9 years and have learned a few design tips over the years. 

One design tip is to frame your art for the piece, rather than the room. 

So…even as your tastes change or that once neutral paint gets dull and needs a lift, you can still enjoy your art of any price in any room. 

With our new unframed painting, our family packed up the car Saturday morning to run some errands.  First on the list was to drive the short distance to Bev’s Fine Art in North Raleigh.  Bev Kesterson, the owner of the art gallery and custom framing shop, works some weekdays and most Saturdays.  She has the greatest eye for what type of frame works for each painting.  I hardly have to do anything but agree with her and the perfect frame is selected.   My husband and my 2 boys enjoyed the outing as well.  It’s always a great cultural experience for my husband and I to take our boys into a gallery and introduce them to different types of art.  Bev, with her lively personality, is quite the entertainer and she shared a photo on her laptop with my boys of her latest personal art purchase.  A painting that they found quite funny to see…a self portrait of a man, just standing there against a wall.

For any of our Cary, NC clients seraching for new art or reframing current artwork, I would highly recomend a trip to Bev’s Fine Art.  As Bev says on her website, www.bevsfineart.com, she “specializes in making a house YOUR home”.   Our team at LG Real Estate couldn’t agree more.

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I find a wonderful way to start my day is to drop by Panera, order my drink of choice (Icy Mocha Grande), and plan my daily activities.  Panera is light, bright, and full of positive energy.   The menu is diverse with plenty of delicious choices that change with the seasons.  Panera Bread, as their website proclaims, ” is a Symbol of Warmth and Welcome”.  I always find myself saying hello and chatting with friends, neighbors, and clients. 

I frequently visit our 2nd office because it is a welcome change of pace, I love the smell of coffee, and it feels like home.  The Panera staff is friendly and courteous and the management is sensitive to customer and community needs.  On several occasions, they have donated coffee, bagels, and other menu items to local charities and church events. 

So what does Panera Bread have to do with Real Estate?  Plenty!!  Today’s real estate market consists of a myriad of forms, disclosures, contingencies, and inspections in order to buy or sell a home.  At LG Real Estate like Panera Bread, we value the warmth and welcome of a trusting client relationship.  Our mission is to make buying or selling a home simple, enjoyable, and valuable for all our clients … all the time.  

So stop by Panera Bread in the morning for your favorite cup of coffee and try their new breakfast panini sandwich.  After enjoying your morning treat, walk across the parking lot to York, Simpson, Underwood and the LG Real Estate office.  Ask for Lenda, I would love to meet you.

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Look around…I bet you might be surprised how many of your Cary, NC neighbors have made this mistake and could end up struggling when they list their home on the Triangle MLS. Now you know.

Do you have any easy curb appeal ideas?

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When it comes to thinking real estate resale in Cary, let’s look at some of the demographics of Cary provided by the Cary Chamber of Commerce. The average age of a Cary, NC resident is 33.7 and 72% of Cary’s population is made up of families. The average family in Cary moves every 5 years. So the odds are very good that the home you buy today will be for sale in the next 5-8 years. “Always Think Resale”

So when thinking resale, try to purchase a home today that will appeal to the largest number of future buyers. In Cary, the highest number of future buyers are going to be …… yes, that’s right ….. Families. So, what does a family want when purchasing a home. Here are three important criteria to consider:

1. Location, Location, Location — Appealing and well kept neighborhoods, quiet and safe streets (cul-de-sacs), neighborhood amenities such as pool and tennis courts, and of course convenience to shopping.

2. The home itself — In Cary go for a 4 or 5 bedroom home with a bonus room and plenty of bathrooms. The kitchen should be large with modern appliances, plenty of storage space, and a 2 or 3 car garage. A large flat backyard is always an attractive feature for a family.

3. Schools –Whether you have kids or not, you should look closely at the schools. In Cary NC, you want to look at all three schools in your neighborhood - elementary, middle, and high school. Also, where are the year round and magnet schools located for your area? A great resource for reports and Wake County school information is: www.wcpss.net/.

So now you found a great neighborhood in Cary with wonderful schools and a home that suits your needs today. What else is important to keep in mind in Cary when you’re “Always Thinking Resale”? Answer: New Home Competiton.

In Cary there are literally thousands of new homes being built with all the latest and greatest amenities and home styles. When you sell your home in Cary in the next 5 - 8 years, your main competition will be new homes. The way you compete with new homes is to keep your home updated and in what Lenda Goulding (LG Real Estate) refers to as “Parade Pretty”.

So look for a home with a functional floor plan that is well built and maintained. If a home has “good bones” (Lenda again) it can be updated over time to compete with new homes. The landscape is another often overlooked criteria. Remember, new homes are not going to have well developed and mature landscapes. So purchase a home with a good landscape blueprint and work to continually upgrade your landscape. Here is where your home home can really shine and beat those new home beauties.

In summary, when you buy your next Cary, NC home, review the factors outlined in this article and of course, “Always Think Resale”. Please drop us a line with any ideas you have for enhancing resale potential when buying your Cary NC home.

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And, here at LG Real Estate, we have a process where we preview each of our Cary, NC listings before they go on the market and suggest to the sellers what needs to be removed.  But, what then?  I thought I would take a moment and just list a few of our favorite donation organizations in Cary, NC.

Habitat for Humanity in Wake County

If you remodeled your kitchen, bathroom or any part of your home in the getting your home on the market process, you can check out www.habitatwake.org to see if you can utilize their limited pick up service or drop off old cabinets and any usuable leftover building materials.

Dress for Success

Have you been cleaning out your closets? A new location is opening in the Raleigh/Durham area at Northgate Mall by June 2nd.  This group has served more than 400,000 women by providing business appropriate clothing.  To find out more and learn about donation sites, see www.dressforsuccess.org/trianglenc

Teaming for Technology in Wake County

A division of United Way that has lots of information on how to donate computer equipment, help out a worthy nonprofit school or a family and even get a tax break.   http://www.unitedwaytriangle.org/t4t/donate.asp

Dorcus Thrift Shop in Cary, NC

Located at 1231 NE Maynard, the Docus Thrift Shop sells used items and helps local neighbors in immediate crisis.  If you go during their store hours, someone will write up a receipt for your donations and even help you unload your car.  Check out www.cca-cary.org for store hours and a detailed list of what they accept. 

Official Site for Wake County - Wake.gov

This is a neat resource for Cary area real estate.  You can use this link and then there is a search engine that will help you with options to dispose of about everything from old paint, to ink cartridges, to propane tanks, to plumbing options.  Take a look at  http://www.wakegov.com/recycling/trashtakers/default.htm   

Do you have any favorite donation places in Cary, NC?  If so, please share.

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Step 1  Before going on the market.  Once you know that you are going to sell you home, take a deep breath.  It is a time consuming project.  These steps are pretty well known:
• De-clutter, need I say more?
• Interview agents.
• Decide on a price. 
• Determine showing instructions. 

Step 2  You are on the market.  Yahoo!  That part is done.  Find a buyer!

Step 3  Under Contract.  Accepting an offer is an entire blog entry all on its own and I am not about to tackle that tricky one.  But let’s say you have already accepted one.  What now?  You’re done, right?  Nope!  Here’s what to expect:

• Closing date – Buyer usually picks a date that works for them, but this is negotiable.  Sometimes it is simply a date picked almost randomly.  It can be adjusted.
• Inspection - Buyers typically hire an inspector.  The inspector comes to the home and checks the house out.  They look for things like shingles that are missing, gas log fireplaces that aren’t working, water under the house, etc. 
• Repairs – From the inspection the buyers can create a repair request.  This is a formal list of things they want repaired before closing.  You can decide to fix all of them, some of them, none of them, or offer money in lieu of fixing them.  Of course, there are ramifications to each of these decisions and your agent should explain them all to you.  Once that is negotiated, you sign the repair request.  Now you MUST do what you agreed to do or the buyer can back out of the purchase. 
• Deed & Lien Waiver – Legal paperwork that the seller must sign for the sale of the home.  This is typically prepared by the closing attorney, but you can have your attorney draw them up if it would make you feel more comfortable.
• Attorney instructions – What?  I have to give the attorney instructions?  Aren’t they supposed to know what to do?  Well, yes, but where and how would you like your proceeds delivered?  Oh, maybe that is a good idea.  Pay off the mortgage and give the rest to me!
• Closing – You technically don’t have to go to this one.  You can sign all the paperwork ahead of time. 

Now take another deep breath and move on to your new home!

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1. 74 tips to keep your car in top condition
2. Keep your pool in top condition
3. Keep your minnows in top condition
4. How to keep your hair in good condition

Wow!  Most people think about keeping their car, their pool, or their hair in top condition but what about their home.   Well, I’m not planning on selling my Cary NC home anytime soon.  Of course, but consider this - Your home is in many cases your largest financial asset - worth hundreds of thousands of dollars.    It certainly makes perfect sense to protect, enhance, and maintain such a valuable real estate investment at all times. 

The best standard to use for keeping your home in top condition is to keep it in selling condition. We all know how much work, improvement, maintenance, and cleaning we do right before we sell our home.  The problem is we never get to enjoy all this effort once our home sells.  

So how does one go about bringing their property up to selling condition now - when they are not planning on listing their home.  Here’s a suggestion - Have your home inspected periodically as if you were going to sell it in the next 90 days.  Hire a licensed North Carolina home inspector to gain a better understanding of the condition of your property. 

Home inspectors typically evaluate structural components (floors,walls,roofs,chimneys, foundations), mechanical systems (plumbing, electrical, heating/air conditioning), installed appliances and other major components of your property.  Home inspection reports range in cost or should I say investment from $300-$500 depending on the size of your home.  Once completed, you should review the report with the inspector and make the repairs necessary to keep your home in top condition.   By taking a proactive approach, you can keep your home in selling condition and protect one of your largest and most valuable assets.

Additioanlly, upgrading your kitchen, bathrooms, and making other improvements are vitally important in today’s real estate market especially with so many Cary new home neighborhoods.  Please review some of our other article on CaryAreaBlog.com which address these topics. 

In summary, investing in the maintenance, enhancement, and upkeep of your Cary NC home is money well spent.  Please share with us any tips or ideas you have used to keep your home in top selling condition.

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• Did YOU add on that deck? or
• Was that beautiful 3rd floor space always finished? or
• Did YOUR condo always have an elevator?

As listing agents, we at LG REAL ESTATE spend a great deal of time educating our sellers on the importance of getting a permit for many “innocent” or “common” additions or modifications. The lack of a permit can break a sale! We are not allowed to market any unpermitted space in TMLS, our Multiple Listing Service. And, today’s savvy buyers want to make sure that all improvements are permitted. The need to go back and get prior work permitted is so common, that the Town of Cary has set up a rather painless process in their permitting department to handle it.

You can get the all the details online at www.townofcary.org.

Here are the everyday items that need a permit per the town’s website:

• Converting a residence to a business.
• Constructing a deck, screened porch, or sunroom.
• Installing an irrigation system.
• Installing a swimming pool.
• Adding a ceiling fan. - Can you believe this one????
• Finishing an attic or basement. - THIS IS THE BIGGIE FOR US!
• Replacing a furnace or air conditioner.
• Replacement of water heaters in the same location with the same fuel source.
• Installing gas logs, attic fans, skylights

As you can see, some items would be easy to get a permit for. But an attic expansion could require the Town of Cary to tear holes in the sheetrock of your attic if they cannot verify the wiring was put in to code. They also require stair railings. Many do-it-yourself projects leave the stair railing out. Also, the stairs have to be a certian height. For one LG Real Estate client, we are unable to list the square footage for a 3rd floor expansion at this time because the risers were not built to code. These NC Building rules are in place to protect each of us as consumers.

If you are unsure if your project requires a permit, call Cary Inspections & Permits Dept at 919-469-4043 between 8am and 5pm weekdays.

Have you experienced any permitting challenges? We’d love to hear about them.

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