georgia: $34M for a Royal Wedding? What Does That Get in Gwinnett County GA? - 05/02/11 10:13 PM
Cover of Royal Wedding Are you "Royal Wedding"ed out yet? Honestly, I was a bit over it a week ago. I appreciate the historic significance of the event, but knowing what type of diapers Kate and William wore as infants and interviews with people that saw them in the hallways at grade school is a little much.
And then I heard that the estimated cost of the event was between $34M and $60M (British Tax Payers shelled out about $30M for security in addition to the cost of the nuptials...). And I got to wondering...
What kind of Real Estate would … (0 comments)
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georgia: Wayback Wednesday... Property Tax Valuations... - 04/27/11 10:23 PM
Image by epSos.de via Flickr It's that time again. Last week we got our tax valuation reassessed. For us, it wasn't a bad thing and honestly, it hasn't been for the folks I have talked with. Let me qualify that... for the amount of tax we pay, it wasn't a bad thing.
Two years ago, Gwinnett County re-assessed our home. The jacked us up by about 12%, even though there was NO justification in the comps. They got away with it because it wasn't worth the fight for us to carry on. We disputed it a couple of levels, but eventually … (2 comments)
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georgia: Photo Friday... This Little Piggy Went to Market - 02/11/11 09:00 PM
Looking over the wares Last summer, Lilburn, GA, began a weekly Farmer's Market every Friday from 4-8pm. Booths were set up on Railroad Ave., next the the Police Station and City Park. We made it out a few times with the kids to pick up some fresh treats... and see some neighbors. One of the things that makes Lilburn seem like a small town is that we run into our childrens' schoolmates, fellow Cub Scout Parents, our neighbors and other folks we know in the community... seemingly everywhere.
It looks like the Lilburn Farmer's Market will be back again this year. … (2 comments)
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georgia: Local? Hyper-Local? National? What IS the Market? - 02/10/11 10:39 PM
I love watching the news... but when they talk about the real estate market, I cringe. I like to hear the national numbers, but I also know that they are just a framework for a smaller discussion. Yep... a smaller discussion.
It matters what the overall market is doing, but it's not nearly as important as what is happening in your neighborhood. It matters what is happening in Georgia, and the Atlanta Metro market, but not nearly as much as what is happening in your specific city. Real estate prices and demand react to specific local issues much more than … (38 comments)
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georgia: Terra Sol by Pulte near Lilburn - 02/07/11 08:57 PM
A few years ago this property was started. One home was built, along with the future clubhouse. The tennis courts were installed and the swimming pool was roughed in. Some of the streets had been laid, and many of the homesites had been prepped.
And that is how the property had sat for the last several years. It just wasn't worth building out during the worst of the real estate meltdown.
Apparently that has changed now... Pulte has begun construction on the project again. The actually tore down the house that had been built onsite, cleaned up the entrance and begun … (0 comments)
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georgia: Photo Friday... Where in the World? - 02/04/11 10:33 PM
Who would have thought that the largest Hindu Temple outside of India would be in Lilburn, GA? I live here and love this area, but I was surprised to find out that little tidbit.
When it was under construction, many of us were wondering what was going into the spot at the corner of Lawrenceville Hwy and Rockbridge Rd. There was a giant gantry crane and more concrete that one could almost imagine.
Before the temple was complete, hundreds of volunteers spent thousands of hours making everything perfect. As we toured it, we could see thousands of figures carved into the … (5 comments)
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georgia: Gwinnett Homestretch Program - 02/03/11 09:16 PM
Ken Cook and I are working with Gwinnett Homstretch Down Payment Assistance. As a buyer, you need to have $1000 going into the purchase, but Gwinnett Homestretch may contribute up to $7,500, if you qualify. There are a few things to keep in mind:
It is paid as a 0% loan, which will be forgiven after 5 years of using the property as your principal residence. In effect, that makes it a grant... there are no payments due during the 5 years. You will be required to complete an 8-hour counseling class from a HUD approved Housing Counseling Agency. Total … (4 comments)
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georgia: Wayback Wednesday... Let's Freak Out Some Counties! - 02/03/11 09:12 PM
Image via Wikipedia Two years ago I wrote a post about a bill in front of the GA legislature that would require cities and counties to use the values of foreclosures when calculating tax assessments.
It passed... and it was signed... and it became law.
Honestly, I was hoping that there might be some noise from some counties by now, but there really hasn't been. Sure, they are complaining about having enough revenue, but they complain about not having enough revenue when they are flush with cash and funding truly stupid projects. Of course, the other part of it might be … (3 comments)
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georgia: Smile... - 01/28/11 01:40 PM
Image via Wikipedia You're on Candid Camera...
Remember that show?
The City of Lilburn recently announced that they were going to be installing a video surveillance system along the City's Greenway Trail. There are already 14 cameras that Lilburn, GA Police use to keep an eye on City Park (the tennis courts, playground and walking loop). Iron Sky will be installing 19 new cameras along the Greenway Trails running out of City Park.
And if you haven't been on the Greenway Trails, you really should. They provide some really great recreational opportunities.
(This is a different type of Photo Friday...)
… (3 comments)
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georgia: Norcross, GA, Market Report, December 2010 - 01/28/11 01:37 PM
Image via Wikipedia Market stats for Norcross GA, November, 2010 indicate that there were 365 properties on the market. Overall, there is about a 10.2 month supply of properties. November was a thrashing... 30 v 47 in 2009. December was better, but still only 35 sales for Dec 2010 compared to 41 the year prior.
In the sub-$200k arena, there were 219 listings, with about 7.4 month supply. Sales are down slightly from a year ago in this segment, which is the main driver of sales in this area (25 v 28). But the segment is still looking pretty strong, despite … (0 comments)
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georgia: Buford GA Market Report, December 2010 - 01/25/11 11:11 PM
Image via Wikipedia Market stats for Buford, GA, November, 2010 indicate that there were 566 properties on the market. Overall, there was about an 10.2 month supply of properties. December was slightly above last year (62 v 52 for 2009). But it was also a pretty substantial bump from November (44 sales). There were 83 sales in June and an Absorption Rate under 8.5 months.
In the sub-$200k arena, there were 325 listings, with a 9.1 month supply. Again, this is the largest price segment in this area, so being up by 10 sales over last year (41 v 31) strengthens … (0 comments)
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georgia: Sugar Hill, GA, Market Report, December 2010 - 01/24/11 09:12 PM
Image via Wikipedia Market stats for Sugar Hill, GA , December, 2010 indicate that there are 241 properties on the market. Overall, there is about an 12.7 month supply of properties. Sales have been fairly steady since July, but inventories have been rising, and along with it, the number of months of inventory (that is the wrong way...)
for Sugar Hill homes priced under $200k, there are 168 listings, with under 9.7 months supply. Sales are also about 3x of the level last year, 25 v 8 last December. But, for the last three months, that only puts sales up by … (1 comments)
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georgia: Suwanee, GA, Market Report, December 2010 - 01/22/11 10:44 PM
Image via Wikipedia Market stats for Suwanee, GA, December, 2010 indicate that there are 548 properties on the market. Overall, there is about an 10.8 month supply of properties. There was less that 8 months of inventory as recently as June. Even though inventories are down since then, sales are also down.
In the Under $200k arena, there are 165 listings in Suwanee, GA, with about a 9.9 month supply. In June, there was a 4.8 month supply. Inventories have increased, until September, as sales have slowed... This is one of the rare segments that actually bumped in November, rather than … (0 comments)
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georgia: Photo Friday... Say Cheese... - 01/21/11 11:09 PM
What can be more fun than an Airshow? And Dobbins Air Reserve Base has been holding one for years (missing a couple of years... but not many). And the stars of the show are the Blue Angels.
The 2010 was on 16th July. It was a great time, with the Blue Angels, Canadian Snowbirds and several other aerobatic groups and individuals. There were also a LOT of display aircraft onsite, including this C-5a Galaxy.
As the show was winding down (actually over, but the bus lines were WAY crowded), we were walking around and managed to catch the nose being lowered. … (5 comments)
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georgia: The WRONG Top ten List to be on... - 01/20/11 06:02 PM
Image via Wikipedia Yahoo News recently published an article titled "The Eight States Running Out of Homebuyers". (I know, I said 10... they say 8, but they mentioned that Colorado and South Carolina barely missed inclusion).
Georgia ranked #6...
I'll cut to the chase and give you the list. Check out the article for the details on each state...
Michigan Nevada Arizona California Illinois Georgia Oregon Florida Image via Wikipedia Georgia made it onto the list because of the following statistics...
2010 Foreclosures: 3.25% (6th Worst) Unemployment: 10% (9th Worst) Decrease in Building Permits 2006-2010: -82.29% (2nd Worst) Of course, I … (46 comments)
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georgia: Duluth, GA, Market Report, December 2010 - 01/18/11 10:35 PM
Image via Wikipedia Preliminary stats for Duluth, December, 2010 indicated that there were 543 properties on the market. Overall, there is about an 9.1 month supply of properties. Months of Inventory has been increasing for the last couple of months, until this month. Sales in December were 66, compared to 57 a year earlier. It is worth noting that almost every segment in Gwinnett County, GA, that I track had a bump in December this year, copared both with November, 2010 and December, 2009.
In the Under $200k arena, there were 216 listings in Duluth, GA, with about a 7.1 month … (0 comments)
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georgia: Lawrenceville, GA Market Report, December 2010 - 01/18/11 10:31 PM
Image via Wikipedia Market stats for Lawrenceville, December, 2010, indicate that there are 1594 properties on the market. Overall, there is about an 9.9 month supply of properties. In 2009, sales for December jumped between November and December (166 to 175). For 2010, December sales jumped to 176 from 153 in November.
For Lawrenceville Homes Under $200k, there are 1347 listings, with about a 9.4 month supply of homes. It is an anomaly right now among Gwinnett Market/Price segments. The inventory went up for December, as did the number of months of inventory. Sales were up slightly from December 2009 (152 … (0 comments)
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georgia: Lilburn, GA Market Report, December 2010 - 01/16/11 09:55 PM
Image by mjp* via Flickr Market stats for Lilburn, December, 2010, indicates that there are 379 properties on the market (as of December 31st). Overall, there is about a 10.9 month supply of properties. Lilburn is actually mid-pack among cities in Gwinnett County. The Absorption Rates had been getting worse since August, but December clocked an improvement from 11.8 months of inventory in November. In March there were 15.3 months of inventory.
In the sub-$200k arena, there are 244 listings, with about an 8.0 month supply. This represents most of the sales in the market area, and reflects the same improvement … (0 comments)
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georgia: I'm Always Up For a Good Surprise.. - 01/13/11 02:10 PM
Image via Wikipedia I was working over the market data for Gwinnett County, GA... outside of Atlanta. And the numbers were a bit surprising. They were good... Almost across the board...
Why am I not excited? I want to be excited. I want to shout to the world that Gwinnett County's real estate market has turned.
But I'm skeptical... Generally, December has to lowest number of listings that we are going to see throughout the year. Seldom will we see an increase in listings... in fact, only in the high end (where listings are often on the market over a year) … (0 comments)
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georgia: Winter Driving Tips... Georgia Style... - 01/11/11 10:51 AM
Image via Wikipedia I will admit that I am a transplanted Northerner. I grew up in Michigan (and Virginia)... and moved here from Minnesota, 21 years ago. After 6 winters in MN, I learned a few things about driving in the snow... and after 21 years here in Georgia, I learned a few more things.
First, a Word for Recent Transplanted Northerners This is NOT the snow you drove in in Minneapolis, Chicago, Boston, Denver, St. Louis... whatever. This is a completely different beast. To begin with, it is generally wetter, which means that it compacts to something like ice. The … (7 comments)
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