NCSU-Rental.com is a website for promoting high quality rentals, and open to any property owners in the Trailwood Hills, Trailwood Springs, Camden Forest neighborhoods near NC State. If you have a few high quality pictures of your property, I would be happy to post up a listing for your property.

This is only for property owners of detached homes (not condos or townhomes).

If you are interested in acquiring a property in one of the best cash flow neighborhoods in the Triangle area, send me an email and I will be happy to send you an extensive financial analysis based on my years of ownership in the neighborhood, plus the data of nearly a dozen other homes in the area.

For more information on the rental home, please click to visit the dedicated website - Carolina-Preserve.com.

The final touches to prepare for the December 2007 opening are almost complete.

Pools and spas are being filled, the aerobic center is looking nice, and all the current residents are eager to take advantage of this amazing facility.

Here is a shot of the indoor pool at Bradford Hall:

The aerobic studio will provide a place for lots of classes, dancing and other activities:

Finally, Yates Store Road now extends all the Way to O’Kelly Chapel Road, which means you can get to the Streets at Southpoint Mall even quicker!

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To hear about current specials or to receive updates about Carolina Preserve, please click the link to send me an email.

Here are 4 simple questions to ask your lender when you are shopping around. (more…)

Mr. Weinbrecht’s website - ABalancedCary.org - has more info about his position and vision for Cary

To see a short clip from WRAL, click here.

Here is the News & Observers clip.

Who are you going to vote for - Harold Weinbrecht or Ernie McAlister?

Haven’t registered to vote yet? Just moved in from out of town? For more information, you can visit the Wake County Elections & Voting website.

Just remember - leave no chad dangling!

Bond Park is a gem in the Cary community. Our family has been there for our share of playdates, Easter Egg Hunts and picnics.

For more information, call 919.469.4100

Post here if you plan to attend.

Congratulations to everyone on the team. Thanks to Jane Godwin for sending over the photo.

The new courts at the Lochmere Swim and Tennis Club are shaping up as well. For anyone interested in a great Cary community where you can do everything from kayaking, trail running, wine-tasting parties, and summer carnivals, come down and check out homes in Lochmere.

And if you’re not local, click here to view Lochmere pictures.

According to the National Association of Realtors, more than 75% of people are starting their real estate search online.

So why are all the other real estate agents advertising in the newspaper? Do they think the ads sell homes? Have you EVER heard of ANYONE who bought a home they first saw in a newspaper?

Who knows! Who cares? Well, I do. My goal is to be the opposite of “all the other real estate agents”.

How am I different? Do a Google search on “Cary real estate”. (Go ahead, I’ll wait right here).

And now here is point of this article. I spend a LOT of time and energy and money to create a great online experience for people who visit my site - that includes the heavily customized Wordpress blog you are viewing right now - as well as paying consultants who help me with SEO (Search Engine Optimization).

We started building this website at the beginning of this year. Once we had the design figured out, we moved to the architecture (completely 100% Wordpress-based). Then we installed and debugged, and then finally in approximately late July, we started writing content.

In under 2 months, we went from zero to “First Page” on Google. Ask people who know - that is impressive. I am quite proud to say this website knocked HPW.com off of first page. How did we do it? Consistent, quality (if I do say so myself) blogging, pics, interviews with local businesses, email campaigns, RSS feeds, too many miles driving around in our cars and lots of phone calls.

So when you are interviewing an agent to sell your Cary home, ask the agent what their online strategy is. A cheesy template website with *15!* mortgage calculators and a post on Craigslist is not an online marketing strategy.

Just remember, the techie from the Bay Area in California who is moving to Cary is probably searching Google to learn about the area. Oh, and he also missed that real estate ad in the N&O.

The Wake County Home Builders Association is proud to present the 2007 Parade of Homes running the first two weekends of October, from noon to 5 PM. With over 391 homes on the tour, the Parade of Homes is an opportunity for the public to gain access to beautiful and state of the art homes and for builders to showcase new trends and creative styles. For example one home on the tour has a beautiful Brazilian hardwood floor with intricate offsetting color palettes and an optical illusion mosaic built right in.

Bring a camera and note pad to record all the innovative and breathtaking features that you will want in your next home. Fill out our contact form to set an appointment to see any of these beautiful homes.

Tickets range from $20-$80. Children under 12 are admitted free with an adult on any ticket. SAS employees are granted free access with their employee badge.

Prestonwood Country Club is a prestigious club located in the Preston area of Cary, NC. If you are looking for a place where you can watch the SAS Championship next year from the comfort of your own backyard, contact us. We can show you what homes are available on the golf course. We will even throw in a free round of golf at a local course with the purchase of any home in Preston.

Want a sneak preview of the newest luxury homes being built around Symphony Lake? (more…)

This weekend marks the final weekend that the Lochwood Pools will be open for the 2007 season. The following depicts our scheduled operating hours:

Friday, September 14th = 4PM – 8PM

Saturday, September 15th = 10AM – 8PM

Sunday, September 16th = 12 Noon – 6PM

The weatherman is predicting some much-needed rain for today and early Saturday as well as cooler termperatures on Sunday. If we need to adjust the hours because of weather conditions, we will keep you advised.

Thank you to everyone who has helped to make this another fun-filled summer at Lochmere

Gail Lewis

Aquatics Programming Coordinator

Lochmere Swim & Tennis Club

Phone: 233-7640

Email: gail@lochmere.org

I enjoyed the Lochmere Swim & Tennis Club much more this year. Everyone responsible for running it should give themselves a pat on the back. The carnival and all the other activities were lots of fun for kids (young and old, small and big), the pool itself was much cleaner, and the weather hotter.

Can’t wait for the opening next summer

Looking for something to do this weekend (Sept. 14-16)? Head on over to the NC State Fairgrounds in Raleigh, NC for the 2007 Greek Festival. Not only is it a fun time with live music and dancing, shopping, and some great food, a portion of the proceeds go to a good cause- Habitat for Humanity.

Click here for event times and a menu of available food.

For directions on how to get to the Fairgrounds, click here.

Did you make it to the Festival? Please post your best photo of the Festival in the comment section. Best photo will get a gift certificate for the most scrumptious Greek food in the Triangle - Xios in Apex, NC.

While there, you can try the Big Fat Greek Festival Hummus - 1st Place hummus will be featured this month and 2nd place recipe will be featured in October.

I wonder if Kirk will tell us what the secret ingredient is in the Sean Womack’s recipe? I’m sure Xios will be at the Festival so make sure to stop by and tell them Rama said hello.

Click the small envelope below to sign up for the blog articles to be emailed to you. We use Feedblitz. In a nutshell, Feedblitz takes our blog posts, polishes it a bit, wraps it up into an email friendly package, and mails it off to you faster than FedEx Morning Delivery.

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While doing our regular rounds - touring around Cary - we decided to cruise up to see how everyone in Amberly is doing. If you blink, you’ll notice that beautiful new homes, fantastic club houses and lush landscaping going up in Cary’s largest PUD.

The Peninsula offers custom, high end homes ($400,000 to $1MM+), basement option, up to 4 car garages and other luxury home options. The neighborhood itself is tucked away on the southern end of Amberly - for directions to The Peninsula click here.

View Larger Map

These luxurious homes will feature lots of room for families in a very tranquil, park-like setting.

Enjoy more photos from Amberly - click here for a slideshow of Amberly real estate.

For more information about The Peninsula homes in Amberly, feel free to call our hotline - 888.969.8989 or send us an email, or register for our Cary real estate search tool.

There are many other home options in Amberly. Visit our Communities page to check them out.

Davis Drive Elementary School had the highest score this year, of 96.3

Salem Middle School had the highest score for a middle school, of 96.1

Green Hope High School had the highest score for a high school, of 90.5

contact us for more information about Carolina Preserve

When: Sept. 7th and 8th
-Pre-show event (different each night) 6:20pm
-Pre-show music: 6:30pm
-Show begins at 7:00pm
Where: NC Museum of Art (Click for directions)
Cost: Adults $10, Ages 4-12: $7, 3 and under: Free

If you would like a tour of Lochmere, or are interested in learning more about the other aspects that make Lochmere such a great community, please contact us.

Calling all Tift Merritt fans - the Grammy-nominated singer will be providing a FREE show this Sunday September 2 at Koka Booth. She will be performing with the North Carolina Symphony for Pops in the Park.

Bring your picnic, lawn chairs and blankets. For more info, you can visit Tift’s Ofiicial Fan site (she’s a Raleigh native and UNC-Chapel Hill grad), or the Koka Booth Amphitheater site.

Anyone in Lochmere can easily ride/walk over to the park via the Swift Creek trail past Ritter Park to avoid the long lines.

If we go, we will be the ones pedaling the 2 kids in the double-seat GoBug.

Would love to hear what the fans think after the show! Hit the comment button below at the bottom of the page to register (and get a chance for a free dinner) to leave your thoughts.

Map below.

View Larger Map

We were looking for a good bakery in Cary. We had tried a few “bagel” places, and supermarket bakeries, but they just weren’t of the level we were used to. Then I was told about a bakery in the Preston area of Cary, so we had to try it out. The bakery is La Farm on Cary Parkway, just north of High House Rd. From the moment you open the door, your senses are overwhelmed. The smells of the baking bread, and treats are so wonderful. There are samples of delicious morsels strewn about the tables.

I was fortunate enough to be able to wrangle an online interview with Missy from La Farm this week. When asked what were the three most significant differences between La Farm, and other local bakeries, she responded.

1. “We are an authentic European bakery lead by one of the greatest bakers in our county.” The master baker Lionel Vatinet hails from prestigious “Les Campagnons du Devoir” Guild in France.

2. Lionel and La Farm have a passion for the highest quality bread and bakery items incorporating local ingredients and flavors.

3. Missy suggested that we try the “new” cornbread soufflé made with historic Yates Mill corn meal!!! Sounds intriguing.

Missy was excited to explain that La Farm was being featured on Rachael Ray’s talk show this year and in the upcoming December issues of Food and Wine and Oprah Magazine – so please watch for your local Cary business!!

The Sourdough bread is not just the bland, white bread you find in supermarkets, but the real deal. It is a three day process steeped in tradition for Master Baker Lionel Vatinet to bake his sourdough bread. It is a stunning mixture of just the right tang, and smoothness coupled with a thick, crispy crust and dense bread. We also tried the La Farm Bread, which transported us to a streetside bistro in Paris, where we were enjoying a plate of bread and cheeses, while sipping a deep Bordeaux and ruminating about the days events.

Just as dramatic as the breads, were the treats. I had a blueberry and raspberry tart that was to die for. It had a creamy smooth filling that mixed with the berries had a wonderful contrast of flavours, and the shell was again a dense pastry that complimented, yet contrasted the sweetness of the filling, with a rich buttery overtone. Est Magnifique.

Everything we tried was so wonderful, I can’t see us ever going back to grocery store bakeries again. If you are looking for other recommendations in the Cary area, please feel free to contact us.

The Town of Cary’s 31st Annual Lazy Daze Arts and Crafts Festival was held this past weekend in Downtown Cary, NC. Despite the oppressive heat this year, setting a new record high of 99 degrees, it was a great event. This was my first time attending the event, and we were very impressed by the logistical organization of the festival. Parking was easily accessible, there were frequent shuttles from the parking lots to the actual event, and there were plenty of volunteers to make sure any questions were answered. We will have to wait for the official numbers to be announced, but I would estimate there were at least 40 to 50 thousand people that came out to see the wonderful crafts the artisans brought from all over the state, enjoy food that helps to sponsor local schools and charities, and hear some great music. The weather was a bit torrid, and we ended up leaving earlier than we had hoped, but my wife still managed to find a few treasures that we simply couldn’t live without. We weren’t the only ones that had trouble with the heat this year. According to an article by NBC News 17, the Cary EMS was kept busy treating several people for heat related incidents. All in all, the event was deemed a success. I suppose anytime you can get that many people out of their air-conditioned homes and into the street during a heat wave to mingle and have a good time, that is a testament to the success of the festival. We are very much looking forward to next year, and hope that the weather will be more tolerable, so we can relax and enjoy the last few Lazy Daze of summer.

Even though I am not a huge baseball fanatic, there is something about actually being at a game that is magical. The crack of the bat, the snap of the ball hitting the leather mitts, the cheering of the crowd. My son of course was much more interested in the sno-cone than the game, but for about 30 seconds he watched as the players threw lasers at each other, warming up. The best part of the night was when we got home and he excitedly told his mother all about watching “soccer”. I guess I have a little more work to do with him.

Click here for some additional pictures from the game.

If you are interested in buying or selling a home in Cary, NC, please contact us.

For more information or to schedule an appointment to view a home for sale in Lochmere, give us a call at (888) 969-8989 or click contact us.

But relief is in sight, in Morrisville anyway. Like an oasis on the rise, Kitts Creek is a community where the fundamental design philosophy is “give me identity or give me death”.

By offering a variety of architectural styles and plans, they have been able to greatly diversify the streetscape and allow each home to break free from the restrictive covenant chains and proudly claim it’s identity. For more information on Kitts Creek, give us a call or send us an email to set up a visit. Contact All Cary Real Estate to set up an appointment.

For more information about CBS’s Story on New Urbanism, the backbone of Kitts Creek philosophy, click here.

The locals have set up a website to discuss earthly concerns in their neighborhood. www.kittscreekneighbors.com

Wakefield Development Company announced, in February, the launch of phase one construction in its newest master-planned community, Renaissance Park, located in southeast Raleigh. This initial phase will contain approximately 242 homesites with single-family homes built by W&W Partners and Bedford Builder Group. In addition to the single-family homes,there will be an offering of Federal style townhomes built by 1st American Builders.

Technology-driven features, including touch screens and Wi-Fi access scattered throughout the community, mixed with traditional southern architecture and charm will be the focus of the community. A selection of Federal-style townhomes priced from the $190s and single-family homes priced from the mid-$200s will offer truly individualized living spaces. All homesites in Phase 1 will feature rear alley loaded garages. In addition, over 380,000 square feet of retail space has been reserved for a commercial district within the community.

The community will include a 7,000 square-foot clubhouse with a state-of-the-art fitness center, full-service business center, a large pool with 4,500 square feet of water surface and a playground. At least three additional pocket parks located throughout the community will have Wi-Fi access. While residents will benefit from the community’s close proximity to major highways and easy access to downtown Raleigh, Renaissance Park has also reserved over 49 acres of open space for its residents’ enjoyment

For more information on Renaissance Park, visit them online at www.renaissancepark.com or contact All Cary Real Estate to schedule a visit.

We do things differently around here. We don’t send refrigerator magnets. We don’t do glamor shots during movie theater previews. We believe in providing information about the area primarily through blogging.

For example, take a look at our unique Community page. On the Community page, you will find a list communities that we have profiled. If you click to one of the communities, you will find an interesting mix of static and dynamic content. We hard code the basics of the community onto a static page, and automagically filter only our blog posts that are relevant to that community to that page. So if someone is interested in Lochmere in Cary, they can go to the Lochmere Community page and find out the basic information, plus any additional posts specifically about Lochmere, as well as any global posts that affect anyone looking in Lochmere as well.

How do we decide what makes it onto the blog? Lots of reading other blogs. Lots of picture taking. Lots of talking - to local business owners, to teachers, to developers, to real estate agents. And also, lots of web browsing for related ideas and ideals.

I came across Blog Action Day and was interested immediately. The concept is to get a massive number of blogs talking about a single subject on a particular day. I may not have been interested enough to post, but the subject for 2007 is “environment”.

So expect some “environment” related posts leading up to and on Blog Action Day 2007 - from local NC Green builders, to community planning, parks, outdoor recreation, etc., are all local environmental subjects that we will post about.

When Kevin lands on his feet, we look forward to a summary of his thoughts surrounding the current state of mortgage finance, and how it can affect buyers, sellers, and everyone else in the industry.

Meanwhile, I want to relay a story of how Homebanc closing caused problems for a client of mine, and the amazing outcome.

A local real estate investor that we have worked with in the past had a closing for a rental property near NCSU - scheduled for last Friday. On the prior Tuesday, Kevin informed me of the bad news. By Friday, despite a valiant attempt to get something worked out with Countrywide, he wasn’t going to be able to get a loan closed.

As it turned out, the mother of the seller works for BB&T. She referred me to a co-worker and with every single person pulling out all the stops, the home closed escrow Monday evening at 4:30PM. That’s right - 1 business day. Big props to Cathy Ingram at BB&T in Cary, and Kevin for facilitating getting the paperwork over first thing Monday morning. Unbelievable.

To make it an even more amazing story, my client was scheduled for a 2 week vacation in Puerto Rico - and the plane left RDU (with him on board) this Tuesday morning at 9:30AM.

Hey Matt, you better have a Pina Colada for me!

I had gone to the show with the primary objective of collecting some information about some of the newer communities that were being built in the area, so I could include them on our site. I was overwhelmed by the number of booths dedicated to new communities. I must have 40 different brochures reflecting 60 new communities. There were representatives from all different levels of developers, from the grandiose, such as The Westin Soleil Center in Raleigh, to the intimate yet affordable Holly Glen by Olde South Homes. There were even several developers there that were touting the latest trend in urban communities, NEW URBANISM, such as Kitts Creek and Renaissance Park. WTHeck is that you say? Me too. Click here to read more on this latest trend.

I will start adding many of the developments I saw at the show and more that I come across to the communities page of the website, so check back often to see what’s been added. If you are interested in seeing any of these communities, please contact us, and we would be happy to check the current inventory and help make appointments.

Anyone have hot tips on how to stay cool? Our family is heading to Asheville next week - our relatives from Portland OR are coming out - and its going to be a bit easier for them to deal with the heat in the mountains then in the Triangle. Temps there will be 10 to 15 degrees cooler.

Our neighbors are considering a short drive to the Outer Banks. A great choice to enjoy the fantastic beaches there. It will only be a few degrees cooler, but the ocean breeze and the gentle waves will go a long way in beating back the Triangle heat.

As I tell people moving to the area - yes, its definitely hot in July and August, but there are great options within a few hours drive. And the weather for the rest of the year is tough to beat anywhere!

Whew…after a busy week of expected and unexpected news last week, the economic report calendar becomes very tame this coming week, only populated with a handful of low-level reports. In fact, the week’s only major event takes place on Tuesday with the release of the Fed’s latest interest rate decision and monetary Policy Statement. The Fed is expected once more to keep their Fed Funds interest rate “on hold” at 5.25%.

But what will be of particular interest is the tone and wording of the Fed’s Policy Statement. Are they feeling more comfortable about inflation, given the inflation friendly news of last week? If this sentiment leaks into the verbiage of the Policy Statement, Bonds may get a ride higher upon the release, and home loan rates would improve. However, if Fed Chair Ben Bernanke and his fellow inflation fighters at the Fed still sound concerned about inflation, Bonds and home loan rates could worsen.

Chart: Fannie Mae 6.0%% Mortgage Bond (Friday Aug 03, 2007)

Kevin Martini
4509 Creedmoor Road
Suite 300
Raleigh, NC 27612

Personally, I can’t wait to see Downtown Cary blossom into a vibrant, pedestrian-friendly place for people from all over the Triangle to enjoy. Let’s dream a little bit - what kinds of things would you like to see downtown? More boutique shopping? Restaurants, microbrew pubs?

If you are interested, you can go to the Town Hall building where they have a display of some of the details of the work about to begin.

Baby Boomers have done it again. Where are they doing it? The newest resort-style Active Adult community in North Carolina is Cary’s Carolina Preserve by Del Webb. These communities are geared toward living it up.

The boomer generation has infused their energy and spirit into the “retirement community”. No longer is it that you can retire and simply fade into the wall paper. Boomers are retiring 55 years young, healthy and active. They need a residential community that keeps up with their active lifestyle.

Carolina Preserve is a somewhat utopian development. It’s an age restriced active adult community, with plenty of outdoor focused activities as well as a huge indoor recreation club. Carolina Preserve is nestled in the larger Amberly Development (PUD). This creates the possibility of a unique living arrangement: having the kids and grandkids nearby, but not necessarily right next door, or even in the next room. This allows the family to be close, yet independent.

Rama wrote up a nice description on the prior blog. For a detailed view, go take a look at his post covering Carolina Preserve from earlier this year.

Kevin will be providing a weekly forecast for the economy in general and how it affects the world of real estate financing called Martini Factor.

Without further ado, here is the first Martini Factor.

The volatile Stock earnings season continues, and as if that weren’t enough, the economic calendar also holds several big potential market movers.

Lots of economic reports are due for delivery this week, including Tuesday’s look at the Fed’s favorite measure of inflation, the Personal Consumption Expenditure index, and wrapping up with a bang on Friday with the monthly Jobs Report. If the week’s inflation numbers meet or are lower than expectations while the data for the economy is worse than expected, Bond prices should continue their recent upward trend and home loan rates will improve. However, if the reports reek of inflation or an overheated economy, Bond prices could quickly lose their recent gains, and home loan rates will worsen.

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One of the best reasons to live in Preston Village is Prestonwood Country Club. From the three 18-hole championship caliber golf courses to the sparking pool and tennis facilities - there are recreational activities for all members of the family.

Visit the Prestonwood Country Club website for more information.

Contact us to get a list of home available in the Preston area - start enjoying some of the finest facilities Cary has to offer today!

The Town of Cary will soon start construction on a new town park that will open in the Fall of 2007. We recently moved to Cary from Hilton Head Island, SC. We are so thrilled that you can actually enjoy the outdoor amenities here. At the coast we could never sit outside and enjoy the beautiful surroundings, because you would be eaten alive by the noseeums. (more…)

The search tool provides an intelligent system which provides a Top 10 list based on parameters you set. Any time another home pops up that is better then a home on the top 10, it updates the list (in priority order!) and notifies you. Brilliant!

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