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Archive for March, 2011
Wow Chad, you are incredible! That is a great video, it shows everything we need to know…
I don’t think this house is for us but, now I know for sure, you are actually the Realtor® I want. You showed all the problems which we couldn’t see otherwise.
Keep up the good work. Can’t wait to meet you. It is no wonder Dr. Brown recommended you, you’re the best.
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If you are searching our Real Estate Listings in the North Georgia Mountains, chances are you are paying particularly close attention to Bank Owned Properties. Foreclosures are somewhat dominating the North Georgia Real Estate Market, and to me that is not necessarily such a good thing. As a matter of fact it is not a good thing as it continues to drive down home values in the Blairsville, Blue Ridge, Hiawassee and Ellijay. In some counties in North GA, Foreclosed Homes are making up over 50% of the Real Estate Sales while making up less than 10% of the Market Share.
Dealing with the frustrations of a Foreclosure Transaction has been on the agenda of most Brokerages Sales Meetings for the past year or so. It seems very few transactions dealing with Bank Owned Real Estate go smoothly. However, there are a few things that you need to be aware of that will better prepare you for the experience. And speaking of experience, it is always a good idea to ask your Realtor® how much experience they have had recently in dealing with Foreclosed Homes In Georgia. If you are not currently working with a Realtor®, I would very much appreciate the opportunity to assist you with all your North Georgia Mountain Real Estate needs.
Below are 5 Things You Need To Know before beginning your search for Foreclosures In North GA.
1. Foreclosures Are Not Always The Best Deal On The Market.
I can’t tell you how many times I get calls on my cell phone or in the office from potential Home or Cabin Buyers, and they ask me to send them ONLY Foreclosures that meet their criteria. What is it about the word “Foreclosure” that makes a Home Buyer think that they are the only good deals in the market? Is the media? Do you have other Licensed Real Estate Agents telling you that they are the best deals? What about Financial Advisers, are they telling you to buy only Foreclosures?
There are a lot of homes that are being offered on the open market by home owners that are really good deals. What about the custom and speculation home builders? They are doing everything they can to make ends meet and in doing so are building cabins and homes that they are selling at exceptionally great deals. However, the Bank Owned Homes are making it next to impossible for these builders to sell their homes at a profit margin that I would consider to be “making a living!” But they are doing it, and sellers that truly want to sell their homes are doing it because they do not have a choice. They have to compete with the Banks and the “Big Guys” Fannie and Freddie, but they are doing. I can say one thing for sure, it isn’t always easy for Real Estate Agencies and it’s Agents to convince the sellers that they have to sell their homes in most cases less than what they may have paid for it only a few years earlier. As I mentioned earlier, Foreclosures are currently making up less than 10% of the total market share. That means that 90% of the Homes and Cabins For Sale in the North Georgia Mountains are NOT Foreclosures. That not only gives you more choices, but it also gives you the opportunity to purchase a home and actually sit across the table from the person or persons you are buying it from. Surely out of that 90% of Properties For Sale, there has got to be some sellers that have priced their properties aggressively enough that they are standing toe to toe with the Banks and “The Big Buys!”
Read the rest of this entry »
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Fine Italian Country Cuisine
If you are in the Beautiful North Georgia Mountains and it is Fine Italian Country Cuisine you are craving, then go the place everyone is talking about. Cucina Rustica is located just minutes from downtown Blue Ridge right off of the Appalachian Highway. They are only open for Dinner Wednesday through Saturday, from 5:00 to 9:00 PM. No matter the size of your party, you need to call ahead and make reservations.
Reservations Are Recommended
706-374-7474
76 Forge Mill Crossing
Morganton, GA. 30560
If you have dined at this Fine Restaurant during your visit to the North Georgia Mountains, or you are a resident and dine at Cucina Rustica frequently, please leave a reView of your experience at Cucina Rustica in the comment section below. I am certain visitors to “The Porch” will greatly appreciate it.
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Union County Residential Real Estate Market Report – March 2011
The Residential Real Estate Market in the Blairsville area of the North Georgia Mountains are still be dominated by Bank Owned Properties For Sale. The Median Sold Price for Homes Sold in Union County was on a steady climb since September of last year according to the data that this report has been compiled from with help from the Northeast Georgia Board of Realtors® MLS. That all came to a screeching halt in February of 2011. Although there were over 2 times the number of units sold, the Median Sold Price dropped 27% from last month, but only 16% from a year ago. The Median For Sale Price has risen slightly from last month, but dropped about 3% from a year ago. Again, the number of Homes Sold in Blairsville, GA. was up 116% from last month, and 7% from a year ago. I believe that all the snow we had in December and January had a lot to do with why our sales were down so much in January.
But why the decrease so much in Median Sold Price? 27% in one month. Well one word…Foreclosures. Bank Owned Properties make up a very small percentage of the Market Share in Blairsville but dominate the sales. If you take a look at the homes sold in February, 20 of them were Bank Foreclosures. That is 57% of House Sales in Union County.
The number of Homes Under Contract has actually dropped a little from last month as well. There were 30 Homes Pending in Blairsville Georgia at the end of February, compared to the 41 that were Under Contract in January. Taking a look at the past year, we can see a somewhat steady climb and an overall 67% increase year over year.
New Real Estate Listings continue to decline mostly in part to New Construction Home starts being down so much. The total number of Residential MLS Listings is down 23% from February 2010. The Average Days On Market or commonly referred to as DOM, was down 13% overall, but was up just slightly to 155 days. Also the Absorption Rate for Union County is down overall 57%, but jumped from 12 months to almost 16 months in February 2011. The Absorption Rate tells us how many months under current market conditions it would take to sell all the Homes For Sale in Blairsville, GA.
Thank you so much for stopping by “The Porch” and visiting. you are welcomed back at anytime. If you have any questions or concerns with anything you have read in this report, or pertaining to the North Georgia Mountain Real Estate Market, please Contact Me and I will be grateful for the opportunity to address them for you.
Make it a GREAT day!
Related articles
- Incredible Buy On A Bank Owned Home In Blairsville Georgia (thefrontporchview.idxco.com)
- Lake Houses For Sale On Lake Nottely In Blairsville GA (thefrontporchview.com)
- 2 Year North Georgia Mountain Residential Market Report – January 2011 (thefrontporchview.com)
- Pending Home Sales Up In The North Georgia Mountains (thefrontporchview.com)
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Customers and Clients are always asking me if I have room for their Mother-In-Law, or their Dad’s Sister’s Cousins. Why I always tell them I got plenty of room, you can even bring your dawgs ifin’ you wanna!
Yuns have a colorful day!
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There are currently 19 Homes or Cabins For Sale on Lake Blue Ridge. Lake Blue Ridge is home to some of the most magnificent Luxury Waterfront Real Estate in the Northeast Georgia Mountains. Lake Blue Ridge holds on her shores everything from Cottages For Sale, to Massive Log Homes which are what I like to refer to as Mountain Elegance!
Since March 1st of 2010, there has been 10 Residential Properties Sold through our Northeast Georgia Mountain MLS Listings on Lake Blue Ridge. Prices range from $215,500 to as high as $960,000.
Click Here To Search For Lake Blue Ridge Homes
If you have any questions or concerns about any of the Lake Houses you see on Lake Blue Ridge, or if you would like additional information, Please Contact Me. I would be grateful for the opportunity to earn your business and be your Realtor® of choice in the Blue Ridge Georgia Mountains.
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- Lake Chatuge Houses For Sale In Hiawassee GA (thefrontporchview.com)
- Lake Houses For Sale On Lake Nottely In Blairsville GA (thefrontporchview.com)
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159 Loftis Mountain Blairsville Georgia
Incredible Deal on a Foreclosed Home located in the upscale community of Loftis Mountain convenient to Lake Nottely and Downtown Blairsville, GA.
This Traditional Home has a total of 4,897 Square Feet according to the Union County Tax Assessors website, who also has a total assessed value of $409,978. You do the math, if this home is purchased at FULL PRICE, that is $52.89 a square Foot. Unbelievable!
Please Contact Me if you have any specific questions or concerns with this Home For Sale In Blairsville, GA. I would appreciate very much the opportunity to earn your business, providing you with more value in your North Georgia Mountain Real Estate transaction that you ever could have expected.
Click Here For More Information
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- Lake Houses For Sale On Lake Nottely In Blairsville GA (thefrontporchview.com)
- Existing Home Supply Down 40% In Last 6 Months (thefrontporchview.com)
- Lake Chatuge Houses For Sale In Hiawassee GA (thefrontporchview.com)
- Georgia’s Largest Ground Mounted Solar System (thefrontporchview.com)
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Guest Post by Professional Home Stager and Friend Tonia Mosteller.
“Is your home “Show Ready”? These 5 low cost tips will get you started on turning your house into a “show home”. This is critical because if you want to get the most money for your home and sell more quickly, you need potential buyers (and their agents) to feel it’s a “hot property”. Staging is not the same as creating a usable space that you will enjoy. Instead, staging is the art of making your home appealing to the masses (or as many people as possible) instead of for you.
It is a valuable tool and the statistics show that in today’s market and economy, staging your house would help to sell it faster and for more money! The investment of staging in your property is less than a price reduction on your property.
True home staging doesn’t address the issues of comfort and usability…instead, it address the best way to make the rooms look the largest by increasing the open floor plan.
Whether it is elimination of extra furniture (ie.. side tables, floor pillows, large bulky furniture and replacing them with smaller furniture and larger art work, mirrors (to enlarge rooms) and wall decor. By picking items up off the floor and making the walls tell the story the rooms visually are larger and more open.
Creating an atmosphere void of overly-dramatic details (deep colored walls, etc.) can help more people imagine themselves living in the space and helps them to avoid the feeling that there is much work (painting, repairs) that would have to be done before they move in. These changes equal $$$$ and that decreases potential offer prices should an offer be made.
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After a strong run to close out 2010, the market for home resales softened a bit in January.
On a seasonally-adjusted basis, the Pending Home Sales Index dropped 3 percent last month, and December’s figures were revised downward for a loss, too, according to the National Association of REALTORS®.
A “pending home sale” is defined as a home under contract to sell, but not yet closed.
The forward-looking index is now at a 3-month low on a national level, but still well ahead of its rolling 6-month average.
Unfortunately, national data isn’t overly helpful for buyers and sellers of real estate. The National Association of REALTORS® knows this, of course, and makes an effort to get more granular, supplementing the Pending Home Sales Index report with a region-by-region breakdown.
Between December and January, only the South Region increased in sales volume. The Midwest led the losers:
- Northeast Region: -2.4%
- Midwest Region : -7.3%
- South Region : +1.4%
- West Region : -5.2%
Even still, however, regional data remains too broad to be practical. The South Region, for example, is comprised of multiple states with thousands of cities and town. The housing market dynamics of a specific neighborhood in a specific regional city will differ from that of another neighborhood in another regional city.
Real estate data must be local to be relevant.
Here in my service area of the North Georgia Mountains, for the 4 counties of Gilmer, Fannin, Union and Towns, properties Under Contract are up a staggering 77% from February of 2010. There are 138 total Homes Under Contract for those counties. That is a change of 60 from a year ago. Each county is broken down as followed.
- Gilmer: 44 – + 100%
- Fannin: 53 – + 71%
- Union: 30 – +67%
- Towns: 11 – +57%
Overall, then, what may be most telling from January’s Pending Home Sales Index is how weather can influence results.
Most of the country faced drastic weather conditions in January, ranging from raging snowstorms to bitter cold. Events like that tend to put a damper on home sales, a contributing factor in why the number of new contracts fell.
Another reason is rising mortgage rates. Conforming and FHA rates rose week-by-week in January, robbing home buyers of 10% of their purchasing power. This, too, can slow down purchase activity as buyers adjust their expectations.
Looking forward, we should expect the Pending Home Sales Index to resume rising. Inclement weather doesn’t kill demand; it just delays it. And mortgage rates have settled somewhat. These two factors should help release pent-up demand just as the Spring Home buying Season gets underway.
As more buyers enter the market, negotiation leverage will shift to home sellers, pressuring Blairsville home prices higher. The lowest prices of the year — and the cheapest financing — could be what you see today.
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Caught In The Net
Caught In The Net
Caught In The Net
When: February 11 – March 6, 2011
Where: Blue Ridge Community Theater
By Ray Cooney. Even if you’ve never seen Caught in the Net’s predecessor, Cooney’s smash hit Run for Your Wife, you’ll have no trouble following the action. High Schoolers Vicki and Gavin hit it off when they meet online. The flirtatious teens can’t wait to meet in person, but have no idea that Gavin is, as the expression goes, “a brother of another mother.” Cab driver John Leonard Smith is father to both of them, having maintained two separate families in two separate towns, for nearly two decades.
Friday and Saturday’s at 7:30 p.m. Sunday’s at 2:00 p.m. Rated PG (mature subject matter and language)
The Blue Ridge Community Theater is located at 2591 East First Street, Blue Ridge Georgia.
For More Information, please call the Blue Ridge Community Theater Box Office at 706-632-5680.
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- Winterfest Fire and Ice Sculpting In Blue Ridge, GA. (thefrontporchview.com)
- February 2011 Fannin County Residential Market Report (thefrontporchview.com)
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