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January 2012

1 -- New Year's Day
9 -- Full Moon
16 -- Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
17 -- Ben Franklin's Birthday

Happy New Year & Homeowners “To Do” Calendar

Dear Friends,

As we start off a New Year, I’m excited to see what 2012 brings us with the housing market.  The latest Market Trends report shows Pending sales were up 11% while inventory levels shrank 21.3%.  Another positive sign is that the unemployment rate fell from 9% to 8.6% in November, the lowest in 2.5 years.  With new job growth, combined with very low interest rates, families can afford more house and move-up buyers become increasingly motivated.

And in case you missed it, Raleigh was recently nominated by Southern Living magazine as one of the “Tastiest Towns of the South”.  Voting began on December 23 and continues through January 31 so be sure to place your vote for Raleigh!  The winner will be announced in the April 2012 issue.  We also found a terrific Homeowner “To Do” Calendar for 2012.  It lists each month of the year with ideas on how to improve and organize your home…take a look!

Blessing for a healthy and prosperous 2012,
Linda Trevor & Co.

New Listing: Country Home on Over 2 Acres!

• 6790 Kennebec Rd, Willow Spring
• 4 BR, 3.5 BA, 3830 SF, 2.33 Acres
• Updated Kitchen with Granite Counters
• 1st Fl Master hosts His & Her Closets
• Basement w/Rec Rm, Office, Game Rm, & Workshop
• Priced at $325,000      MLS#1813551

Under Contract: Ranch Home with Screened Porch!

• 462 Axum Rd, Willow Sping (Springfield)
• 3 BR, 2 BA, 1365 SF, .58 Acre
• New Interior Paint & New Carpet through-out
• Master & Living Room both have Cathedral Ceilings
• Screened Porch, Storage Shed, and Huge Yard
• Priced at $135,000      MLS#1777586

Under Contract in Just 42 Days!

• 1600 Kendall Hill Rd, Willow Spring (Kendall Hills)
• 3 Bedrooms, 2.5 Baths, 2270 SF, .61 Acre
• Kitchen has New Granite Counters & Butlers Pantry
• 1st Fl Master with His & Her Closets
• Spacious Bonus, Loft, & Walk-in Attic
• Priced at $219,900      MLS#1809908

Featured Neighborhood: Brier Creek

Brier Creek in Raleigh is one of the Top Selling Re-Sale Developments according to the Triangle Residential Realty Report.  This single-builder master planned neighborhood boasts five collections of the finest luxury homes by Toll Brothers including the Executive Collection, the Cottages Collection, and the Greenbrier Collection. Community amenities include an 18-hole Arnold Palmer Signature Golf Course, a 40,000 square-foot Clubhouse Complex, a State-of-the-Art Fitness Center, Swim and Tennis Pavilion, business amenities, and so much more.  Contact Us Today for a list of available homes.

An optimist stays up until midnight to see the new year in. A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves.
~ Bill Vaughan

Existing-Home Sales Continue to Climb in November

According to a recent report from the National Association of Realtors®, existing-home sales rose again in November and remain above a year ago.

The latest monthly data shows total existing-home sales increased 4.0 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.42 million in November from 4.25 million in October, and are 12.2 percent above the 3.94 million-unit pace in November 2010.

NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun said more people are taking advantage of the buyer’s market. “Sales reached the highest mark in 10 months and are 34 percent above the cyclical low point in mid-2010 – a genuine sustained sales recovery appears to be developing,” said Yun. “We’ve seen healthy gains in contract activity, so it looks like more people are realizing the great opportunity that exists in today’s market for buyers with long-term plans.”

According to Freddie Mac, the national average commitment rate for a 30-year, conventional, fixed-rate mortgage fell to a record low 3.99 percent in November from 4.07 percent in October; the rate was 4.30 percent in November 2010; records date back to 1971.

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Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal.
~ Henry Ford

8 Steps to Setting Family Goals in 2012

Although many of us make individual goals to kick off the New Year, you should consider making family goals as well. Outlining your goals as a group, with input from every member, is a great way to share your values and help each other reach important milestones throughout the year. And, depending on your goals, it can lead to a lot of fun. Here's what you do.

1. Set a family, goal-setting date; attendance is mandatory, no excuses. Plan on at least 60 minutes.
2. Have paper, pens, pencils and markers handy. Cut some paper strips big enough for younger kids to write on (an older sibling or parent may need to help them). Make at least three strips for each member, with a few extras for mistakes or changing one's mind.
3. Take a few minutes to discuss with your family why goal setting is important. Tell them about some of the goals you have set for yourself, giving concrete examples.
4. Discuss what some good goals for your family would be. Maybe it's having more dinners together, being more charitable, having a weekly game night, learning a new hobby together or planning a summer vacation. This is a brainstorming session -- there are no right or wrong suggestions.
5. Have each family member write down three goals they would like to see achieved as a family -- one per strip of paper.
6. When everyone is finished, read all the goals out loud, and as a family, agree on the ones you want to add to the "Top 5" list.
7. Once your Top 5 goals have been decided, write in a journal the steps your family will need to take in order to reach each individual goal. Assign responsibilities to each family member.
8. Keep your journal in the kitchen (or family room) and track your progress. Get everybody together every few months to review your goals. Celebrate the tasks that have been completed and mark them off your list. Then, discuss what needs to be done to move forward, or revise your goals.

You can really get everyone involved by buying the journal in advance and breaking it out New Year's Eve. You can all talk, chat and dream about your future family goals. Encourage the children to draw pictures or cut out magazine images and paste them next to the goals (for example, a tent if you decided on a family camping trip). Your family will feel a sense of pride when you reach your goals, and the journal makes a great keepsake.

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Eliminate physical clutter. More importantly, eliminate spiritual clutter.
~ D.H. Mondfleur

If You Want It Sold -- Depersonalize

If you want to get your home sold -- now is not the time to show off your beer can collection, your masterpiece from Painting 101, your dusty bunny animal collection or your "they could have been models" family photos.

As a home seller, this is often hard to accept, as demonstrated in many homes on the market. But the truth is, future home buyers would prefer to think nobody has ever lived in the property. You want to "depersonalize" your home because you want prospective buyers to view it as their next home. Seeing your family photos and your bowling trophies only reminds them it's your home, not theirs.

So, put it away, pack it up, or throw it away. That goes for most of your family photos, artwork, trophies, collectibles, souvenirs and other knick-knacks. If you need to, rent a storage unit for a few months and keep your items there. Whatever you do, don't store the boxes in the attic, garage, closet or basement. Part of preparing a house for sale is to remove "clutter," and that is the next step in preparing your house for sale.

Just remember, when you want to sell, strip it of all the things that make it a personalized home, and turn it into a generic product that can be personalized by someone else.

Education is what remains after one has forgotten what one has learned in school.
~ Albert Einstein

Good Indoor Project: Record Your Valuables

In most parts of the country, January is a good time to focus on indoor tasks. One good winter day project is to take photographs of each room and make a room-by-room inventory of everything of value in your house. Taking pictures helps aid your memory when filing a claim and provides proof of what you owned in the event of theft, fire or other disaster. Follow these five easy steps.

1. Take pictures of every room from multiple angles. Zoom in to shelves with small items, and open drawers to ensure all your belongings are in the pictures.
2. Photograph valuable items individually. You may even want to place them against a white background to capture more detail. Having adequate light is very important.
3. Use the camera's macro mode for very small valuables like watches, coins and jewelry. Place another item in the picture if it's important to reference size (like a ruler or quarter).
4. Be sure to get a picture of the serial number on electronics and software. This will help prove to your insurance company you owned the item and assist law enforcement in recovery.
5. Burn the picture files to multiple CD's, DVDs or Flash drives. Keep one copy in a fire and water proof safe and the other copy in at a safe, off-site location.

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Life is like a game of cards. The hand you are dealt is determinism; the way you play it is free will.
~ Jawaharial Nehru

Defining a "Vintage" Wine

Vintage cars, vintage clothing and vintage wine. We hear the term a lot, but just what does "vintage" mean?

In wine-making, a vintage wine is one made from grapes that were all, or primarily, grown in a single, specified year. The year indicated on the wine label is the vintage, or the year the grapes were harvested. In the United States, a wine label may only list the vintage if a high percentage of the wine comes from grapes harvested that year.

It's important to note that different countries have different standards. For example, in Chile and South Africa, the requirement is 75 percent same-year content for vintage-dated wine. In Australia, New Zealand and the member states of the European Union, the requirement is 85 percent. In the United States the requirement is 85%, unless the wine is designated with an AVA, (e.g., Russian River Valley), in which case it is 95%.

The reason a vintage wine is better than non-vintage wines is because the weather conditions for producing the wine were optimal. Weather conditions that produce ideal vintages require a warm spring, with no freezes, and mild temperatures during bud-break; then a steady, moderate climate must be maintained throughout the growing season (about six months), especially at the time of flowering. Ideal conditions will be warm days and cool nights with a little rain to keep the vines irrigated. A long, slow growing season is necessary if the grapes are to ripen and mature. Most importantly, the weeks leading up to harvest must be free of rain and without any deviant climate changes.

The opposite of a vintage wine is a non-vintage wine, which is usually a blend from the produce of two or more years. This is a common practice for winemakers seeking a consistent style of wine year after year.

It is not uncommon to hear the term vintage used incorrectly to declare a wine that is perceived to be particularly old or of a particularly high quality, such as a vintage Port.

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Go for it now. The future is promised to no one.
~ Wayne Dyer

January Movie Releases

• Jan. 4
  • Loosies
• Jan. 6
  • The Devil Inside
  • Norwegian Wood
  • Roadie
• Jan. 13
  • Beauty and the Beast 3D
  • Contraband
  • Joyful Nois
  • Premium Rush
  • The Divide
  • The Iron Lady
• Jan. 20
  • Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close
  • Haywire
  • Red Tails
  • Underworld Awakening
  • Coriolanus
• Jan. 27
  • The Grey
  • Man on a Ledge
  • One for the Money
  • Albert Nobbs
  • In Darkness
  • Rampart
  • We Need to Talk About Kevin

*Opening dates may vary depending on where you live.

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He that cannot reason is a fool. He that will not is a bigot. He that dare not is a slave.
~ Andrew Carnegie

9 Tips to Help You Stretch Your Travel Dollars

1. Pack light -- you'll have much more flexibility regarding transportation and accommodations. After all, it's not easy to change rooms if you have 12 heavy suitcases.
2. Book early -- you can save a lot of money by booking months in advance.
3. Last-minute deals -- the opposite of booking early, sometimes you can get a huge discount by taking a last minute deal. Travel operators don't like to have empty seats.
4. Hostels -- they can be very affordable places to stay in most major cities (be sure to check for restrictions).
5. Walking -- save money on taxis and keep fit. You might discover a hip bistro or bed-and-breakfast.
6. Camping -- take a tent and enjoy some destinations that don't have hotels.
7. Group travel -- Share the costs with others and get group discounts at many attractions.
8. Budget -- before you go on your trip, write a budget for all costs and stick to it.
9. Discount cards and vouchers -- save money by getting discounts, freebies and two-for-ones.

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It's not that I'm so smart, it's just that I stay with problems longer.
~ Albert Einstein

Setting Up Multiple Home Pages

When you start browsing the web, do you often visit the same websites time and time again? Of course you do. While "bookmarks" and "favorites" are helpful, and social bookmarks have come a long way, there's still a better way -- if you use a tabbed browser like Firefox or Internet Explorer. Now you can set up your home page with multiple home pages. Here's how.

Firefox -- Go to the Tools menu and select Options; click the Main tab. In the Home Page dialogue box, type the complete URL of each website you want as a homepage, separated by the "pipe" ( | ) symbol. Click Use Current Pages.

Internet Explorer -- Go to the Tools menu and select Internet Options; click the General tab. In the Home Page box, type the URL of each website on a separate line. Click Use Current.

Another way is to open up all your favorites in tabs just the way you like it. Then, go to Options/Internet Options and click Use Current Pages/Use Current.

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RE/MAX United
51 Kilmayne Drive Suite 100
Cary, NC 27511

This eNewsletter contains information, facts and opinions from various individuals and organizations. This eNewsletter is provided on an "as-is" basis without warranties of any kind, either express or implied. I/We are not responsible for any errors or omissions. Consult with your doctor, fitness consultant, attorney, accountant, or other professional advisor when necessary. © 2012 eNewsletterSolutions.