Thomas & Christine's Blog

Maggie Valley NC Rainbow and Autumn Foliage Update for 10-14-10

Thomas & Christine Mallette, E-Pro, SFR (Realty World-Heritage Realty) — Fri, 15 Oct 2010 16:33:43 -0700

Check out the video for the rainbow the fall foliage update for yesterday.. CLICK HERE to view or click on image.

Fall Foliage in Smoky Mountains of Maggie Valley NC

Thomas & Christine Mallette, E-Pro, SFR (Realty World-Heritage Realty) — Tue, 12 Oct 2010 14:20:14 -0700

CLICK ON IMAGE to view the daily video of the fall foliage colors in Maggie Valley NC & Haywood County NC

Rally in the Valley and Smoky Mountain Retreat

Thomas & Christine Mallette, E-Pro, SFR (Realty World-Heritage Realty) — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 10:38:03 -0700

Check it out! The Rally in the Valley was a great success with hundreds of bikes cruising through the town. Also see the wonderful views from the Smoky Mountain Retreat. For more information about the Retreat or other upcoming activities in Maggie Valley CLICK HERE

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qJLOjxnPBJk

News and Events From Maggie Valley Club

Thomas & Christine Mallette, E-Pro, SFR (Realty World-Heritage Realty) — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 10:19:08 -0700

Sushi Night
This is the only sushi night this month, so come out this Thursday, September 16th from 5:30 to 9pm! Featuring fresh, made-to-order sushi right here in town! Call (828) 926-4848 for reservations.

Rafting Trip
Put on your swimming gear and join the Activities team for a fun day of rafting! Must RSVP – time based on amount of interest. Call (828) 926-4826.

Upcoming Events:

Yoga – Wed. Sept. 15th; 9am

Trivia Night – Wed. Sept. 15th; 6:30pm

Tennis – Thu. Sept. 16th; 10am

Doggie Playdate – Thu. Sept. 16th; 2:30pm

Dance Class – Thu. Sept. 16th; 7pm

Pilates – Fri. Sept. 17th; 9am

Hike – Fri. Sept. 17th (Call 926-4826 for time)

Sunday Brunch – Sun. Sept. 19th; 11am

For more information about the club and upcoming events please CLICK HERE

Annual Barbeque Fundraiser Friday Oct. 1st!

Thomas & Christine Mallette, E-Pro, SFR (Realty World-Heritage Realty) — Fri, 24 Sep 2010 10:15:35 -0700

Make sure an join the Waynesville chapter of the Kiwanis Club next Friday, October the 1st for their 46th annual fundraiser at the Waynesville Recreation Center. Designed to benefit the children of Haywood County, the fundraiser will be held from 11:30am until 6pm. Plenty of time to come on down and enjoy the food.

Tickets are $10.00 Available from Kiwanis member Ann Kline 734-4310, from Kiwanis contact 246-3504, or at the BBQ itself.

For More information about the event, including the menu, see the flier below.

Coast-to-Coast "Motorcycle Cannonball" to Stop at Wheels Through Time this Sunday!

Thomas & Christine Mallette, E-Pro, SFR (Realty World-Heritage Realty) — Thu, 09 Sep 2010 13:56:43 -0700

This coming Sunday, September 12, over 65 men and women from around the globe will visit the Wheels Through Time Museum in Maggie Valley, NC as part of the first ever Motorcycle Cannonball Run. Beginning in Kitty Hawk, NC, riders will compete on motorcycles built prior to 1916 in a coast-to-coast endurance race ending in Santa Monica, CA on September 26th.

The Motorcycle Cannonball Run, named after Erwin "Cannonball" Baker -- a once-famous motorcycle and automobile racer who set over 140 endurance records from 1910 through the late-1930s -- will depart the birthplace of aviation in North Carolina's Outer Banks on Friday, September 10th, making its way across the great United States on a sixteen-day, 3,300-mile trek to the Pacific Ocean's west coast in Southern California. Nearly 70 riders have signed Text Box: Motorcycle Cannonball will depart Kitty Hawk, NC on September 10th, and will arrive in Santa Monica, CA sixteen days later on September 26, 2010.up for the first-year event, in hopes of proving the durability and reliability of their nearly century-old equipment.

The run will cover approximately 200-230 miles per day, travelling mostly back roads and two-lane highways, as many of the machines on the run are over 100 years old and are unable to sustain speeds in excess of 35 or 40 miles per hour. Riders are scheduled to stop in Greenville, NC and Concord, NC for overnight stops on their way towards Maggie Valley.

Machines will begin descending into Maggie Valley around 3:00 p.m. on Sunday for a special tour of the Wheels Through Time Museum. Motorcycles competing in the event will be on display for visitors through the early evening, as well as dozens over other antique motorcycles that are accompanying the riders.

Wheels Through Time Museum curator and founder, Dale Walksler, will also be competing in the run aboard his 1915 Harley-Davidson, with teammate Wayne Stanfield of Tustin, CA. "We've done all we can to prepare each machine for the cross-country trek, but realize that its going to be an enormous challenge, regardless of how much effort has gone into getting these machines ready for the road," said Walksler.

While over 65 riders are competing in the event, it is expected that far fewer will finish. Riders must be aboard machines 95 years and older, which imposes serious threats and limitations, including primitive engine design, lack of spare parts, and out-dated brakes.

"There are very few that have ridden motorcycles for such a long distance," said Walksler. "And there are even fewer who've done it on a 95 year old machine. Completing this run will be a true test of endurance, stamina, and grit, but it will also take an experienced hand when it comes to the mechanics of a motorcycle this old. Wheels Through Time Museum Curator, Dale Walksler, will compete in the Motorcycle Cannonball aboard this original 1915 Harley-Davidson Twin.

Wheels Through Time is open Thursday-Monday, from 9a.m.-5p.m. and will be holding demonstrations of many almost century-old motorcycles and automobiles throughout the weekend. The welcome ceremony for Cannonball Riders will be held at approximately 5:00 p.m. on Sunday, with museum hours extended until 7:00 p.m.

For more information on Sunday's Motorcycle Cannonball Run arrival, visit the museum's website, located at www.WheelsThroughTime.com or call (828) 926-6266.

Adopting an Ethiopian Child is Literally and Dream Come True

Thomas & Christine Mallette, E-Pro, SFR (Realty World-Heritage Realty) — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 13:46:52 -0700

A single stocking from last Christmas is still hanging up in the Canton home of Chris and Meggan Graves. Although the couple and their three sons Marshall, 7, Fisher, 5, and Harrison, 2, were all able to celebrate the holiday together, there was one member of their family missing. Since last year, the Graves family has been awaiting the arrival of a boy named Bereket, who they are adopting from Ethiopia. The process has been long and difficult, but it is a journey the family might never have gone on at all if it hadn’t been for a dream Meggan had nearly a year ago. “I started having these crazy dreams,” Meggan said, describing dreaming that she was getting off of a plane with her children, except there were four sons there instead of three.
She said the sign in the airport read, “Welcome to Ethiopia,” and when Meggan’s son Marshall asked where they were, she answered, “We’re showing your brother where he’s from.” Meggan said she knew the dream indicated she had adopted a son; however, she and Chris had discussed adoption before and decided it wasn’t right for them.
But the vivid dream was hard to forget, and Meggan found she couldn’t quite dismiss the idea.
Another family member was in the process of adopting a little girl from China, and when Meggan went to the adoption website to see pictures of the child, she noticed a link to an Ethiopian adoption site. She clicked on the link and began looking through dozens of photographs of Ethiopian children looking for a home.
At number 17, she stopped.
A boy, about 8 or 9 years old was shyly smiling out at her.
“She was drawn to him,” Chris said. “She showed him to me, and I was drawn to him as well. Immediately when I saw him, I said, ‘You know, I think he looks like Marshall.’ They really look alike. Other than the color of his skin, they really look alike.”
They learned that Bereket’s mother had died from malaria, and at the time, Bereket was also sick from the disease. His father, who is suffering from kidney failure, was too ill to take care of his son, and he gave Bereket up to the hospital, where he knew his son would receive treatment.
None of Bereket’s other family could afford to take him in, and he was put up for adoption. Older children Bereket’s age usually have a more difficult time finding homes than young or infant children, but the Meggan said they felt he was the one they were meant to adopt.
Still, the couple was unsure that they were emotionally or financially ready to take on adopting a child. They decided to pray and think about it individually before discussing it further with each other, but in the end, they came to the same conclusion.
“We both said that the answer God was giving us was, why not?” Meggan said. “We’ve got plenty of love to go around for another child. Why would we not do this?”
The next obstacle was wading through the paperwork and finding the needed money for adoption fees, government fees and the two flights to Ethiopia the couple would need to take in order to adopt Bereket.
They estimated they would need about $25,000 to complete the adoption process, but that number has quickly grown to $30,000 over the last year. Knowing they couldn’t come up with the money on their own, the couple has reached out to their friends, family and community to ask for help.
It’s an experience that Meggan said has been humbling and rewarding.
“The amazing part for us is to see how other people have responded,” she said. “It’s been really, really neat.”
Offers of donations, fundraising ideas or simply words of support and encouragement have been coming from people close to the family and from some unexpected directions.
Chris said even his co-workers at Haywood Community College have generously given of their time and ideas to help with fundraising.
“I thought I was part of a family (at Haywood Community College), but now I know I really am,” he said. “It goes to show that people are willing to help.”
The Graves have only lived in Haywood County for four years, and Meggan said the support from people in the community has been wonderful.
“This is by far the first time I felt connected to the people of Haywood County,” she said.
In the midst of the bake sales, jewelry parties and fundraising dinners, the Graves raised enough money to take their first trip to Ethiopia to meet Bereket. And the first thing Meggan noticed on their arrival in the country was a sign that read, “Welcome to Ethiopia,” just as it appeared in her dream.
“That just blew my mind,” Meggan said.
From that moment on, the Graves knew their decision to adopt Bereket had been the right one for them.
“I don’t think we ever had doubts once we decided to go through with it,” Chris said.
On their arrival at the transition home where Bereket is living, they could immediately pick him out of the crowd of children.
“Chris didn’t even wait for the van to come to a stop. When Chris yelled out his name, he came running down the stairs and hugged him,” Meggan recalled. “When you hug him, he hugs you back. It was incredible to hold this child.”
The meeting confirmed the perceptions Meggan and Chris had of Bereket from a short video of him they had been given by the adoption agency.
“He’s shy with a sweet personality,” Chris said, adding he was particularly impressed when Bereket let a younger child play with the new soccer ball they had just given him as a present. “That was cool because even for a nine year old, it’s hard to give up a new toy.”
Chris immediately hit it off with Bereket by playing games of soccer and joking around in a way that “let him know we were going to have a good time.”
Returning home after their visit without Bereket was difficult, but the Graves are determined to raise the final $4,000 they need to bring their son home as soon as possible.
Their current fundraising project is selling T-shirts online through their Facebook adoption page at Facebook.com/helpithappen. T-shirts are $15 with shipping. Locally, they are available for $10 if they are picked up in person.
People can also make donations to the adoption agency by going to the Christian World Adoption website at cwa.org, where the donation can be designated specifically for the Graves family.
Being so close to their goal is exciting and a little scary, Meggan said. They both have concerns about how well Bereket will adapt to a new country and family, but she said she knows it will work out in time.
“All the issues are so miniscule compared to the love (we) feel,” she said.
“There are some major challenges that we know are ahead, but we believe in God’s grace,” Chris added.
Bereket’s new brothers are mostly concerned with the games they’ll be able to play once he arrives.
“I’m most excited about playing with him, playing soccer,” Marshall said.
Harrison, the youngest, added, “I’m going to be on Bereket’s team.”
In the meantime, it is for Bereket that the lone Christmas stocking is left in its spot on the wall. It, just like the Graves family, is waiting for him to come home.
“It’s a good reminder for them,” Meggan said, nodding toward her sons. “Christmas this year, he’ll be here for sure.”

Klapper, C. (2010, August 25). Adopting Ethiopian child literally a dream come true. The Mountaineer. Retrieved September 1, 2010, from http://www.themountaineer.com/article/adopting-ethiopian-child-literally-dream-come-true database.

Autumn Hikes in the Smokies

Thomas & Christine Mallette, E-Pro, SFR (Realty World-Heritage Realty) — Wed, 01 Sep 2010 13:35:36 -0700

Autumn in the Smokies is just around the corner. As a result of an amazing diversity of trees, the Great Smoky Mountains is perhaps one of the best places in America to see fall colors. Leaves can begin changing to yellow,

orange and red as early as mid- September at the highest elevations in the park, and can last until early November at the lowest.

If you’re considering, or already planning a trip to the

Smokies, please CLICK HERE for a list of recommended hikes as the fall season progresses, as well as links for monitoring fall colors in the park.

For more information on Fall activities in the Smokies please CLICK HERE

Maggie Valley Club Condo Short Sale

Thomas & Christine Mallette, E-Pro, SFR (Realty World-Heritage Realty) — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 17:07:20 -0700

1650 Country Club Drive Unit C102
Maggie Valley, NC 28751
(828) 926-5200
Click here for price

Immaculate Condo in the Maggie Valley Country Club
Immaculate 2 BD/2BA first level unit in the Maggie Valley Club. Unit is like new and comes fully furnished. Nice size rooms, stone FP (propane), dining area, and great kitchen for entertaining. Unit has a screened porch and large covered patio with tile floors. Walk to the Club putting green, pool, and club house! Home is being sold as a short sale. All offers are subject to third party approval. Home is being sold "as is".

MORE...

Quick Haywood County Market Snapshot

Thomas & Christine Mallette, E-Pro, SFR (Realty World-Heritage Realty) — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 17:00:33 -0700

June 11th, 2010

It has been a bit since I had the time to sit down and post a blog about what is going on in the real estate market in Haywood County. Bottom line, it continues to be a very, very strong buyers market. Properties are still moving with the average sales price in the $200,000 range for single family homes. Our inventories of all property types are quite high with over 1200 in the residential market alone (single family residential). As of the other day we as a county had sold 7 more residential propertiesthan this point last year. NOT a stellar performance by any stretch.

Land sales continue to struggle with less than 50 parcels selling as of Wednesday. There are almost 1800 parcels on the market at this time. It does not appear that the land market will pick up this year.

So many factors continue to effect the real estate market. Haywood County, historically has depended on the Floridians to buy second/investment homes in our area. With the continued troubles in the Florida market it does effect what is going on here. It will come back, but much slower than most would have predicted. In general there is good news across the county with pending homes sales increasing month after month, existing home sales increasing, and even new construction. Much of the sales can be contributed to tax credits which frankly did not provide much to our market. I do see this as a positive. The markets that had a surge due to the tax credit may now see a period of decline. We hope that in Haywood County that we just stay steady and I believe that will be the case.

Other positive factors include historically low interest rates. For those who are buying they are getting very cheap money, huge inventories to choose, and prices from 5-7 years ago.

Foreclosures and short sales continue to hit our market at well, but are still a very small percentage of our total inventory. The negative with these properties is that they undercut the market around the home and typically will be the first to go depending on the circumstances. If you have your home for sale in a neighborhood with foreclosed or short sale properties, you may have to wait for them to sell and cleared out of the inventory before you have a legitimate chance to sell your home.

What is the prime factor for sales in our area? PRICE! There is no way around it. If you are a seller and are clinging for dear life to a specific price, you better take another look at it. Put it this way, if you want $100,000 for your home and your Realtor tells you that the market says the home is overpriced you have 2 options. Reduce the price or hold on to it. If you hold on to it this is what will happen:

If you can sell your home now for $95,000, but you are hanging on for $100,000, think about this. If you are paying $1000/m and because you are stubborn and do not lower your price, you hold the home for another 7 months. That equals another $7000+ in payments, utility costs, taxes, and insurance not to mention any maintenance issues. What will happen is you will hold on for 7 months, finally figure out that you need to take less and you will lose$10,oo0+ instead of the original $5000.

You also have to remember that in this market you will make it up on your next purchase. If you are looking to turn around and buy another home, you will now be in the position to get the best deal. The longer you wait to sell, the greater chance that your property will continue to lose value and you will really lose your shirt! Get it priced to sell and move on!

Maggie Valley NC Snowfall for today.. as of 315pm

Thomas & Christine Mallette, E-Pro, SFR (Realty World-Heritage Realty) — Fri, 29 Jan 2010 16:50:19 -0800

Click on picture to play video & see more of the Maggie Valley shots we shared on our blog..

Enjoy

Wild Elk photo in Maggie Valley NC

Thomas & Christine Mallette, E-Pro, SFR (Realty World-Heritage Realty) — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 19:39:20 -0800

Snow tubing in Maggie Valley NC

Thomas & Christine Mallette, E-Pro, SFR (Realty World-Heritage Realty) — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 14:56:25 -0800

Click on Picture to view video of Maggie Valley NC tubing at Tony's Tube World

Blizzard in Maggie Valley NC creates a beautiful white background in the mountains of Western NC

Thomas & Christine Mallette, E-Pro, SFR (Realty World-Heritage Realty) — Thu, 31 Dec 2009 15:01:14 -0800

The weather in Maggie Valley yesterday was a whirlwind of snow.. snow.. & more snow.. Power was knocked out in several counties including us.. Yesterday was a day of cold & white wintry weather, however it was mixed with many kind gestures where this weather has united many.. Whether it be by helping a stranger get their car out of the ditch, or giving someone a ride home because their car couldn't make it up a hill, all in all the main goal was to HELP. Here are a few pictures to give you an idea of what happened yesterday.. by the way, we would've posted these pictures & video sooner, however we were victims of the power outage too.... so here it is..

Click on the picture to view the video

Showing Appointments in Haywood County NC Reports for Maggie Valley, Waynesville, Jonathan Creek, Clyde & Canton NC

Thomas & Christine Mallette, E-Pro, SFR (Realty World-Heritage Realty) — Mon, 07 Dec 2009 20:16:27 -0800

It's almost 2010 & if you're wondering what real estate is like in Haywood County NC, we've posted graphs that keeps you updated for showings in Maggie Valley, Waynesville, Jonathan Creek, Canton & Clyde, NC. All of this information is compiled by scheduling our showings through our our scheduling service. So, whether you're looking for a log cabin for sale or a mountain home... give us a call, we'll always be happy to start working for you.

To View additional Cities, CLICK HERE

Maggie Valley NC, Waynesville NC, Clyde NC, Canton NC, Jonathan Creek NC Real Estate Showing Report

Thomas & Christine Mallette, E-Pro, SFR (Realty World-Heritage Realty) — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 10:15:27 -0800

Thought you may be interested in seeing how many showings have been shown in Haywood County NC from September 2009 to October 2009. All types of cabins are for sale. Ranging from log cabins to contemporary mountain homes. We've broken it down by price so if you have your home currently listed or are looking to buy real estate in our area, you'll know what price ranges have shown interest, based on the figures we received from Showing Time, which is our showing service, our WNC Regional MLS members set up their showing appointments with this company. To print out any of the reports in PDF, CLICK HERE

Maggie Valley NC Fall Leaves Update as of October 26th

Thomas & Christine Mallette, E-Pro, SFR (Realty World-Heritage Realty) — Mon, 26 Oct 2009 10:25:35 -0700