Last night, The Fine Coastal Living Team and friends ventured The Maison Rose at 822 Orange Street (aka South n’ France) to experience the new Crepes and Grapes Party offered by nationally acclaimed/locally located Bon Bon experts Charlene Dupray and Pascal Siegler.

This husband and wife team has created a buzz making award-winning Bon Bons and throwing Champagne and Bon Bon parties at which you learn the art of cooking and eating the chocolate hand-dipped treats. South n’ France customers enjoyed the Bon Bon parties so much, they asked for more… and this is how Crepes and Grapes came to be.

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I just got a refresher course on mortgage buydowns and am pumped about the idea. For those who aren’t familiar, a buydown is when a seller, lender, builder or buyer pays to decrease the buyer’s initial interest rate. The rate then adjusts up one point each year until it hits its final note rate (which is the rate on the note to the bank). The two most popular types of buydowns are the 3-2-1 and the 2-1. The rate does not adjust any further after the final year (which would be the end of the 3rd year for a 3-2-1 or the end of the 2nd year for 2-1). A buydown can be tacked onto any type of loan- conventional or government.

Here is a real-life example:

Buyer, who we’ll call Jane, goes under contract to purchase a home at a sales price of $146,900. Jane’s note rate is 6.625%, which is the average going rate. Jane’s wonderful Realtor negotiated to have the seller pay her buydown costs. Since we’re in a strong buyers’ market, the seller was happy to do this in order to get the home sold. Jane did a 3-2-1 buydown, which made her initial interest rate 3.625%. Such an interest rate made Jane’s payment for the 1st year just $679.99/month. Here is how it works:

This puts Jane’s monthly payment after 3 years at $954.72. Again, the rate will not adjust any further after this. Isn’t that cool?? A buydown is perfect for anyone anticipating a raise or promotion, students, buyers coming into money, or a buyer who doesn’t plan to stay in the house for more than 2 years. It is also nice for anyone who wants to save money during the first two years of homeownership.

Please let me know your thoughts and whether this all makes sense.

Identity theft is one of the fastest growing crimes in America today. Being a victim can have a huge impact on you now and potentially well into the future.

One of the frightening aspects of identity fraud is that it’s most often perpetrated by a faceless enemy, and the struggle is fought on many different fronts: online, over the phone and even in the dumpster. However, if you can remember some simple advice and employ some easy tactics, you can significantly reduce your risk of becoming a victim.

Please click the icon to the right for some pertinent information about how thieves operate and what you can do to stop them. This includes tips on handling your sensitive documents, as well as what to avoid when you check your email or shop online.

Remember, identity theft has significant financial and emotional implications, but there are simple, straightforward ways to greatly reduce your risk of falling victim to this increasingly popular crime.

As many Wilmingtonians are aware, property values in New Hanover County are re-assessed for tax purposes every eight years, and 2007 was an 8th year. You could practically hear the moans and groans from residents as they opened their mail in February to discover their home’s assessed value had increased by 75-100%.

After all, a lot has happened in the past eight years. New Hanover County saw an average 20% appreciation for both 2004 and 2005. To help shield against the uproar, NHC announced their plan to make taxes “revenue neutral” for 85% of residents by lowering the tax rate (which was previously $1.14 per $100 of assessed value for city + county). Well, the new rates have been published and are available for your viewing below.

Drum roll please…

Below you’ll find the new/current tax rates for New Hanover County and surrounding areas. Remember, this amount is per $100 of assessed value so to calculate your annual taxes you would do (current value/100)*tax rate.

Keep in mind that with most areas you add the city rate to the county rate to get your total. Some communities, such as Bayshore Estates, Marsh Oaks, Northchase and Porters Neck, are outside the city border and thus owners are only required to pay county taxes. Please let us know if you have any questions!