Coweta Fayette Real Estate & Newnan Homes for sale blog by Richard Weisser of Better Homes and Gardens Real Estate Metro Brokers

Despite the dourest predictions to the contrary, America has not devolved into a state of either anarchy or poverty.

And although we have experienced some unprecedented corrections in many market sectors, there is still food on the table and a relative calm acceptance of the circumstances by the populace.

In many cases, families are learning how to “make do,” and are not only meeting the challenges head-on, but in many cases are making permanent lifestyle adjustments that will ultimately lead to both better physical and economic health.

And like those that were raised during the Great Depression of the 1930’s, the attributes of thriftiness, minimalism and conservation will be indelibly emblazoned in the collective mindset for decades to come.

We have so much for which to be thankful. Life is good, and every day is a blessing!

Depending on which prognosticator you believe, the country is either in the process of emerging from an economic downturn, or alternatively, it is plummeting deeper and deeper towards depression.

But regardless of who is right and who is wrong, a business does not have the luxury of waiting for the economy to be corrected. Because a business must survive in the here and now before it can make predictions for the future.

And while every business plan must include potential responses for a wide variety of economic scenarios, it is important to not lose sight of the fact that business survival depends on successful day to day operations.

“He who hesitates is lost.” Those that take a wait and see attitude may find themselves out of business before they know it.

Every day is a learning experience. Take note of what works and keep doing it until it stops working.

And then try something else!

I was looking for some photographs for my blog yesterday. I began to go through some of my archives when I was reminded of a startling reality.

I am nearly three years behind in processing my photographs. By processing, I mean sorting them and resizing them to a resolution suitable for a blog post.

I knew that I was a little behind … but three years? I got to thinking about why I was so far behind on performing tasks that I used to love to do. And then it hit me:

These ancillary tasks are very time consuming. And time is something that is in scarce supply these days. So as each real estate transaction gobbles up more and more of the depleting commodity, there is precious little time left to do the things that I love to do.

If I really had to guess, I probably work about eighty to ninety hours a week counting online marketing efforts. That doesn’t leave a lot of free time for household projects or hobbies.

But for now, that’s just the way it is. I don’t see things changing anytime soon.

I feel blessed to have the work!

The question that I am asked most often about the Great Smoky Mountains Nation Park is: When will the Autumn eaves be at their peak color?

There is no easy answer because there are many factors that affect fall leaf color in the Great Smoky Mountains Nation Park. Temperature, rainfall, sunlight, elevation and species call all affect not only when the leaves begin to change, but how intense the colors will be and how long they will last.

But what I have learned over the thirty years or so that I have been taking photographs in the park is that you can find fall foliage somewhere within the confines of the park anytime from late September through early November.

Finding these “pockets” of color is somewhat akin to a treasure hunt, but there are “hotspots” that are generally dependable for fall leaf photography.

The Chimneys Trail, The Alum Cave Bluffs Trail, the Rainbow Falls Trail and other trails that have significant elevation changes are good bets, because the range of species is diverse along the way.

The key is to keep looking and to have fun. The Great Smoky Mountains Nation Park is one of the most photographed places in the world, for good reason!

There is something beautiful to experience around every bend in the path!

I’ve had a little bug for the last week or so that has really slowed my down. And although I have attempted a medical solution, apparently this malady has to “run its course.”

And since I haven’t been operating at 100%, I’ve had a little more time to think, and reflect, and to look towards the future.

After all, I’m no spring chicken. And my overall health is only going to deteriorate as I get older. It’s strange to think of myself as not jest “getting older,” but just “getting old.”

It’s strange because on the inside, I still fell like a thirty-something lad full of vigor and stamina.

But these days, my “quintessence of dust” is less responsive to my youthful impulses. I have to set more and more limits on what I am able to physically perform.

Life is a wondrous mystery, and we only understand it after we’ve live through it!

And that’s what makes every day worth living!

The tone of the call from the attorney’s office was near panic: "Can you PLEASE have your client contact us right away?"

I would love to do just that. Unfortunately, the buyer has stopped all forms of communication with us. They will not answer our calls, nor will they respond to our emails or texts.

It is frustrating and totally unnecessary behavior.  No matter what the problem is, no matter how embarrassing the situation, no matter how dire the circumstances are we, as your agents, NEED to know the truth.

If you are not going to close for any reason, tell us. If you need more time, tell us. If you are ill, tell us. If you are getting a divorce, tell us. If you have simply changed your mind, just tell us!

Anxiety is best combated with truth. Adversity is diminished with communication of the facts.

Please help us help you. After all, that’s our job.

Lately I have been reflecting quite a bit on the past. In some cases, I am trying to refresh my memory before the images of years gone by simply fade away into obscurity.

And while seeking my way during my life’s journey, I have taken some turns off the path of the straight and narrow  and have made some poor choices that I wish that I could go back and change.

Introspection is good for the soul, and while I know that I cannot rewrite history that does not eliminate the feelings of regret for what might have been.

The chronicles of the past are committed to the archives. And while I cannot alter them, my life story is still a work in progress and I have control over the final chapters. And hopefully, there will be many more of them yet to come.

And I can guarantee that there’s going to be one doozy of an ending!

Photo "Murphy Station" is the autobiography of David Donovan. I was privileged to provide the cover photo for the jacket!

Every buyer is different. And every buyer has different needs, wants, and expectations when it comes to purchasing real estate.

So when it’s time to write an offer, it is very important to craft a strategy that addresses each client’s individual preferences.

The first question I ask the buyer before beginning is this:

“Is it more important to you that you get this house or that you get a great deal?”

The reason that I start with this question is that I am putting the buyer on notice that I will respect their wishes regarding the offer, but there may be consequences resulting from “going for broke.”

Because if they really want the house, the first offer must be strong enough to deter the seller from seeking additional offers from competing buyers.  Sellers will generally negotiate in good faith with reasonable offers in an effort to quickly achieve a mutually acceptable agreement.

But if the buyer truly wants to “get a deal,” then I make them immediately aware that they are risking losing the house to another buyer. The important thing is to let the buyer know that they probably won’t be able to “steal” the house and it may be very difficult to repair any burned bridges.

I have seen many buyers lose great houses that are tremendous bargains for less that a $50 per month difference in the mortgage payment. In many cases they wind up settling for less later on or they give up their home search completely.

And it’s sad to see a lost opportunity, and to ponder on what might have been.

The Coweta County Fair returns to the fairgrounds on September 30, 2010. The annual event is one of the most popular attractions in the Newnan area and features everything from agricultural contest to an exciting midway with carnival rides and games.

The fair will continue through October 9, with plenty of free parking and easy access from I-85. Admission is Five Dollars with children under six years old free. One day Mega-passes can be purchased in advance through September 29^th. Mega-passes include one day admission PLUS unlimited rides during the visit.

To get there; take I-85 South from Atlanta to Exit 42 (South Newnan-Moreland.) Turn right and travel approximately one block to Pine Road, Left on Pine Road, and the county fairgrounds are just beyond the railroad track.

For complete information and all of the details about the Coweta County Fair, please visit their website!

I had been having intermittent problems with my upstairs air conditioner for the last month or so, Being rather handy, I was able to keep it operational for some time, but it seems now that time has run out.

And even though it’s September, we are still experiencing highs in the 90’s every day.

So, as I contemplate my next move, I have been taking “extreme” measures to keep the upstairs cool. That means judiciously closing blinds to block heat generating sunlight, closing rooms that are not in use, and opening strategic windows at night and using an exhaust fan to cool the house down.

And what I discovered by doing so is amazing: Although we had a high of 94 degrees yesterday, the downstairs air conditioner did not come on until 4:00 P.M.

As a matter of fact, the house is MORE comfortable now, using perhaps one fourth of the electricity that I was using prior to my “situation.”

Even though conservation takes a little effort, it can have a huge payback in dollars saved and help the environment at the same time.

And I suspect that even when I get the unit repaired, I will be less likely to employ the “thermostat solution” and will remain more proactive in saving energy!

It just makes good sense to do so!

I have been thinking lately about my own buying habits and the economy. Although I would never consider myself to be “cheap,” I am what you might call “thrifty.”

I hate buying anything. My “new” car is over ten years old (my everyday car is twenty) and I try to squeeze more life out of everything that I own.

I am a pretty good handyman, and I fix all of my own stuff. There are few mechanical dilemmas that I cannot address, so it is rare that I ever make a service call of any kind.

And if something isn’t broke, I don’t fix it. I don’t need the latest or the greatest as long as what I have works and achieves its intended purpose.

So I wonder if my cavalier attitude towards consumerism is part of the problem instead of part of the solution. Should I be offering my own economic stimulus plan by purchasing consumer goods that I don’t want and I probably don’t need?

Should ALL products have an expiration date to let us know when it is time to move on?

Or is it chic’ to be cheap? … I mean thrifty!

Seventy-five percent or more of the calls I field each week are from buyers seeking a great deal on a foreclosed property.

And don’t get me wrong … there are plenty of them out there. The Coweta County Georgia area gets more than its share of bank-owned houses. And many of these REO properties languish on the market for a long time due to a variety of salability issues.

However, the houses that are in good condition that are priced aggressively move VERY quickly. The majority of buyers are seeking the move-in ready foreclosure in the best location.

So it is extremely important to have financing already in place and to be prepared to move quickly. There better-than-usual foreclosures can generate multiple offers the FIRST day that they’re on the market, so a buyer must be alert, diligent, and totally prepared to take the plunge and write an offer.

If there are multiple offers, the institutional owner may choose to deal with the best one. Never assume that the owner will call for “highest and best,” so make certain that your initial offer is the most that you are willing to pay

A real estate agent that is experienced in foreclosure sales can be very helpful and can provide guidance and advice based on experience, and that can lead to a successful transaction!

There are plenty of foreclosures on the market, but only a few of them are “keepers!”

So it is essential to be correctly poised and ready to take the leap!

Autumn is just around the corner and that means many “leaf lovers” will be heading to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park for the annual display of brilliant Fall foliage.

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park offers a unique outdoor experience for visitors of every level of expertise and physical condition.

There is an extensive series of backcountry trails and campsites for those that really want to get back to nature and “rough it” and there are also auto trails where you can see the park up close and personal from the comfort of your car!

If you plan to hike anywhere in the park, be aware not only the length of the trail, but also the amount of elevation change and the terrain. Even a two mile hike can be strenuous if the trail is steep and rocky.

You can get maps and plenty of free advice at any one of the Park’s three visitor’s centers. The Oconaluftee Center is located just outside of Cherokee North Carolina, the Sugarlands Center is near Gatlinburg Tennessee, and the Cades Cove Center is located deep within one of the most popular areas in the Park.

The Visitor’s Centers will also offer relevant information about travel conditions, road closures, and wildlife activity. Chances are, you will encounter at least one black bear during your visit.

The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is one of greatest treasures of the Southeastern United States. I highly recommend to anyone for a truly memorable Fall vacation!

I have to admit that I am not operating at 100% this weekend. I have contracted a little bug that is going around and it really has me dragging.

And although common sense tells me that if I am sick, I need to get well, I can’t help but think that I am “giving in” to the malady by throttling back on my normally ambitious workload.

So I will relegate myself to more sedentary activities for a day or two. One of the best things about online marketing is that you can do it from the comforts of home.  I need to do some web updates and I have a lot of photos that I need to add into my stock inventory.

I can’t help but feel guilty about not being able to get more done. That darned old work ethic keeps badgering me to “get up and get going!”

But my “get up and go” had “got up and went!”

If you have ever “had the wind knocked out of you” or had a bad choking episode, you understand that if you can’t breathe, nothing else matters.

If you can’t draw a breath, you will not be thinking about getting a contract extension signed or whether or not you will get the earnest money on time. Your entire being will be focused on survival.

In dealing with any crisis, one must establish priorities. There is little point in dealing with minutia if a deal is on life support. It is essential that the most critical issues be resolved with a sense of urgency.

Because time is of the essence, and it waits for no one.

Many modern visitors flock to Helen Georgia in late September though October for the annual Oktoberfest celebration.

But what many modern day revelers may not realize as they enjoy the festivities of the fall season is that the area was home to ancient civilizations and was a popular spot long before the arrival of European settlers.

Ancient Mississippian tribes inhabited nearly all of the fertile river beds in Georgia thousands of years before the arrival of the colonists. They constructed mounds in the river valley not only to ceremoniously bury their dead, but also to have a place to build important civic structures above the alluvial flood plain.

So if you take a trip to the Georgia Mountains this Autumn, spend a few moments reflecting on the rich anthropological history of the region.

After all, we may walk these valleys but a short time.

Photo: Mississippian burial mound in the Nacoochee Valley near Helen GA.

Despite some controversy as to who uttered the actually quotation, it is believed by many that Mark Twain once said that “everybody talks about the weather but nobody ever does anything about it.”

And while weather is generally a boring topic reserved for awkward conversational moments, this year has been rather remarkable when considering meteorological anomalies in Newnan Georgia.

The calendar is melting away, but the temperatures are not giving in to the seasonal change. And although the equinox is less than a week away, we will be experiencing afternoon high temperatures in the 90’s for the foreseeable future.

I like summer as much as anybody, but enough is enough. We have experienced more weeks, more, days, and more hours above the 90 degree make than any other year in recorded weather history.

The trees are in distress, the greens at the golf course are dead, and temperaments are rising correspondingly with temperatures.

Fall can’t come soon enough!

No one can argue that the economy has suffered some severe setbacks over the last few years. The total loss of accumulated wealth is astronomical.

But despite all of the problems facing economic growth, recovery will occur at some point. Many believe that the keystone to positive indicators is “consumer confidence.”

Confidence piggybacks attitude and as we have become a society of victims that believe that the SYSTEM failed us, and that there is nothing they we do to climb out of the doldrums of economic collapse.

Individuals that fail of their own volition, however, learn from their own mistakes are start afresh, and many a success story has been spawned by multiple failures.

There is NO shame in failure. It happens to the best of us. But failures always provide new opportunities as long as the spirit is resilient and willing.

But when “someone else is at fault,” hopelessness ensues and the hapless victim will be relegated to waiting for a political solution.

When the right to fail is repealed, the corresponding opportunity to bounce back and recover is impeded.

As the society of victims sits and waits for things to turn around, I can’t help but wonder how many potential new ideas have been squelched and lost to the ages.

How much better it would be if we took matters into our own hands and saved the economy one failure at a time!

It seems like there are times when everything hits the fan at once. And while I work pretty good under pressure, there are times when I’m simply exhausted.

If life were a video game, I could simply buy more energy or ask my friends for some! But real life is no game, and when the challenges exceed the capacity to address them, something has got to give. Hopefully, that is NOT my sanity.

But as my java kicks in, and the adrenaline begins to flow, I am slowly being transformed back into my game-day mode.

Problems? Bring them on. This is the real estate business, and it is what I do for a living!

When I am asked about how the real estate business is doing in Coweta County Georgia, I typically respond that “with great prices and historically low interest rates, there has never been a better time to buy real estate.”

But if I am specifically asked if I am BUSY, my response is generally something along the lines of “we are busier than ever, because every deal is hard!”

Because it is a fact that each transaction requires a lot more time and diligent effort in order to achieve a successful close. These days, we see more inspection issues, multiple documentation requests and additional addenda right up until closing.

In addition, frustrated buyers and sellers need to be reassured after each and every bump in the roadway. This requires constant communication on a regular basis.

We persist because we are good at what we do. As generals we direct the troops during every skirmish along the way in hopes of one day winning the battle!

And when we triumph, we know that it was all worth the effort!