Home sales for Central Kentucky for the month of January in 2008, January 2009, and January 2011 were respectively:

2008 - about 500

2009 - about 300

2010 - less than 400

2011 - about 350

So what would you expect home sales in Central Kentucky would be for January 2012?  

• The weather has certainly been much warmer than last year.  
• Interest rates are the lowest in history.
• Employment has increased.

All these would seem to show that home sales would be up.

Not only were home sales up but they increased almost a hundred percent from 2011 and were 57 percent higher than the average of the previous four years.  

Central Kentucky Market Report

We continue to see a steady stream of buyers so hopefully this is the beginning of the recovery of the housing market.

Dear Friends,

The Jubilee Team with your help and also some donated paint from Sherman Williams on Regency Road will be painting the inside of a home.

Come Help Us Paint a House

Thanks so much for considering how you may be involved in this project.  The family we are serving is so excited and blessed to know there are people who care about them enough to paint their home.

First of all we want all of the volunteers to enjoy the time.  So there will be food and drinks available at all times during the work. 

So I would like some volunteers to make muffins and cookies that will be available all day Friday and Saturday.  I would also like lunch types of snacks to be available those two days.  Sandwiches, chips, veggie or fruit snacks or whatever.  We will need a lot more food on Saturday.

Food needs:

Friday:  A dozen muffins, three dozen cookies, two dozen sandwiches, 2 bag of chips and some veggies and fruit.

Saturday: Two dozen muffins, 6 dozen cookies, six dozen sandwiches, 4 bags of chips and veggies and fruit.

Labor needs:

Thursday evening  7:30 – 8:30   We need four men with good backs to move furniture to the middle of the rooms. 

Friday morning and afternoon we will be cleaning.  We may not need many people for this task since I already have volunteers for the morning.  If you volunteer to help clean in the afternoon and it is mostly done you can start helping cover the floors and even begin painting the trim if you are a painter.

Friday afternoon 12:00 to 4:00 –  6 general helpers.  Finish cleaning,   beginning covering the floor and taping.  Possibly begin painting the trim.

Friday evening –  6 people who like to paint trim. If you have your own trim brush bring it.  If not let me know  so that I can have the extras needed.

Saturday morning – Lots of volunteers.

12 people finishing trim    6 people painting in two 4 hour shifts,  if you can only give a couple of hours please do not hesitate to help.

8 people using rollers on the walls  4 people at a time in two 4 hour shifts.  Again, if you only have an hour or two we will take it.

We need at least 2 people who do not mind painting while on a tall ladder, hopefully I will have at least one professional painter helping with this task.

Another 3  or 4 people to just be there for support. 

            We want one person always holding a tall ladder while someone is painting the cathedral walls.  We want someone to make sure the food is available and the kitchen is always clean so that we can easily paint the kitchen also.

It would be great to also just have a person or two scouting out small areas that possibly need a little cleaning from paint that was spilled or looking for areas of trim that may need additional touch up.

Just give Paul or Dorothy a call or shoot us an email to let us know when you are available and what task you are eager to help with.  Thanks so much!   

Paul and Dorothy

3269 Malone Drive in Lexington Kentucky is waiting for the family that prefers a large home with lots of space to play, garden, and just enjoy the beauty of Kentucky.

The long list of premium features includes granite countertops, lot of built-ins, vaulted family room, built in luxury book cases, a finished basement with a kitchenette.

This home is within walking distance of Rosa Parks Elementary and Dunbar High School.

Convenience of walking to parks, shopping and schools are just a few other great reasons to check out this home.

There will be an open house from one to three this Saturday, February 11, from one to three in the afternoon.  Don't miss this opportunity to view this spectacular home.

I ran up to Chinoe Center this morning.  It was 37 degrees.  Just a little nippy so that my ears were a bit touched before my body warmed up.

As I run I am usually thinking of how I get to the next goal.  It is mostly an uphill run.  My lungs seldom hurt but my legs begin to feel a little like marsh mellows at about a half a mile.  If I keep my thoughts on how to get to the next spot without stopping I can push on and continue to push on a few hundred feet at a time.

I think pushing through frustration while running is much like all of life.  Life continually confronts us we routines, problems, and sometimes perplexing challenges that require us to keep on going.

Keeping on going is so much easier when we have a community that can support us through the struggles that happen.

I have dear friends right now that are struggling with a life challenge.  I am inviting you all to join me in helping support one of those friends. You can get all the details on how you can help by reading this earlier blog post.

I had a really fun time this afternoon getting my new business photos at Studio Walz on Reynolds Road in Lexington with my new business partner Dorothy LaBar.

Dorothy recommended Studio Walz and once again she was right on!

Scott Walz knows how to get people to relax and be ready for a photo sit.  He also has a great sense of humor.  He uses his wit to get one to laugh at the appropriate time.  

There are a bunch of photographers in Lexington.  Scott Walz is not just any photographer.  In my view he is the best!

Scott's info is:

Location: 216 E. Reynolds Rd, Suite B, Lexington, KY 40517 
Phone: 859.245.1333
Hours: Tuesday through Friday, 10 am to 6 pm. Evenings and weekends by appointment.

HOW CAN THIS BE?

  The best place to buy a home priced between $100,000 and  $119,999 in Central Kentucky is not Lexington.  No, it is Woodford County.  Versailles is the County Seat and it is also the home to some of the largest and most prestigious horse farms.  Some of these farms include:
Winstar Farm, Three Chimneys Farm, Fallbrook Farm, Brittany Farm and Sunrise Stable are a few of these prestigious Thoroughbred Horse Farms in Woodford County.

There are currently 12 months of inventory for homes that are priced between $100,00 and $119,999 in Woodford County.  Most of these homes can be bought with little money down and a payment that would be less than what you could rent the same home.

This absorption rate means that you have the selection of a large number of homes over a long period of time.  However if interest rates begin to inch upward these homes may not be such a good buy in the near future.    Photo courtesy of Dreamstime.

I am told that when interest rates rise one percent that raises your mortgage payment 11 percent.  Buy your Woodford County home RIGHT NOW and don't worry about interest rates in the future!

Scott County Steal?  Save Thousands, Buy a Home Right Now in Scott County Kentucky!

Georgetown is the population center and includes the large Toyota Manufacturing Plant.

In January there were 14 months of inventory for homes that were priced between $140,000 and $160,000 dollars in Scott County.  A 14 month absorption rate for this price of home is highly unusual.  It is highly likely that right now there are a bunch of desperate sellers that need to move their homes in this price range in Scott County.

If you are waiting to buy there has never been a time that I can remember (and I can remember president Eisenhower) when prices were so historically low, interest rates were historically low and there is a record inventory for homes. Take a look at some of the lovely homes for sale in Scott County that are terrific values and just waiting for you to snatch up.

Celebrating a New Partnership at the John's Farm in Wilmore Kentucky.

Thanks so much to those who braved the cold weather and came out to celebrate the  new partnership of Dorothy Labar and me.  
We had a number of folks call because it was just too cold to bring out a sick child.  We are sorry you could not make it,and understand the situation.

In spite of the weather we had a good turnout and everyone seemed to enjoy the heat  provided by the fire, the warmth provided by the fellowship, the joy of Will Bacon's band, and the fun of roasting the hot dogs and "burning" the marshmallows for delicious smores.  

Thanks so much also to Bradley Johns for preparing the fire and providing a wonderful hayride in this beautiful setting on Jewell Road in Wilmore Kentucky.

We hope this is just the beginning of a wonderful year of celebrating with family and friends.  

Oh, by the way.  We also sold two of our homes sell  this week end.  If you know anyone who is thinking of selling or buying please do not keep us a secret.

  Paul Campbell  and Dorothy LaBar

I just finished reading Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove's "The Wisdom of Stability, Rooting Faith in a Mobile Culture."  

It made me thankful for the many years that I had to really get connected with a large number of people in the Pacific Northwest.  Those 33 years in the same community of  Woodinville near Seattle, gave us so many life long friends that we will always love and cherish.  

"The Wisdom of Stability...." also challenged me to work a little harder at getting connected to people in our new community here in Lexington.  When we first bought our home here in Gainseway we worked diligently at meeting neighbors.   We have now gotten so busy with life that the effort to know our neighbors has not been a priority.

Home ownership to me should be much more than just owning a place to sleep, eat and then leave to pursue our busy lives away from our home.  Home ownership gives me the opportunity to drive a stake in the ground and then work to improve the quality of life for all that live in my neighborhood.

  Experience has taught me that relationships are the only thing that will last.  All the things I can do, or stuff that I can buy really are worthless unless they have a way of helping transform lives of precious people. 

So neighbors this is my commitment to you to get out there and reconnect with you as well as possible.

First of all this Saturday from 1:30 to 4:00 PM I am having a celebration with my new partner Dorothy Labar.  The location is 701 Jewell Road in Wilmore.  It is less than a half hour from Gainesway.   We will have a bonfire, a live band, a hay ride and good food.  We hopes several of our Gainesway neighbors are able to join us.  

Directions to 701 Jewel  Road

Take Harrodsburg Road south from the Circle.  It is exactly 13 miles from the Circle to Jewell Road.  Be sure to stay on 68 when you get to the Y before Wilmore.  You will be taking the road to the right.  Turn left on Jewell Road and it is only three tenths of a mile to the entrance to the property.  You will see the real estate signs with my name on them.  There is a long gravel driveway to the top of the property.  Hope to see you there.  Paul

January 2012 Housing Market Report for Jessamine County Kentucky,  Home Buyers - Now is the Time to snatch a deal!

The very latest Market Report for residential homes produced by Rector Hayden Realtors shows once again that NOW is the time for buyers to make a smart move and purchase that dream home you have been wanting in Jessamine County.   The absorption rate for homes in the $250,000 range and higher in Jessamine County is fifteen months or more, with the exception of the $550-599,900.   That may be just because there are so few homes in that higher price range on the market.  

Just a reminder that the absorption rate is simply  the rate at which it would take the market to sell all the homes in a particular price range.  

So in Jessamine County there are currently 13 homes for sale in the 450,000 to 499,999 dollar range.  At the rate they have sold this past 6 months it will take 26 months to sell your home.  Historically anything six months or more is considered a buyer's market and any thing less than six months a seller's market.

So buyers who want to live in Jessamine County, right now is the perfect time to let me negotiate a great deal for you on one of these homes.  There are sellers out there that need to sell.  When they are presented with these kinds of absorption rates and they need to sell they really have little choice but to take a much lower price than what they have been asking.