Deidre Berry, Realtor ~ Florence, Alabama

When looking for a new home, we all want to know about the area where we might be moving, right? We want to know about the neighborhoods and if they meet our needs. We want to know about the crime statistics and about the schools.

"What's the neighborhood like?" is a question I am asked frequently as a real estate agent in Florence, Alabama - especially from out of town clients. As much as I would like to answer that question...guess what? I can't. I have no way of knowing why you are asking and federal law (The Fair Housing Act) prohibits me - and all Realtors - from discriminating in any way based on race, color, national origin, religion, sex, familial status, or handicap.

There are a few things that you can do to find out about neighborhoods in Florence, Alabama and the Shoals area. Here are some suggestions:

> Go out for a drive! Take a look at the neighborhood during different times of day. Talk to the people that live in the neighborhood.


> You can find demographic information online at the United States Census site, or ZIPskinny which provides information by city or zip code.


> Sex offenders are listed by city and zip code at the Alabama Dept. of Public Safety website.


> For school information, search the Alabama Dept. of Education website or go to School Data Direct to search by school or district.


> The local police are there to help - contact them and ask about crime in a particular neighborhood. The Florence, AL Police Dept. Annual Report for 2007 charts the crime statistics for Florence.


> For more information about the Florence, AL area and other helpful links, go to my website.

So, I may not be able to answer the question, but now you have some resources that might help!

Deidre Berry
Email: deidre@HomesOfTheShoals.com
Web: http://HomesOfTheShoals.com

Search for Florence, AL homes for sale

The idea for this post came from Brian Block -- Northern Virginia & D.C. Real Estate. Thank you!

My goal is to keep you, the consumer, updated on the real estate market trends in Florence, AL and the Shoals area. Each month I will be spotlighting the previous month's sales history and giving you a comparison with the prior year.

September did show a slight decrease in the number of homes sold. Properties are staying on the market a little longer, some buyers are finding it harder to be approved for a mortgage and the media has everyone thinking that the sky is going to fall! However, don't believe everything you hear! The Shoals area market overall is holding steady.

To get started, Aug. and Sept. 2008 statistics are shown below. The best comparisons are the same months by year (example: compare Aug. 2007 with Aug. 2008). Comparing consecutive months may be misleading due to variations depending on the time of year, current events, etc.

Florence, AL Home Sales (including the Shoals area)
Aug. & Sept. 2008

All information taken from the Shoals Area MLS as of Friday, Oct. 3, 2008.
Information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed.

In the Times Daily on Sept. 28, 2008, an article titled "Shoals Avoiding Crisis" quoted Joan Baltes, an economics professor at Northwest Shoals Community College, as saying:

"In the state of Alabama, we're not comparatively in that economic decline." She goes on to say, "Our housing market never got overinflated like in other sections of the United States. What goes up, must come down." Baltes gives credit to local real estate agents for not trying to manipulate the local market and keeping homes reasonably priced.

Come back next month for a look at October's home sales!

Deidre Berry
Email: deidre@HomesOfTheShoals.com
Web: http://HomesOfTheShoals.com

Florence AL Homes for Sale

Collin Raye was in Florence this past Thursday evening for a performance to raise funds for Brooks Elementary, a local school in Killen.  For those of you that did not see him, you missed quite a treat! 

I have to admit that I almost didn't go...it was a school night (kids had to study for tests), I had a closing late in the day (not complaining about that!), the day had been hectic, no one had eaten dinner...you know how it goes.  But my girls got some studying done and I found a little more energy, so the whole family decided to grab some fast food and head to the Florence Coliseum - and I'm glad we did.

Florence doesn't usually have a lot of "big" concerts.  At $20/person, I thought this was a good deal.  There are not many times that you'll get to see a well-known country artist at that price!  The Coliseum is a smaller venue; as a result, all of the seats were good and it was much more personal than a huge arena.  Mr. Raye performed many of his hits, including one of my favorites, "Love, Me". 

One of the highlights of his performance was a song called "Quitters" that left many with tears in their eyes, including Mr. Raye.  

Quitters lyrics - Collin Raye lyrics

Quitters Video - Collin Raye Music Videos

Music Videos by VideoCure

As you can see from the video, the song is about those with special needs.  There were kids in the audience that gathered around the stage as he sang to them...some in wheelchairs, some held by parents, some on their own.  It was very touching. 

The evening wasn't complete without Mr. Raye singing "Sweet Home Alabama".  Now that I've lived in Alabama for a while, I've come to find out that this a must for any singer performing here!  The house was standing on their feet - Roll Tide Roll! 

It was an evening of good, clean, family friendly entertainment.  Thank you, Collin Raye! 

Deidre Berry
Email: deidre@HomesOfTheShoals.com
Web: http://HomesOfTheShoals.com

Florence, AL Homes for Sale

As mentioned in my previous post "It's Not All Gloom and Doom", the real estate market in Florence Alabama and the Shoals area has seen very gradual and modest growth. Here is a look back over the last 5 years at the real estate market in the Shoals (including Florence). Statistics were taken from the Shoals Area MLS.

As of Sept. 25, 2008, the average sold price is $133,500 and there have been 1215 homes sold in the Shoals area.

Deidre Berry
Email: deidre@HomesOfTheShoals.com
Web: http://HomesOfTheShoals.com

Homes for Sale in Florence, AL

Guess what? The real estate market isn't bad everywhere. The media reminds me of my 13 & 14 yr. old daughters who tend to exaggerate with statements like "EVERYONE got a bad grade on the test" (like that's going to excuse their bad grade!) or "ALL of my friends have a cell phone" (my girls are going to have to wait a little longer).

The media needs to take a look at some of the real estate markets that are actually doing well...like real estate in Florence, Alabama.

We have seen very gradual and modest growth in the Florence, AL real estate market over the last few years. Yes, it's now taking a little longer for homes to sell and we have seen more foreclosures, but overall things are good! Of course, we didn't have the dramatic spike in prices that many areas of the country had before the bottom dropped out either.

According to an article in the Times Daily, statistics from the Alabama Center for Real Estate show that the Muscle Shoals region is ranked first in the state's smaller markets for the greatest stability in home sales for the year to date. This would include homes for sale in Florence, Alabama and the rest of the Shoals area.

So...if the media would stop exaggerating and applying the bad real estate market to "EVERYONE", maybe we could hear more good news instead of all the gloom and doom. I'm ready...how about you?

Deidre Berry
Email: deidre@HomesOfTheShoals.com
Web: http://HomesOfTheShoals.com

Homes for Sale in Florence, AL