Here’s more evidence that the housing market is recovering.
Two major home builders, Toll Brothers Inc. and Hovnanian Enterprises Inc., say their losses were shrinking compared to
last year because buyers are coming back to the market.
Other encouraging news came from IHS Global Insight, a research firm, which said home prices fell on average at an
annual rate of 2.2 percent in the first quarter in 199 of 330 metropolitan areas. That compares with a 12.5 percent decline
in the fourth quarter of 2008 in 312 metropolitan areas.
"While it's too early to see a bottom of this housing downturn," the report said, the latest data "may signal that the market
is beginning to stabilize."
Source: The Wall Street Journal, James R. Hagerty and John Spence (06/04/2009)
ranks Franklin, TN as the 45th Best Place to live in the Top 100 Best Places to live. I love my home town!!! If you are thinking of a relocation, Franklin, TN is one of the best places to live and work. Job growth from 2000-2007 showed a growth percentage of 32.14% verses 18.72% Best Places average. Read more great statistics and information here.
Life in my town is great. I am very blessed to live in Historic Downtown Franklin, 
a bedroom community of Nashville, TN. This week I determined to notice each day my enjoyment of living in such a great small town American city, yet so close to a cosmopolitan city, The Third Coast as Nashville is nicknamed for its number of musicians. Here are a few of the reasons life here is so great: I can walk just 2 blocks to my local Starbucks and see friends and celebrities like Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban. I enjoy breakfast several days a week at Merridees with family and friends that I only see at this wonderful pastry establishment. I can hop in the car for a hip night on the town in Nashville (less than 30 minutes away) where I can dine in great restaurants and then travel a couple of blocks to hear an awesome jazz band like Adam Nitti and his band in a local venue. I can walk my dog down main street in the evening just before retiring for the night and speak to total strangers like they were neighbors. And just this morning my soul was warmed as I heard and do hear several days a week, the church bells of the two historic churches just up the street.
So what about you and your town? Tell me why you love, like or dislike your home town.
Healthcare real estate developer First Colony Healthcare announced today their anchor tenant for the 45,000 square foot medical office building in Thompson's Station, Tenn., at the Tollgate Village development. The newly formed joint venture between Saint Thomas Health Services and Williamson Medical Center will utilize 30,000 square feet of the building as a new center for medical services for southern Williamson County.
Tollgate Village is located 30 minutes south of Nashville in Williamson County, Tollgate Village is
a 360-acre community designed to provide a small-town feel with luxury homes,
condominiums, and nearby retail shops, restaurants and parks.
The Tollgate Village Medical Pavilion will begin construction in March and is
slated for completion in late 2008. Adjacent to the medical office building
will be approximately 21,000 square feet of retail in 3 buildings fronting
Tollgate Boulevard.
O’More College of Design and
Sister Cities of Franklin & Williamson County present Celebration
of Nations: the world in our backyard. This unique festival, held on
March 8, will include global vendors with authentic art, crafts,
furniture, pottery, food items, tobacco, textiles, and jewelry for sale
or for display. There will also be a variety of cultural performances
ranging from Native American dancing to martial arts demonstrations to
musical performances. The celebration will include a “Global Café”
serving international cuisine from a variety of cultures.
Funds raised from the festival will directly support O’More student scholarships to study abroad and other educational initiatives of the Sister City Board.
If you would like to be a part of this important event, there are several participation levels for vendors. There is no fee for groups wishing to perform.
For more information please contact Lauren Elrod at O’More College of Design or call 615-483-2455.
Home listings close the the square grow in price, popularity
By Cathi Aycock
For Williamson AM
How hot is the residential real estate market for historic downtown Franklin? Ask any real estate professional, developer or homeowner. Residential property available in the two-mile radius from Five Points in downtown Franklin is always red hot on the residential radar.
"The allure is living within walking distance to downtown. We live in a community that is so unlike any other. Franklin has managed to preserve the downtown area in a way that is really unique. So, of course, we have clients who say they only want to live in this area,"says Matt Ligon with Shirley Zeitlin and Co. But Ligon is quick to point out that the term "Historic Franklin" does not mean your hosue will be historic. "I have lived in old houses all my life. I mean like 1800s old. Now my wife and I live in a home built in the 1930s. People ask me if I like living in an old home, but to me, it isn't really all that old."
According to Ligon, three main types of residential property are available to buyers in the downtown Franklin area: histori, infill and simply od and charming. "You have amazing historic homes, built in the 1800s. You have charming bungalows. Some are fixer uppers. And then you have infill, property that has been built fairly new, and made to fit in the existing environment."
Ligon says almost everyone has a different definition of hisoric.
The neighbors wanted to have the house condemned. But Jackie Braitman knew the home in Takoma Park, Md., had potential. When it came on the market, listed for sale "as-is," she pounced, picking it up for about $550,000. Three years — and a complete renovation — later she is selling the house for more than twice that.Is that "as-is" home listing you spotted hiding a bargain or a disaster?
To figure out what you're looking at, you have to figure out what "as-is" means. "If you ask 10 different people —including a judge — you'll get 10 different answers," said Irene Lindner, a real estate lawyer in the District of Columbia.
But generally when a property is sold as-is, that means the seller makes no warranties or representations about its condition and will not pay for repairs of even obvious defects, such as a wet basement or termite-gnawed floor joists. In Braitman's house, one whole side looked as if it were about to fall off, the kitchen was a wreck and plaster was crumbling everywhere.
For more click here!
Mary Ellen Slayter
The Washington Post
By Jeanne Lee
Fortune Small Business
Under IRS Rules, you can invest your IRA in real estate or in the fortunes of other small0business owners and defer taxes on your gains. Here are some examples.
You Can Invest In:
You Can't Invest In:
By Jeanne Lee
Fortune Small Business
Last November, Dave Hanrahan, 37, of Vineland, N.J. decided to try something different to improve returns in his retirement account. Rather than putting the money into the latest hot stock or biotech fund, Hanrahan used $60,000 in his self-directed IRA to purchase a small residential building lot. Thirty days later he flipped it for a tidy profit. Ordinarily such a move would result in a capital gains tax. But because the property was held by his IRA, Hanrahan will owe no tax on the gain until decades from now when he starts taking distributions on the account. "otherwise I would have paid about 30% tax on the sale" he says.
Surprised that the IRS allows this type of transaction? You're not alone. Your probably already know that you can buy stock through a self-directed IRA at a brokerage firm. But many don't realize that it's perfectly within IRS rules--and actually has been since the code for IRA's was first written in 1974--to buy real estate and private equities with IRA money. In fact, as long as you watch out for what the IRS calls "prohibited transactions", almost any type of investment is permitted, from a house to a Hollywood film to stock in a startup company--with the exception of collectibles (such as artwork and jewelry), life insurance, and the stock of S-corporations. The good news is that these less-common IRA investments enjoy the same tax benefits on gains that you'll get from investing in mutual funds, stocks, and bonds. Should you take a loss, however, you can't write it off.
