close to town yet private and serene

Incase you may know someone who’s looking for a house, this one is a great opportunity if you like views of nothing but nature and the sound of birds and leaves rustling. Originally built in the 1990’s the owners hired a Boston architect to design a major addition and added a fabulously open and bright family room, a new master suite and a second family room. It’s tucked into a cul-de-sac with expansive views of woods, nature and a meandering creek. It’s slightly under 3,000 feet and is offered at $438,000. Showings begin in less than a week so call me or email me if you’d like to be first. 919-929-2005. More photos will appear shortly.

If you have not driven through Winmore lately you should do so. The site for the pool and club house is marked by a large map on the street, trees have been planted and beautiful homes are reaching for the sky. My clients are building a Dixon-Kirby house and it’s even more beautiful than we imagined back at the concept stage.

Good news for buyers and sellers, the mortgage industry is getting back on track with historically low rates for conforming loans, more jumbo loans and the subprime loans are being taken over by FHA loans. In other words, payments should be lower and sellers will be able to sell at reasonable prices.

John McCormick, a local real estate lawyer who has been missing for a little over one year was discovered hiding in Arizona. It’s reported that he took upwards of one million dollars from his client’s before skipping town. Welcome back John, can’t wait to hear your story. Hmmm maybe he’ll use Nifong’s lawyer.

Looks like orange may be the “in” color this fall.

DURHAM, N.C. (Aug. 31) - The prosecutor who led the now-discredited rape case against three Duke University lacrosse players was held in criminal contempt of court Friday for lying to a judge when pursuing charges against the athletes.Superior Court Judge W. Osmond Smith III sentenced Mike Nifong, above, to a day in jail. The former Durham County district attorney, who was stripped of his law license and resigned from office, had faced as many as 30 days.

By AARON BEARD,APPosted: 2007-08-31 20:45:49Filed Under: Crime News, Nation NewsThat’s a whole lot less time than he was seeking for those lacrosse boys. Doesn’t seem fair but it is what I’d expect out of our court system.

Chapel Hill Launches Wi-Fi Pilot Project

The Town of Chapel Hill this Friday will activate six Wi-Fi hotspots in the downtown area, giving the public free access to the internet along much of Franklin Street.

The provision of wireless internet service to citizens has ranked as a top priority goal for the Town Council. The launching of wireless hotspots in downtown is considered a pilot project and a step forward toward this goal. The hotspots, which show up on wireless devices as “TOWNofCH-WiFi,” are located at the following (see map at http://www.townofchapelhill.org/DocumentView.asp?DID=1904):

(1.) U.S. Post Office, 179 E. Franklin St.
(2.) Old Town Hall (IFC Shelter), 100 W. Rosemary St.
(3.) Town Parking Lot 5, 108 Church St.
(4.) Hargraves Center, 216 N. Roberson St.
(5.) Chapel Hill-Orange County Visitors Bureau, 501 W. Franklin St.
(6.) 411 West Restaurant, 411 W. Franklin St.

Bob Avery, information technology director, said users within 300 feet of a hotspot should be able to connect, although the ability to connect will depend on the capability of the user’s device and the amount of obstructions between the user and the antenna. For a street level user, trees, buses, trucks and buildings will all reduce the quality of the connection signal.

The Town will soon provide information to the public by website, media and signage to help promote the hotspots and explain how they may be used. More information will be provided at the homepage of www.townofchapelhill.org.

The hotspots have been installed using Clearwire modems. These are attached to standard Wi-Fi access points with high gain antenna to provide the signal for public use.

The Town will not provide direct user support but does hope to be able to respond to and resolve outages or other service problems as they occur. To report comments and problems, please contact the Town at wifi@townofchapelhill.org.
 

               HOME OWNER ASSOCIATIONS

Do you have one, want one or wish you’d never heard of one? H.O.A. documents are filed at the local court house and have legal backing for enforcement. Many people consider it an advantage and believe that uniformity and conformity help their houses appreciate. For example many people don’t want a purple house nextdoor or RV trailers in the neighbor’s driveway. Others are appalled when they get a letter letting them know they planted too many flowers in their front yard and one neighborhood in particular dictates which color of flowers you may grow. No kidding! I used to live in Southern Village and the HOA  had to approve my house plan and fence, now I have acreage and an old bungalow. I have enjoyed both enviroments for different reasons; The Southern Village parks and streetscapes were all handled for us and looked beautiful. Now I prefer more privacy and my hens provide fresh eggs daily. BTW If pets are important to you be sure to read the fine print to make sure yours are allowed. Many times the city zoning will allow them but your HOA will not. I’ve heard that 12 chickens are allowed inside the city limits but no roosters.You probably aren’t considering chickens and goats anyway but think about it before you buy.

Is there a state contract that agents and builders use for new construction as a standard practice? The answer is “no”. We as agents, have a new construction contract and addenda from the North Carolina State Bar Association which we can use but ultimately it’s the decision of the builder which contract he will accept. Many have their own company contracts that have been written by their own attorneys. Others will use the new construction contract and still some will use the standard Offer to Purchase and attach addenda. You should be able to discuss any of the contracts with your agent and of course an attorney is always recommended. I’d like to suggest two more ideas you might like; try to give your deposit in two to three increments. The dates should follow the builders construction schedule and he can tell you at the initial meeting (when the contract is signed) when to expect to write checks. The other is PLEASE hire an inspector to do a specific new construction inspection. It too will coincide with construction schedules. Usually it’s three or four inspections and the fee is well worth it. It’s very exciting to see a design on paper transform into a building process. Enjoy it!