Real estate booms are good for one thing: making us all worry about when it will bust.

In somewhat staccato rhythm, every article written about the state of the real estate industry refers back to the peak prices of 2005-06-07. Well, we now know that much of that was built on bad debt and confusing securities that ended up creating a global recession and the term “Great Recession.”

No wants that to happen again.

What the industry should seek is balance. Rising home prices are a good thing and real estate without question serves as a barometer for the national economy. But when at its extremes — high or low — bad things happen.

Every market should hope that its academic base, lifestyle opportunities and employment numbers consistently support the demand for housing, as they have here in the Triangle.

Every Realtor wants to see the industry flourish and the listings get signed. We also want to see people recognize the benefits of buying and creating a home. However, if we look too deeply too often at the numbers, we’ll lose sight of what home ownership is all about.

We’re very fortunate to live and list homes in one America’s most sought-after places to call home. Our real estate market is healthy and the future is on track to deliver growth; so let’s focus on that — not the past.

The developers of the Triangle’s civil flood control plan may not have intended to create so many recreation areas, but places like Jordan Lake in Apex, Lakes Crabtree and Harris in Cary and Raleigh’s Falls Lake sure ended up becoming great ways to spend a weekend afternoon.

In North Raleigh, 12,000-acre Falls Lake branches into wooded trailsides, nourishes secluded fishing holes and offers wide open boating lanes. You can rent canoes and kayaks, hike portions of the border-to-border Mountains to Sea Trail or simply spend the morning watching your four-legged friend splash around in a muddy cove. The options are plenty.

Like Crabtree, Harris and Jordan, Falls Lake was created as part of the state’s 100-year flood plan when a damn was built on the Neuse River in the late 1970s by the Army Corp of Engineers. Today, that plan helps serve the recreational interests of Triangle mountain bikers and trail runners on the Beaver Dam trail network.

There are also four campgrounds along the woods and shores of Falls Lake, Holly Point, Shinleaf, B.W. Wells and Rolling View.

So, in case you find yourself wondering what to do this Memorial Day weekend, consider finding a way to get away without really having to get away. Visit Falls Lake.

image from http://www.dpr.ncparks.gov/

Image from northhillsraleigh.com

Midtown Raleigh’s most active entertainment district is once again giving us a reason to arrive at work late on Friday.

The Midtown Beach Music Concert Series is held at the North Hills Commons every Thursday through August. The weekly event is one of the most popular post-work gatherings in the Triangle.

The concerts start at 6:00 p.m. and run until 9:00 p.m. and the North Hills Commons is located in the West section of the development along Six Forks Rd. and the Beltline. If you feel that 9:00 is still to early to call it a night, then North Hills offers you a number of late dinner and drink options.

If you happen to be new to the area, get used to beach music. It’s kind of a fusion of Motown, country and bluegrass with a hint of 60s folk. It’s kind of hard to explain, but just know that it’s really fun and all about time spent along the southeastern coast.

Years ago, before Downtown Raleigh revitalized Fayetteville Street, there was an occasional concert series called “Alive after Five” that drew thousands to the square outside the convention center for a few Thursdays in the spring. But at that time, there wasn’t a whole bunch to do after the show. That event is still held in places but it will never replace the vibe it created in the late 1990s.

The Midtown Beach Music Series at North Hills has become an outstanding replacement.

There is a lot to know about buying a house, whether it’s your first or fifth. Naturally, filling this knowledge gap is how experienced real estate agents provide so much of their value.

Real estate agents are also sound resources for mortgage information, which is especially critical today. A recent industry study showed that a surprisingly high number of active buyers are misinformed on how mortgages work.

For example, many people believe they have to use their current bank as a lender. That’s not true. Banks are highly competitive and if you’re a sound risk for them, a number of banks will work to earn your business.

It can certainly help to use your current bank or credit union, but it’s by no means mandatory. Shopping around for rates is a sure way to find out about the best programs, lowest fees and best rates.

Additionally, buyers think they have to wait seven years after a short sale, like a bankruptcy, before they can buy another home. Also not true. Ultimately, it comes down to your credit worthiness and financial state at the time you apply for the loan. A couple of years is probably the standard, sometimes four.

In addition to a number of government incentive programs, the state of the mortgage market after the bubble made short sale scenarios a more acceptable credit history milestone.

If you have foreclosure on your record, then a longer wait period between mortgages is normal. Count on at least five.

It is also widely believed that 20 percent down is required to get a mortgage today. While the more you’re able to put down by all means helps, loans with 5 percent down and even less are on the rise and very possible.

It is critical for mortgage applicants to understand that this is not 2006, loans require good credit and a number of stipulations for the non-traditional buyer, usually best illustrated by a higher interest rate. In today’s terms though, a higher interest rate may mean 4.25 percent instead of 3.25 — still very reasonable.

We would love the opportunity to speak with you about your home buying needs and share what we know about the Raleigh-Cary housing market. And if you have some mortgage questions, let us know those, too.

It’s National Teacher Week. Today is Teacher Appreciation Day.

It’s hard to encapsulate what we owe teachers into a mere seven days. (Five, if you only count the work days.) Nevertheless, they’re worth every second of this week and we hope those who read this reach out to the teachers in your lives and remind them of their role in your and your children’s lives.

The value of our educators can be hard to see sometimes. Sure, we have test scores and grades and graduation rates to use as metrics, but doesn’t a child learn much more than can be measured?

Teachers serve as the link between parenting and development, slowly building a bridge between the moral groundwork instilled at home and the future world into which our kids will cross. It’s a classic team effort, and both sides are still greatly needed.

Whenever a national leader emerges, whether that person be from politics, business, the world of sports or otherwise, a teacher can be thanked. Behind the accolades and deeds, somewhere in the past, a teacher was there to put the last board of knowledge in place to allow that individual to take their first step into the world, and point them to the destination we’ve come to recognize.

A tired allegory maybe, but there’s without doubt truth to the role of teachers in the formation of our nation’s greatest minds. They all had mentors and predecessors, people who showed them the way. Maybe those people weren’t in front of a blackboard or writing study guides, but they were teachers nonetheless.

And we should thank them.

North Carolina’s Triangle region, largely made-up of Raleigh/Cary, Durham and Chapel Hill, has more than enough reasons to attract first-time home buyers and relocating young families. However, much of what makes this area so appealing to younger generations can also attract active adults and empty-nesters looking for a new place to settle down. Here are just a few arguments for joining us in the Tar Heel State.

1. Recreation
From golf to bicycle paths, it’s not very easy to get bored here. The Durham Performing Arts Center attracts music and theatre acts of global acclaim while North Hills in Raleigh provides an array of dining and shopping options. You can stroll around any one of the many lakes that string together the Wake County greenway or take an easy drive down to the coast or out to the Outer Banks for a long weekend. Cary, Raleigh, Chapel Hill and Durham each have outstanding urban centers rich in unique small business and weekend events. We’re really just scraping the surface. Also consider the Red Hat Amphitheater in Downtown Raleigh, Apex’s historic Salem Street or a trip to Asheville’s Biltmore Estate during the holidays.

2. Home Value
Even if you just want a second home closer to children or are hoping to experience a more mild winter (we do see some snow each year, usually less than six inches total), the Triangle has one of the best real estate markets in the country. It’s hard to find more for your doller anywhere else. There are a number of condo developments, active adult oriented communities and townhomes that can offer simple living and a wide array of amenities. Each of the Triangle’s cities has respectively landed on countless national “best places for” lists for everything from starting a business to raising a family. Our average house price is at the national level of $170,000 while income remains above the national average. And speaking of …

3. Jobs
Not ready to completely kick back yet? No problem. The Triangle continues to add new opportunities and remains on track as one of the nation’s best places for businesses to locate. There will always be a large crop of college graduates competing for work because of the notable university presence, but the options are plenty for those seeking part-time employment, volunteer opportunities and consulting gigs. State government, software, pharmaceuticals and healthcare each have a significant employment presence in the Triangle.

4. Weather
The term “half-back” is used to label those who started retirement in Florida, but came back half-way up the coast to experience more mild, varied seasons. The summers can get pretty hot but the fall and spring more than make up for it. Winter is messy at times but it’s always short lived and the sun tends to never let the cold set in for long. All four seasons come and go in North Carolina and each have their highlights. However, if you haven’t seen the North Carolina mountains in fall, we suggest you make it your first road trip after settling down.

If you have questions about relocating to the Triangle area, don’t hesitate to give us a call. We’d be glad to hear from you.

The standard continues to be set high each year and even in the midst of rapid population growth, the schools continue to succeed at their mission.

Still, it never hurts to have the efforts of our teachers, administrators and yes, our politicians, get recognized.

U.S. News & World Report magazine recently included a few of our area schools on its “Best Public High Schools” list.

The Bull City’s Durham School of the Arts and Carborro High School were the highest ranked regional schools on the list, coming in at 176 and 189, respectively.

Another list compiled by the The Washington Post and made famous by education writer Jay Mathews, cited Raleigh Charter High School as the nation’s #81 most Challenging High School while Raleigh’s Enloe landed at #34o and Broughton was named #590.

North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics is by considered by many the region’s highest performing and most challenging school, but its unique nature as a two-year boarding school and university affiliation often exempt it from lists including more traditional high schools. The school for juniors and seniors was opened in 1980 to focus heavily on science and mathematics and draws its students from an equal representation of every county in the state.

And while many debate the merits of such lists, citing increasingly complex qualification metrics,  we can’t help but notice “quality of education” near the top of the list for families who decide to relocate to Raleigh, Cary, Apex and Durham. So, clearly these lists hold merit around the country. As they should.

To summarize, even beyond the schools listed here, Triangle families have a wide array of highly regarded education resources available to them in our area. We’re very fortunate.

8704 Gleneagles Drive in North Raleigh’s Glen Valley is for sale.
In many markets around the country, real estate professionals are quietly hiding their worry amongst all the conversations of recovery.

We’re not one of them.

For every five articles about the growing stability of the market, there’s an article like this, where doubt is cast and little needles of worry are pricked into the backs of our necks.

Well, here in Raleigh, Cary and Apex, we’re not buying into the shadow conspiracies, because as we’ve said before, today’s real estate market is locally driven, meaning that many markets are healthy enough from within to tolerate the little ups and downs of the overall economy. We’ll use the points in the Forbes article cited to demonstrate our opinion.

#1. The article states: The housing recovery is being led by investors.
In South Florida, Las Vegas, Phoenix and Detroit, this is indeed the case. Institutional funds and wealthy property buyers are snapping up large tracts of homes to rent. This creates serious issues in terms of home value, desirability to relocate, and it reduces the sphere of additional business created by real estate ownership. Real estate in Raleigh, Cary and Apex isn’t being sold this way, the cash flow opportunities are not there to attract investors, meaning that our house values never plummeted deep enough to provide a quick flip market or heavy cash flow to investors. Rental property owners can still do well here, but it’s certainly a very long-term play.

#2. The article states:  The economic recovery is just not strong enough yet.
Nationally speaking, no, the recovery is probably not stable enough to sustain a significant real estate bounce-back. In North Carolina, it is — especially in the Triangle. Our area has long been established as a market that never climbs too high or falls too far. Plus, the rich collection of universities helps provide an ongoing stream of highly educated and entrepreneurial professionals that when combined with the lifestyle options available to them, end up staying to build careers and raise families. The Triangle is also not overly dependent on a single industry. Instead, we boast a large, global representation of industries, from pharmaceuticals and software to agriculture and education.

#3 The article states: Government cuts will hurt homeowners.
This one may be a bit less easy to overcome but there is little doubt the sequester’s impact will deter the growth of Raleigh-Cary real estate. The biggest concern may be government contracts serviced by firms throughout Research Triangle Park. However, Washington is targeting a few select corners of government that will be too far removed from the core of our economy. Payroll tax breaks will hit a lot of people particularly hard; however, our region is dense with dual-income families more able to sustain decreases in take-home pay.

In short, we remain positive. There are plenty more reasons to remain confident in the health of real estate in Raleigh, Cary and Durham. It’s just too easy to buy-in to the talks about another pending “bubble.” And if something is too easy, then it’s probably not worth considering.

Image from Flickr user dtraleigh, Leo Suarez

Raleigh and Cary continue to show up on national lists that rank cities as the “best places for business,” “to meet singles” or “raise a family.”

That’s cool; we’re excited to be a part of it.

While Research Triangle Park out towards Durham has always been a consistent generator of employment for tens of thousands of local workers, the collective urban markets of the Triangle have been doing their part to contribute to the region’s national reputation. Downtown Raleigh especially.

South of Hillsborough St. and just below the hill upon which the city’s professional district sits lies Raleigh’s Warehouse District, a once-tired,worn-out collection of brick storage facilities and reminders of the Old South. It’s technically known as “Raleigh’s Depot National Register Historic District and Warehouse District.”

Today, the area is a happening commercial destination with businesses as cool as a handmade jeans brand, chocolate baker and of course, a few art galleries.

The New York Times Travel section recently profiled this popular urban hotspot in a slide show, highlighting places like Raleigh Denim and CAM, the Contemporary Art Museum that’s also part of NC State’s renowned School of Design. If you haven’t heard of Raleigh Denim yet, well, we’d be surprised. The hand crafter of custom denim products has made headlines in almost every style magazine and business news outlet around the country.

For beer lovers, the Warehouse District is home to Brewmasters Bar & Grill, Tasty Beverage Company and the Boylan Bridge Brewpub. That’s a lot of craft beer in one place.

A number of other art galleries, nightspots and stores have recently made their home in this rapidly expanding Raleigh neighborhood.

Naturally, homes are getting snapped up around the area, which borders the NC State campus and somewhat blends with the southernmost point of the equally popular Glenwood South. Inside the Beltline neighborhoods are some of the Triangle’s most popular living options.

If we can help you discover another part of the Triangle you may not be familiar with or if you have questions about available homes near Raleigh’s Warehouse District, give us a shout.

The community would be built on land that is now owned by the state. As part of the agreement, North Carolina would sell the land to Lennar with the hopes the neighborhood would be complete sometime around 2018. That date obviously depends on the pace at which the Town makes its decision. Apparently debate is centered on housing designs and street configurations. Based on news reports, no member of the council seems strictly opposed to the development.

Specifically, the Boulevard would be located next to WakeMed Soccer Park along E. Chatham Street, which becomes Hillsborough St. in Raleigh as you travel east from Cary. Proponents of the project are citing the benefits having more, new living options in an area relatively vacant of new home construction. The project also calls for a significant retail presence, which could also use a refresher along that stretch of road. Certainly nearby home values would receive a shot in the arm, as would the slew of established, locally owned businesses that dot the miles-long span between Raleigh and Cary.

The new community could further bind the “stadium district” that’s being slowly created between NC State’s Carter Finley Stadium and the PNC Arena, home of the NHL’s Carolina Hurricanes and Wolfpack men’s basketball and the recently expanded WakeMed Soccer Stadium. It’s taken many years longer than most believed it would to develop west Raleigh. Lennar’s Boulevard community in Cary may be the last shot of economic adrenaline needed to solidify this corner of the Triangle.

Stay tuned, this could be an exciting development for Raleigh-Cary real estate.