In recent years, a bevy of discounters has sprung up across America. They have shaken up the real estate industry by offering real estate brokerage services for less than the traditional 6 percent of the selling price. In many cases they also provide somewhat less than the traditional amount of service.

Some discount brokers offer a menu of services and tailor their fee according to the menu items chosen. Others say they offer full services and simply are discounting the price. ZipRealty, which operates in 16 markets nationwide, will list your home on the Multiple Listing Service, or MLS, show your property to prospective buyers, and help you get the deal to closing. “We offer home buyers and sellers all of the services of a traditional brokerage,” says Richard Roberts, ZipRealty’s vice president for marketing. “We charge significantly less to represent the seller while still offering market-rate commissions to the buyer’s agent.” Founded in 1999, the California-based company charges either 1 percent below the traditional commission or a minimum listing fee of $2,000. That’s in addition to an agreed-upon fee which is paid to any cooperating broker who brings a buyer. (more…)

search for : discounters, 6 percent, discount brokers, home buyers, ZipRealty

Nationwide, a five-year housing boom has cooled, judging from growing statistical evidence and the performance of some of the nation’s leading builders, the Associated Press reported earlier this year. In March, the Commerce Department reported January sales of new, single-family homes fell 5 percent – the fourth decline in seven months – and the backlog of unsold, new homes hit a record.

But local real estate agents say Middle Georgia has been insulated from the same kinds of highs and lows that have hit the national market. “It’s been a very balanced market,” said Realtor John Conn of Conn Realty. “Much of the (news) reporting is based on national reports, and those don’t necessarily speak for our particular market here in Middle Georgia. They were talking about bubbles, and now they are talking about a slowdown. We’re not really experiencing that here.” (more…)

search for : housing boom, leading builders, Associated Press, Commerce Department, Georgia

Nestled behind the most popular campground in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park stand the rickety remains of a rustic vacation community that began before the park was established and thrived for 80 years. Still visible are 74 buildings, including the Wonderland Hotel, the Appalachian Clubhouse and cabins that make up the Elkmont Historic District, a logging community that was turned into a summer resort area around 1910.

Park officials now say they prefer an option that retains the Appalachian Clubhouse, 15 cabins near it in an area called Daisy Town, a cabin awarded to one of the park’s founders by President Franklin Roosevelt and a larger cabin on so-called Millionaire’s Row that once belonged to Col. W.B. Townsend, head of the logging company that established Elkmont. The Appalachian Clubhouse would be restored for day use and exhibits would explain the history of Elkmont. The plan would cost about $5.7 million. Park officials are gathering public reaction to that plan until May 11 and hope to announce a final decision by early 2007. (more…)

search for : Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Appalachian Clubhouse, President Franklin Roosevelt, Elkmont

Stone Mountain’s imposing granite mass looms to the southeast, while the faint outlines of high-rises in Atlanta can be seen to the southwest through the mid-afternoon haze. Looking down, cars and trucks stream by on Interstate 85, and stop-and-go traffic navigates surface streets lined with shopping centers and office buildings in the Gwinnett Place business district.

If county officials started a new chapter in Gwinnett’s growth by adopting rules for high-rise condos in December, the two towers would be the first page. Others could follow, but when and where will hinge on the same factors that guide the loftiest high-rise to the lowliest subdivision – namely, supply and demand. Some question how much demand exists in Gwinnett County for high-rise living, but developers and real estate investors are willing to seek the answer through market research and number crunching. (more…)

search for : Stone Mountain, Atlanta, Interstate 85, Gwinnett, Gwinnett County

In a local hot market where there are more qualified home buyers than homes available for sale (called a seller’s market), it’s very easy to sell a home by placing a newspaper ad and waiting for the purchase offers from buyers. But when there are more homes for sale than qualified buyers, that is a buyer’s market. Most local home sales markets are currently neutral with an adequate supply of homes available for sale and many qualified buyers eager to purchase.

Unless your home is listed with a member of the local MLS, who then markets the listing at this major Web site, your residence won’t be exposed to the largest number of prospective home buyers in your community. FSBO sellers lack this big advantage. A major problem for most fizzbo home sellers is how to create a legally binding purchase contract without a listing agent being involved. Lacking a listing agent, this task can be a major challenge because the home sale forms sold at stationery stores usually are worthless. In addition, home sellers must comply with local disclosure ordinances, such as providing written defect disclosures (to prevent after-sale lawsuits), building code compliance, energy reports, natural hazard disclosures, lead-based-paint disclosure and booklet, and other applicable disclosures. (more…)

search for : qualified home buyers, a seller’s market, FSBO

Thanks to American Hiking Society’s National Trails Fund grants program, 17 nonprofit organizations across the country will receive a much needed boost to their efforts to establish, promote and protect foot trails and hiking opportunities. The national nonprofit will distribute $50,000 in grants, ranging from $500 to $7,300, that are generally matched by cash or ’sweat equity,’ for projects ranging from volunteer support to trail maintenance and construction. The 2006 National Trails Fund awards are made possible by generous support from the program’s sponsors, L.L.Bean, MSR and Therm-a-Rest.

Other recipients of the 2006 National Trails Fund are: Camp Tyler Foundation (TX), Carteret County Wildlife Club (NC), Coastwalk (CA), Colorado Mountain Club (CO), Cove Point Natural Heritage Trust (MD), Elkhorn City Area Heritage Council (KY), Georgia Pinhoti Trail Association (GA), Grand Staircase Escalante Partners (UT), High Sierra Volunteer Trail Crew (CA), North Coast F.O.R.E.S.T. Association (CA), Pacific Northwest Trail Association (WA), Superior Hiking Trail Association (MN), The Norman Bird Sanctuary (RI), Wallingford Land Trust (CT) and Weber Pathways (UT).
(more…)

search for : American Hiking Society, National Trails Fund, L.L.Bean, MSR, Therm-a-Rest, Georgia Pinhoti Trail Association (GA)

In a recent article you said, “Now you know why I never recommend negative-amortization adjustable-rate mortgages (ARMs).” Does that mean you changed your advice? I recall your many articles recommended the COFI (cost of funds index) ARMs, which have negative amortization.

RMs that use the COFI do not always have negative amortization where the borrower’s monthly payment increases slower than the interest index increases. The result can be the unpaid interest is added to the mortgage balance, thus creating negative amortization. I have never recommended negative amortization ARMs. Personally, I have had several COFI adjustable-rate mortgages that didn’t have negative amortization. (more…)

search for : negative-amortization, adjustable-rate mortgages, ARMs, COFI

Thanks to a dedicated group of volunteers, hikers have new paths to explore in Dawson County. Last month, about 10 miles of trails opened in the Dawson Forest Wildlife Management Area, a 25,000-acre property operated by the Georgia Department of Natural Resources. The DNR manages the area for hunting and fishing. But two years ago, the North Georgia nonprofit group Mountain Stewards joined with the state agency to promote use of the land by nonhunters.

“What we’ve done is connect a lot of these trails together, cleared them, put blazes on trees, added signage,” Wells said. “We’ve also added three primitive campsites in the Wildcat campground, and built two 60-foot bridges across the Amicalola River.” And it didn’t cost taxpayers a dime. Ken Riddleberger, regional supervisor for game management at the DNR office in Gainesville, said the donation-funded project represented $14,700 in construction materials and $10,000 worth of volunteer labor. “(Mountain Stewards) has been a big help to us,” he said. “They’ll also be responsible for maintenance of the trails.” The south end of the wildlife area, known as the Atlanta tract, has trails for horseback riders and mountain bikers. (more…)

search for : Dawson County, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, hunting and fishing, North Georgia, Mountain Stewards

Number 10. DEAD BUGS LYING AROUND! That being said, I have to admit that not only have I sold properties with dead bugs lying around, I have bought them myself. Often people will exterminate a home after moving furniture out and then put in new light carpet and put it on the market vacant. After exterminating a home, dead bugs can appear for weeks afterward, and with no one living in the house, you find the dead spiders lying on the brand new light carpet. “I said light, bright and airy NOT light, bright and buggy!”

Number 1. ODORS! In my experience, this applies to all smells, both good and bad. If you open the door and there is a strong smell of ANY kind, it is a problem. That doesn’t just apply to pet odors and smoke or mustiness, but also bleach, pine cleaners, rose and floral scents, carpet fresheners or wall plug in room fresheners. I can only think of one time in 16 years where I have sold the house, when I had to walk outside to get a gulp of fresh air after viewing each room. If I feel like I am going to pass out before I make it up the stairs to the second floor, the buyers and I are usually out of there before making it through the entire house. Often these homes are vacant, and the owners or listing agents haven’t been inside the house, since they installed “plug-ins” in every single room outlet, to mask some other foul odors. (more…)

search for : exterminate a home, ODORS, carpet fresheners, room fresheners

Soon 775 secluded acres in rural Cherokee County, north of Atlanta, will overflow with hard-fought memories from battles long past like Iwo Jima, Inchon and Danang, and eventually from recent ones in Iraq and Afghanistan. The new Georgia National Cemetery will accept its first burials on April 24, becoming sacred grounds and a lasting tribute to those veterans who served their country in times of her greatest need.

On land donated by the late World War II veteran and Atlanta developer Scott Hudgens, the cemetery joins 122 others run by the National Cemetery Administration, part of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. The national cemetery program dates back to the height of the Civil War, when President Abraham Lincoln signed legislation in 1862 recognizing that national cemeteries were needed ‘‘…for the soldiers who shall die in the service of the country.’’ In 1873, the program was expanded to include all honorably discharged veterans. It provides the gravesite (including a concrete graveliner for caskets), headstone and perpetual care of the grave. It also opens and closes the gravesite and provides the veteran’s family a memorial certificate and U.S. flag. (more…)

search for : Cherokee County, Atlanta, Iwo Jima, Danang, Iraq, Afghanistan, Georgia National Cemetery

The 19th Annual “World’s Longest Yardsale“, also known as the Hwy 127 Corridor Sale will begin on August 3- 6, 2006 (Thursday – Sunday). The Sale is headquartered in Jamestown, Tennessee at the Fentress County Chamber of Commerce. Hundreds of thousands of folks join us each year for this fun filled event, spanning 450 miles and four states including Georgia.

The Lookout Mountain Parkway Association asked to be included in the sale route a few years after the sale began. The Lookout Mountain Parkway leaves Chattanooga as Highway 58 and becomes several different highway numbers before reaching Gadsden. It is no longer US 127, but is the same great sale. This routing crosses the Northwest corner of Georgia, going into Cloudland. This added another 100 miles to the already existing 350 miles, thus making it 450 miles — “The World’s Longest Yard Sale”.
(more…)

search for : World’s Longest Yardsale, Hwy 127 Corridor Sale, Jamestown, Tennessee, Fentress County Chamber of Commerce, Georgia, Lookout Mountain Parkway Association, Chattanooga, Cloudland

Just a short drive from central Georgia, the backwaters of the Tennessee River in northeast Morgan County, Alabama are worth the visit. Hidden from the untrained eye by the lush hardwood forest, the birds passing through Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge on their migration home join a mixed tune of breeding birds building nests to hatch their young.

Cardinals, blue jays, blue gray gnatcatchers, Carolina chickadees, American redstarts and prothonotary warblers join in as a great blue heron stands quietly and searches for food in the crystal-clear water of Charest Creek. The morning scene is a birdwatcher’s dream, or least that’s the hope of organizers for the upcoming North Alabama Birding Festival. They have a dozen new canoes and kayaks to offer a special watery field trip May 6. (more…)

search for : Georgia, Tennessee River, Alabama, Wheeler National Wildlife Refuge, Cardinals, blue jays, blue gray gnatcatchers, Carolina chickadees, American redstarts

In 1992, many folks had never even heard of riding bicycles on a trail through the woods. That was the year Jim Parham published Off The Beaten Track, A Guide to Mountain Biking in Western North Carolina, a book that would change the way trail guidebooks were written, and strongly impact the recreation industry in the Southeast.

At the time, he was a 28-year-old whitewater river guide and kayak instructor for the Nantahala Outdoor Center in Bryson City, NC who’d fallen in love with off-road cycling, and he noticed the outfitter store staff spending precious sales time drawing crude maps on scraps of paper for customers asking where to ride. In October of 1991 he decided to take action and publish the first mountain bike trail guide for the Southeast. The concept was simple: concise directions, basic, ultra-clear maps, and everything a rider needed to have the best experience possible. The book itself would be slender, but packed with information–no philosophical musings, no text padding, just a few terse comments from the author to help the reader find the right ride. (more…)

search for : Off The Beaten Track, A Guide to Mountain Biking in Western North Carolina, Nantahala Outdoor Center

President Bush’s contention that America’s economy is “petroleum-based” is not entirely accurate. Although oil makes up approximately 40 percent of total U.S. energy consumption, coal and natural gas each now supply about 25 percent of the total energy consumed by the United States. So, while oil is a major element in America’s energy supplies, it is by no means the only significant factor. Disruption in natural gas or coal supplies would pose major problems to the American economy.

Until recently, the United States was in pretty good shape when it came to natural gas. Prices were low and supplies sufficient. In 2000, for example, North America consumed nearly one-third of the world’s annual output of natural gas. Unlike oil, for which the United States, Canada, and Mexico together produced only 60 percent of the supplies they consumed, the three countries produced nearly 100 percent of the natural gas consumed. Bound together by free trade agreements, the continental market for natural gas more than doubled through the 1990s. (more…)

search for : America, petroleum, coal, natural gas, oil

NeighborhoodScout, the search engine for homebuyers and movers has been issued a United States Patent. Consumers may use NeighborhoodScout.com to search for homes to buy, by typing in specific neighborhood information to focus their house hunt on the neighborhoods that best match their criteria, whether they are moving across town or across the country. According to the company, NeighborhoodScout saves homebuyers significant money, time, and stress, by providing instant insights to guide them in choosing the neighborhoods that best meet their personal needs, before sorting through listings in different towns, driving around with an agent, or buying a house in a location that they later realize doesn’t fit their needs.

Andrew Schiller, a Ph.D. Geographer and Founder of NeighborhoodScout.com explained, ”Despite the explosion of real estate-related websites, one of the first questions most homebuyers have – where to focus their house hunt – is still primarily provided through word-of-mouth.” Mr. Schiller continued, ”NeighborhoodScout fills this need with a unique and patented solution that optimizes search results to the personal criteria of each user, seamlessly integrates this service with opportunities for the homebuyer to be connected with a real estate agent and mortgage provider to buy or sell a home and finance their purchase, and delivers it online where many Americans are now turning in large numbers to shop for real estate.” (more…)

search for : NeighborhoodScout, homebuyer, United States Patent, mortgage provider

The following seven months showed a shift back to equities, with stocks edging past real estate as the preferred investment choice in February — 40% vs. 38%. Along with declining housing activity and increased stock trading, the latest data reinforce the suspicion that aggressive investors are moving out of real estate and heading back into stocks.

Stocks have shown signs of perking up, with major averages having their best start to a year in quite a while. But real estate investors used to triple-digit returns from housing in recent years won’t find a mad-bull market for equities. Rising interest rates have put a damper on housing. No-money-down and similar loans have become tougher for investors to get. The Federal Reserve and other financial regulators want lenders to tighten standards on “exotic mortgages” such as option ARMs, which let borrowers pay only a portion of the interest for a limited time. Housing activity appears to be cooling. New-home sales fell 10.5% in February to the lowest level since May 2003. The median price sank 2.9% vs. a year before, the biggest drop in three years. (more…)

search for : equities, stocks, real estate, real estate investors, Federal Reserve

U.S. economic activity has grown at a stable, robust pace for most of the last three years. Gross domestic product (GDP) grew at a real annualized rate of at least 3.3 percent in every quarter between March 2003 and September 2005 before sliding to a rate of 1.6 percent in the final quarter of last year. Meanwhile, institutions insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) turned in a fifth-consecutive year of record earnings in 2005, posting net income of $134.2 billion. In addition, today marks the 636th day since the FDIC last provided assistance to a failed or failing bank — the longest such streak in the history of the corporation.

Despite the overall strong appraisal, real GDP growth decelerated sharply, to a 1.6 percent annualized rate during fourth quarter 2005. This slowdown had been expected by many forecasters, including one of the FDIC roundtable panelists, Kathleen Camilli. She introduced the notion that the U.S. economy might have experienced a mid-cycle growth slowdown in late 2005. These slowdowns are not unprecedented, as they have occurred during expansions in both the 1980s and 1990s. Camilli also noted that the recent historical pattern of real GDP growth points to recessions occurring near the start of every decade. On that basis, the U.S. economy may have a few more years of expansion ahead of it before entering the next recession. (more…)

search for : U.S. economic activity, Gross domestic product, GDP, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, FDIC

The business of booking a hotel room and trading stocks have all been radically reshaped by the immediacy of the Internet. And now, a similar change may be coming to the most brick-and-mortar of brick-and-mortar businesses — the buying and selling of homes. Whether a house is worth $300,000 or $3 million, the traditional model includes the buying and selling agents splitting a commission ranging from 5 to 7 percent. So taking either the buying or selling agent out of the equation can mean serious cost savings.

There are laws in 15 states banning outright rebates for the buyers, and there are other states that have certain minimum requirements for what constitutes a legitimate selling agent. But elsewhere, experts say people interested in pursuing the online discount route should be the type of person that does their own homework. After all, there won’t be a realtor coming by with flyers for the front door, yard signs for the front lawn or baked cookies to help a seller’s kitchen “show” well. (more…)

search for : buying and selling of homes, selling agents, commission, rebates, online

Google and Craigslist, the two web sites that have fundamentally altered the way consumers buy a broad range of products are emerging as places to shop for residential real estate. This development could, in the long term, weaken Realtors’ hold on home selling.

The Web-site companies say they don’t aim to revolutionize real-estate brokerage and indeed are working to cooperate with brokers in many cases. But the growth of the sites may embolden more consumers to try selling their homes themselves and, when they do use agents, to reduce their reliance on them. Abdullah Yavas, a real-estate professor at Pennsylvania State University, says these sites may encourage an “unbundling” of agents’ services, with consumers paying for only the services they want, rather than a whole package. For instance, a consumer might list a home on Craigslist and arrange showings, but still hire an agent — for a lower commission — to help with negotiations or guide the paper work. (more…)

search for : Google, Craigslist, Web-site, real-estate, Pennsylvania State University

As the real-estate marketplace cools, a number of brokers are doing what was until recently unthinkable, they are giving most of their commissions to buyers. This situation is catching on in some of the priciest real-estate markets in the country.

People selling homes typically pay commissions of 5 percent to 6 percent of the price, which is split between brokers representing the buyer and seller. On a $300,000 home with a 3 percent cut for the broker representing the buyer, BuySide would earn $9,000 and pay 75 percent of that, or $6,750, as a rebate to the buyer. These new rebaters join a long list of entrepreneurs who over the years have tried to reinvent the residential real-estate business, which generates more than $60 billion a year in commissions. A small number of real-estate brokers already offer cash rebates on their commissions as a way to attract customers, but the idea has never gone mainstream. The new firms are trying to make the idea more compelling by dangling bigger rebates, though they also offer significantly less service. (more…)

search for : real-estate, commissions, buyers

After many years of disappointing stock market yields, the get-rich-quick crowd has moved on to real estate. You may know somebody who’s made a killing by buying and selling properties. The pitch from the ‘discovering probate’ crowd is that the world of probate real estate is relatively uncluttered by competition; therefore, the returns are very high.

Some were knowledgeable and eager to affirm that other types of real estate investing paled in comparison. For example, foreclosure real estate investing is apparently old hat, and way too competitive. A few years ago, foreclosure auctions were miserable little affairs. Now they attract a crowd just slightly less excited than the LSU fans at the Final Four. Not a good place to be looking for profits. (more…)

search for : Creating Wealth Through Probate, stock market yield, get-rich-quick

Homeowners can use an Adjustable Rate Mortgage to finance their home or investment property, allowing for low monthly payments which makes it possible for those homeowners to put more money into investment savings, retirement, college savings or to even to pay down high interest rate debt. However, even though over 60% of homes are financed with an A.R.M, no more than 10% of these homeowners are wisely investing the savings.

Up to a year ago when adjustable rates were very low, I was a big proponent of ARMs; however, I recently changed that view in light of the accelerated interest rate increases by the Fed. I anticipate double digit interest rates on “A” Paper 30 Yr Fixed Mortgage within 5-7 years. This huge increase in the long term rates will be due to the war in Iraq, the relief efforts from natural disasters and high oil & gas prices. (more…)

search for : Adjustable Rate Mortgage, finance, investment property, low monthly payment, Iraq, natural disaster, high oil & gas prices

The Appalachian Regional Commission is a partnership between the federal and state governments and private foundations. Forty years ago, as the money began to flow in for special projects, officials in other counties began to complain because they weren’t included. Gwinnett Georgia was one of the counties to be added later to the program.

The ARC has been praised and cursed, and some of its proposed projects, such as a new Appalachian highway through the heart of the Georgia mountains, were rejected. Road builders fought to use the money that had been allocated, and thus Ga. 400 was constructed from Atlanta to Dahlonega. The ARC is considered a huge success by many. Last year, President Bush continued its funding level for fiscal year 2006 at $515.5 million, including $470 million for Appalachian highway projects. In 1981, when Ronald Reagan was president and the public mood was against “big government,” federal funds to the ARC were cut by 39 percent. (more…)

search for : Appalachian Regional Commission, federal and state governments, private foundations, Gwinnett Georgia, Appalachian, Georgia mountains, Ga. 400, Atlanta, Dahlonega, President Bush, Ronald Reagan

Sales of new homes fell 10.5 percent in February, the biggest drop since 1995, and sales of existing homes slipped in five of the last six months, leaving a record 3 million unsold houses on the market. Sales will fall further this year and price gains will slow, predicts the Washington-based National Association of Realtors. High-end properties and markets that had the biggest increases during the boom are cooling the most.

Economists still expect 2006 to be a strong year for housing. David Berson, chief economist at Washington-based Fannie Mae, the nation’s largest buyer of mortgages, expects sales of existing houses to fall 9.2 percent to 6.4 million, and new home sales to fall 7.4 percent to 1.19 million. Sales in both categories would be the third-best on record. “The greatest proportion of the decline in home sales we’re looking at this year will come from investors,” he says. (more…)

search for : new homes, existing homes, National Association of Realtors, Fannie Mae, mortgage

To get the most out of your bargaining, you should get at least three or four commission estimates from agents and use that information to pit agents against each other. To really do your homework, get the agent’s qualifications and take note of any weaknesses in their record, like a disciplinary action or a very inactive selling period. (more…)

search for : real estate agent, real estate commission, price fixing

When Moses Rickett’s brother took up rock climbing and lost 40 pounds in just two months, Moses saw firsthand the effect that the love of a sport can have on a person’s body.”He lost weight in the process of doing something he loved,” Rickett said. “Climbing was what forced him to get into shape.”

Traditional climbing can be loosely described as the practice of scaling long rock faces for hundreds of feet, though any number of distances, skill levels, routes and even indoor, fabricated climbing walls, can come into play. The difficulty of a climb is based on the grade of the rock face, the availability of hand and foot holds as a climber ascends, and for the advanced climbers, the technically challenging maneuvers that give them a chance to defy gravity. “It’s great exercise,” said Frost Walker, a local climber and manager of Sunrift Adventures in Travelers Rest. “It’s very aerobic, and there’s a lot of hiking involved.” (more…)

search for : rock climbing, lost weight, Climbing, climbing wall, Sunrift Adventures, hiking