Sharon Cobb

According to The Transylvania Times, Vol. 123, No. 67, August 20 addition, and the August addition of Backpacker Magazine, Asheville, NC is ranked #11 and Brevard, NC is ranked #20 as a great place to 'raise an outdoor kid'. Factors in Brevard included close proximity to the Pisgah National Forest, Brevard Music Center, environmental studies at Brevard College, and numerous summer camps. In addition, the undergoing construction of the new bike/hike trail that will allow users to hike/bike from Brevard to the national forest and back was a consideration. Also a 400-plus acre park is in the planning stages behind the Brevard Music Center that will also encompase many outdoor activities for children of all ages.

Depending on which source you consult, many real estate markets reached bottom in January through March and prices are beginning to stabilize. Foreclosures and bankruptcies have also reached a plateau although they're still continuing. In addition, because of huge government debt, the government printing presses are running at full speed and the forecast is for inflation.....

Inflation is a two-edged sword. Obviously, your dollar's buying power goes down. It costs more to get less.... However, we haven't quite started full-swing inflation yet. So with housing prices at all time lows in many areas, real estate is always a good investment in times of inflation. If you've been waiting to buy or invest in a home or property, it seems like now is the time. Especially if it's your first purchase (or you haven't owned a home in the last three years), you might want to take advantage of the $8000 first-time home buyer tax credit before it goes away.

If you get in the market now, your real estate investments will most likely once again begin to rise in value. You can take advantage of low prices, low interest rates, and you'll most assuredly start seeing a profit again on your investment in the future. The economy is always in a state of flux. Historically, whatever goes down must go back up and vice versa. Forget all those gloom-and-doom naysayers, think positively, and look at this economic climate as a positive opportunity.

So what are you waiting for buyers? Now is a great time to get in the market at an opportune moment before its too late.

About a year ago, all of the real estate directional signs on a major roadway near my home were removed..... At the time I thought the NC DOT was responsible since it was a state road and technically, in NC, you must ask permission to post a directional sign in someone's yard or roadway..... And I think it might actually NOT be legal to post signs on the right-of-way portion of a state road.... (Unless you're running for political office, of course....)

So last night, being a Friday, once again, all of the signs were removed from not only the major state road, but on side roads leading to my home as well. I had one directional sign posted on what I thought was a safe corner for a client. But the sign was lying there without the metal post..... My instant thought was to think that teenage pranksters had been playing games and had pulled up all the signs for some weird kind of thrill.... However, I realized that all of the metal parts of the signs were missing, not the actual signs. Some of the damaged signs actually required removal of various bolts and screw parts.

So at this point, I'm thinking that there is aluminum and steel to be had for the taking to make money to sell at a recycling station. I realize that the economy is bad, blah blah blah. But can you really make that much money selling metal stakes and sign frames? Has anyone experienced a same occurence? Do you think its a sign of the times or just a prank? I don't know. It has me puzzled......

I recently watched Jack Nicholson and Morgan Freeman in the movie 'The Bucket List'. I'm not getting any younger and I've got a number of things I hope to see, do, accomplish before I kick off this bucket.....

One of those things I can now cross off my list is to see B.B. King, one of my all time favorites in the music world. I saw him live at the Biltmore House in Asheville, NC, on August 8th. It was a memorable night that I will never forget. B.B. is 82 years young and is still going strong. Although he had to be helped on and off the stage, he is still amazing and true in his voice, guitar playing, and story telling. And to be sitting there, watching the beautiful WNC sun go down on the lawn of the Biltmore House, and then to see B.B. in person actually brought me to tears during the entire performance.

I live in Brevard, NC, so besides waterfalls and white squirrels, I moved there because of the stellar musical community that it is. Brevard College is now an official '4-year liberal arts college' but has been a major performing arts school since its inception. The Paul Porter Center features seasonal schedules of everything from the Russian Chamber Orchestra to Ricky Skaggs and Kentucky Thunder. Brevard Music Center features live performances throughout the summer season - only then since the performance is outdoors - I love to watch the bats scooping up bugs under the lights! More about this later.....Just one of the many things I love about this area that is like no other.