32

6/16/2008 5:49:08 PM

anybody know much about HVAC systems?

I'm in the process of buying a house, and the heat pump is a 17 y/o Trane which appears to be working fine (AC at least...its nice and cold). I'm hoping it'll last another 5-6 years. How long do heat pumps normally last?

The air-handler however is 27 years old and is rusted and damaged and the inspector said it's sucking in air out of the crawlspace.

How important is it to match a new air handler to the Trane I have in place now? If they use whatever builder grade unit they find and it's not matched, what will be the result for me? Higher electric bills? The Trane will die sooner? Since the current 27 y/o handler is original, it doesn't appear to be matched to the 17 y/o Trane...and it seems to be working fine.

6/17/2008 2:24:21 PM

^ With those ages expect to replace the entire system - both the inside and outside units - within the next 5 years. It may not happen, but very few systems reach that kind of age.

6/17/2008 2:59:56 PM

^^ I think the components are kind of interchangeable. I know the one in my townhouse is not original but its not exactly new either. The only problem I have had was the blower motor burnt out last summer, luckily my dad new some old guy off Hodges st I could just take the motor to and get a matching replacement installed on the bracket in like 3 hours.

That only cost me $85.00 but I would have been raped had I called a repair person for it. Also they kind of half ass rigged the way they put the new one in the closet and so the upstairs air return is not hooked to anything.

6/17/2008 11:54:03 PM

didn't know where else to put this.

http://www.flippernation.com

hilarious

6/18/2008 10:16:57 AM

im at the process of submitting repair requests and waiting to hear back on what the seller will agree to fix?

how has that worked for you all in the past? did the seller fix everything you requested? did they fix it right? what didn't they fix or what didn't they fix right? how did you get it right?

6/18/2008 2:01:27 PM

it really depends on the cost of the repairs and how desperate they are.

Most of the time they will fix at least the cheap stuff. The more expensive stuff depends on what kind of financial situation they are in and how much they need to sell it.

6/18/2008 3:25:40 PM

Have any of you heard anything about the real estate market in this part of Raleigh? Im looking at this neighborhood. I know there are better parts of Raleigh to live in, but this is the closest to my job and the houses are new. I don’t care about how far the closest walmart is, or what schools are around.

http://www.dowlingridge.com/dowling/homes_available.asp

6/23/2008 12:18:12 PM

Quote :

"I know there are better parts of Raleigh to live in"

That area is like the worst in Raleigh...and if it's not the worst, it probably will be soon.

Quote :

"I don’t care about how far the closest walmart is, or what schools are around."

no but you should care how much (if at all) your home will appreciate. i'd take a hard look at the appreciation of that neighborhood and others around it, and for that you'll have to ask your agent if you have one.

and why in the hell are all the streets named after random people?

6/23/2008 12:55:13 PM

27610/27604 = cheap

however, avoid?

[Edited on June 23, 2008 at 4:27 PM. Reason : .]

6/23/2008 4:25:36 PM

you pay $225-250/sq ft for an 800 sq ft house in my part of 27604

larger and newer houses are more reasonable at $170-200/sq ft

seems steep to me, but they actually sell

6/23/2008 8:30:01 PM

i lived in 27604. not a "bad" area.

6/23/2008 8:58:40 PM

these are on average $92/sqr ft

6/24/2008 3:17:54 PM

Quote :

"27610/27604 = cheap however, avoid?"

I'd avoid 90somepercent of the homes in 27610.
27604 ITBL has some areas that have really cleaned up well over the last few years.

6/24/2008 3:19:45 PM

Quote :

"you pay $225-250/sq ft for an 800 sq ft house in my part of 27604 "

you must be talking about downtown. im guessing thats the only part of 27604 that might be able to get prices like that. where i currently like in 27604 people pay under $100/sq foot for 6-7 year old homes.

Quote :

"I'd avoid 90somepercent of the homes in 27610."

agreed

6/25/2008 8:55:01 AM

Anyone know anything about the Wilmington area?

6/25/2008 2:33:00 PM

What is the website where you can look up what people paid for their homes?

6/26/2008 8:09:56 PM

http://services.wakegov.com/realestate/

6/26/2008 8:13:45 PM

I have tried googling this, but where can I find the county taxes for New Hanover and Pender County, and the city taxes of Hampstead and Wilmington?

I am trying to find out how much more it costs to live in Wilmington vs Hampstead.

6/26/2008 9:12:37 PM

what do you think about this neighborhood?

http://www.hpw.com/NBS/NeighborhoodDetail.aspx?NewNeighborhood_ID=203

6/27/2008 3:06:38 PM

i don't have a real opinion on the neighborhood, but this is what pisses me off about WCPSS

Quote :

"Elementary School: Hilburn Drive Elementary Middle School: Leesville Road Middle"

what the fuck, i hate the way Wake county does this bussing bullshit, as a measure of forced diversity.
Do they think these kids like sitting on a hot bus for almost an hour each way?

6/27/2008 3:23:08 PM

^and the high school is broughton...they will pass by enloe 10 minutes before getting to broughton. that is some stupid districting

[Edited on June 27, 2008 at 4:43 PM. Reason : ]

6/27/2008 4:42:25 PM

27610 is a big area

6/30/2008 1:05:37 PM

Quote :

" By Cristina Bolling, The Charlotte ObserverComment on this story Home inspectors spend hours in the nooks and crannies of houses, crouching in crawl spaces and climbing into attics, for prospective buyers. They inspect the home's structural integrity, the exterior, roofing, plumbing, electrical, heating, central air conditioning, built-in kitchen appliances, insulation and ventilation. The cost of a routine home inspection depends on a home's size, age and location, as well as the inspector's experience and qualifications. Fees can start as low as $200 for small condominiums and can cost more than $400 for larger and/or older homes, according to the N.C. Licensed Home Inspectors Association. Even by minimum standards, inspectors make hundreds of observations during the course of a few hours in a home. But there is plenty they probably won't -- or officially can't -- tell you about the house you're about to buy. "We're generalists. We have knowledge in all the different disciplines, but refer other possible problems to a specialist," said inspector Keven Kossler. Along with three other inspectors, he owns a franchise of National Property Inspection, which inspects commercial and residential property. After talking to some inspectors, we've come up with a list of eight things you won't find on most inspection checklists, but that you might want to check out with a specialist. Costs on each of these will vary -- ranging from less than $100 to several hundred dollars -- depending on how thorough the tests and inspections run. Termites In North Carolina, lenders generally require a termite inspection, and anyone who performs structural pest control for the general public must be licensed by N.C. Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services. That said, a general home inspector might find clues that termites might be a problem and may recommend hiring a termite inspector to check it out. "You'd be silly to buy a house in this climate without a termite inspection, especially if it's more than five years old," said Bob Boucek, owner of Beech Home Inspections and one of the founders of the N.C. Licensed Home Inspector Association. Radon gas Radon is a cancer-causing natural radioactive gas that comes from the natural decay of uranium found in nearly all soils. You can't see, smell or taste it, and it is the leading cause of lung cancer among nonsmokers. It's not tested for on the average home inspection, but some inspectors, like Johnny Kay of Fort Mill-based Arrow Home Inspection Service, will conduct a two-day short-term test. Fireplaces & chimneys If you're concerned about a home's chimney, hire an inspector or chimney sweep with a "chim cam," which is a camera at the end of a wand that allows a specialist to see every inch of a chimney. Kossler, the inspector and chimney sweep, says he often finds cracked caps on top of chimneys, which can cause water leakage and damage in the home. Roof Inspectors must visually check a home's roof either from the ground with binoculars or from a ladder perched at the end of a roof. Inspectors say most major problems can be spotted through these methods, but if a home is particularly large or has roof surfaces that are hard to see from those vantage points, it might be a good idea to have a roofer inspect. Asbestos & lead paint Asbestos is most dangerous in homes where renovations are taking place, because when asbestos fibers are disturbed, they get inhaled into the lungs and can cause health problems. Only homes built before 1978 are at a risk for having lead paint, which can be tested for with at-home kits or by a trained professional. Mold If you're worried it's a problem, hire a certified mold inspector. Some use thermal imaging and infrared scanning to find problems. Kossler says even some new homes are plagued with mold problems, because they're built with wood that is wet to start with and never gets a chance to dry. Air & water quality Home buyers with significant allergies or respiratory ailments may want to have the indoor air quality checked. Mold, mildew and other toxins and allergens might be present and require an air-duct cleaning. Water quality testing is always a good idea and is especially vital in homes with wells. Insulation It's not included on most checklists, but some inspectors can use an infrared camera to look for missing insulation in a home's walls. It's particularly useful before the final walk-through in a new home's 11th month, when many of the builder's warranties are about to expire. Kossler says he's had clients who have required builders to remove large portions of drywall and install missing insulation after he used the infrared camera to test insulation. "

7/5/2008 8:24:25 AM

http://www.realtor.com/search/listingdetail.aspx?cmid=1100047%2c1089462%2c1089463%2c1089471%2c1100057&typ=1&sid=95cfa04ba2b3427482d7d4f2e71c56ca&sdir=0&sby=2&pg=82&lid=1095281551&lsn=818&srcnt=920#Detail



http://easternncmls.com/new/maildoc/a007HP5847.html

7/6/2008 1:21:10 AM

^hahahahahahah

Something tells me they left a zero off the end of that price. I bet their voicemail is full.

7/6/2008 9:17:23 AM

which one? i know the 2nd one is correct.

7/6/2008 2:16:23 PM

The second one wont load for me.

The land that first one is on is valued at a million by itself. The tax value for the whole property is 1.5mil.
http://tax.carteretcountygov.org/taxparcelsummary.asp?recno=6385.20.82.6195000&cardseq=B

7/6/2008 2:23:14 PM

ah, haha

i thought it was way less expensive than it should be, but i had no idea it was THAT far off.

7/6/2008 2:27:39 PM

http://ml23.offutt-innovia.com/cgi-new/SD_disp?funcXX1I=idx&dispXX2I=2&LM_MST_mls_noNNNB=67065&LM_MST_mls_noNNNE=

i like this one

7/14/2008 12:54:31 AM

Quote :

"^and the high school is broughton...they will pass by enloe 10 minutes before getting to broughton. that is some stupid districting"

yeah...enloe is a magnet school and you have to apply to go there

7/14/2008 6:56:20 AM

sold my place finally closing is today.

7/14/2008 7:02:06 AM

^^ahh, i gotcha. i knew enloe was a magnet school (i think broughton may be too now?)...but i thought there were people disctricted there in addition to those who applied and were accepted. i retract my previous comment.

7/14/2008 7:10:51 AM

so, roughly what should i expect to pay for homeowner's insurance for, say, a $150k-ish house (maybe a little more, up to 175k or so) down in Craven or Carteret county (as close to the water as I can afford).

7/17/2008 10:06:13 PM

^I can check for you on that, it depends on a couple of factors like how far the house is from the fire dept. and what deductible you go with, and each county has different rates

but if I had to ballpark it, I would guess around $600/yr

7/17/2008 10:17:45 PM

you're way off

[Edited on July 18, 2008 at 12:35 AM. Reason : or getting ripped off]

7/18/2008 12:35:13 AM

yeah, see about that for me if you won't mind. you can use the last house I linked to a few posts ago as an example of roughly what I intend to buy. Let's just say $1000 deductible for these figures.

I figured it would be about double that amount, though! $600 isn't bad.

[Edited on July 18, 2008 at 12:38 AM. Reason : asfads]

7/18/2008 12:36:47 AM

Quote :

"Have any of you heard anything about the real estate market in this part of Raleigh? Im looking at this neighborhood. I know there are better parts of Raleigh to live in, but this is the closest to my job and the houses are new. I don’t care about how far the closest walmart is, or what schools are around. http://www.dowlingridge.com/dowling/homes_available.asp"

Hey, that's in a habitat for humanity neighborhood. When we were walking down the street to the habitat part of the neighborhood, I noticed a LOT of those houses had some shitty problems with their vinyl siding. I mean, it looked like they didn't bother to fix spots where it was popping out at all, and if you looked for a minute you could find a spot or two on every house. If you're going to buy a vinyl house, buy one that was built a little better, as I think the guys working in that neighborhood are slapping those together as fast as possible. It's just a red flag that I saw that may not really be indicative of the quality of work in the rest of the house, but just be warned that you might be buying a leaky mold trap that'll end up being a liability shortly after the warranty wears off.

7/18/2008 12:58:49 AM

The homes for sale in that community are built by a local homebuilder that has been in business since 1980.

The parent company is Spectrum Homes.
http://www.spectrumhomesnc.com/

This is the company they are built under. (Same Ownership, just non-luxury product)
http://www.evergreenconstructionco.com/communities.cfm

The habitat for humanity homes are built by volunteers and the families that own them. There are going to be roughly two homes built by evergreen construction for every habitat for humanity home in the community.

I cannot speak to the quality of the habitat for humanity homes, but I can tell you that you will be hard pressed to find anything wrong with the homes built by evergreen in the community.

7/18/2008 1:11:52 AM

Well, I can speak for the quality of the habitat homes. They're better than the quality of those evergreen homes.

They redo the work until it's right, and they didn't let any shoddy work slide when I was there.

I also don't care how long they've been around here, their work on the vinyl siding on some of those finished, moved-in homes looked like ass. Hence the warning.

7/18/2008 1:16:02 AM

^^^^^^^ mine is $515/yr for a ~260k house in raleigh

7/18/2008 11:44:17 AM

depends a lot on how close you are to the water and whether it's a flood zone or not

7/18/2008 11:54:23 AM

Quote :

"you're way off [Edited on July 18, 2008 at 12:35 AM. Reason : or getting ripped off]"

Agreed. Mine is $380 for 185K.

7/19/2008 2:50:28 PM

^, ^^^ oh wow, i figured it was substantially more than that.

^^ as close to the water as I can get within the constraints of my budget (thinking $125-175k...realize that's a wide range, and i'll prob go within the top half of that). i wonder how much living around newport or morehead city within a couple miles of the water will up the cost of insurance?

7/22/2008 3:51:45 AM

Looking for a new home?

Well, if so, look no further.



232 S. Ringneck Pl
Garner, NC 27529
$157,900
MLS# 1611705

Photo Courtesy of Team Upchurch Realty (919) 779-9888


Like new ranch cottage in great family neighborhood. Close to schools and shopping, but no city taxes. Newly built 16x12 storage building with loft area for additional storage. Patio & Deck. Flat back yard is wood fenced and is great for pets. Split bedroom plan with vaulted ceiling in master bedroom. Lots of closets. Landscaped, 2 pantries, fireplace, and much more. A must see!

Overview
Bedrooms - 3
Bathrooms (full) - 2
Bathrooms (half) - 0
Square Footage - 1407
Year Built - 2003

Additional Details
Lot Size (acres) - 0.61
Fireplace(s) - Living Room
Garage (# cars) - 0
Roof - 30 yr. Shingle
Floors - Hardwood, Vinyl, Carpet
Foundation - Crawl
Total Rooms - 7
Style - Transitional

Schools
-Elementary - JOHNSTON - WEST VIEW
-Middle/Junior - JOHNSTON - CLEVELAND
-High School - JOHNSTON - CLAYTON

Additional Photos:







Photos Courtesy of Team Upchurch Realty (919) 779-9888

For More Information, Please Contact Me via PM or Call (919) 779-9888.

Realtor.com Listing =>http://beta.realtor.com/search/listingdetail.aspx?sby=6&lid=1101434331&sid=
Virtual Tour Link =>http://www.visualtour.com/shownp.asp?t=1610137&sk=36&prt=10003

7/23/2008 11:50:14 AM

Jesus, is that what a home of that caliber is going for in Garner?

7/23/2008 12:03:47 PM

That is right in line with my comps in the neighborhood...

I just happen to have the smallest house on my street.

7/23/2008 12:08:43 PM

I've had my home for sale for over 90 days. And you want to know what I've learned about comps? All of us think our homes are worth more than they really are at the moment.

My agent looked at 'comps' and had my home originally listed for 10% more than it is listed at now, and I really feel like it will sale for 5% less than what it is at now.

I look on realtor.com every couple of weeks to get an impression of what homes similar to mine in the area are going for, and mine is in line with those. This tells me the market has really slowed (I'm at the edge of Holly Springs/Apex) and no one is willing to drop the price down to reflect this.

1 year ago, just about any reasonable home in my neighborhood would sell within weeks. Now, only the perfect homes on the perfect lots at a reasonable price (ie, less per sq/ft than I am asking) are moving in a reasonable time frame.

7/23/2008 12:14:47 PM

http://finance.yahoo.com/loans/article/105459/Housing-Bill-Has-Something-for-Nearly-Everyone

Break for First-Time Buyers

If you are buying a home for the first time, and it is your primary residence, you are eligible for a federal tax credit of $7,500 or 10 percent of the purchase price, whichever is smaller. With a tax credit, you subtract the credit amount from the total you would otherwise pay to the Internal Revenue Service. So if you owe $1,500 and you qualify for the credit, you would end up getting a $6,000 refund.

There are two big catches, though. If you earn a modified adjusted gross income of more than $75,000, or $150,000 if you are married and filing your tax return jointly, the credit starts to phase out. For single people, it phases out completely at $95,000 of annual income, while for married people filing jointly, it phases out at $170,000.

But you have to pay back the credit over the next 15 years, in equal amounts each year when you pay your federal taxes. That makes this more like an interest-free loan than a true credit. According to the National Association of Realtors, there were about 2.5 million first-time home buyers in 2007.

A large proportion of them would have qualified for this credit, but whether it is enough to push would-be buyers over the edge this year remains to be seen.

The tax credit is retroactive to home purchases on April 9, 2008, and expires on July 1, 2009. If you purchase a home from Jan. 1, 2009 to June 30, 2009, you can claim the tax credit on your 2008 tax return."

7/25/2008 5:21:23 PM

people are going to do it

then claim they didn't understand it

and refuse to pay

and then some vote-pandering politician will say they were taken advantage of by a republican conspiracy to make banks tons of windfall profits

i can see the troubleshooter stories on the local news now!

7/25/2008 7:09:47 PM