Neighborhood LIFT Atlanta – February 2012

Attend a new and innovative homebuyer event

You may get the help you need to make

homeownership a real possibility

If you have been considering home ownership, one of the biggest challenges is coming up with the money for a down payment. You might have excellent credit, but have just not been able to get enough put away for the needed contribution you need to make when you purchase a home. Well, now you have an option!

Neighborhood Lift Atlanta is coming THIS weekend to the Georgia World Congress Center.

If you have a goal to become a homeowner, you won’t want to miss the Neighborhood LIFT^SM event, sponsored by Wells Fargo in collaboration with local non-profit organizations.

Date: February 10th and 11th
Time: 10:00 am to 7:00 pm
Location: Georgia World Congress Center, Exhibit Hall B1
285 Andrew Young International Blvd. NW
Atlanta, GA 30313
FREE PARKING: Please park in the Red Parking Deck.  The Red Deck is at the end of Andrew Young International Blvd.  Bring a copy of your event registration confirmation or tell the parking attendant that you’re with the Wells Fargo Neighborhood LIFT Atlanta event and you will be able to park for free. http://www.gwcc.com/directions/directions/BuildingB.aspx

FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT NEIGHBORHOOD LIFT, visit the website!

You May View a Flyer for Neighborhood LIFT here!

Keep in mind, when you register, it will ask if you ARE, or ARE NOT working with a real estate agent. You should ALWAYS be represented when buying a home! The Seller is represented by the Listing Agent, and you should have a Buyer’s Agent. Please feel free to contact me if I can answer any questions, or help you with the home buying process.

PLEASE NOTE: I WILL BE AT SPIRE CONDOMINIUMS, 860 PEACHTREE STREET, 30308 FOR BOTH DAYS OF THE EVENT. HERE IS THE HOME WE ARE SHOWCASING! PLEASE STOP BY AND VIEW IT AND IF I CAN ANSWER ANY HOME BUYING QUESTIONS I'D BE HAPPY TO! 

The Mayfair Renaissance and Mayfair Tower have an iconic place on the Midtown Atlanta Skyline. There signature rooftop cupolas are often seen in skyline pictures of Midtown. The buildings, although almost identical on the exterior, were built almost 10 years apart. Each has its own home owners association and amenities.

For the purpose of this Midtown Atlanta Market Report, January 2012, I have combined the numbers for the two buildings.  There are currently 12 two bedroom homes For Sale and only 1 one bedroom home, at $129,900. The average list price for the 2 bedrooms is $258,000. This number however includes a Penthouse home, listed for $599,900. If we remove that home from the average, it becomes $234,244. There was only two sales in January, with an Average Sales Price of $91,250.

Here is a look at the numbers for Mayfair Renaissance/Tower for January, 2012.

Viewpoint Midtown Atlanta, probably one of the most successful and popular Midtown Atlanta condominium buildings has SOLD OUT! So now all future sales will be resales.

Built by Novare, Viewpoint Midtown Atlanta is a cousin to Spire Midtown and Metropolis Midtown, as well as Realm Buckhead and Eclipse Buckhead and Twelve Atlantic Station. But, you’d probably have to call her the First Cousin, even though she came last. From her lobby to the amazing 11th/12 Floor amenties, this is one great condo community.

For January, 2012, there are currently 9 Active Listings. 5 two-bedroom homes have an Average List Price of $308,580 and 4 one bedroom homes have an average list price of $175,175. There are 3 homes Under Contract. 2 of these are non-distressed sales with an average price of $267,400 and one home Pending Lender Approval (short sale) is at $205,000. There were no closings in January for the building. Here’s a picture of this activity:

9 active listings in Viewpoint Midtown Atlanta, which has over 375 homes is an indication of the reduced inventory for a Midtown Atlanta condo buyer to choose from.  Here are the current listings in Viewpoint Midtown Atlanta:

Yes, you heard that right! There are new construction cranes in Midtown Atlanta! A welcome sight for a troubled economy indeed!

One of those Midtown Atlanta construction cranes is at 10th and Williams Street (Or the Downtown Connector) where the new Hilton Garden Inn/Homewood Suites hotel is under construction!  What a beautiful building that will be to visitors arriving into Midtown via the 10th Street Bridge! It’s convenient to all the Midtown Atlanta law offices, and to Turner Broadcast Systems (TBS) and the new GATech Basketball stadium!

Construction Cranes are also appearing on the Midtown Atlanta skyline at two new luxury high-rise apartment buildings that have broken ground. Ironically, they are BOTH on 12th street…if you can imagine that! One is part of the 12th and Midtown Development where 1010 Midtown is located. The second, located at 12th and West Peachtree has also just broken ground. The race would appear to be “on” as to who will finish first and have the first shot at getting apartment shoppers in the Midtown Atlanta rental market.

We have long been missing a higher end rental product in Midtown Atlanta. Potential renters have either needed to find a private condo for rent, or opt for only 3 apartment buildings in the immediate area. Now, we will have two new apartment buildings hit the rental market at almost the same time. Let the rental war begin??

While this is good news for renters looking for Midtown rental options, they will be on the pricey side at $1500 for a 1 bedroom and $2400 for a 2 bedroom. (We will see how the market reacts to this when they open) On the flip side, for those investors or private owners looking to rent their Midtown Atlanta condo, there may be some pressure on the price you can get with all this shiny new places to rent. OR, it may drive up your price as you may be able to ask more than you have in the past, given the “competition” you will now have.

Certainly some questions that all the New Cranes in Midtown Atlanta have offered up!

Have you discovered Pinterest yet? It's a pretty amazing place if I may say so myself.

From a great crock pot receipe, to home organization tips, time saving ideas (who ever thought about lining a paint tray with foil, and when you are done painting, you throw out the foil and don't spend an hour cleaning the tray...I mean really!)

There are the Words of Wisdom and Wit that I've started a Board for. Great short little words to live by and follow.

Really check it out....and if you have not read, it's taken off like a rocket ship...and we know about that other social media site that's about to go public and started in a college dorm room, right?

And then, you find something like this.

That pretty much says it all. It made my 45 minutes here this morning worth it.

(PressZoom) – Transportation infrastructure concerns rank as one of the top issues in Georgia and the Southeast. The designation of the Georgia Institute of Technology as the lead for one of 10 national Tier One University Transportation Centers (UTC) by the U.S. Department of Transportation (US DOT) represents a positive step toward developing solutions to transportation challenges facing the state and region. The Georgia Tech campus is located in Midtown Atlanta.

Funded by a $3.5 million federal grant and an additional $3.5 million in matching funds from various state transportation departments, the Woodruff Foundation and others for the first two years, the UTC will bring together a consortium of universities in Georgia, Florida and Alabama including the University of Georgia, Georgia State University, Georgia Southern University, Southern Polytechnic State University, Clark Atlanta University, Spelman College, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Florida International University and University of Central Florida. Known as the National Center for Transportation System Productivity and Management, the Georgia Tech UTC will focus on transportation issues of importance to the nation, state and metropolitan areas.

In a related program, Georgia Tech has also been named as a collaborator in the US DOT’s Regional UTC led by the University of Florida. The University of Florida and Georgia Tech will be joined by Auburn University, Florida International University, University of North Carolina, North Carolina State University, University of Alabama at Birmingham and Mississippi State University to form a regional consortium that will focus on transportation issues impacting the Southeast. Georgia DOT will also provide some matching funds for this effort.

“Georgia Tech is uniquely qualified to lead the University Transportation Center. It is home to one of the largest and most accomplished transportation and logistics research programs in the U.S. and is responsible for many of the strategic improvements that have been made to Georgia’s infrastructure,” said Gov. Nathan Deal. “I applaud the efforts of all of those who were involved in this important project.”

According to Georgia Tech President G.P. “Bud” Peterson, the UTC designation provides national recognition of Georgia Tech’s capabilities and expertise in contributing to transportation solutions for the nation, state and metropolitan area.

“We are pleased to take a leading role in working with our industry, government and university partners to devise solutions for our state and regional transportation challenges,” he said. “I want to thank the US Department of Transportation, Governor Deal, Georgia Department of Transportation, Woodruff Foundation and the Georgia congressional delegation for their support of this important work.”

Funding from the Robert W. Woodruff Foundation supported the initial proposal led by a team from Georgia Tech including Michael Meyer, director of the Georgia Transportation Institute and Civil Engineering professor; Catherine Ross, director of the Center for Quality Growth and Regional Development; and Ken Stewart, senior advisor for industry. An advisory board including industry, government and university representatives from throughout Georgia, Florida and Alabama also provided direction for the grant submission and will continue to provide advice and counsel to the UTC.

Additional funding for the UTC will come from the Georgia DOT, the Woodruff Foundation and university partners. Future support will come through government, private and corporate resources.

The purpose of the UTC is to advance U.S. technology and expertise in the many disciplines comprising transportation through research, education and technology transfer as well as provide a critical transportation knowledge base outside the US DOT and address vital workforce needs for the next generation of transportation leaders.

Read more: http://www.mymidtownmojo.com/georgia-tech-selected-as-location-for-national-university-transportation-center#ixzz1lJw5WrR3

As I am sure many of you do, I get numerous daily e-mails with inspirational quotes, tips and the like. Some days I just hit delete, to busy to read them.

Other days, I'll stop, ponder, and sometimes even print out something that might end up on my office wall or in my calendar notebook. Something I'll want to read, again and again as a reminder.

And then, you will run across something you just feel like sharing.

I can't say I'll "franchise my real estate buiness" but it makes me want to think big!