On day one of his three day bus tour, President Obama stopped by the Asheville airport and expressed optimism about job creation in Asheville and North Carolina. While promoting has job plan, he also expressed his love for Asheville.  Speaking before a primarily supportive crowd, he talked about the urgency for job creation not only in

President Obama at the podium earlier

Asheville and North Carolina but across the nation.  In his remarks, however, he paid special tribute to Asheville.

"I love Asheville," he told the crowd.  "Every time I meet somebody I say have you guys gone down to Asheville?  Our family has great memories of staying here, and it's always nice to get out of Washington and breathe some of that mountain air."

The President and Mrs. Obama last visited Asheville in April 2010 and made several stops at local hangouts.  It's always nice when someone recognizes what those of us who live here have known all along.  Asheville is a special place.

For more information about Asheville Real Estate, please contact Greybeard Realty.

At a June 6^th meeting, the Buncombe County Commissioners agreed to revisit an ordinance implemented in December 2009 that restricts some areas of Buncombe County from having new rental homes.  The present ordinance has current and potential impacts on Buncombe County and Asheville's real estate market and economy.  In addition to limiting the options for renters who want an authentic mountain home stay rather than a hotel visit, the ordinance also limits options for Asheville home owners.  

Asheville rental cabins give an authentic mountain experience.

Home buyers in our area often buy homes with an eye for the future.  They purchase now with the intention of renting the home until they reach retirement age.  By limiting which homes can become rental properties, the current ordinance restricts the Asheville real estate market.  When potential buyers learn that they cannot rent a specific home within certain zones, they decide against purchasing in this area.  The present ordinance sends potential real estate buyers into other mountain communities that will allow renting.

In another economic blow, the restriction of rental properties also reduces occupancy and sales tax when renters go to other communities instead of renting here. In addition, the work force is reduced when home cleaners, maintenance and repair people, and landscapers, to name a few, are no longer needed for the upkeep of rental homes. And finally, tourism is reduced.  With the restriction of rental properties comes the limiting of renters which in turn limits the seasonal tourism dollars which our communities are so dependent on for a vibrant economy.

For more information about the Asheville real estate market and Greybeard's offerings in the area, please contact Greybeard Realty.

Statistics and statistical analysis can be varied, depending on who is parsing the numbers.  While I consider one item to be a positive sign, someone else can come along and decide it's a negative.  Regardless of how one looks at the real estate numbers for Buncombe County for the last few years, the one observation that most people would agree on is that we are a seasonal market, and we are headed toward our positive season.

In considering the first two months of market numbers for Buncombe County and Black Mountain, there are some numbers that seem solid.  The number of homes sold for Jan/Feb this year, compared with last year's numbers, are steady. In addition, in Black Mountain, the 14 homes sold are only two less than the 16 units sold for this period during 2008 before the national real estate market decline.  The County comparison for homes sold this year to date compared with 2008 during the same period, however, represents a 32% decline.

Sales volume comparison for the same period for 2011 versus 2010 in the County shows a 10% decline.  Black Mountain sales volume for these first two months of 2011 shows a 12% increase over the same period in 2010.  Those numbers parallel the average price trend, which has Buncombe County declining 9% and Black Mountain increasing 4%.

One area of concern is Days on Market which has increased in both the County and Black Mountain.  The number of days, 187 for both markets, is about double what we would like to see in a growing real estate market.  It's also interesting to note the number of homes on the market which has remained steady in Black Mountain and decreased in Buncombe County.  While that would seem like a positive, there is no way without further study to determine if those numbers are that way because people are removing their homes from the market or holding off putting them on the market until the market picks up a bit.

Again, different people will consider these numbers and perhaps have a different slant to put on them.  But I look at these numbers and the market trends over the last few years, and I feel very comfortable noting that with spring here and summer around the corner, we are entering an active period for home sales.  And if buyers enter the market willing to offer fair price, they should be able to buy a home that will meet their needs now and provide them with a solid investment for the future.

For more information about the Asheville Real Estate market, please contact Greybeard Realty.

While Tiger Woods tackles the Augusta National Golf Course this week, he faces an uphill struggle with his company, Tiger Woods Design.  In the five years since his company's founding, none of his three golf course projects has been completed.  And one course, located in Asheville, will not resume construction until at least this [...]

They say that a picture is worth a thousand words.  In the case of the real estate market, a good picture can be worth thousands of dollars.  In a recent Wall Street Journal report, the use of nicer, professional photos increased home sale values anywhere from $934 to $116,076. The article details the specifics of how the figures were calculated. Professional quality photos of a listing can increase the sales price.  In addition, listings across all price tiers with such photos receive an average of 61% more views than home listings taken with point and shoot cameras.

Try to use a professional photo for your listing

Perhaps the most surprising statistic of all is that only 15.4% of the homes in the data set were marketed using professional quality photos.  While homeowners and brokers may balk at purchasing a DSLR camera ($500-$1,000+) for the simple purpose of illustrating a listing, consider that a professional photographer can do the work for you for $100-$500, a worthy investment considering the potential payback.

Homeowners often spend funds preparing the home for sale yet overlook investing in the photos to illustrate the beauty of their home.  It's important to note that potential buyers these days often begin their home search on-line.  In most cases, the first vision they have will be the photo posted with the listing.  To quote another well-known adage:  You only make a first impression once.  Why not spend a little extra, or choose a broker who does, to get a good quality photo that illustrates your home's true value.  For more information, please contact Greybeard Realty.

There are several signs that larger homes, often known as McMansions, may be headed the way of the dinosaur...or at least the albatross.  The American Institute of Architects survey in 2010 indicated that close to 60% of respondents noted that homes were getting smaller while the remainder reported that home sizes were staying the same.  [...]

There are some new housing numbers that may indicate an improvement in the home sales market in the months to come.  Nationally, new home sales jumped 17.5% in December which increased sales of new homes to their highest levels in 8 months.  Economists had expected a 300,000 unit increase for the period.  Instead, there was a seasonally [...]

If you have dreamed of owning an Asheville rental cabin of your own, you may be interested in the information presented recently in the Wall Street Journal. The article indicates that second home sales in some markets increased at dramatic levels last year. According to the article, the soaring sales levels can be attributed to deeply [...]

If you have enjoyed your vacations in your Asheville rental cabin, perhaps it's time to make the move and purchase your own home in Black Mountain.  Greybeard Realty has two new listings, both conveniently located within city limits.  Each of these 4-bedroom/2-bath homes can offer owners their own [...]

The Sept/Oct 2010 issue of Sierra Magazine ranks 162 US colleges in its 4^th annual "Coolest School" contest, and Black Mountain's own Warren Wilson College came in at #14 on this year's list. This represents a four slot rise for the school as they appeared last year at #18.

Farm Life at Warren Wilson College

The magazine ranks the colleges based on each college's responses to an 11 page questionnaire. Topics surveyed include energy supply, efficiency, food, and academics plus other categories.  Warren Wilson, which the article says gets one third of its food from farms within 500 miles of campus including from its own six-acre organic garden, scored 81.8 out of 100.  The number one school, Green Mountain College of Vermont, scored an 86.8.

Warren Wilson College boasts that "We are not for everyone..." and offers a unique triad approach to education: academics, work, and service.  The accredited, four-year, private liberal arts college was founded in 1894 with a philosophy of sustainability.  With this latest ranking, it seems that that philosophy has remained with the school for more than 100 years.

At Greybeard Realty, we pay attention to sustainability as well.  We offer a complete list of green homes available in the Asheville Real Estate market. Sharon McConnaughy, our sales agent specializing in environmentally conscious homes, can help steer you toward environmentally sound homes in the Asheville area.  For more information please contact her.