Happy Easter!

Happy Friday! I hope everybody had a wonderful Easter holiday! It certainly is a beautiful day in the Valley. I had a great time last night at BBQ and Blues. There were a lot of great real estate professionals out in support of Alabama’s real estate PAC. Microwave Dave gave us a great show and there was plenty of drama at the end of the night with a drawing for the $3,000.00 grand prize. Congratulations to Tracy and Valerie who ended up splitting the grand prize and special thanks to Shannon for adding to the excitement. It really was a great night that highlighted the strengths of our real estate community.  I always feel lucky to work in a community with high quality, ethical and kind real estate professionals who, by the way, don’t seem to be too shy to boogie down on the dance floor. Read the rest of this entry »

Happy Friday from a very quiet downtown Huntsville. I caught myself wondering where everybody was when I received a report that there is quite a ruckus developing near the state line.  Apparently, a huge crowd is lining up for their chance to buy tickets for tonight’s Mega Millions lottery drawing. I’m sure that is why downtown seems so dead.  The jackpot is a world record $640 Million.  Take a minute to let that sink in.  $640 Million is greater than the GDP of Samoa. A mere 2% annual return on a $640 Million investment would come to $12.8 Million. That’s over a $1 Million a month. Not too shabby. Read the rest of this entry »

Happy Friday! It is hard to believe that spring break is already here. I am still getting over Christmas and New Years. Of course, Spring Break is a time when many people travel and if you are one of those people going out of town for the break, I hope you have safe travels.  For those of you sticking around, I hope you have a great weekend and hope to see or hear from you next week! Read the rest of this entry »

Run the Picket Fence

Happy Friday to you all! March Madness is upon us once again and with it comes the promise of that winning bracket. As long as I can remember, I have filled out a bracket to compare with my friends. I can remember as a kid that I would scour the USA Today for information about all the teams in an attempt to create that perfect bracket.  I would be glued to the television watching ESPN and trying to uncover that piece of information that would give me the edge over my friends. The trick, I have always thought is to find those teams who would overachieve and find a way as underdogs to upset their competition. That is easier said than done. There are a handful of upsets every year, but picking the wrong upsets can have a doubly negative effect on your bracket score. So you must pick your upsets wisely. Read the rest of this entry »

Happy Friday to you all! What a beautiful day we have had in the Valley.  The clouds cleared out this morning and we have had sunny skies and cool breezes. Looking out my window at the flags at the new Veterans Memorial I can see that the winds are coming in from the North. Speaking of winds, the winds of change are blowing through the offices of Johnston, Moore & Thompson. I am thrilled to announce that we will be adding a new member to our Real Estate Title and Closing team and she starts on Monday!  Some of you may know Morgan Parcus from her work as a closing coordinator for a reputable real estate company in town or from her previous work for a well known local real estate closing law firm.  As my primary closing assistant, Morgan will have the unenviable task of keeping me in line and out of trouble. I know that you will all enjoy working with her.  Welcome aboard Morgan!

In other news, the local real estate market seems to be gaining momentum. The numbers may not be spectacular yet, but the whispers and murmurs I have been hearing form locals in the know are promising.  Obviously, the turnaround in our market depends on what goes on with the national economy and consumer confidence, but there are subtle signs that this market is headed in the right direction. Personally, I have seen a rise in existing residential sales in the last quarter and with the rates still at record lows, particularly on the 15 year note, there is still a lot of buying power out there. As demand begins to increase and prices inch up, hopefully we will see local homeowners gaining some equity and moving out and up. Once that happens, we will see even more activity in this market. Until then, I hope you enjoy our latest installment and have a great weekend!

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