Real estate in Cotswold area of Charlotte, NC

Our agent, Claire Riendeau, just listed a fantastic new home in Cotswold (Charlotte, NC) area. Contact Claire at 704.995.1635 for more information!

Ballantyne ranked nationally in zip code searches by Realtor.com

Source:  BallantyneVillage.com

A bit of Ballantyne news to share this morning.

Realtor.com, an affiliate of the National Association of Realtors, recently announced their top five zip code searches nationwide for 2013. Taking the #5 spot is our very own 28277.

Top schools, the number of local businesses and shopping centers, and office buildings all make Ballantyne is a desirable place to live, according to a Charlotte Business Journal article.

And a bit of shopping and dining news, also from the Charlotte Business Journal: the Encore! restaurant closed last weekend in the Blakeney Shopping Center. Bravo! Cucina Italiana announced that it will be taking its 6,300 square foot space and will open this spring. According to the group that leases the property, the shopping center is 99% leased. Those of us who live near the busy shopping center know the available space was likely very attractive to expanding restaurant chains!

What is Variable Commission?

The end of the calendar year is a great time to focus on marketing efforts, as many buyers and sellers will be soon making decisions about their homes and about hiring real estate brokers.

The theme of our latest advertising campaign is variable commission. We don't have a set fee for our earned listings. We believe that all homes are unique and real estate marketing plans should be unique, too! "We call it SMART marketing and what this means for you is reduced days on the market and more money in your pocket."

Here is a sample advertisement that we will run in a community newsletter in the Thornhill neighborhood of Ballantyne (South Charlotte, NC).  We've had tremendous success selling properties in this neighborhood and would love to let local residents know that we can successfully serve them with our experience and our SMART marketing plans!

Real Estate in Indian Land, SC

We represented the buyer of this property in Indian Land, SC. The property closed last week.

We are licensed in both North Carolina and South Carolina. For more information about how we can help you find your dream home and negotiate the best deal for you, please contact us!

Union County Public Schools answers questions about enrollment caps

Source: UCPS web site

As a follow up to the story regarding the school enrollment caps in the Union County Public School system, we found a few questions on theUCPS web site's FAQ page interesting:

Why don’t you stop the building in the crowded areas? Why don’t you communicate with the builders?

The school system is not involved in the issuing of building permits. The Board of County Commissioners governs land use zoning and development approval within unincorporated Union County. The responsibility for land use designation, zoning or development approval in the 14 municipalities rests with the applicable municipal government. Once a developer and/or resident obtain approval from a municipality, the county government’s role is to issue the building permit and to perform the applicable inspections. The county performs these services for all municipalities with the exception of Monroe and Waxhaw. The role of the school system is to enroll/educate any child living within Union County whose parent/guardian chooses to avail themselves of public education.

How does the school system work with local governments with regards to growth? 

The UCPS Facilities staff has tried to attend meetings in municipalities when asked to do so. Our Facilities staff has also met with developers when we have been asked to offer our input. We have felt obligated on each occasion to inform a municipality or realtor as to how potential growth will affect a school’s seating capacity and core capacity (which will, in turn, affect our schools’ ability to educate potential students). Essentially, UCPS has no control over how many houses are built, when they are built, where they are built, who buys those houses, or even if children will be occupying those houses. We are called upon to react to the growth based upon information collected and compiled by a demographer and information provided by municipalities, the County, market trends, etc. UCPS tries to be as forthcoming as possible when offering data about capacities (both core and seating) to the County and to municipalities. The school system “reacts” to growth instead of “managing” it.

This was taken directly from the UCPS web site. For more information about the recent changes and enrollment caps, please contact us at 704.575.7605!

Living in Waxhaw - Twelve Days of Christmas

The town of Waxhaw, NC will be hosting its annual Twelve Days of Christmas event every weekend in December through Christmas.

Events include a Christmas parade on December 15 (3 pm), free carriage rides downtown, a live nativity scene, 5K race (December 7 at 8 am), and shopping specials by local retailers.

Enjoy historic downtown Waxhaw during this special season!

Living in Marvin, NC - Christmas Tree Lighting

The Village of Marvin, NC offers many family-friendly activities and events. Coming up: the annual Christmas tree lighting at Marvin-Efird park on Saturday, December 7 from 4-6 pm. For directions to the park or additional information, please see the village's web site.