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The Ballantyne Area In South Charlotte Far Outpaces Other Nearby Zip Codes for Home Activity and Schools

Tuesday, Jul. 01, 2014

Ballantyne Area’s Popularity Far Exceeds Nearby Areas, Data Shows
Portions Reprinted from the article in The Charlotte observer by Elisabeth Arriero – www.CharlotteObserver.com

Average monthly move-ins for the last 12 months in Ballantyne is around 446, according to Welcomemat Services.

By The Numbers:

Source: Welcomemat

ZIP Code: 28134 (Pineville, NC):

• Average Monthly Move-ins for 2013: 66

• Owner-occupied dwellings: 2,318

ZIP Code: 28105 (Matthews, NC):

• Average Monthly Move-ins for 2013: 200

• Owner-occupied dwellings: 11,811

ZIP Code: 28226 (South Charlotte by Carmel Road):

• Average Monthly Move-ins for 2013: 227

• Owner-occupied dwellings: 11,368

ZIP Code: 28270 (South Charlotte):

• Average Monthly Move-ins for 2013: 170

• Owner-occupied dwellings: 9,176

ZIP Code: 28277 (Ballantyne):

• Average Monthly Move-ins for 2013: 446

• Owner-occupied dwellings: 18,047

ZIP Code: 29715 (Fort Mill, SC):

• Average Monthly Move-ins for 2013: 135

• Owner-occupied dwellings: 7,504

Does this create more activity for South Charlotte, in general?

The flurry of home buyer activity in Ballantyne’s 28277 ZIP code doesn’t appear to have a spillover effect in neighboring ZIP codes, according to recent real estate data.

In June, Atlanta-based Welcomemat Services released data that showed the Ballantyne area was the second-most-moved-in ZIP code in the country, at least for May 4-31.

The company, which provides information to local businesses that want to reach new residents with direct-mail packets, released a report showing the Ballantyne ZIP code – 28277 – had 594 move-ins for that period.

Average monthly move-ins for the last 12 months in Ballantyne is around 446.

But bordering ZIP codes, including 28134 in Pineville, 28226 near the Arboretum, 28270 near the Promenade, 28105 in Matthews and 29715 in Fort Mill aren’t experiencing the same activity.

Average move-ins over the last 12 months for these areas range from as low as 66 in Pineville to as high as 227 for the Arboretum area, according to Welcomemat.

The average days on the market, which is the number of days a home is for sale in a particular market, also is consistently lower in Ballantyne.

For instance, in 2014, the average days on the market for homes sold was 61 in Ballantyne.

Average days on the market for that same period was 73 in 28270, 72 in 28226, 92 in 28105, 82 in 28134 and 82 in 29715.

What Makes Ballantyne So Special?:

Real estate professionals and urban planning experts don’t dispute that south Charlotte is a popular place to live compared with other parts of the city, especially given the location, the job market and quality of the area schools.

But they cited several factors to explain why 28277 is specifically sought out. Real estate agents said home buyers are requesting to live specifically in Ballantyne and not just the south Charlotte area.

People are drawn to newer homes. While buyers can find a great home in Providence Plantation or Quail Hollow, it’s not likely to be as modern as a Ballantyne Country Club home.

Ballantyne is newer, which is more appealing for people relocating here,

He said there also are a lot of new businesses coming to Ballantyne, including Met Life, a new Publix, Whole Foods and various bank branches.

That helps feed the frenzy,

All of that new construction may help explain the large number of move-ins. After all, with all of those new homes, of course there would be more home-buyer activity,

You pay less per square foot in south Charlotte than in places like Dilworth or Myers Park. You can get a lot more house for your money here.

Another big draw for the Ballantyne area specifically is the nationally recognized schools. Residents living in 28277 are likely to attend Ballantyne, Elon Park, Hawk Ridge and Polo Ridge elementary schools; Community House Middle School and Ardrey Kell Middle School – all of which “are top schools” with high test scores.

Mary Newsom, associate director for Urban & Regional Affairs at UNC Charlotte’s Urban Institute, said people are likely drawn to Ballantyne because it has firmly established a center, which is the arches at Ballantyne Commons Parkway and Johnston Road.

“And while it’s not as cute and lovable as (Plaza Midwood), it’s clearly a center and there are a lot of things you can do there. People like going to a place that feels like it has a place.”

Other than strip malls, there really isn’t much of a center in the nearby ZIP codes, said Newsom.

“I won’t say it’s walkable, but it’s certainly a condensed area where people can find what they’re looking for in terms of restaurants, shopping, golf courses, health clubs, anything that they want to find,” Brown said.

Newsom added that Ballantyne has done a great job of branding the entire area.

“Ballantyne has done a lot to position itself as Ballantyne as opposed to other areas where you have a whole bunch of different names,” she said. “They’ve been able to brand this massive area as Ballantyne.”

Want More Information On The Greater Ballantyne Region?

GET MY “REALTOR’s” ENTIRE, PROFESSIONAL MLS AND TAX RECORD DATABASE, HERE FOR FREE!

As a courtesy to all of you that follow my blog and are finding the “typical” home search sites-like Zillow and Trulia totally lacking in accuracy (or you don’t want your information sold to third parties like Trulia and Zillow do), there is a professional site that I am offering my friends and clients free access to- it’s called “Home Scouting”- it allows you to check the value of your home anytime, check the price of a listing on your street or one that has sold, look up foreclosures or courthouse and tax records, and generally have an entire MLS and courthouse database at your command.

FIND HOMES FOR SALE ANYTIME, ANYWHERE- EVEN AT THE CURB IN FRONT OF A HOME, RIGHT ON YOUR SMARTPHONE OR TABLET!

INCLUDING… WHAT IS MY HOME WORTH TODAY? WHAT IS SELLING IN MY AREA OR NEIGHBORHOOD?

You can sign up for “home sold” alerts to keep yourself up to date on what is selling around you in your neighborhood, zip code, county or city (or any state or city in the country that offers the service), or pull up the whole MLS listing outside a house from your smartphone or do complete home searches from your phone, tablet or laptop. It’s REALLY cool! And, unlike Zillow or Trulia, your information is never sold to third parties when you search (goodbye, spam!)! The information comes directly from current MLS feeds and current tax records, so the information is ALWAYS up to date and ACCURATE, unlike Zillow and Trulia or similar sites that “pull information from the air’ and compile it- usually incorrectly. Realtors and Brokers manage the content and MLS feeds, so although you will see that it is a branded site (with my logo and information or the Broker who is offering it in your area), no one will be trying to sell anything to you- or sell your contact information to others! But we will available to help you navigate around, should you need anything, have questions, or need more information. It’s like having a Realtor’s professional database, without your having to pay dues (like we Realtors have to) to access this information!

HOW TO SIGN UP AND GET STARTED:

To download the app from your smartphone or tablet, go to your Apple or Android / Google App store, search for “Home Scouting“, and put in my VIP code: 7049054062. Then create your own anonymous user name and password. To download the program on your desktop or laptop, put this code in your browser window and sign up using the same process:

http://hbsr.homescouting.com/myapp/b8ec2b9b-eb2d-4f19-9aa3-e9047c46a843

Please note, this is not available in all cities yet- just the ones that Brokers allow their access to. This link is for the greater Charlotte, North Carolina and the surrounding SC MLS area. You can contact me if you need help navigating around the site or have any questions while using it. Feel free to pass this along to any of your family and friends that may find it useful. Enjoy checking it out- it’s really fun!

Kristen Haynes, Broker In Charge, GC, CMRS

FREE HOME SEARCH! Find Out What Your Home Is Worth Today or Search For A Home On Your Smartphone, Tablet or Laptop!

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NOW YOU CAN HAVE A REALTOR ‘S ENTIRE, PROFESSIONAL MLS AND TAX RECORD DATABASE AVAILABLE TO THE GENERAL PUBLIC, FOR FREE!

FIND HOMES FOR SALE ANYTIME, ANYWHERE- EVEN AT THE CURB IN FRONT OF A HOME, RIGHT ON YOUR SMARTPHONE OR TABLET!

WHAT IS MY HOME WORTH TODAY? WHAT IS SELLING IN MY AREA OR NEIGHBORHOOD?

HOW TO SIGN UP AND GET STARTED:

http://hbsr.homescouting.com/myapp/b8ec2b9b-eb2d-4f19-9aa3-e9047c46a843

Kristen Haynes, Broker In Charge, GC, CMRS

Lack of Home Inventory Is Making It Hard For Buyers To Find Homes

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Date: May 20, 2014 | Category: Market Trends | Author: Camille Salama

After rising at the end of 2013, for-sale inventory has fallen for four straight months to begin 2014. Inventory remains tight nationwide, with the number of homes listed for sale on Zillow down 0.4 percent annually in April and more than half of metros in the U.S. currently seeing a similar downward trend.

In many metros, inventory is tightest in the lower-end of the market, which represents the homes most commonly sought by first-time home buyers. According to Zillow Chief Economist Dr. Stan Humphries this shortage of inventory is driven by a couple of factors, most notably by stubbornly high negative equity, particularly at the lower end of the market, which is preventing many sellers from listing their homes.

National home values in April were also down 0.1 percent from March to a Zillow Home Value Index of $170,200, marking the first monthly decline in more than two years. Among the 35 largest metros covered by Zillow, home values in a dozen were down on a monthly basis and were flat in two more. Year-over-year, U.S. home values rose 5.3 percent in April. The Zillow Home Value Forecast calls for another 2.2 percent increase in national home values by April 2015, further confirming that the market is slowing down.

For a deeper analysis from Humphries, visit Zillow Research at: http://www.zillow.com/research

Blog_2014_AprilData_a_04 For more information on how this is affecting our local North and South Carolina market and for a free, local market report for your neighborhood and area of town, contact Kristen Haynes, Broker In Charge, Realtor NC / SC:

Direct: 704-905-4062 or Toll-Free: 1-877-372-2252

Email: khaynes@NewHomesNC-SC.com

Lender’s Credit Score Requirements May Be More Strict Than Necessary

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Lenders’ Credit Score Requirements May Be More Strict Than Necessary

FICO scores run from 300 to 850. Wells Fargo recently lowered in minimum acceptable scores for conventional loans to 620 from 660. Could this signal the start of some fresh thinking on credit scores? As Realtors, we certainly hope this is the case. As much as stricter credit scoring models were needed after the banking crash in late 2007, credit has been unreasonably tightened to the point that “good borrowers” were still unable to get loans. This includes First Time Home Buyers, the Self-Employed, and Move-Up Buyers who had to switch jobs or careers due to downsizing during the recession.

Are lenders’ credit score requirements for home buyers this spring too high — out of sync with the actual risks of default presented by today’s borrowers? The experts say yes. We agree.

What experts are we talking about here? The actual developers of the credit scores used by virtually all mortgage lenders. Executives at both FICO, creator of the dominant credit score used in the mortgage industry, and up-and-coming competitor VantageScore Solutions, confirmed that mortgage lenders could reduce today’s historically high score requirements without raising their risks of loss. In the process, many prospective buyers who currently can’t qualify might get a shot at a loan approval. This will be a good thing for buyers and sellers alike, and will help keep the housing market going in the right direction.

Consider this: Consumer behavior in handling credit is subject to change over time, often keyed to regional or national economic conditions. Credit scores that were acceptable risks in the early 2000s — say FICOs in the 640-to-680 range — turned into larger-than-anticipated losers when the recession hit. Now that the housing rebound is well underway and federal regulators have imposed tighter standards on income verification and debt ratios, the high credit score “cutoffs” that virtually all mortgage lenders imposed in the scary aftermath of the crash are stricter than necessary.

FICO scores run from 300 to 850. Lower-risk borrowers have high scores, and higher-risk consumers have low scores. Early in the last decade, a FICO score of 700 was good enough for an applicant to get a lender’s best deals or close to it. Today a 700 FICO just barely makes the grade — 50-plus points below the average score for home purchase loans at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the big investors. Banks now need to package and sell their loans on the secondary market, and if a homeowner defaults on the loan and the Underwriter review team finds something potentially amiss, the bank or lender now has to “buy back” the bad loan. Not something lenders want to do in the aftermath of such past, big bank failures due mainly to bad loans.

Joanne Gaskins, senior director of scores and analytics for FICO, said that statistical studies by her company have demonstrated that “the risk of default on more recent mortgage vintages is better than at the onset of recession” — essentially real risk has reverted to the early 2000s. A lot more people pay on time. As a result, she said, lenders can afford to “take a look” at their current strict scoring requirements and consider lowering them without sacrificing safety.

To illustrate how consumer behavior has improved, Gaskins cited one internal study that examined mortgage default data through 2011. At a FICO score level of 700 in 2005, roughly 36 borrowers paid their loans on time for every one who went into serious default. In 2011, by contrast, for every one defaulting mortgage borrower, roughly 91 paid on time. That’s a huge decrease in risk to the lender.

VantageScore Solutions has documented a similarly dramatic improvement in mortgage borrower payment behavior. In an article scheduled for publication this week in Mortgage Banking, a trade journal, Barrett Burns, president and chief executive of VantageScore, offers an analysis based on scores of 680 and 620 from 2003 through 2012. VantageScore’s latest scoring model uses a high risk to low risk scale of 300 to 850.

According to Burns, the probability of default at both score levels was lowest in 2003-05, then soared between 2006 and 2008 as the economy began deteriorating. By 2012, both scores were just slightly higher than 2005’s.

Burns notes that although auto lenders and credit card banks have adjusted their underwriting standards to these important changes in borrower risk, “the mortgage industry has been hesitant.” In an interview, Burns emphasized that mortgage lenders could expand home purchase possibilities for large numbers of consumers simply by lowering score cutoffs. They wouldn’t have to loosen up on their standards on down payments or debt ratios — just their scores.

A study last year by the Urban Institute and Moody’s Analytics estimated that every 10-point reduction in mandatory credit scores on mortgages increases the pool of potential borrowers 2.5%. A 50-point cut in score requirements, researchers found, would increase potential home purchases 12.5% — more than 12.5 million households.

At least one major bank has concluded that lowering scores is the way to go. Wells Fargo , www.wellsfargo.com, recently announced reductions in minimum acceptable scores for conventional loans to 620 from 660. They are joining other major banks in lowering the acceptable score threshold for FHA loans to 600. See the article here from Bloomberg News.

Could this signal the start of some fresh thinking on credit scores, a trend that other large lenders will pick up on? Let’s see. If they do so, it should be a win-win for everybody involved.

NEW FICO ‘SCORE NINE’ CREDIT SCORING SYSTEM ANNOUNCED, AND AN FHA LOAN MARKET UPDATE

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NEW FICO SCORING SYSTEM ANNOUNCED AND FHA LOAN MARKET UPDATE

March 18, 2014

Breaking News. FICO has announced that it will release the next broadly available version of the FICO Scoring System beginning this summer.

INTRODUCING FICO ‘SCORE NINE”: Using a new, multi-faceted modeling approach, which combines sophisticated in-house analytic technology with insights gained over 50 years of building credit risk models, FICO ‘Score Nine’ will provide the best-in-class predictive power across all of the major credit product lines—home loans, auto loans, credit cards and personal loans—from loan originations, all of the way through managing and servicing the loan. FICO has also addressed lenders’ concerns regarding score consistency across the three major credit bureaus, and compatibility with previous FICO Score versions to ease adoption. The FICO Score continues to help keep lenders aligned with key compliance objectives and relevant government regulations. The FICO Score is the most widely used credit score in North America. Lenders purchased more than 10 billion FICO Scores in 2013, and 90 percent of all U.S. consumer lending decisions use the FICO Score.

WHO WILL UTILIZE THE NEW FICO SYSTEM?: The 25 largest credit card issuers, the 25 largest auto lenders and tens of thousands of other businesses rely on the FICO Score for consumer credit risk analysis and federal regulatory compliance. “To become a widely adopted industry standard, a credit score must work well across industries, across all lending product lines and across the entire credit lifecycle,” said James Wehmann, executive vice president of Scores at FICO. “The major changes in the lending environment over the last few years demanded that we take a different approach to building a score that will continue to perform consistently well in various situations. We devised an innovative approach to developing FICO Score Nine that enabled us to leapfrog our own industry-standard benchmark. Our goal is to continue to support a financial ecosystem that includes lenders, securitization investors, rating agencies, regulators and other stakeholders who need a common risk benchmark.” Source: NAMP Daily – www.nampdaily.com

HOMEPATH AND HOME STEPS OFFER FREE CLOSING COSTS AND OTHER INCENTIVES: Government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac recently introduced new incentives to bolster home sales through their HomePath and HomeSteps programs, respectively, which are designed to help the firms liquidate the real-estate owned (REO) properties they hold in their portfolios.

Specifically, Fannie Mae is offering up to 3.5% in closing cost assistance on HomePath properties available in 27 states during the FirstLook period. During the FirstLook period, owner-occupant or public entity buyers are able to submit offers on HomePath properties, giving them the opportunity to purchase homes without competition from investors.

Fannie Mae recently announced the extension of the FirstLook period from 15 days to 20 days. To be eligible for the incentive, the initial offer must be submitted between now and March 31, 2014, so there’s not a lot of time left to utilize this program (unless it’s extended). Homes using this incentive must also close on or before May 31, 2014.

The incentive will offer qualified buyers up to 3.5% of the final sales price to pay closing costs. In addition, home buyers have a choice of $500 incentives they can use towards condominium association dues, flood insurance premiums or the home warranty of their choice. To qualify for these additional incentives, the closing must settle on or before May 30, 2014. The promotion does not apply to investor purchases, auction sales, sealed-bid sales and bulk sales, Freddie Mac reports. Source: MortgageOrb, www.mortgageorb.com For a list of available properties, call your local Realtor or go to: http://www.homepath.com.

AN FHA UPDATE AND PREDICTIONS FOR THE UPCOMING YEAR: Following the first-ever Treasury draw required by the Federal Housing Administration this year, the agency says it is back on stable footing and does not anticipate requiring Treasury assistance in fiscal year 2015. As reflected in the Obama Administration’s proposed budget for the coming fiscal year, both FHA’s forward and reverse lending programs are expected to be cash flow positive with the Home Equity Conversion Mortgage program anticipated to have a negative subsidy rate at -0.23%. A positive credit subsidy indicates the program would require cash to cover losses.

In this case, however, the HECM program is expected to perform on its own, slightly above its break-even point. The earlier bailout to the tune of $1.7 billion was largely attributed to losses in FHA’s reverse portfolio. “The budget estimates the Mutual Mortgage Insurance Fund will have a positive capital reserve balance of $7.8 billion,” said FHA Commissioner Carol Galante of the entire fund outlook following the budget release. “We will not require a mandatory appropriation from the Treasury this year.”

FHA touted its performance and positive outlook in the coming year, pointing to achievements such as reducing chronic homelessness by 16% and assisting 450,000 homeowners facing foreclosure through loss mitigation assistance in the midst of last year’s budget sequester. “This is more remarkable given the context in 2013,” Housing Secretary Shaun Donovan said. “Given the sequestration that cut across the entire federal government budget, HUD was faced with finding ways to cut 5% from our budget with very little time to prepare and just seven months left in the fiscal year. We made some extremely difficult choices. We’re proud of what we did to provide best possible outcomes.” Source: Reverse Mortgage Daily – www.reversemortgagedaily.com

Congress’s lack of progress on reforming the U.S. housing-finance system shouldn’t be “an excuse” to delay rebuilding the market for private-label mortgage securities, a senior U.S. Treasury Department official said recently. “Many investors have told us that they can and want to take mortgage credit risk,” said Michael Stegman, housing-finance counselor to the Treasury secretary, in prepared remarks at a research conference in New York. Adding simplicity and transparency is a key first step, he said. “To get back to an efficient, responsible, and sustainable level of complexity, and to rebuild trust, the new issue non-agency market must first follow a path of greater standardization and transparency,” Stegman said. Federally controlled buyers Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have been in a conservatorship since 2008, an arrangement that has lingered with U.S. lawmakers disagreed over the appropriate role for government in housing finance. Source: Market Watch – www.marketwatch.com.

EASIER QUALIFYING EXPECTED FOR FHA MORTGAGE BORROWERS: First-time and low-income borrowers may have an easier time qualifying for a Federal Housing Administration loan. Ginnie Mae, a government agency that issues bonds backed by FHA loans, reports that the average credit score on FHA-backed loans fell to 680 in 2013, and the average debt-to-income ratio rose to 40.3 percent — both indicators that credit may be easing. In comparison, Ginnie Mae reported in January 2013 that the average score was 701 and the debt-to-income ratio was 38 percent. “The FHA theoretically allows scores as low as 580,” the L.A. Times reports. “But lenders, buffeted by defaulted loans and demands that they buy back troubled loans that they sold, generally have set standards higher since the financial meltdown.” Source: The Los Angeles Times – http://www.latimes.com

A Note from Kristen: Actually FHA allows scores down to 500, but requires a down payment of 10% below 580. But many lenders do not want to underwrite loans under 640 (580 is the absolute minimum I have seen here in Charlotte, NC, and those loans also come with higher loan origination fees and interest rates). While many lenders have lowered minimum scores, FHA’s quality assurance initiatives ensure that lenders will still be underwriting their files under a microscope and looking at the loans carefully, because lenders now have to buy back their “bad” or defaulted loans if any errors are found in the original underwriting process.

Kristen Haynes, Broker In Charge, GC, CMRS Web: www.NewHomesNC-SC.com

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Insider Real Estate Tips from Kristen Haynes of Realty Pros / New Home Buyers Brokers. Realtor / Broker NC / SC

Tag Archives: home buyer

The Ballantyne Area In South Charlotte Far Outpaces Other Nearby Zip Codes for Home Activity and Schools

FREE HOME SEARCH! Find Out What Your Home Is Worth Today or Search For A Home On Your Smartphone, Tablet or Laptop!

Lack of Home Inventory Is Making It Hard For Buyers To Find Homes

Lender’s Credit Score Requirements May Be More Strict Than Necessary

NEW FICO ‘SCORE NINE’ CREDIT SCORING SYSTEM ANNOUNCED, AND AN FHA LOAN MARKET UPDATE