Charlie Ragonesi Big Canoe Realestate's Blog

The mountains are great . This is part 2 in a series of mountain living tips. This part applies to Gated communities like Big Canoe or Bent Tree as well as areas not in these types of communities.

Bears

Bears are beautiful things to see. But you really do not want them on your front porch. There is nothing to get you going in the morning like looking out a window and seeing a pair of fuzzy eyes looking back at you . Trust me. It is better than an espresso to get the juices going. The black bears in the mountains are usually not aggressive. But they are bears so......

1 Never, never, never, get between a mama and her cubs. If you have dogs make sure they will obey you when they are left off a leash. One of my favorite bear stories here in Big Canoe is about a lady who had two little dogs who saw a cub and chased it. The cub ran to mama. This brought the dogs to a complete stop . And I am sure they said the dog equivalent of "oh S%$#$#T" ! as the mama bear chased them. Of course they ran back to their human mama. She saw them coming with a bear behind( there is a joke in there some where). The human mama said OH S&%^%$T! and neighbors came out in time to make the mama bear realize that she had made her point and she stopped.

2 Never leave food out. You can have Racoons as well as larger animals on your porch. We tell folks here not to leave out bird feeders between April and Oct. Baffles work for squirrels but nothing bigger.

3 If you cook outside in a green egg or barbecue one of our tricks is to use moth balls around them The critters do not like the smell and it usually stops them.

The Mountains are great and you will really enjoy seeing the Natural life. I just thing ther is space for them that is theirs and space that is ours. Let the folks at All Mountain Realty show you why we love living in the North Georgia Mountains

It is a great time to buy in our North Georgia Mountains.  Here are some of the do's and don'ts

1 Do not "lowball" a short sale or a foreclosure. If you do you probably will not get it. We are seeing more and more of these go for asking or over asking price. Hey THEY ARE GREAT DEALS to begin with.

2 Remember if you are "out there in the woods" on well water, on a gravel road your home may have been reasonably priced but your insurance will be high. The fire component of your insurance can be double or triple what it might be in other areas of the mountains

3 Lastly, but maybe not the last blog on the subject, if you find that mountain home think. Yes it will be beautiful but if you are isolated remember gas is + 3.00 a gallon and how long can you stare lovingly at the view and your spouse before you get a little bored? ( spouses may get bored with you too. I know it is hard to believe.

So think about your location in terms of your active life style. This list is in no way comprehensive But I am thinking 3 things to look at in a blog is manageable. . Stay tuned 

This week for the new year the Mountain Real Estate report focuses on some good news coming out of the housing market. We talk about a couple of really good deals we have her n our mountains. and we focus on types of home buyers here in the mountains. We have tips as well as do's and don'ts for thoe who are buying a mountain home. If you are buying in North georgia the pros and All Mountain Realty are here to work with you. Enjoy the show

This  marks the end of the Fall season for us in the North Georgia Mountains. Here are a couple of pictures taken from a home in Big Canoe. I am not sure how you get better mountains views. The green you see are the great evergreens so even in Winter we will have some green views. If you are looking to buy in the mountains consider North Georgia. We are centrally located between , Atlanta, Asheville, and Chattanooga. We are affordable.  And we are the shortest drive from Florida. So if you are looking stop here. You will be happy you did

This weekend kicks off the Summer season here in the mountains. The weather has been great so far and we are looking forward to a long and wonderful summer. When you come up to the mountains and think about owning here please consider the following:

It is beautiful. The spaces may be more open than you are used to. The views are often Great. Prices are really good. BUT DON'T buy on impulse and get carried away. Consult with the pros here at All Mountain Realty. We will work with you to help you find the right fit that will keep you happy and coming back year after year.

You are going to be our mountain neighbors. We want to see you around our towns with a smile on your face. Then you too will have " Captured the spirit of the mountains."

For many of you you have seen on TV  the devastation that the ice storms this year caused. If you are in Big Canoe  near the top or on Monument Road in Pickens and Dawson County you have seen downed power lines and snapped trees. It almost looks like a tornado has gone through the area. This brinks me to the point of the post.

When you are choosing a location you do not have to live on the tip top of a mountain. I am at 2500 feet and have a great view as well as cool and wonderful summers. Last summer we ran our A/C for the total of a week. So when you are considering the mountains consider North Georgia and consider 1 ridge down from the top. On those windy or stormy winter days you will be glad you did. .Here is the view I am talking about.

 

I don't know about you but this kind of view and some shelter from high winds 600 feet above me keeps me very happy

If you are looking for a Mountain home or land now is the time to look. NOT because of the 8,000 credit. NOT because of the new 6500 existing home buyer credit. NOT because prices are very very good. NOT because interest rates are low.

NOW is the time to look because the leaves are off the trees! Now you will see your views that may have been hidden. Also you can get a really good look at the lay of the land. Also temperatures are wonderful for walking right now. So if you are looking in the North Georgia Mountains and think you need to be here in spring or summer. Not so. Now is the best time to look, especially if you are looking for land or views.

The North Georgia Mountains are pretty year round. This fall in the Big Canoe / Jasper area the rains came and washed away many of the leaves. But today in the sunshine as I was driving I managed to get these shots.

These pictures are from about 3000 feel up. The air was clear and the breeze was blowing. Temperature was in the 60's

It was pretty bright out but you get the idea. The North Georgia Mountains are Beautiful and a great place to live and raise a family. Contact us at All Mountain Realty . We would love to work with you.

North Georgia Real Estate continues to be some  what flat in sales and prices. I guess this is a good thing as prices are not going down. However recent events in the troubled Carpet industry have put pressure on prices and home sales are slow. North Georgia is home to the nations carpet industry in Dalton.

In addition Jasper which produces much of the Marble for our country is slow also as an industry. So we have 2 industries here that rely on housing in large part for their business.

On a positive note folks who can sell in other areas are moving to North Georgia due to price points and great quality of life.. There are new medical facilities opening here and folks are getting tax breaks who are retired.

Bottom line is North Georgia provides great value for your dollar. Visit is you might be surprised.

The North Georgia Mountains usually get busy in the summer. This is when we see many of the buyers. This summer started slow but picked up some as the summer went on.

We are seeing prices in places like Big Canoe adjust downward as the sales volume starts to pick up. In other areas we are seeing a lot of first time buyers come out. The traffic of second home buyers is slow.

Land sales are really really slow as it is tough to get financing and new home starts are sluggish.

So the net for our mountain market I think is 2009 will be a year the downward home sale slide has stopped. But I think prices will not increase uniformly or across the board.

My recommendation is gated community homes are a great bargain right now. They are also great places to live. So if you are thinking about the mountains this is a good time to buy.