Ella Perry

Crown Communities, Augusta's fastest growing new home builder, is proud to announce their first new home neighborhood in Aiken County, South Carolina. Sage Creek is conveniently located off I-20, Exit 11, in Graniteville. Residents enjoy the central location between Augusta, GA and Aiken, SC, and Sage Creek also has a recreation park, street lights and walking trails for its homeowners to enjoy. If you're looking for a quality home at a great value -- and all the conveniences desired by today's active families -- Sage Creek is the perfect fit for you.

For a limited time, Crown is offering pre-construction pricing starting at only $50 per square foot. With 13 plans to choose from, ranging in size from 2550 HSF to almost 4150 HSF, you're sure to find the perfect home for you and your family at an unbelieveable price! Crown's pre-construction prices range from the $150s to low $200s. These homes are NOT stripped down homes with builder-grade or knock-off materials. Quality, name-brand products are used in all Crown homes. Crown's quality materials include GE appliances, Shaw and/or Mohawk carpets, Armstong flooring and cabinets, Magnolia windows, Tamco shingles, Cherokee brick, Lennox HVAC equipment, Rheem hot water heaters, Closet Maid shelving, Spurlin tubs, Sherwin Williams and Duron paint, and Bruce hardwood flooring. In addition, all Crown homes include a 2-10 QBW warranty backed by Liberty Mutual Insurance Company.

Crown's standard features are also above what many local builders include in their comparably priced homes. Crown's "standard features" list include granite countertops and stained cabinets in kitchen, full brick fronts with concrete siding on 3 sides, upgraded trim packages, wood-burning fireplaces in great room, upgraded appliance package, oversized owner suites (the Edward plan has over 880 HSF in its owner's bedroom!), fully sodded yards with integrated sprinkler system and much, much more! Crown also contributes up to $5000 toward Buyer's closing costs with one of its preferred lenders.

In addition to conventional, FHA and VA financing, buyers in Graniteville also may qualify for a USDA Rural Loan mortgage. These government-backed mortgage loans offer buyers 100 percent financing and no PMI. Interest rates and terms are similar to FHA loans.

Come out to Sage Creek today and pick out your lot and plan. Crown can build your quality dream home in 60 days or less.

For more information give Ella Perry, Licensed Realtor with Realty Executives and Crown's Site Executive a call at 706-399-6400. You may also visit CrownAiken.com or CrownGA.com to learn more.

Looking to buy a home in Georgia in the next 6 months? If you're a resident of the state or will be filing as a resident this year, you may qualify for up to $1,800 in additional tax credits spread out over the next three years!

Governor Purdue signed H.B. 261 on May 11, 2009, providing additional stimulus to the state's housing market. His goal in signing this legislation includes putting people to work, reducing the inventory of unsold homes, and kick starting the state's economy. "The housing tax credit is a strategic investment that strikes at the root of this economic downturn...Families interested in buying a home will now have an additional incentive to act," stated the Governor.

To qualify for the credit, the home needed to be listed for sale on or before May 11, 2009 and is still for sale after May 11, 2009 -- or the home was in the process of foreclosure proceedings as of March 1, 2009, or is owned by a mortgage company or REO (real estate owned) company or agent.

The $1,800 tax credit is available to first-time homebuyers (who are also eligible for a federal tax credit up to $8,000), as well as repeat homeowners. Therefore, if you are under contract to buy a home in Georgia -- irregardless of whether it is your first home or your third home -- and will close on this home on or after June 1, and the home you're buying was listed for sale on or before May 11 (or in foreclosure as of March 1), you may qualify for the state tax credit.

The amount of the credit will be the lesser of $1,800 or 1.2 percent pf the purchase price. If you purchase a home at $100,000, you qualify for $1,200, rather than the full $1,800. A Georgia taxpayer will claim one-third of the credit available in each taxable year, and may carry forward unclaimed amounts.

The real estate tax credit expires on November 30, 2009 -- same as the federal tax credit -- so homeowners must close on a home prior to the deadline to qualify.

When filing for the tax credit, homeowners will need to provide proof that the home met the criteria of being in foreclosure or was listed for sale on or before May 11.

For more information on the Housing Tax Credit Bill, please refer to GA House Bill 261, and always consult your financial advisor or accountant to verify that you qualify.

Many of my military homeowners stationed at Ft. Gordon, GA, are concerned about the flat real estate market in the Augusta area because they know they will be receiving orders in the coming months to PCS to another duty station. Some already have left the area, with a savings account significantly lighter since they were forced to write a check at closing just to sell the property. Others have made the decision to rent their homes for the next year or two in hopes the market will recover and they will eventually be able to sell their home and free up their VA certificate so they can purchase a home again.

Although the Augusta real estate market has fared reasonably well during the current economic downturn, the majority of our homeowners are no longer watching their homes increase in value annually. Gone are the days when you could reasonably expect your home to sell for approximately 6 percent more next year than this year. For the past two years, most homes in the Greater Augusta area -- from North Augusta to Evans to Hephzibah -- are worth about the same in 2009 as they were in 2007. And in some pockets of the community, these homes may be worth slightly less. Thankfully, we have not experienced the major pricing correction that other nearby cities have suffered. We certainly did not see our market and home values decline as it did in Atlanta.

For some, the option of renting is a possible solution -- at least for a year or two, in anticipation the real estate market will start to grow again soon. For others, renting their home is not an option. In our market, the current market's rental rates will not always cover the total cost of the mortgage loan, increased insurance costs, HOA fees and miscellaneous funds (such as setting up a repair or maintenance budget). As a result, these families may find themselves "between a rock and hard place."

Thankfully, the Stimulus Bill included some relief for these military homeowners experiencing hardship as a result of the mortgage crisis. The "Homeowners Assistance Fund" program will reimburse those military families who lose money on a home sale due to a forced relocation. You must have purchased a home before July 1, 2006 (an arbitrary date that supposedly signals with home values peaked nationally). According to The Washington Post, some $555 million has been earmarked for the Secretary of Defense to acquire title to a military person's property or reimburse the soldier for losses after a private sale or foreclosure. The program guidelines are currently being written for the disbursement of these funds.

Details on the program are expected soon and those interested in reading more about the program, should visit the following website: http://hap.usace.army.mil/

God Bless Those Who Serve and Protect Our Country and Our Freedoms ...

Ella Perry