New Home Permits Favorable for Forsyth and Milton

Forsyth County and city of Milton planning and development officials say their area has seen an overall positive outlook when it comes to new home permits...both showing increases over last year.


In the case of residential permits, they include detached homes, apartments or townhomes.


In Milton, commercial numbers for building permits dropped off significantly from 2010 to this year, however residential spiked. New homes got a small bump, but the real jump in construction came from additions and extensions of current homes, including pools and garages.

Why Choose a Keller Williams Agent?

In our experience, a home isn't a dream home because of its room dimensions. It's about how you feel when you walk through the front door - the way you can instantly envision your life unfolding there.

This is about more than real estate. It's about your life and your dreams. It's important that the agent you choose to guide you through this journey is your trusted expert and advocate.

What's different about a Keller Williams agent?

Knowledge
Keller Williams agents stay ahead of trends, tools and topics in the real estate industry through their access to Keller Williams University. The comprehensive industry-leading training curriculum prepares our agents to serve you at the highest level.

Teamwork
Unlike other real estate companies, Keller Williams Realty was designed to reward agents for working together. At our core, we believe that we are all more successful if we strive towards a common goal, rather than our individual interests. And, that goal is to serve you, our client, at the highest level possible.

Reliability
Keller Williams Realty was founded on the principles of trust and honesty, emphasizing the importance of having the integrity to do the right thing and always putting your needs first. Our agents realize that their success is ultimately determined by the legacy we leave with each client we serve.

Speed
Leading-edge technology solutions accelerate our associates efficiency and productivity.

Good News To Share About Forsyth County

It appears Forsyth County is doing better than the United States - financially.  But is that all that hard to do really? According to AccessNorthGA.com Forsyth County’s Aaa rating has been confirmed as stable and the county is financially strong.

Forsyth County is one of only three counties in Georgia with the Aaa rating from Moody’s.  Well that's encouraging - I think.

 

December Mortgage Update

 Mortgage Update

 

Mortgage rates continue to push lower, dropping to 3.98% from 4.23% in October of 2010, offering historic affordability to today's home buyers. While mortgage lending conditions continue to be a challenge, more and more people are seeing the advantage of buying a home sooner rather than later. Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said, "Home sales have been plodding along at a sub-par level while interest rates are hovering at record lows and there is a pent-up demand from buyers who normally would have entered the market in recent years. We hope this indicates more buyers are taking advantage of the excellent
affordability conditions." 

 

This Month in Real Estate Video

December Market Update

December 2011 Market Update


One of the key drivers of homes sales, the employment rate, is beginning to show promising signs of a turnaround. The four-week average for jobless claims, as of November 19, was 394,250, a drop of 3,250 from the previous four weeks, and at the lowest levels since April. Consumer confidence also rose 15 points in the last month, and is now at its highest point since July of this year. Eric Green, Chief Market Economist at TD Securities Inc. said, "The trend remains very constructive. Jobless claims are back below 400,000, which seems to be the pivot point in terms of a strengthening labor market as opposed to a weakening one."

In addition to improving employment conditions, home affordability also improved as interest rates fell further, opening the door for more first-time home buyers who accounted for 34% of the sales in October, an increase from 32% last month and over last year. The western United States saw the greatest increase in home sales, which were up 4.4% month to month and up over 15% from last year.

A strengthening job market, along with encouraging signs from the housing sector, including a 10% jump in pending sales for October, are strong economic forces. While mortgage lending still remains a challenge, these forces may send a signal to banks to relax lending regulations and allow for a more rapid recovery.

Brought to you by KW Research. For additional graphs and details, please see the This Month in Real Estate PowerPoint Report. The opinions expressed in This Month in Real Estate are intended to supplement opinions on real estate expressed by local and national media, local real estate agents and other expert sources. You should not treat any opinion expressed on This Month in Real Estate as a specific inducement to make a particular investment or follow a particular strategy, but only as an expression of opinion. Keller Williams Realty, Inc., does not guarantee and is not responsible for the accuracy or completeness of information, and provides said information without warranties of any kind. All information presented herein is intended and should be used for educational purposes only. Nothing herein should be construed as investment advice. You should always conduct your own research and due diligence and obtain professional advice before making any investment decision. All investments involve some degree of risk. Keller Williams Realty, Inc., will not be liable for any loss or damage caused by your reliance on information contained in This Month in Real Estate.

Elf Central in Forsyth County

I happen to think this is a cool service for parents.    

Directly from their Facebook Page:

"Let your little ones be Santa's helpers while you do your Christmas shopping! They'll spend time at the North Pole making crafts, doing some shopping of their own, and having fun with their fellow elves. You'll even have a chance to get pictures with Santa without waiting in that long mall line! (And Dads, we'll have vendors on hand who can help you with gift ideas for Mom!) All of our Elf Trainers are experienced and caring preschool teachers so you can shop without worry--your elves will be in good hands!"  

450 Brannon Rd, Cumming, GA 30041

Hours:  Sat - 10:00am to 4:00pm

Price - $25 for first child - discounted for more

678-455-8614 for reservations

www.cumming.tlechildcare.com

Do You Want WholeFoods to Come to Cumming

There is a petition going around Facebook to be sent to the governor to put a Whole Foods store in Lakeland Plaza off GA 400 exit 14 in Cumming.  I know this community would keep that location very busy!  

If you'd like to participate - click here - Petition for Whole Foods