Sunday, September 29, 2013

Ardsley Park, Savannah GA Great Place to Relocate

If you are thinking of relocating to a warmer climate, with an easy going lifestyle than Savannah is the place for you. Tour the website: Visit Savannah to learn all about what is happening in Savannah. Historically interesting, beautiful, charming and romantic, Savannah is also always hopping with activity. Several music festivals visit the city each year as well as marathon runs and cycling events.

One of the most alluring features of Savannah is the charming and diversity of homes. Ardsley Park is the hottest neighborhood going in Savannah, and its not a wonder with its location and layout. Work with the premier listing agent of this neighborhood, Don Callahan, who has been a top producing agent in Savannah for 15 years. Don continually has the most listings of homes in this neighborhood. You can search for a home in Ardsley Park at his website here.


Wednesday, September 25, 2013

Renovated Bungalow in Midtown Savannah


Listing Details

415 East 61st Street, Savannah, GA
Bedrooms: 3
Baths: 1
Year Built: 1950
Living Area 1,330 Sq. Ft.
Offered at: $169,000
MLS Number: 114440

Quaint and Cozy Bungalow

A quaint front porch looks out to a freshly landscaped shady front yard in this renovated bungalow. Once inside the living room creates a cozy feeling with hardwood floors, a fireplace and plenty of great natural light. An open archway leads into a breakfast bar, dining area and updated kitchen. Off the kitchen is the family room/dining room which has a built in shelf, a wall of windows, access to the back yard and a bedroom that which could be used as an office.

Details Throughout


The master bedroom and the hallway has entry to the bathroom which has been updated with a cute pedestal sink, a large circular mirror, and new cabinetry. The bedrooms are well lit and feature the molding and corner round floor to ceiling, matching the rest of the interior giving it a finished, polished look.

Location Location Location


There is a spacious fenced in backyard ready for plenty of garden beds. The detached building in the back is large enough for a car and a workshop. This home is well located in midtown Savannah, close to the exploding Skidaway Rd – Victory Drive area. Plenty of shopping and eateries abound in this area with a movie theater, the new Whole Foods Market and ZoĆ«’s Kitchen, and Chipotle. Grayson Stadium, and Daffin Park are also a hop skip and a jump to this home. Also nearby is the Memorial Health complex. 

Monday, September 23, 2013

It's All About Your Perspective and Your ONE Thing

As Realtors and agents we are aware of the daily challenges in the industry, specifically national issues beyond our control that impact our individual business. One of these of late is mortgage rates. Trying to keep up with the current news on the rates I find that opinions on where the rate is really varies.  It seems that it really is about perspective, which is a great lesson to adapt in our daily lives.

Mortgages Are Interesting

Here are some recent headlines from national real estate news sources:

Mortgage Professionals of America: 9/20/2013 -
Mortgage Applications Head Up as Rates Edge Down
Mortgage applications were up last week as interest rates crept down, according to a survey from the Mortgage Bankers Association. 

Bloomberg News: 9/19/2013 Home Sales Climb as Americans Rush to Lock in Rates
Sales of previously owned U.S. homes unexpectedly rose in August to the highest level in more than six years as buyers rushed to lock in interest rates before they increased further.
Realtor Magazine: 9/23/2013 
Mortgage Rates Level Off 
Key fixed-rate mortgages held steady this week, remaining near two-year highs.
Read the article http://www.realtor.com/news/mortgage-rates-level-off/

No Matter Where the Rate Is At …

"No matter how success is measured, personal or professional, only the ability to dismiss distractions and concentrate on your ONE Thing stands between you and your goals. The ONE Thing is about getting extraordinary results in every situation." Gary Keller

Keller Williams: 9/19/2013 
Balanced Markets; Big Opportunities: Gary Keller’s Mid-Year Market Update Amounts to ONE Thing: More Sales


The annual pace of home sales in July was 17.2 percent higher than it was last year, putting the industry on pace for the best year in home sales since 2006. “The last time we saw this number was 2003,” said Jay Papasan.  http://blog.kw.com/2013/09/19/balanced-markets-big-opportunities-gary-kellers-mid-year-market-update-amounts-to-one-thing-more-sales/

Friday, September 13, 2013

14th Annual Savannah Pride Festival

A Pride celebration is for everyone. An opportunity to celebrate who we are, and the joy of our differences. This weekend we will be celebrating the true nature of ourselves, all of us, whoever we are, whatever our heritage, gender, or sexual identity, at the Savannah Pride festival in Forsyth Park. And a celebration it will be! In celebration of years past the atmosphere during the day has been one of joy, the air was filled with music and laughter. This year will be like years past with even more to celebrate regarding achieving equality among us.

Savannah Pride festival is different from others in the nation, because as president of Savannah Pride Mark Hill has said “ We don’t sequester ourselves away. It is a community picnic where we see friends and make some new ones.” There will be plenty going on during the day at this park-wide picnic. Dozens of vendors and lots of local talent. Stop by our tent (Don Callahan Real Estate Group) for a chance to win an iPad mini! We hope to see you there.

Here is the schedule for Saturday: 
11:30 a.m.: Welcome and opening ceremony
Noon: Dylan Michael
12:45 p.m.: Dale Worley Band
1:45 p.m.: Jeremiah Clark
2:30 p.m.: Stephen Neil
3 p.m.: Welcome from Savannah Mayor Edna Jackson
3:15 p.m.: Christy Alan Band
4:15 p.m.: Lindsey Hinkle
5 p.m.: She and She
5:45 p.m.: Dance party
6:15 p.m.: Kristina Foxx and the Club One Cabaret
7:30 p.m.: Roxxxy Andrews
8 p.m.: Cusses
9 p.m.: Closing ceremony
 
Did you Know?

  • Approximately 70% of people on Facebook in the U.S. are connected to a friend who has expressly identified themselves as gay, lesbian or bisexual on their timeline. #PrideConnectsUs
  • The federal government recently provided access to the full range of benefits that are offered to opposite-sex married military couples to same-sex couples.
  • Supreme Court Justice Ruth Ginsberg came out in support of gay marriage by officiating at marriage of a two close male friends of hers. Ginsburg said equality has always been central to the Constitution, even if society has only applied it to minorities – be they women, blacks or gays – over time.
  • The U.S. Supreme Court in United States v. Windsor declared Section 3 of DOMA unconstitutional on June 26, 2013, “as a deprivation of the equal liberty of persons that is protected by the Fifth Amendment.”

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Surfers For Autism a Transformative Event

I awoke with excitement and anticipation and organized myself to head out to Tybee Island for the 3rd Annual Coastal Surfers for Autism event this past Saturday. This is our biggest and favorite charitable event we participate in every year. By the time my feet hit the warm sand there were some 20 tents set up and several hundred people gathered. There was a wonderful breeze and the surf was definitely up! Finally after some introductions and a prayer the surfing began.

Miracles Happen

Family and friends stood at waters edge as they watched the kids go apprehensively out on surfboards with their supportive team. Then miracles began to unfold before us. As each surfboard loaded with a belly down child clinging to the sides returned on a wave, there were huge smiles and giggles of tickled pleasure. Soon we began to see the children begin to stand on their board and catch a wave. At each successful wave surfed, teams, family members and the young surfers would jump and throw their arms in the air in jubilation. The transformation from uncertainty to confidence and success was mesmerizing. One of the family members Joe Costello said it best with a post on his Facebook:

"Thank you for the smile on my son Sean's face! Thank you to the professionals from SFA, Tybee Police, Tybee Fire, Tybee Ocean Rescue, volunteers, and businesses who made this a wonderful event. I watched another boy cry hysterically on his first set, the next wave he popped up and rode it in to the beach to the cheers of all. It is overwhelming all that you did this past Saturday for so many. This was our first event, but it will not be our last."

Fun Under The Tents

Although surfing was the main event there was much bonding and fun being had in the sand under the tents. The loving, warm, friendly energy was palpable. There was an atmosphere of non-judgment and ease in connecting with others. Everyone was partaking in fun activities out of the water, and bonding with new found friends. The energy of the day spread to everyone.
"David Costrini: I'm not exaggerating when I say that I went to this event, and that it was one of the most amazing and powerful things I've ever seen. The kids, families, and volunteers were just over the top incredible and inspiring."
I was told this would be a life changing event, and it was. I am already thinking about next year, as I am sure the children are too. Maybe we will see you out there next year?

Watch a WTOC News channel video on this event.

Monday, September 9, 2013

Some Just For Fun Home Items

I spend about an hour every morning scouring the internet for interesting and informative media on Real Estate as research for writing on my Blog.  Today instead of writing an article I would like to share a few paragraphs and links to some interesting sites with articles I have come across.

From Housingwire.com:

Home Staging Professionals Find New Business in Changing Market

In a recent study conducted by the trade association, 89 vacant occupied and un-staged homes were listed. These homes spent an average of 166 days on the market. However, when these exact same homes were professionally staged and relisted, they only spent an average of 32 days on the market — a 73% decrease in time spent on the market.

From Realtor.com:
Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi may be parting ways with their Thousand Oaks ranch in the very near future. The Los Angeles Times reports that the celebrity couple’s Hidden Valley retreat is currently showing a status of “looking for backup,” which (for those of you who are not Realtors) generally means a bid has been accepted but the seller is still fielding other offers.


 From The New York Times:

Looking For Homes In The French Alps

The continuing popularity of lakefront property, especially for overseas buyers fleeing unstable economies, has helped the town of Annecy weather the financial crisis better than most areas. This 2003 chalet, built of concrete and siding construction, is on the desirable east side of Lake Annecy in the community of Veyrier du Lac. It is on the sunnier and more-desirable east side of Lake Annecy. See more photos here.

In Case You Want to Buy

Here is a description of the property and FYI there are no restrictions on foreigners in France. Agents charge a fee of about 5 percent, paid by the seller. All transactions must go through a notary public, who oversees the contract and closing, handles negotiations, and collects all transaction taxes and fees owed to the government.


Wednesday, September 4, 2013

3rd Annual Coastal Empire Surfers for Autism Beach Festival

Tybee Island will be transformed into a beach bash on September 7th for a very special group of kids. The beach by the pavilion will be filled with families, volunteers and children, special needs children who have a chance to feel the sweet taste of success, fun and self-confidence by learning how to surf. Surfers for Autism, a non-profit organization, will be hosting the event from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm. The therapeutic benefits of the surfing activity to children and young adults within the autism spectrum cannot be put into words and must be experienced.

At a Surfers for Autism event, the surfers are provided a safe, fun, judgment free environment where highly skilled surf instructors carefully guide the children into waves. Each child is accompanied with two or three volunteers and a "master" surfer who take the kids into the water one at a time. Each child is in the water for 25 minutes, then a new session is started with another child. The sessions continue rotating until 4:00 pm.

This is a very special day where children with developmental delays interact with typical peers and
wow families with their capabilities. The result is always the same: complete and total transformation in a moment. Transformative moments are not the exclusive province of the surfers, as parents also undergo a shift in thinking. Goals and milestones once missed or forgotten suddenly come into sharp focus. For many of the families, it’s a day they never thought they would experience.  Many times autistic children are sensitive to auditory stimulation, but here they can just enjoy being a kid.

A Few Testimonials From Past Events

Amy Spalter Schwartz: “I am awestruck at what a difference you all have made in my son’s life, but not just Spenser’s life, but our whole family. When he is out there surfing, he is a completely different child. This is the ONLY extracurricular activity he has had ANY interest in sticking with.” 
Caryn Jones Hamblen: Words cannot express our gratitude for today. What an amazing event! Dylan said it best, “This is the best day, ever!"
Kara Collins: I will never forget the joy I saw on my daughter’s face that day, the pride she felt that she was enough- just the way she was. She made friends and no one cared who spun in circles or said something inappropriate, they just welcomed you for who you were. Now we own Boogie boards and sun shirts and count down the days until the next event, when she isn’t a girl with Asperser’s- she is just a girl who is 7 catching a wave.

Surfers With Hearts as Big as Their Ambition

Surfers for Autism was founded in Deerfield Beach Fla in December of 2007 with a handful of local surfers. There was a local surf club in Florida. One of the members' brothers was touched with autism, so they got together to take some kids with autism and related special abilities surfing, and the rest is history. Although the SFA has events internationally most of the coordination for an event is on the local community level. While surfing with special athletes is certainly the centerpiece, events have morphed into massive beach parties replete with concerts, catered cuisine, gaming tents and much more.

This Saturday at Tybee Island there will be an activities tent and other resources available. Musician Cody Blake will be performing on the beach, his big brother is one of the participating surfers. In addition Lunch and water for the families will be provided plus the opportunity to enjoy time with other families just like their own. 

The Don Callahan Real Estate Group will be there volunteering this Saturday. Tybee's Surfers for Autism beach festival has an open invitation to anyone.

Photos from Surfers for Autism.