Last night after dinner we drove around to see some of the Athens, GA area Christmas lights and we thought we'd share them.  Enjoy!         This one is on Simonton Bridge Rd. in Watkinsville     The Grand Finale has to be the Blue Light House located on Brickeberry Ridge in Woods of Habersham subdivision on the east side of Athens.  It has it's own website, www.bluelights.org.  The owners collect toys for the Toys for Tots program each year from people who come to see the lights.  We always go by to see this one and have seen it evolve over the years.   Merry Christmas to everyone!!   Diane & Paul 12/23/2009

The following charts show the month to month residential real estate sales volume of the Greater Athens Ga metropolitan area for the months of June through November 2009. Chart 1 shows the trends for both the number of residential units sold and the average number of Days on Market (D.O.M.) for those units. Novemeber gives us the second straight month of increased sales volume. This is more than likely due to buyers wanting to meet the deadline for qualifying for the First Time Home Buyer's Tax Credit (before the extension was approved). The total number of residential units sold in November was 116, up 4 units from October.  The average Days on Market, D.O.M., did increase to 199 days. While it is up 3 days from October, D.O.M. is still down over 2 weeks from the 215 days in September... 12/16/2009

In Athens -Clarke County, GA, for the week ending Dec. 6, 2009 the real estate market in Athens, Ga. looks like this: There are 1539 active listings of which 1264 are residential, 13 are farm and land. This is a decrease of 9 listings from the previous reporting period. There are 108 listings under contract. This number is 26 fewer than the previous period. There have been 13 closed sales duiring the period of Nov. 29 - Dec. 6, 2009, all of which were residential. This is 6 more closed transactions than in the previous period. For more information on Athens, GA or if you are interested in buying or selling your home there, please call me at 706-207-5290. Or you can click here to email me with your inquiries. To search for homes in Athens, please visit my website The Athens Real Estate ... 12/08/2009

Ok, sometimes I get a little crazy at Christmas... but I love light painting with the Christmas tree lights! Merry Christmas to All!   12/03/2009

In Athens -Clarke County, GA, for the week ending Nov. 29, 2009 the real estate market in Athens, Ga. looks like this: There are 1548 active listings of which 1272 are residential, 14 are farm and land. This is a decrease of 4 listings from the previous reporting period. There are 144 listings under contract. This number is 4 fewer than the previous period. There have been 7 closed sales duiring the period of Nov. 23 - Nov. 29, 2009, all of which were residential. This is 2 fewer closed transactions than in the previous period. For more information on Athens, GA or if you are interested in buying or selling your home there, please call me at 706-207-5290. Or you can click here to email me with your inquiries. To search for homes in Athens, please visit my website The Athens Real Estate... 12/02/2009

The average sales price for 4 bedroom homes in Athens, GA is approximately $205,862, according to a recent study by Coldwell Banker. Their annual Home Price Comparison Index suggests that Athens ranks 40th in affordability, when compared to the top 120 college markets in the U.S. Akron, Ohio was the most affordable market, and Palo Alto, California was the most expensive. The study cites lifestyle, culture and economic stability among the list of reasons college towns so popular with buyers. 11/23/2009

The following charts show the month to month residential real estate sales volume of the Greater Athens Ga metropolitan area for the months of June through September 2009. Chart 1 shows the trends for both the number of residential units sold and the average number of Days on Market (D.O.M.) for those units. After a two month trend downward, the sales volume rose slightly in October while the average D.O.M. decreased slightly after a two month increase. The total number of units sold in October was 112, up 6 units from September. D.O.M. fell to 197 days, down almost 3 weeks from the 215 days in September. Both are positive indicaters. Chart 1: The second chart is tracking both the average and the median price of residential sales in the greater Athens metropolitan area. The average pric... 11/16/2009

Most of us consider the upcoming holiday season to be a time for family, gift-giving and food. However, the Athens community has many families that dread the holiday season because they don’t have access to those same items that many of us take for granted. I have a huge heart for kids when it comes to charitable giving, because kids are usually products of their environment and have no means to better themselves. So, each holiday season, I adopt “Angels” from the Salvation Army. This program allows you to buy Christmas gifts (clothes, toys, etc) for a specific child that might otherwise not receive many, or any, gifts. The Salvation Army will provide their names and sizes, and you buy the gifts. If you enjoy shopping, you can sponsor a local child and dropoff at the local Salvation Arm... 11/13/2009

  October 2009 residential real estate sales volume in Athens - Clarke County, GA showed the first increase in the 12 month sliding sales volume for more than a year.  While only 2.8%, the increase is a postive sign that perhaps the Athens, GA market is stabilizing, if not improving. Also, as volume went up, the average Days on Market (D.O.M.) dropped by 4 days, another positive indicator. Both the average and median sales price of homes remainded flat from September, however, both the median and average prices are down just over 6% from a year ago.This is probably driven by two factors: 1) the number of foreclosures and short sales on the market; 2) first time homebuyers taking advantage of the $8000 tax credit. At the end of September there were 148 pending sales of residential prope... 11/09/2009

Both the house and senate have agreed to extend the $8000 first-time homebuyer tax credit through May 1st, 2010. In addition, ANY homeowner that’s lived in their home for 5 of the past 8 years can now also claim a $6,500 rebate as well. This is big news for those of us in the real estate community, as this credit seems to be the driving motivation behind a large percentage of recent home-buying decisions. Please let me know if you’re interested in more specific info on this credit, or if you’d like to take advantage of this incredible opportunity in the Athens, GA real estate market. 11/06/2009

  In Athens -Clarke County, GA, for the week ending Nov. 1, 2009 the real estate market in Athens, Ga. looks like this: There are 1563 active listings of which 1288 are residential, 16 are farm and land. This is increase of 5 listings from the previous reporting period. There are 148 listings under contract. This number is 13 fewer than the previous period. There have been 7 closed sales duiring the period of Oct. 26 - Nov. 1, 2009, all of which were residential. This is thesame number of closed transactions as in the previous period. For more information on Athens, GA or if you are interested in buying or selling your home there, please call me at 706-207-5290. Or you can click here to email me with your inquiries. To search for homes in Athens, please visit my website The Athens Real... 11/02/2009

This year's Halloween Havoc at the University of Georgia's hayfield on South Milledge Ave. in Athens, GA again attracted some talented student groups to compete with decorated hay bales. The UGA Cattlemen's Association sponsored the event for the second year as a fund raiser  for the winning group's favorite philanthropy and for the North Georgia Food Bank.   In spite of heave rain earlier in the week, the hay bales weathered the storm, so to speak, very well. Below are some of the best entries.   You be the judge, which one is the best?                                       H1N1 - GET IT?  (SWINE FLU)                                                         I CALL THIS ONE "BAT BALE"                                                                 BULL RIDER                             ... 10/31/2009

In Athens -Clarke County, GA, for the week ending Oct. 11, 2009 the real estate market looks like this: There are 1557 active listings of which 1287 are residential, 17 are farm and land. This is decrease of 6 listings from the previous reporting period. There are 161 listings under contract. This number is up 6 from the previous period. There have been 7 closed sales duiring the period of Oct. 5 - Oct. 11, 2009, all of which were residential. This is down 14 closed transactions from the previous period. For more information on Athens, GA or if you are interested in buying or selling your home there, please call me at 706-207-5290. Or you can click here to email me with your inquiries. To search for homes in Athens, please visit my website The Athens Real Estate Page. Note: All data is... 10/26/2009

Last Wednesday evening my wife and I went to one of our favorite local restaurants, Agua Linda, to get our fix of spicy Mexican food. We go there regularly and know the owners, manager and many of the staff by name and vice versa. As we walked in we heard mariachi music playing. We boththought we recognized the song but were surprised to realize that it was a mariachi version of the Beach Boys song, Kokomo, only with quitar, violin and trumpets. The singers were terrific and the musicians skilled. As we progressed through out meal we also realized that this was not traditional mariachi music that this band was playing. Kokomo was soon followed by a Beatles tune, some 50's and 60's standards, a bit of Sinatra and many other tunes that you would not expect to hear on mariachi night at a M... 10/26/2009

The following charts show the month my month sales volume of the Greater Athens metropolitan area for the months of June through September 2009.   Chart 1 shows the trends for both the number of residential units sold and the average number of Days on Market (D.O.M.) for those units. It appears that since the July peak, the number of residential sales has trended lower for the most recent two months while the D.O.M. has been trending higher.     Chart 1 The second chart is tracking both the average and the median price of residential sales in the greater Athens metropolitan area. Both the average and the median sales prices have stayed relatively flat during this period, which is somewhat good news.   Chart 2: The Greater Athens Metropolitan area, for this report, includes Athens-Clarke... 10/18/2009

The Athens Area Association of Realtors is entering 2 teams into this years 3 Day 60 Mile Walk supporting the Susan G Komen Foundation funding breast cancer research, education, screening and treatment. The walk will take place Oct. 23 - 25.   AAAR has set a goal of raising over $70,000 this year and we still need your support. The teams have been training for several months and are eager to go this weekend. Please go to http://www.the3day.org/goto/AAAR to find out about the teams and how you can support this effort. Thank you! 10/13/2009

In Athens -Clarke County, GA, for the week ending Oct. 11, 2009 the real estate market looks like this: There are 1557 active listings of which 1287 are residential, 17 are farm and land. This is decrease of 6 listings from the previous reporting period. There are 161 listings under contract. This number is up 6 from the previous period. There have been 7 closed sales duiring the period of Oct. 5 - Oct. 11, 2009, all of which were residential. This is down 14 closed transactions from the previous period. For more information on Athens, GA or if you are interested in buying or selling your home there, please call me at 706-207-5290. Or you can click here to email me with your inquiries. To search for homes in Athens, please visit my website The Athens Real Estate Page. Note: All data is... 10/13/2009

Numbers in the Athens, GA Real Estate market are down, but it could be worse, according to a recent report by Forbes Magazine. The study says that cities that are attracting the most new residents in this slow market are college towns because of the educated population and youthful nature of the area. In contrast, the areas that were cited as being the least desirable were Detroit (the obvious) and a few less obvious selections – New York, Chicago and Los Angeles.   10/08/2009

In Athens -Clarke County, GA, for the week ending Oct. 4, 2009 the real estate market looks like this: There are 1563 active listings of which 1296 are residential, 18 are farm and land. This is decrease of 14 listings from the previous reporting period. There are 155 listings under contract. This number is down 15 from the previous period. There have been 21 closed sales duiring the period of Sep 28 - Oct. 4, 2009, all of which were residential. This is up 9 closed transactions from the previous period. For more information on Athens, GA or if you are interested in buying or selling your home there, please call me at 706-207-5290. Or you can click here to email me with your inquiries. To search for homes in Athens, please visit my website The Athens Real Estate Page. Note: All data is... 10/06/2009

  In Athens -Clarke County, GA, for the week ending Sep 27, 2009 the real estate market looks like this: There are 1577 active listings of which 1315 are residential, 19 are farm and land. This is decrease of 2 listings from the previous reporting. There are 153 listings under contract. This number is down 8 from the previous period. There have been 5 closed sales duiring the period of Sep 14 - Sep 20, 2009, all of which were residential. This is down 2 closed transactions from the previous period. For more information on Athens, GA or if you are interested in buying or selling your home there, please call me at 706-207-5290. Or you can click here to email me with your inquiries. To search for homes in Athens, please visit my website The Athens Real Estate Page. Note: All data is taken... 09/29/2009