Many hardworking North Carolina families don’t earn enough to afford an average-priced home in their community.  Real estate professionals with Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Realty recently earned the North Carolina Workforce Housing Specialist certification and learned about programs that can help teachers, firefighters, nurses, and other service workers in our community achieve the dream of home ownership. 

Brett Adams, Cathi Anderson, Carolyn Dunwell, Paul Dunwell, Tom Gale, and Amy Whetsel from Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Realty’s Wilmington office earned the certification.  Homes4NC, a housing foundation created by the North Carolina Association of REALTORS®, offers the certification to REALTORS® who take extra steps to learn about the federal, state and local housing programs specifically designed to help buyers that earn less than the area median income.  They also work within the community to increase housing affordability for all citizens.   

“My wife is a teacher, so I hear from her colleagues all the time about how hard it is to find affordable housing,” said Tom Gale.  “With the training we received, I know about more lending programs that can help them.”

According to Homes4NC, wages in North Carolina are not expected to keep pace with the cost of housing.  Half of the state’s future jobs are expected to pay 60% of the state’s current average earnings.

To earn the certification, REALTORS® must complete sixteen hours of educational courses that focus on national, state, and local affordable housing resources. For more information about the North Carolina Workforce Housing Specialist certification, visit www.Homes4NC.org.

Coldwell Banker On Location, Coldwell Banker’s YouTube channel focused on listing, community and agent profile videos, continues to redefine the use of video in real estate. Just 11 months after launching in May 2009, Coldwell Banker On Location has drawn 1 million channel views.

Since Coldwell Banker Real Estate launched their brand channel on YouTube to debut Coldwell Banker On Location, the site has more videos on its YouTube site than any other real estate brand.

“We believe that video plays a major role in the home buying and selling process,” said Michael Fischer, senior vice president, Marketing, for Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. “There is no other medium that can showcase the personality of a home and agent more effectively than video. And our agents, from all corners of the world, have responded by posting more than 11,000 videos to date. Clearly, Coldwell Banker On Location has set a high bar for video use in our industry, but more importantly home sellers are starting to expect video as a part of the marketing portfolio of a home.”

Recognizing the power of video, Coldwell Banker Real Estate recently unveiled a new commercial featuring Coldwell Banker On Location.

“Consumers searching for homes have so much information available to them,” said Fischer. “But data and photos can only do so much. We have clearly come a long way from when a picture was worth a thousand words and the only visual a potential homeowner could utilize. Video is now a mainstay in real estate and consumers are proving this to be true.”

Click on the video titles listed below to see some of the Coldwell Banker On Location videos produced by Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Realty:

• Buying Foreclosures and Bank-Owned Properties
• Carolina Beach, NC - Tips from the Locals
• Ginger Harper on Southport, NC
• Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Realty Moves Jacksonville, NC
• Michelle Gurrera on Wilmington, NC
• Pat Maloney Says “Test Drive” Your New Home
• Sharon Zak on Boiling Spring Lakes, NC
• Ken Keegan on St. James, NC
• Sean Skutnik Explains Why You’ll Love Leland, NC

Readers of Wilmington’s Encore magazine have voted Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Realty as Wilmington’s Best Real Estate Company in their “Best of Wilmington 2010″!

Thanks go out to everyone that voted for for us.  Though this isn’t our first “Best of Wilmington” award, we’re still thrilled by this honor.  Our more than 300 agents and staff take great pride in the fact that every year for the last decade, we’ve sold more homes in southeastern North Carolina than any other real estate company.

Check out the nice things Encore had to say about us:

BEST REAL ESTATE AGENCY

The local and national housing markets may have taken a hit due to the recession as of late, but Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Realty is soaring high above the rest with their win for Best Real Estate Agency. Serving the cities of Wilmington and Jacksonville; the coastal communities of Carolina Beach, Topsail Beach, Surf City, Wrightsville Beach, Figure Eight Island, North Topsail Beach, Kure Beach, Bald Head Island, Oak Island, Ocean Isle Beach and Holden Beach; and coastal communities, including Porters Neck, Southport, Sneads Ferry, Leland, Scotts Hill, Hampstead, Holly Ridge, Camp Lejeune, New River, Bolivia, Shallotte, Boiling Spring Lakes and St. James, Sea Coast is without a doubt a leader in its industry. In fact, it is the number-one real estate company in southeastern North Carolina, selling more properties than any area firm for the past eight years.

With 300-plus agents and seven convenient locations (two in Wilmington, on Military Cutoff Road and at Porters Neck) Sea Coast is more than equipped to satisfy anything their customers desire. They can handle relocation needs, from start to finish, and even offer a 100-percent Satisfaction Guarantee. In an ever-changing real-estate climate, Sea Coast has remained true to its roots and continues to offer first-class service with a reputation clients have learned they can trust. Their easy-to-navigate Web site, www.seacoastrealty.com, only adds to what Wilmington recognizes as dependable, up-to-date and quality service.

If you are thinking about buying or selling a home in New Hanover, Brunswick, Pender, or Onslow County, North Carolina, shouldn’t you have the “Best of Wilmington” working for you?  Visit us online at www.seacoastrealty.com or call us at 1-800-522-9624.

Normally, the winter months are a pretty slow time in the real estate business.  While the weather has been cold outside this year, the real estate market has been getting hotter and hotter. 

In January 2009, homebuyers toured Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Realty listings 2,757 times!  That’s a whopping 72% increase from the previous month.  The number of showings is expected to grow even more over the next few months.

Our real estate professionals say that there are lots of homebuyers hunting for homes earlier than usual this year, so that they can take advantage of the homebuyer tax credit before the April 30, 2010 deadline.  First-time homebuyers are eligible for an $8,000 tax credit.  Homeowners that have been in their current home for the last 5 years are also eligible for a $6,500 tax credit.  In addition, real estate agents say that there are lots of investors and folks looking for second homes out looking for great properties at a bargain price.

If you are considering selling your home, it’s smart to contact a Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Realty agent today.  Our real estate professionals in New Hanover, Brunswick, Pender, and Onslow counties will expertly market your home, so that it will get the attention it deserves and sell for the most money.

Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Realty has been southeastern North Carolina’s top home seller for the last 10 years!  Find out more at www.seacoastrealty.com.

Sea Coast Realty can assist you as you explore Southport real estate, Oak Island real estate and Bald Head Island real estate. Contact us today, and we’ll work with you to find a place you can call home.

Southport real estate is great for people who would like to slow down and control the pace of their lives. It’s not so much sleepy as calm. It’s a boating village, so if you are attracted to the ebb and flow of the water it’s a place you should investigate. Oak Island real estate is a good buy for you as well. We’re talking long stretches of unspoiled beach. It’s a real paradise, with a mild climate and beautiful scenery.

Just one trip to Southport North Carolina is all it takes to appreciate the beauty of the Cape Fear region. We’re on the southeast coast of North Carolina, on the coast of Brunswick Islands. Live the coastal life every day of the year when you purchase Southport real estate. You’ll have access to sandy beaches, marsh land, and beautiful lighthouses with Southport and Oak Island homes that make for a great atmosphere to work, live and play on the coast.

What NC County has the scenic 40-mile-long New River which is the only large river in the continental United States with headwaters and mouth in the same county.  Onslow County, NC, offers the ultimate in outdoor coastal recreation and sports with over 30 miles of beautiful beaches, rivers, an ocean teeming with abundant marine life, and forests filled with diverse wildlife.

Sneads Ferry, North Topsail Beach and Jacksonville are all located in Onslow County, and all have a reputation for home values. Take a moment to look at the Jacksonville real estate, Jacksonville real estate and Sneads Ferry real estate we have listed on this site. You’ll soon discover that each of these areas is characterized by a family friendly beach lifestyle where conservation and enhancement of the environment are important.

Once you’ve had a chance to look at Sea Coast Realty’s Jacksonville real estate, North Topsail Beach real estate and Sneads Ferry real estate, contact us today, and we’ll be glad to help you find the home of your dreams.

Tucked away just below Wilmington and the mouth of the Cape Fear River and just 45 minutes or so above the South Carolina state line you’ll find Southport.  Southport reflects southern charm, but is close enough to Wilmington with the colleges, shopping, dining and nightlife.  In addition, Myrtle Beach is about 65 miles south.

The Oak Island, Caswell Beach and Southport area is famous for pier fishing, surf fishing, full-service marina and charter fishing boats.  Traffic in Southport is light considering there are only about 2,600 year-round residents. Of course during the summer traffic increases all over the Cape Fear region as tourists come to visit the Coastal Carolina’s beaches and towns.

Just before you get to town there are the conveniences of the super stores so you aren’t ”in the woods” entirely. If you are searching for property on NC coasts, Southport offers some great properties and prices on both new and existing homes.

Brunswick County in North Carolina is home to many beautiful coastal cities like Southport and Leland. Leland is a very interesting town with a very interesting history. Early plantations around the Cape Fear and Brunswick rivers brought settlement in the Leland area. Due to the proximity to the river, it served as a transportation center in the early times. In modern times, the access to river has given Leland real estate a lot of homes with beautiful views. Oak Island real estate, a town nearby that includes Caswell Beach, also offers plenty of coastal properties at bargain prices.

Southeastern NC features Oak Island real estate, home to almost 7,000 Brunswick County residents.  A popular beach community, Oak Island is known for its fresh seafood found in local markets and restaurants.  Famous for the yearly King Mackerel fishing tournament, Oak Island grows seasonally with people from all different areas.  Also located in Brunswick County is the town of Ocean Isle, a quiet community home to less than 500 residents.  Located near all of the activity of major beach towns, Ocean Isle Beach real estate offers many beach houses and second homes for a getaway resort.  Whether you desire a cottage on the beach or a quaint old home that features the beauty of dated architecture, Ocean Isle could be your next year-around home or vacation house.