Lilburn, GA

I recently took some buyers out looking at houses in an area with a lot of bankrupt subdivisions. The houses were, in many cases, quite attractive and priced very competitively.

But there are a lot of considerations that buyers need to weigh before buying a home in a subdivision where the developer has gone out of business...

We'll start with the dangers...

• The amenities may not be complete... and they may NEVER be complete. If you are buying a property because of the pool or tennis facilities, and those items aren't there, they might never be built.
• There is NO telling what might be built on the currently vacant lots... The bank that gets control of the lots wants to SELL them. And they likely aren't going to quiz the buyer as to their plans for the neighborhood. Your 5,000 square foot home could get a 2,500 square foot neighbor.
• Warranties may just fly out of the window... Defunct builders won't be around to honor warranties, and the bank that sells the property isn't going to warrant the builders work. Also, since the builder may have had financial pressures while the were building the homes, the quality might be challenged.
• Important items like HOAs and CCRs might not have been assembled... This can be remediated by the residents... maybe. The residents can form a Home Owners Association (HOA) and put together Community Covenants and Restrictions (CCR), but depending on the local laws, might require 100% of current residents to enact.
• The community might have a stigma... from having been bankrupt. This could affect future resale value... especially if the community isn't built out completely.

But there can be a reward...

• Price... That is the real draw. One might be able to buy in a community and type of house that could otherwise be unattainable.
• Opportunity for appreciation... If the neighborhood turns the corner and gets built out appropriately, the reward could be higher than average price appreciation. Buying under-priced property and then selling at market is a good business decision.

Do the math!

While searching for a home, make sure that the home meets your needs... and the neighborhood meets your needs... AS IT IS. Also, don't forget to weigh the risks. What if smaller homes are built in the neighborhood? What if there are no amenities? What if the guy next door is able to build a tar-paper shed in the back yard?

For some buyers, these properties represent a GREAT value. For others, they represent a big risk. By honestly examining lifestyle and options, one can determine if a home in a bankrupt subdivision is a good value for them.

from LaneBailey.com

That's right...

Buyers are looking at homes, and they still have a choice.

Don't get me wrong, there is competition among Buyers for some homes, but the competition goes both ways.

Buyers that don't snap up the deal fast enough might find that they lose it to another Buyer. And Sellers that don't accept solid offers might find that they lose the Buyer to another Home (Seller).

from Lane's "other" blog...

I just got the confirmation from Corey at Garner Creek at Parkview. We are going to be presenting a seminar and discussion about Active Rain, blogging and Social Networking at GarnerCreek at Parkview in Lilburn on Thursday, August 27th.

The program will start at 11:00am, and lunch will follow at Noon.

I'm pretty excited. This was one of the first things I thought about when I entered the Ambassador Program here at Active Rain. There is so much great information here, and getting the word out has been a priority for me for a long time.

I have often referred to blogging at the centerpiece of a solid Social Networking plan, and I think that Active Rain is a great place to do that blogging.

We'll only have about an hour, and I want to make sure that there is plenty of time for questions... So, here is what we are going to cover:

• Why blog?
• Why Active Rain?
• How can we incorporate blogging and Active Rain into a comprehensive social Media plan?
• What other Social Networking sites should we consider a presence in?

We will also be talking a little about WordPress, FaceBook, YouTube, Flickr, Twitter and some of the tools that we can use to make all of these things easier to integrate.

Directions to Garner Creek at Parkview

Take 285 to Hwy 78 E, Exit onto Hugh Howell Road and follow the loop under 78; Turn RIGHT at first light (Lilburn – Stone Mountain Road); Turn RIGHT at next light (Old Stone Mountain Road; becomes Five Forks Trickum); Turn LEFT at second light onto Garner Road; Turn RIGHT onto Irwin Court WELCOME TO GARNER CREEK AT PARKVIEW

1145 Morgan Garner Drive is on the right corner after you pass through the gates.

*****Here is the follow-up post.*****

The "Lunch Lady" did NOT have an easy job.

One of the reasons that I embarked on my career in real estate is that I wanted to be able to spend more time IN the lives of my children. And today has definitely been a rung in that ladder. I volunteered to help the small kids with lunch at Arcado Elementary School in Lilburn, GA.

Basically, the kindergartners need a little wrangling as they go through the lunch line. And it is kind of like herding cats... cats that don't really know what they want to eat, but have a plethora of choices in front of them... and, since they are cats kindergartners, they can't read.

Which led me to a few thoughts...

First, though, let me quickly run through the options for today:

• Milk
• Skim Milk
• Chocolate Milk
• Strawberry Milk
• Water
• Orange Juice

• Peas
• Carrots
• Rice

• Applesauce
• Pear

• Peanut Butter and Jelly
• Veggie Wrap
• Veggie Burger
• Ravioli w/Roll
• Nachos w/cheese and meat
  

Basically, the kids had a choice to make in each one of those groupings. And for a kindergartner, that is a LOT of choices. So, while working lunch for the kids at Arcado Elementary School, the challenge is to get the kids to make a decision in a timely manner. And a lot of the kids aren't ready for that kind of pressure.

As Parents, we can fix that!

To start with, we need to train our children to be able to make good decisions. We can do that by allowing them to make choices (from approved possibilities) when we can observe them. Let them pick what they want for dinner when we go out to eat. Let them decide what they might want for lunch on the weekends. Let them decide between good choices... We don't open it up to anything, but we will give some limited choices for our kindergartner to pick from.

The next thing we can do is to coach our kids. Everyone studies for tests... why not help them study for this as well. We sit down with our child each evening and talk about the lunch choices for the next day. In the morning, while waiting for the bus, we try to talk about it again. In both cases, it is a low pressure environment (some strange Mom or Dad isn't asking the question while the line backs up).

In order to help accomplish the goals, you can reference Nutri-Cafe on the web. I should mention that there are often choices that seem to show up in the line that aren't shown in Nutri-Cafe, and there might be some that are in Nutri-Cafe that won't be available at school... but at least it is a good idea. Arcado Elementary School and other local schools might run out of, or have left-overs of, a specific item.

And one more thing...

Volunteering at school is a great way to see what your child's day is like. You won't be hovering (you will actually be pretty busy), so you can watch from across the room as your child interacts with peers. It is a great way to help out the school, get a better glimpse into your child's life away from home and to also see what challenges your child might face that you never thought about... I know that I never thought about the issues my son could face in trying to decide about lunch. I know that the Arcado Elementary School PTA would be thrilled to have the help... especially from us Dads.

Back a few months ago, my neighbor had a large tree come down in his yard. Several of us came out to give him a hand.

To start with, the tree needed to get out of the street. And then it needed to get down to a managable size to deal with. In all, I think there were four or five chainsaws running until things were cleaned up.

When I started, my chain was dull... Like "I wish I could be sharp like a butter knife" dull. DULL. I needed to take care of that.

I dropped into Total Power, picked up a new chain and left the old one to be sharpened. I got to say hello to more than one of my neighbors that was doing the same thing. In fact, folks that had trees down all over the Lilburn, GA area were there getting chains sharpened, getting new saws or picking up other supplies.

I had been in a big box store a few days before to pick up a spare chain... I would have to order it, wait a few days... When I walked into my neighborhood power equipment store, they turned around and grabbed it off the wall.

Lawn mowers, chainsaws, blowers, pole trimmers (those are really cool...) and so many other tools, their accessories, parts and services are what they are about. The prices are good, and the service is excellent.

When you need a chainsaw... you NEED a chainsaw. Knowing that there is someone nearby that can get you fired up and cutting if there is a problem is priceless...