Did you know Kathy Lee owns a home in Rehoboth? She has always frequented the area, especially since she grew up here. Her co-host, Hoda, also has a family summer home here.

Recently the two women visited and brought along their show! Check out the video here. Pretty cool having mini-celebrities here, huh?!

-Lee Ann

We're hosting an open house in The Peninsula. An award winning, high-end community in Millsboro, Delaware.

This event will be held August 6, 2011 from 12-3pm with a meet and greet from 3-4pm. A flyer with details of the event may be viewed here.

Hope to see you there!

-Lee Ann

** Happy 4th of July! **

Well, the Fourth of July is nearly upon us. Can you believe how fast its come? Seems just like yesterday we were all wishing the snow would stop! There are some great activities coming up for you and the family this 4th.

July 2: Sidewalk Art and Artisan show at St. Peter's Episcopal Church, starting at 9am.

July 4: Old-fashioned 4th of July Children's activities on Second Street, starting at 9am.

July 4: Lewes Boat Parade on the Lewes-Rehoboth Canal, starts at 2pm.

July 4: Lewes Doo-Dah parade in the late afternoon. (route: Kings Hwy to Second St, to Market St and up Savannah)

July 4: Rehoboth Beach Fireworks. Sit beach-side and enjoy the great show! Fireworks will be launched approximately 9:15 and last for 45 mins. Afterward, a concert by the US Navy Country Current band will be held at the bandstand.

Stay safe, wear sunscreen and have a wonderful 4th of July!

-Lee Ann

(Note: Fireworks are illegal in the State of DE and officers will be out enforcing the law. Please leave the fireworks to the professionals and don't risk fines, arrest or injury.)

The Sussex County Delaware demographics are here! The county just released the June stats and they are pretty interesting: Did you know that in 2010, 42% of home owners in Sussex County own their home outright (no mortgage). Kudos to them!

Additionally, the sales volume of homes in the county has risen in the past year. The report points toward stabilization in Sussex. Check out the full Sussex County Demographics report.

Best,

Lee Ann

I recently attended the Prudential Real Estate Convention in San Diego, CA, March 6-8, 2011 to catch up on industry news and to receive the award for being a top performer in the Southeastern region for Prudential.

Guest speakers at the convention were Sean and Leigh Anne Tuohy, the parents who inspired The Blind Side movie. They told their story, welcomed others’ and shared their hopes of having every Prudential agent make an impact within their community.

Their speech happily reminded me of the success and accolade that go along with being a Prudential Gallo REALTORS® agent. Prudential Gallo takes great pride in its community roots. In fact, they launched a new marketing program, Community minded, Customer Focused, which emphasizes the importance of family, life in Sussex County and having a place to call home…Something I embrace whole-heartedly when it comes to Lewes.

Overall, I left the convention with a renewed sense of purpose and am looking forward to (an already) productive 2011!

Check out the great photo of Carrie Gentile and I with Sean and Leigh Anne

April 28 from 1:45p-2:45p in historic Old New Castle

Renowned film maker Ken Burns will be coming to Delaware to receive the Delaware History Makers Award from the Delaware Historical Society on April 28. Mr. Burns will be arriving in Delaware that morning and has agreed to participate in a press event to highlight the need for Delaware to have a national park.  As you know, the Delaware Congressional Delegation introduced historic legislation to authorize the creation of a national park in Delaware – the First State National Historical Park Act of 2011 in February.  

Senator Thomas Carper’s office plans to host a short, 30 minute press conference at the New Castle Courthouse (which is the proposed headquarters for the First State National Historic Park) from 1:45-2:15p followed by a 30 minute tour.   Folks from the Park Service, local stakeholders, etc will all be invited to attend the event and go on the tour as well. 

The Senator’s office hopes that you will be able to join them at this historic event!

Don't make plans for Sat, April 23, 2011!

We will be holding 6 open houses' in Lewes, DE from 12-3pm that day. Bring your friends, bring your family....

4 Delmar Avenue

412 Mulberry

320 Pilottown Road

114 Coleman Avenue

431 Kings Highway

4 Dunes Terrace

Need directions or more information? Call anytime (302) 645-6664

30-year fixed Home Loan Rates are now at 5%. Below is a great article from Realtor.com with the highlights:

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage inched above 5 percent this week, rising to its highest level since the last week in April 2010, and continuing its steady climb upward the last few weeks.

The 30-year rate averaged 5.05 percent this week, up from 4.81 percent the week prior, according to Freddie Mac’s weekly mortgage market survey. Last year at this time, 30-year rates averaged 4.97 percent.

Here’s how other rates fared for the week:

▪ 15-year fixed rates: averaging 4.29 percent this week, up from 4.08 percent last week.
▪ 5-year, adjustable-rate mortgage: averaging 3.92 percent this week, up slightly from 3.69 last week.
▪ 1-year, adjustable-rate mortgage: averaging 3.35 percent, up from 3.26 percent last week.

"Long-term bond yields jumped on positive economic data reports, which placed upward pressure on mortgage rates this week,” says Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac’s chief economist.

Meanwhile, earlier this week, the Mortgage Bankers Association announced a drop in the number of people applying for a mortgage as rates continued to rise.

MBA’s overall mortgage application index dropped 5.5 percent from last week. The refinance index fell 7.7 purchase from last week, and refis made up two-thirds of the mortgage activity last week--the lowest share since May 2010.

Source: “30-Year Fixed-Rate Mortgage Rates Rise to 5.05 Percent, Highest Level Since April 2010,” Freddie Mac (Feb. 10, 2011) and “Fewer People Applied for a Mortgage Last Week as Rates Increased on Better Economic Data,” Associated Press (Feb. 9, 2011)"

What do you think about the rate increase?

As yet another way to bring real estate buyers and sellers together, the Lee Ann Wilkinson Group of Prudential Gallo Realtors has incorporated Microsoft’s Tag in its advertising, among other places, that will direct users to various related websites.

This tag is a type of two-dimensional bar code that, when used with a mobile application, allows the user to review websites, receive messages, get access to special deals and more from the advertiser. The particular tag in the weekly Cape Gazette ad sends participates to the group’s real estate search page at lewesrealestate.com.

“It’s fascinating that it’s possible to go from medium to medium via mobile phone,” said Wilkinson. “This tag will connect newspaper readers to our website. Its cutting-edge technology that I think will benefit both buyers and sellers.”

Currently, very few real estate companies in the country have implemented this technology, and this is the first in the area.

Get the tag reader by visiting http://gettag.mobi on your mobile phone. Then test it with the tag below.

For more information about that tag application or general information, call (302) 645-6664. The office is located at 16698 Kings Highway, Suite A, Lewes, DE 19958.

How do I know what's selling? 1) I represent the seller for many, many properties in Sussex County, probably more than any other realtor. 2) I work for one of the top ranked Real Estate agencies (Prudential Gallo) in the area. 3) Half the people I'm related to are in the real estate business (both my parents, my sister, and my brother in law all work with me). And…we enjoy talking to each other about the real estate business whether we’re sitting at the dinner table or on Hudson Field cheering on my grandson’s baseball team. I am happy to discuss real estate with anyone at any time, because, well, real estate is one of the few topics I can safely say I'm an expert on ;-). Anyhow, from the feedback I've gotten from others and also from my own experience, I'd say market activity is very high but sales numbers are not reflecting this activity. This means that a lot of people are shopping, but not a lot of them are actually taking out their wallets. Tire-kickers, fence-sitters, foot-draggers, window-shoppers, whirling dervishes...we have a lot of names for them but the end result is that buyers are moving very very slowly. Yes, there was a recent upswing in sales due to the Tax Incentive, but the jump wasn't nearly as high this time as with the original credit that expired in November and seems to have more to do with new construction incentives than anything else. The tax credit incentive seems to have lost some of its punch. Possibly buyers assumed that congress would rubberstamp a renewal of the program or else that $8,000 credit just didn't mean enough to them. Taking a look at the market for the past 4 months, I can tell you what is selling and what is not and where you might shop for bargains…. 1) New Construction According to the MLS database sales records, the two most popular neighborhoods in Lewes are Harts Landing and Bay Crossing. In the last four months Harts Landing (Pulte) had eight "closed" sales and Bay Crossing (Blenheim) had five. FYI - Closed sales refers to sales that have gone to settlement. The sales in these two communities were almost all new construction. What do these two communities have in common? First, they both offer homes in the $300-$500K range. This makes them attractive to a wide variety of buyers - people looking for second homes, retirement homes or weekend retreats are all potential clients. Second, they are both in central locations. Harts Landing is located a few miles west of Route 1, off Route 24. Bay Crossing is located just east of Route 1 on Bay Crossing Blvd (about 1/4 mile North of the Midway Shopping Center). Third - They are both amenity rich communities. Harts Landing offers tennis, pool, fishing pier, and bike trails. Bay Crossing is a 55 Plus maintenance-free community offering tennis, pool, fitness center, clubhouse, lawncare and even snow removal. Fourth - Their builders are offering great incentives. Actually, most new home builders are offering great incentives these days. That is why new construction accounts for about 30% of all home sales in Lewes this period (Jan-April 2010). Other communities in Lewes where more than one home has sold in the last four months are all East of Route 1 or else very close to it including Rolling Meadows, Love Creek, Pilot Town Village, Edgewater, and the Reserve at Pilottown (each had three closed sales during this period). Homes in Sandy Brae and Village of Five Points each had 2 closed sales. These are all great neighborhoods and conveniently located. The Lewes Historic District is rarely hurting for sales even though homes here tend to be in the higher $600-1M range. This period there were four closed sales. What Else is selling? Lots and Land. Quite a few lots have been sold in the last six months in Lewes in the Reserve at Pilottown and Hawkseye. There are still good lots available in these communities and they have both experienced even further price cuts in the last couple of months (more like a price "shave" as the lot prices were already drastically cut a year or so ago in both these communities) and now range from the low $100s to the high $200s. You can actually theoretically build your dream home in either of these communities for under $500,000 - an unlikely possibility in 2007. When I posted a couple months ago about the fire-sale prices on lots inside city limits, they were already being snapped up by homebuilders and speculators. Today you can walk down to Burton and Johnson Avenues and see the result of these sales - some very nice new houses listed for sale, some are already completed. All reflect fact that the builders were able to buy those lots at a discounted price. What's not selling in Lewes? Homes outside of a developed community (unless they are in-town or on the beach) are sometimes harder to sell, and therefore you may find a bargain. If you don't miss amenities and like not being told by your Homeowner's Association what you can or can't build in your backyard, park in your driveway, or add to your house, this is a good place to look. Fixer-Uppers are also harder to sell in this market (unless they are labeled "short sale", "estate sale" or "foreclosure" in which case they are heavily toured) so you will find bargains there. Condos - Condos sales are still flat, particularly in smaller or older communities where they are weak on amenities or the buildings are starting to show their age. Condo prices are now down to about what they were in 2004 or 2005 in many communities. Interesting Note: I update my mailing list from the tax records regularly and I have recently seen an increase in multiple properties in the Five Points Condominums being purchased by the same entity, usually with out of town addresses. Investors are moving in to pick up these condos because they are in a newer community surrounded by amenities, easily rented, and at are still at bargain basement prices. Next week's blog: What's Selling in Rehoboth?

• Our buyers who’ve been sitting on the sidelines are FINALLY realizing that the great bargains are not sticking around and are snapping them up …our upcoming settlements white board is filling up.
• Our office phones have been ringing more and more steadily with appointment requests for our own sellers’ listings from other agents. (Good thing we have multiple staff members here to answer the phones seven days a week).
• We’ve experienced a dramatic increase in visitors and sales at the Bay Crossing 55 Plus Community where we represent Blenheim Homes. (Visit www.BlenheimHomesLW.com for more info on Bay Crossing).

Interest rates are coming down,Now's the time to re-fi! You can benefit right now, If your rate is too high.

Assuming your credit is good, you should rush to apply!| Now's the time, the time is right, Now's the time to re-eee-fi!

Don’t forget that summer house You will want to procure! We will help you seek a loan to finance your new home here.

During your next weekend off, why not go home shopping? We can help you find a place where the town’s a rocking!

P.S. No statements made on this website should be taken as financial or investment advice. I am a realtor, not a financial advisor.

First of all, let's dispel the common misconception that home buyers have about Realtors. Some buyers are still under the impression that by allowing a Realtor to accept them as a client they will pay a Realtor's commission.

Although a very few Realtors now charge buyers a fee, all commissions in any property sale are paid by the seller to the listing broker. What does this mean to the buyer? It means that buyers get free representation. Yes, I know it's hard to believe, but it is true.

If you are a buyer shopping for a home, right now, you can contact a Realtor, get them to show you a zillion homes (a bad idea, but that will have to be another column) and then ask them to write up and deliver a contract for you to the seller with the terms and conditions you agree and you will pay that Realtor absolutely nothing.

In fact, almost any Realtor will be willing and able to help you find a mortgage lender who meets your needs, explain to you the process of buying a home, negotiate the contract, refer you to any number of contractors or professionals for estimates, and progress successfully through settlement to close on your dream property. And, yes, it is all free to the buyer.

A Realtor can help you in so many ways and yet buyers today are still so anxious about committing to a Realtor that they will often do themselves a disservice by opting to forgo a Realtor or delaying in contacting a Realtor until they have already spent countless hours driving around from home to home and calling listing agents on their own, each time they want to see a property.

A first-rate Realtor can really save you a lot of time, money and stress! Because a Realtor has so much more experience than the average buyer in purchasing a home, they will notice items that a buyer might overlook, such as water or pet damage, high-traffic roads, or items that could lower a property's value. They will know a developer's or a builder's reputation. They may even know about a great house that's going to be put up for sale in a few days. And yes, again, this is all free to the buyer.

Need a one-story single family home with a heated garage and a mother-in-law suite and in a pool community? An experienced Realtor can not only quickly retrieve a list of available properties that meet your criteria, he or she may even be able to propose an alternative that fits your needs that you never considered.

For example, I met with a couple recently who had made a list of their 'must-haves". One of the items on this list was a basement. Where I asked them what they intended to use the basement for, one of the pair replied that he needed it for his very LOUD hobby. I mentioned that there was currently for sale an unusual home with a 2-car attached garage AND a detached 3-car garage which was on the opposite side of the driveway from the house... and that this 3-car garage was heated and even had a second floor. At a glance I could see from their expressions that I had made that "lightbulb" connection. And while they didn't end up buying that particular house, they told me that they appreciated having a Realtor who could see the forest for the trees.

And it cost them nothing. Really.