DeWayne Davis - Suwanee Real Estate Agent

Are you a first-time homebuyer? Don't be too quick to answer that question, because you might be very surprised to find out that you actually are a first-time homebuyer. The correct answer to this question could actually qualify you for up to $7,500 (interest-free loan) from Uncle Sam.

Before I go any further, let me clearly disclose that I am not an expert tax or financial adviser so after reading this short post you may need to consult a professional tax adviser before proceeding.

Now, are you really a first-time homebuyer? Well according the federal government and the Internal Revenue Service, you qualify as a first-time homebuyer if you meet the following definition:

This means that first-time homebuyers and those who have not owned a home in the three years prior to a purchase can qualify for the credit. IRS Website FAQ Link

So, if you (and/or your spouse) have not owned a home during the last three years, then you qualify as a first-time homebuyer and are eligible for the new Tax Credit of up to $7500 if you purchase a home before July 1, 2009. This definition may include many different families who under various circumstances have NOT purchased or owned a home during the past three years. The family may have relocated and have been renting a home for the past three years while deciding where, when and how to purchase a new home. Individuals or families may have gone through some life change circumstances which have prevented them from purchasing or owning a home during the last three years, such as divorce, financial or medical struggles, unstable employment, etc. For these individuals, as well as individuals who have never purchased a home, the new Tax Credit program can offer an additional financial benefit to purchasing a home along with today's lower-priced homes and lower mortgage interest rates. Please note that in my opening paragraph I referred to the Tax Credit as an "interest-free loan," because this is money that does have to be paid back to the federal government over the next fifteen years without any interest. (i.e. - $500/year for 15 years = $7500)

Don't let the words "first-time" cause you to ignore a potentially great opportunity!

Original post on GwinnettDwellings.com

Construction began early this week on the new pedestrian crosswalk connecting Town Center Park and the Old Historic Suwanee area. This crossing over the busy Buford Highway just south of the Suwanee Dam Road intersection will be equipped with a new state-of-the-art pedestrian HAWK crossing signal (High-intensity Activated Crosswalk).

Pedestrian HAWK Signal System

This system allows for safe pedestrian crossing only when needed without restricting or interrupting normal traffic flow when pedestrians are not present. Solid black traffic signals are mounted horizontally over the street, but the high-intensity lights are not powered on unless activated by the pedestrian switch. Once activated the lights flash YELLOW then solid RED to stop traffic while the pedestrian crosses, then the lights go black again. The HAWK system’s initial installation in Tucson, Arizona has been highly successfully. Suwanee’s installation will be the first in the state of Georgia and should prove to be a tremendous compliment to the, soon-to-be-finished, tunnel beneath the railroad tracks which provides a direct pedestrian connection between Old Historic Suwanee and Town Center Park.

Let’s take a walk to the other side of the tracks!

Residents will now be able to travel by foot directly between Town Center Park and the attractions of Old Downtown such as the library, Playtown Suwanee and historic main street shops. Walkability is one of the increasingly important factors in attractive, sustainable development, and Suwanee is striving to address this important future need for all residents while maintaining its historic nature.

Original post at SuwaneeDwellings.com on 1/16/09

Everyone knows that the most important factor in real estate is "Location, Location, Location." Even the most novice person on the streets has heard this well-known saying for years and years. As simple as it sounds, the reason this saying is so widely known and applied when discussing real estate is because the statement is TRUE and always has been.

Well, it has always been applicable until 2008, when suddenly it appears that all real estate can be discussed on a nationwide basis and lumped together as a single unified commodity. The truth is, and I understand that I'm preaching to the choir for the most part, there is no national housing market. The "national housing market" being discussed and lamented for the past several months is actually made up of thousands of very "real" individual neighborhood markets in your communities and mine, where the true market values should be and normally are determined by, you guessed it......Location, Location, Location.

Now, I am not ignorant enough to think that our economy does not have serious problems or that the real estate industry is not suffering from mistakes made during the boom years of easy loans and soaring demand. I know that the high number of foreclosures, short-sales and bank-owned properties have a tremendous impact on neighborhood markets, and has drawn attention at a national level. However, I do believe that the overwhelming fear and lack of confidence has been increased by misrepresenting the problem with a constant barrage of news on declining "national housing" prices. The truth is most of us will suffer to some degree during these challanging times and many will suffer more than others, but it also true that some bold individuals will flourish because they make wise choices and take courageous risks based on the actual conditions in their specific location, not based on national averages.

Part of our role as real estate professionals is to help communicate to the public and educate the public that real estate is local, has always been local and will always be local. The news about the market in another part of the country does not universally apply in our communities. It is our role to find out what the market is doing in our specific community. This may require us to focus even more intensely on even smaller segments of our communities....even down to neighborhood levels.

We need to be able to accurately advise our clients, buyers and sellers, on their realistic options. In today's market, those options may not always be in our immediate best interest, as agents, for all neighborhoods, but in the long term we will all benefit from a market that operates on the best local information and facts. The challenges and opportunities are all unique to the location.

We still buy and sell real estate based on Location, Location, Location. In fact, one of the first questions agents ask of their buyers is, "Where are you interested in living?"

On Saturday, October 18th, residents of Suwanee and all surrounding areas will have the opportunity to sample fantastic food from over 30 different restaurants at the 2nd Annual Taste of Suwanee. The festival is expected to attract over 6,000 hungry, fun-loving people to Town Center Park to enjoy an afternoon sampling appetizers, entrees and desserts from the menus of some of their favorite areas restaurants, as well as many other restaurants yet to be discovered. The food theme continues with culinary demonstrations by the Kroger Cooking School's infamous Chef John.

For the sports fans, music fans and youngsters interested in taking a break from eating, there will be plenty of other entertaining distractions. Dish Networks will have a tent fully-equipped to air college football games for the football fanatics attending the event. The Kids Zone will be filled with new, improved inflatable activity centers to entertain children of all ages with fun games and lots of bouncing. The amphitheater stage will host live music and performances throughout the afternoon to suit a variety of "tastes." As festival-goers move from one restaurant to another throughout the park, they will be able to visit with various business "Community Partners" and purchase arts and crafts from local in the Artist Market area.

Event benefits the North Gwinnett High School Tip-Off Club.

Admission is Free! Tickets to sample food and enjoy the activities in the Kid Zone are 50 cents each. Each food sample or activity cost 1-6 tickets.

The best options for Free Parking are located offsite at the Suwanee Public Library and Shadowbrook Baptist Church with free shuttles (11:30-5:30) running from the park to the church and library.

Original post at SuwaneeDwellings.com

The rising gas prices and wavering economy has caused most people to adjust many of their normal everyday routines. One of the daily routines is commuting to work, and many people in Gwinnett County have given up their personal vehicle commute for public transportation. According to data from the Gwinnett County Transit (GCT) director, Phil Boyd, the monthly ridership rose 26.4% between March and July of this year for the express transit routes between Gwinnett and downtown Atlanta (74,883 riders in July versus 59,249 in March).

Over the next 9 months, the seven-year old GCT system will retire 35 of the old compressed natural gas fueled buses to be replaced by an equal number of larger clean diesel fuel buses with 69% greater seating capacity. These new buses will expand the county's express route seating capacity from park-n-ride locations in Buford, Norcross and the Discover Mills mall transporting commuters to various locations in downtown Atlanta, in addition to three other express routes GCT runs for the Georgia Regional Transportation Authority (GRTA) from Discover Mills mall and park-n-ride locations in Snellville. More local commuters are learning to enjoy the comfort of the buses along with the more consistent, reliable commute times provided by using the I-85 HOV lanes to beat the unpredictable, yet consistently heavy, Atlanta traffic each day.

Original post at GwinnettDwellings.com