Chapel Hill Real Estate Search

The new development on East Main Street got its official go ahead last night from the Carrboro Board of Aldermen.  Good thing too, since the developers of 300 East Main, led by Laura Van Sant have jumped through many hoops and don’t deserve to be held up any longer.

One criticism I genuinely don’t understand comes from the folks that say that area of town needs to be protected - we don’t want it to lose it’s Carrboro charm.  Have they walked around there lately?  Or driven through there??  What is charming about Surplus Sid’s or the KFC?   This development looks like a great addition to the town — architecturally and for our tax base!  

Demolition could start by the end of the year, with construction moving forward in 2009.  This Carrboro realtor says go, go, go!

Today I want to talk about a subject that is near and dear to our hearts!  Property Taxes!!!   I have been a member of the Orange County Board of Equalization and Review since 1993.  This is the appointed body that oversees the assessors numbers - our tax values.    The assessed value of your home and the market value are two very different numbers derived and used for different purposes. 

The Assessed Value:  The value of a property according to the tax rolls in ad valorem taxation.  May be higher or lower than market value, or based on an assessment ratio that is a percentage of market value. 

Market Value is a type of value, stated as an opinion, that presumes the transfer of a property (ie a right of ownership or a bundle of such rights) as of a certain date, under specific conditions set forth in the definition of the term identified by the appraiser as applicable in an appraisal.  

The assessed value will be established using market data.   The assessed value will be value from January 1, 2009 forward for the next four years and when applied to the tax rate will determine your taxes.  The tax rate will change annually thereby raising your taxes.   However, the tax rate drops after a revaluation.  In Chapel Hill from ‘04 to ‘05 the rate fell from 1.655 to 1.5484 and from ‘00 to ‘01 from 1.727 to 1.551.   In Carrboro the rates will be slightly higher (bummer) but the rates will also drop year to year in a revaluation year.   So your assessed value will go up but your tax rate will go down generating a modest, so to speak, increase in your taxes.  

Call me, Reg Morgan, your Chapel Hill realtor if you have questions on home values in your Chapel Hill neighborhood.

Well, this is about the best thing we can say about today - they set the game time for the Carolina - Notre Dame football game.  Kick off will be at 3:30pm at Kenan Stadium on Saturday, October 11th.

I can’t imagine where the market will be then, but I know that Chapel Hill will weather the storm.   If you have questions about your place in these tumultuous times, call Reg Morgan - your Chapel Hill realtor with over 20 years of experience buying and selling real estate. 

Go Heels!

Chapel Hill has some really great restaurants - but where to get a great on-the-go sandwich?   Here are some ideas from someone who doesn’t have much time for the two hour lunch!

Neal’s Deli in Carrboro is already a treasure.  Right next to the Open Eye Cafe, with its award winning barristas.   Their menu changes everyday - but if you are lucky you can get amazing pastrami and their muffuletta is extraordinary.

Now here for my absolute favorite - Sandwhich in the Courtyard on Franklin Street.  Although parking can sometimes be a problem, it is worth it for their tuna salad with thick slabs of crispy bacon.    My mouth litterly waters when I think of it.  (and now I know where i’m taking my 2 year old for lunch after preschool today).    As the weather gets cooler, I also dream about their meatloaf sandwich with fresh beef from Niman’s Ranch.   Add in great salads and soups and you are set for a banquet!  

The staff is great and you can sit out in the Courtyard by the fountain on a sunny day.    They have thick chocolate brownies for dessert or stop off at LocoPops for a treat after lunch.

Bon Appetit!

What a week - and it is only Tuesday.  Right about now we are wondering whether to sell my wife’s old Lehman Brothers swag on EBAY?   We have lots of bags and hats from my wife’s work at Lehman Brothers in the 90s.  It’s sad to see so many people lose money, savings, jobs.

But here in Chapel Hill, we still have a vibrant real estate market.  Unlike NY, New Jersey, Westchester, Long Island real estate, we are stable with our engines running along, thanks to the Universities and our solid RTP businesses.

If you are making a relocation plan, now is the time to talk to a Chapel Hill realtor with over 2o years of experience in buying and selling real estate.  I was a realtor in Connecticut and I know that challenging market.  

Come for a visit or contact me, Reg Morgan, your Chapel Hill realtor.  I’ll send you a relocation package and get you started on living a Carolina dream!

Here it is - the 2008-2009 basketball schedule for the UNC Tarheels.   I believe this is the year for the championship.

The season really heats up early with the home game against Kentucky on November 18th at the Smith Center.

Check out the whole schedule here. 

If you are looking to relocate to Chapel Hill, there’s no better reason then…great college basketball!   Call a Chapel Hill realtor with experience in our market, who knows the neighborhoods, the schools and the basketball team!  Call Reg Morgan.

One of the best things about relocating to the Chapel Hill area is that you will never miss out on a good meal!  Our area is filled with great restaurants - last night my wife and I dined in Provence!  I mean, at Provence in Carrboro.

What a great place.  We had a delicious meal, starting with a salmon terrine and escargots in roguefort!  For my main course, I had the herb crusted rack of lamb - and it was spectacular, with grilled beets and onions and a potato gratin on the side.  My wife went with a special entree - a quartet of fish, including lemon sole meuniere,  sashimi grade tuna au poivre, salmon en papillotte with bernaise sauce and grilled tuna with a fabulous tapenade crust.

We regretfully skipped the desserts to get over to Southern Village and see Mamma Mia at the Lumina.

It was a wonderful evening in Carrboro and Chapel Hill.  Join us!   If you are thinking of relocating to the Triangle, contact Reg Morgan at Prudential Carolinas Realty.  With over 20 years of experience in buying and selling real estate, I will help guide you through your move.

There are some great things going on at the Morehead Planetarium.   The summer camps that take place there are some of the best in the Triangle.  The Planetarium is also starting an afterschool program for Chapel Hill elementary students.

This weekend there is a great event planned focusing on, you guessed it, the Sun!  Solar Family Science Day is tomorrow, Saturday, August 2nd and should be a nice chance to learn and appreciate what’s been giving us all this heat.  They’ll be cooking S’mores outside in the sun, race solar cars and practice solar safety.  Events will take place from 10am - 3pm.  Go for a visit!

Well, there certainly is alot of doom and gloom in the market.  My wife can’t believe that her old company, Lehman Brothers might not make it through the summer.    And the mortgage mess has really absorbed a great deal of speculation in the media.  But Chapel Hill has weathered the storm pretty well, although it has been a rocky Spring market. 

If you are thinking of buying Chapel Hill real estate, now is a great time, as sellers are anxious to get a sale.  And if you want to put your house on the market — let’s do it!  There’s no time like the present and still time to make the sale this Summer.

This is a time to go for experience - call me, Reg Morgan.  I’m a Chapel Hill realtor with over 20 years of experience in buying and selling real estate — and also a state certified real estate appraiser.  This means I know what property values really are.  In this challenging market - you need that knowledge!

The University released more information on the benefits that Chapel Hill and Orange County will see from Carolina North.  The fiscal impact analysis is impressive and I’ve linked to the full report here.  

The next report includes the estimate of indirect benefits and impact that are anticipated from the development.   The report notes that this evaluation is much like an appraiser looking at comps to evaluate values.  This is a great point and one I am very familiar with as a licensed NC real estate appraiser.

The real estate market is very tough right now and if you follow the news that is not a great revelation to you.  In these difficult times, you need a real estate agent with experience - I have over 20 years of buying, selling and appraising.  Giving real values to real estate and not inflated guesses!  I also have the CRP (Certified Relocation Professional) and GRI (Graduate, Real Estate Institute) designations, meaning I have special expertise in relocating clients and advanced skills in real estate.

Contact me, Reg Morgan, your Chapel Hill realtor with any questions about today’s real estate challenges.