february 2019
LOST MOMENTUM
THE storm paused what was a sizzling market.
“The beach was on fire — water property all up
and down the coast was. We had multiple offers,
quick sales, no inventory, it was pretty incredible,”
says Carla Lewis of Intracoastal Realty.
The extensive media coverage didn’t help.
“It was a very stressful time for buyers and sellers,” Sherwood
Strickland of Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Advantage says.
For many, it was a renewed lesson in the intricacies of how
insurance and homeowner associations work.
“It was a really good, solid year across the board. Healthy
in the upper price range as we continue to recover from the
Great Recession,” Vance Young says.
Just after Thanksgiving, Young as the listing agent, and
Sam Crittenden of Landmark Sotheby’s representing the
buyer, saw the biggest sale in New Hanover history close
for $5 million on Bradley Creek Point, off picturesque
Airlie Road and Wrightsville Sound with close proximity
to the beach. Not gated, not oceanfront, but soundfront
with stunning views across the ICWW to Wrightsville,
and Masonboro Inlet and island. A perfect south-facing
location, with boat dock.
The three-story, 6,506sf home with four bedrooms and five
baths is described as Normandy inspired, with European inte-riors.
It was lovingly put together and embellished as the year-round
home by a Wilmington businessman and his wife.
The purchaser, a parent of a family nearby, has maintained
a second home at Wrightsville for three or more decades.
This sale closing at the end of November helped nudge New
Hanover County’s year-end numbers into positive territory.
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WBM
PHOTOS COURTESY INTRACOASTAL REALTY CORPORATION