Lake	Size	Dues	HP Limit	Jet Skis
Becky	90 Acres	$100/yr	No Limit	No
Chattooga	45 Acres	$200/yr	50 HP	No
Crystal	38 Acres	No dues	No limit	Yes
Mountain Rest	40 Acres	Social Club	No Limit	Yes

 

Chattooga Lake Lot approved for a 2 bedroom home.  This lot is heavily wooded with hardwoods and would be perfect for a home with a basement to store all your lake and boating needs.  This lot is small but average for this lake. Log homes are welcome here.  Metal roof  welcome here.  Now is a great time to build.  This lot is offered at $90,000.  Bu...

Western Upstate, SC Real Estate Market Report

The following information is deemed accurate as of March 10, 2011:

When it is time to buy or sell real estate in Oconee, SC you need to work with an agent who is current with the market and values.  Gwen Fowler,  a Western Upstate REALTOR, keeps up to date on the market data,...

In talking to a couple this weekend I realized a few differences between people who bought homes in the 60's-70's and people who bought in the 90's. 

People who bought in the 60's-70's were in the job they were going to stay in for life.  They did not have to move, to move up in the company.  They were company people, no matter who they worked for, they were a company person be it Sears, Winn Dixie, the local mill or manufacturing plant...did not matter they had made a commitment for their job and their life.  The company took care of them. This employee worked to live and lived to work. 

When they bought a home, they were looking for a 2nd bath, but not necessarily for each kid to have...

UPDATE:  This property is sold!! Closed 4-26-2011.  Please contact me as we have others that might work for you.

Just minutes from the Oconee State Park, we have listed 176 Lake Becky Road.  This property is a 1991 Double wide mobile home with a metal roof, new carpet, and fresh paint through out.  The home has an added sun room to enjoy watching the birds while you have your coffee in the morning.

The property is level and has a new survey.  The horseshoe driveway makes for easy access.  A camper site on the property allows friends and family to visit for an extended period of time...power, water and sewer connections are ready all you have to do is hookup.

         

The home is 3...

Oconee County has been revamped, updated and looks really good.  The website can be found at Oconeesc.com.

You can look at your tax bill there (or look up your neighbors to see if they pay as much as you do), look up your deed and apply for a county job.  The website also includes info on the different projects the county is now involved with i.e. county wide INTERNET...high speed internet.

The GIS department has now got maps for the area on line with overlays for roads and tax map numbers.  You can see an aerial photo of your property.

This is a much improved site, call me if you have questions and I will walk you through the different places you can visit.

When you write an offer on a house or property you try to think of all the things you want to cover.  Our contract have most things mentioned, but not necessarily in the way you need them mentioned.

I had lunch on Tuesday with a couple of real estate agents from Seneca.  Perry had just had a closing at Mountain Rest.  The house had a basement and a RADON issue. (Now just so you will know, when an agent has an issue it usually means extra work and it is double talk for a problem that could blow the whole deal.)

Our area has a lot of granite, radon gases escape from the granite.  Homes with basements have the potential for having radon.  Basements act as a collection point or trap for the...

The Glenn Miller Orchestra will be in Walhalla, April 1st, no joke.  Tickets are $25 per person and available at the Booksmith and the Walhalla Chamber of Commerce.  This will be a great weekend to come into town and have some fun.

Just in case you have forgot or need an appetizer check out:  Tuxedo Junction, A String of Pearls, or my favorite  In the Mood.  Call it war music or swing this is some of the sweetest music you will ever hear.  You will not be disappointed.  Tickets sell out early so get yours now.

You can get tickets in Seneca at The Booksmith (864-885-0872), The Walhalla Civic Auditorium (864-638-5277) or the Walhalla Chamber of Commerce (864-638-2727).

...

We all want to buy low and sell high.  Yet how do you know when to buy and when to sell?  This week I had a customer fly in from the west coast.  She had been watching our prices and inventory and had also been watching a certain neighborhood. She had been to the websites daily. She had decided that now was the time to buy.  She would be starting her new job June 1st and this would give her time to settle in before she had to go back to work.

When she arrived she had a file of 25 properties she wanted to see before she made her final decision. These were printouts from different websites and it took about a hour for us to wade through the data.  Much to her amazement 15 of the properties...

We a saddened heart we learned that Villa Novella in Central closed 2/26/11.  The food there was a surprise treat to many who had learned the secret of where and what it was.  Great food, service and location.  We will miss them greatly.

We then learned that John Robinson the Chef of Villa Novella had accepted a position as Chef in Paula Deen's new restaurant at Harrah's Casino in Cherokee, NC.  I see a road trip in our future.

Congratulations John Robinson.

Just a short drive to Helen Georgia you will find the Unicoi State Park.  Each February on the weekend after Valentine's Day they have a craft show.  The vendors come from all over the south, but especially from Georgia.

This year Henry found an old friend, Linda Vachon.  Mrs. Vachon does oil paintings of birds, houses and southern homes.  When you look at her work, it is like seeing the back yard painted on the wall.  She has an amazing talent for bringing to life the things around us.  We got a small Chicadee print and are still debating about getting an original. Our 2nd favorite was House Hunting, only a real estate agent would appreicate the humor.  You can see her work at  her webs...

Last weekend we had a call from our friend Dwight Malphrus.  He had been up at his log cabin at Bear Track for a week, working on plumbing and getting the place ready for spring. He had fixed all broken pipes.  He had done some cleaning up around the place.  Put up the bird feeders and filled them. He could feel spring in the air. After a week of this, he was tired of being alone.  Dwight is a people person and there was too much quiet at Bear Track.

So he called Henry and Gwen, pick a place to eat and let's go.  He picked us up and we started over the mountain from Walhalla to Brasstown.  I had been hearing about the restaurant there...great food, wonderful service, great food.  Every...

149 New Madison Road is 65 acres with 2 established home sites.  This property is the top of a ridge over looking Lake Hartwell with mountain views in 3 directions.  The current main home is a 3 bedroom 2 bath mobile home at the street, this is included in the package.  The 2nd home is a garage apartment with 1 bedroom, 1 bath over a 2 car garage.  Our seller has had hip replacement and needs to move to a one level home.  His dream was to build a larger home beside the apartment and then use it as a guest cottage.

The property can be the start of your dreams, live in the guest house or in the double wide.  Build your dream house over time.  The setting is very private, the guest house ...

Did you notice the interest rate change?  November 20th the rates were 4.17%.  February 7th 2011 the rates were 5.05%.  Did not see the report on Fox, CNN or any of my local stations, but the rates have started to creep up.

Don't really think it is alot?  Look at what a difference it makes.  If you were looking at a mortgage for $170,000 in November the principal and interest payment would have been $828.36.  Today if you are approved for the same loan of $170,000 the payment would be $917.80.  That is a difference of $89.44 per month. $32,198 over the life of the loan.

What are you waiting for?  House prices have increased for the past 3 quarters and now interest rates are increasing. ...

Happy Valentine's Day!!

We love all our customers and invite you to come by when you are in the area.  We have foreclosure lists on the counter, new maps and area information and we would love to visit with you if you have time.

Our customers are what have made us into what we are today!!!

Bundle up, if you are going to look at foreclosures in January.  The heat is not on so the temps inside the house will not be much better than those outside the house. Bring a heavy coat, gloves and a scarf.  You want to be comfortable while you look.  You can take them back off when you get in my warm car. Bring a flash light if we are going to basement homes as stair wells and basements are very, very dark. 

I would like to be able to tell you things would be different, but we all know the banks are not going to spend money monthly, even if it means they would make a quicker sale for more money.  This is the foreclosure game, you have to suffer to buy.

I previewed a bank foreclosure...

543 Foreclosed properties were on the MLS site yesterday.  These are the properties listed with agents to be sold.  This does not include the properties banks own that have not been put out on the open market.  I have been reviewing some of these properties this week and have noticed a few things that you will need to keep in mind if you are thinking of purchasing a foreclosed property.

Is the house really finished or finished up to a point?  Does it have all the trim work, appliances, mirrors, closet features?  If not what is the cost of doing all this extra work before you can move in? Do the doors and windows shut?  I have been in several homes where the doors were propped against ...

Each time you hear the news that the interest rates are climbing you should think about why you are waiting.  A point it really doesn't matter, right????

Yes it matters.  The new lending rules have gotten stricter on the ratios you can have for debt to income, 38% Max.  When you factor in taxes and insurance sometimes a point can be the difference between you getting the property you want or having to settle for your second choice.

On at purchase price of $100,000 at 4.875% (todays rate) your payment would be $529.21 before taxes and insurance are added.  If the rates were 5.875% your payment would be $591.54.  This is based on a 30 year fixed conventional rate.  If your credit score is...

The first snow of 2011 came on January 10th.  Since then we have been off the road and in front of the fireplace watching the flames and enjoying the view through the window.

We usually get 2-3 snows per year of 2-3 inches.  This one is at 7.5 inches so we got a years worth of snow the with the first one.  Enjoy the pictures of the snow and know that we have all 4 seasons here, so we have some snow and some summer days at 100*.  We also have a spring that last more than 4 days and a fall with beautiful colors for over a month.

 

For all your real estate needs, winter, summer, fall or spring, call Gwen Fowler-Brown at 864-638-3599.

May God richly bless you and your family this Christmas!!