Flowing between green mountains, flush with cool breezes and soaring birds, area lakes – especially Lake James in McDowell and Burke counties and Lake Lure in Rutherford County – offer idyllic vistas, swimming and fishing to scores of visitors

Anchored by the manmade 720-acre lake with about 21 miles of shoreline, the town of Lake Lure has developed as it has, Proctor said, due to efforts of the town’s former leaders. He said the town, which holds the lake in a trust, adopted zoning ordinances in the 1970s, a relative anomaly in a region whose residents frequently reject zoning efforts. It’s now developing a comprehensive plan. “Lake Lure had the fortune of having planning be a part of the town process for a long time,” he said. “That’s really helped us keep a handle on where we are.” Still, development in the town – not just on lakeshores – is increasing. The lake is an attraction, as is nearby Chimney Rock Park. (more…)

search for : green mountains, cool breezes, Lake James, McDowell, Burke, Lake Lure, Rutherford County, swimming, fishing

A week of thunderstorms has provided a breather for the Western North Carolina firefighters who have extinguished at least 585 wildfires in what so far has been the worst spring fire season of the decade. Enough spring days remain, however, for the potential return of the dry, windy, tinderbox conditions responsible for their long days and nights.

Wildfires in the state’s 16 westernmost counties have scorched at least 2,689 acres this year, according to the N.C. Division of Forest Resources — an area roughly a third the size of the Biltmore Estate. Less than half of that land, 1,083 acres, had burned by this time last year. No other year this decade has seen more than 2,000 acres burn so quickly. No homes were destroyed by wildfires, although paid and volunteer firefighters formed battle lines in many a back yard. (more…)

search for : thunderstorm, Western North Carolina, firefighters, N.C. Division of Forest Resources

Aptly named “The Land of Waterfalls,” Transylvania County is home to about 250 falls within just a few square miles. They range from the massive 411-foot Whitewater Falls, the highest falls east of the Rocky Mountains, to the cozy 50-foot Moore Cove Falls. Some of the most popular are off major highways, including Dry Falls and Looking Glass Falls – a handicapped-accessible 60-foot cascade that can be seen from U.S. 276.

“Transylvania County receives the highest rainfall total of anywhere east of the Rocky Mountains,” said Beth Carden, director of the Transylvania County Tourism Development Authority. “We don’t need a water park here, because we have plenty of natural ones.” (more…)

“Asheville Any Way You Like It” is the tag line that adorns walls in the new Visitors Center on Montford Avenue. Tourism officials have just launched a new $500,000 ad campaign called “Unscripted” with commercials showing skinny-dipping seniors, airing across the Southeast.

The offbeat ads build on the Buncombe County Tourism Development Authority’s $200,000 branding initiative, trying to cement Asheville’s emotional connection for first-time and repeat visitors. “We guarantee you a life-enriching experience each and every time you visit Asheville. It’s personal, personal to you. And it is also personal to us,” Miller read from the Asheville brand promise printed on the back of his business card. (more…)

search for : Asheville, Tourism, Buncombe County Tourism Development Authority

4.7 + / – acre tract located on the Blue Ridge Parkway, Ashe / Alleghany County line. Over 600 feet of water frontage on Peak Creek, a North Carolina stocked trout stream.

Property has a restaurant that seats 50, includes some kitchen equipment, needs renovation. Upstairs has a newly remodeled, two bedroom, two bath suite, complete with kitchen and fireplace, washer and dryer. Also included is a 12 unit motel and office which needs renovation. The property is situated perfectly for an R.V. park and campground with sites along the river. (more…)

search for : Blue Ridge Parkway, Ashe, Alleghany County, Peak Creek, North Carolina, trout stream, R.V. park, campground

Grasping the extent of development sweeping across the Haywood County landscape is not always easy. So Marc Pruett, the county’s erosion control officer, came up with a little anecdote to put things in perspective. He tallied up all the private roads currently permitted for construction across the county — 73 miles worth in all. “That would be like putting on your walking shoes and walking to Clyde, on to Canton, all the way to Asheville, up to Mars Hill and on over Sams Gap and down to Erwin, Tennessee,” Pruett said.

Two candidates — Commissioner Chairman Mark Swanger, who is running for re-election, and Bill Upton, the superintendent of Haywood County schools — believe the county has a responsibility to facilitate discussions about growth in communities throughout the county. Swanger and Upton both supported what Swanger calls “community self-determination.” “Lots of counties in Western North Carolina have tried land-use management from the top down. All it does is create a huge controversy and nothing gets accomplished,” Swanger said. “I think you need to recognize the uniqueness of each community and let them craft some good policies that are specific to their community — not a one-size fits all.” (more…)

search for : Haywood County, erosion control officer, Asheville, Western North Carolina

If you are getting ready to move out of your longtime home and into more sunshine, you can actually gift your home to a child or friend but that gift will come with a few strings attached. In many countries around the world, once the parents die, the children simply move into the home and take over the master bedroom. While that progression still occurs in the United States, estate taxes, rising home values, job transfers, and the desire for a separate space and different environment have changed the use of the traditional family home.

The actual gain is the difference between the adjusted sales price (selling price less selling expenses) and the adjusted basis. The adjusted basis is the original cost plus capital improvements. Capital improvements are the cost of improvements having a useful life of more than one year. Examples include the new roof, dock, deck, remodeled bathroom, and finished basement. Generally, an expense is a capital improvement if it adds value to the property or extends its useful life. If these criteria are not met and the expenditure is considered necessary to maintain current usefulness, it is a maintenance cost. (more…)

search for : estate taxes, rising home values, adjusted sales price, Capital improvements

Fixed-rate interest-only mortgages allow borrowers to lock in an interest rate for the life of the loan, while reducing their monthly outlays by paying interest and no principal, typically for the first 10 or 15 years. These loans, which barely existed two years ago, now account for roughly 8% of all new residential mortgages taken out, says UBS AG, a financial services firm. Borrowers took out roughly $39 billion of these mortgages last year, up from just $7.9 billion in 2004, according to UBS, which analyzed loans that are packaged into mortgage-backed securities.

But these mortgages have significant drawbacks. Borrowers who make interest-only payments on a regular basis don’t build up any equity in their homes, apart from any increase resulting from rising property values. And homeowners can be hit with sharply higher monthly payments once the interest-only period ends and the borrower is then obliged to repay the balance of the mortgage over the rest of the loan’s term. Payments in the loan’s later years include both interest and principal. (more…)

search for : Fixed-rate interest-only mortgage, interest rate, rising property values

Ten or 20 years ago, wildfires there would not have threatened many homes. But today, North Carolina has more acres of wooded property with homes than any other state in the nation. There are measurable costs to protecting those homes when fires threaten. For instance, the Forest Service’s CL-215 tanker plane costs $2,800 an hour to operate. It was flown 4.6 hours at the Wilkes County fires on Summit Ridge and Buck Mountain. The plane cost $4 million when the state bought it used in 1998.

Six years ago, the nation’s first national map that focused on the areas where undeveloped wilderness meets homes and other buildings showed that North Carolina had more than 12.77 million acres in the area foresters call the Wildland-Urban Interface. That was the most in the U.S., and the state has had the nation’s fastest-growing Wildland-Urban Interface since then, Birckhead said. The Forest Service and other agencies are using the North Carolina Firewise program to help teach people ways to keep their homes safe from wildfire. “It’s generally recommended as a minimum you have 30 feet of break in the fuels around your home,” said Roger Miller, a Forest Service public-information officer. (more…)

search for : wildfires, North Carolina, wooded property, Wilkes County, Summit Ridge, Buck Mountain, Forest Service

Only nine states, including North Carolina, now prohibit hunting on Sunday. The North Carolina law was passed in 1869 as part of the blue laws that have roots in religious observance. Today, the reasons for and against keeping the ban spread far from the pulpit. Bruce Bente, a spokesperson for the Asheville-based Carolina Mountain Club, one of the region’s largest clubs, attended one of the Responsive Management-led focus groups in March. “As a club, we are opposed to Sunday hunting on a position of safety,” Bente said. “When we hike during hunting season, we wear blaze orange. The one day we can relax is Sunday.” (more…)

search for : North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, Sunday hunting, Hiking, Carolina Mountain Club

In 1992, many folks had never even heard of riding bicycles on a trail through the woods. That was the year Jim Parham published Off The Beaten Track, A Guide to Mountain Biking in Western North Carolina, a book that would change the way trail guidebooks were written, and strongly impact the recreation industry in the Southeast.

At the time, he was a 28-year-old whitewater river guide and kayak instructor for the Nantahala Outdoor Center in Bryson City, NC who’d fallen in love with off-road cycling, and he noticed the outfitter store staff spending precious sales time drawing crude maps on scraps of paper for customers asking where to ride. In October of 1991 he decided to take action and publish the first mountain bike trail guide for the Southeast. The concept was simple: concise directions, basic, ultra-clear maps, and everything a rider needed to have the best experience possible. The book itself would be slender, but packed with information–no philosophical musings, no text padding, just a few terse comments from the author to help the reader find the right ride. (more…)

search for : Off The Beaten Track, A Guide to Mountain Biking in Western North Carolina, Nantahala Outdoor Center

President Bush’s contention that America’s economy is “petroleum-based” is not entirely accurate. Although oil makes up approximately 40 percent of total U.S. energy consumption, coal and natural gas each now supply about 25 percent of the total energy consumed by the United States. So, while oil is a major element in America’s energy supplies, it is by no means the only significant factor. Disruption in natural gas or coal supplies would pose major problems to the American economy.

Until recently, the United States was in pretty good shape when it came to natural gas. Prices were low and supplies sufficient. In 2000, for example, North America consumed nearly one-third of the world’s annual output of natural gas. Unlike oil, for which the United States, Canada, and Mexico together produced only 60 percent of the supplies they consumed, the three countries produced nearly 100 percent of the natural gas consumed. Bound together by free trade agreements, the continental market for natural gas more than doubled through the 1990s. (more…)

search for : America, petroleum, coal, natural gas, oil

“The less competitive the market, the more concerned buyers will be with the condition of the home they are considering,” says Kathleen Kuhn, president and CEO of HouseMaster®, the oldest and most experienced name in home inspections. “History shows that the ebb and flow of the market can have very positive effects on related industries, particularly on companies that have invested in training and service — home inspection or mortgage companies, for example.”

Says Kuhn, “Last year, the market was so hot that some buyers were opting to forgo their home inspection contingency in an effort to win the house over other bidders. In a more stable market, buyers are more concerned with condition and value, and therefore more likely to invest in a home inspection.” In addition, sellers are arranging more pre-inspections than ever before, in an effort to help document conditions within the home and minimize negotiations. “Having a home inspected prior to listing is beneficial to both the seller and the buyer,” says Chris Messick of Edgewood GMAC Real Estate in Yardley, PA. “It allows the seller to be informed of any issues upfront and to allow for corrections to be made well in advance of closing. When a buyer tours a home that they are considering buying, they can be presented with the inspection report and the seller can show what, if anything, has already been taken care of. This can be very comforting to a buyer. It’s a win-win.” (more…)

search for : HouseMaster, home inspection, mortgage companies

With numerous national forests and parks in the area, miles of trails eagerly await the bike tires, running shoes, and hiking boots of those who explore and enjoy our vast and beautiful forests. Two such forests are Pisgah and Nantahala national forests, where the possible sale of 6,600 acres of public land has been proposed. Over the past couple of months the public has responded with resounding disapproval towards these sales.

The Pisgah and Nantahala forests are the two biggest national forests in North Carolina and are a priceless resource not only to citizens of Western North Carolina, but also to many tourists who come to visit our pristine surroundings. It is this type of environment and community that people identify with Asheville. Asheville is known for its extraordinary location and for its citizen’s appreciation for their environment. As Asheville continues to grow and expand it is important that we don’t lose this vision of Asheville. (more…)

search for : national forests and parks, Pisgah, Nantahala, forests, North Carolina, Western North Carolina, Asheville, environment

After being laid off from his $80 a week factory job in 1967, Mike Summey took his $300 severance and began a career as an entrepreneur and real estate investor that fulfilled a goal he set for himself at that time: to become a millionaire by age 30 and retire by age 50.

Now 60, Summey lives on a 25-acre retreat in Leicester and enjoys a seven-figure annual income from the several hundred properties he owns in Western North Carolina and Upstate South Carolina. Summey said he bought his first investment property in 1972 and has never sold one. (more…)

search for : Mike Summey, millionaire, Leicester, Western North Carolina, South Carolina, investment property

The period of public comment on the controversial “Road to Nowhere” project through Great Smoky Mountains National Park closed Friday with park officials receiving more than 70,000 letters, e-mails and faxes. Park spokesman Bob Miller said the vast bulk of the comments were automated responses to e-mails and faxes sent out by environmental and conservation groups opposed to resuming construction on the road, which now dead-ends seven miles west of Bryson City, just inside the national park.

A 1943 agreement between North Carolina and the federal government promised construction of a road to replace a state highway flooded when the dam was built, provided Congress provided funding. Only a short section was built before high costs and environmental concerns halted work in 1972. The issue was revived six years ago when U.S. Rep. Charles Taylor, R-N.C., secured $16 million in federal money to resume construction. Supporters of the road say it would give residents forced out by construction of the dam and their descendants access to family cemeteries and homeplaces. The National Park Service now takes those people across Fontana Lake by boat for annual cemetery decoration days. (more…)

search for : Road to Nowhere, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, environmental, conservation groups, Bryson City, North Carolina, Rep. Charles Taylor, R-N.C, Fontana Lake

Western North Carolina has a new organization of cyclists. The Southern Off-Road Bicycling Association was chartered in November and is the first mountain biking club in Western North Carolina. With more than 35 members and growing, the club is a member-based, nonprofit organization formed to promote trail preservation and development, mountain bike racing, touring, fun and fellowship for mountain cyclists in the Southeast.

The Pisgah Area SORBA will be working with the Western North Carolina Bike Dealers Association as well as federal, state, Buncombe County and city of Asheville land managers to build and maintain local trails. First on its to-do list is a trail-building and maintenance clinic on Saturday at DuPont State Forest, where Woody Keen, president of the Professional Trail Builders Association and co-owner of Trail Dynamics, will teach a three-day class. “It’s about volunteerism,” club member Rick Schrader said. “The more hands the better. That’s one of the reasons for the classes, so we can get qualified for (trail maintenance). It requires a lot of training to go into the national forests and do this kind of stuff.” (more…)

search for : North Carolina, cyclist, mountain biking club, trail preservation, mountain bike racing

The ascent of Bald Mountain, a steep and rocky 350-foot elevation change from bottom to top, provides a fairly strenuous workout. Depending on the route taken, it also poses several drop-offs hikers skim by cautiously. The land trust told its hikers that the climb is not well-suited for children or pets off the leash. “I wouldn’t advise just any and everybody to pick up their shoes and go out there without knowing what they’re doing,” Walser said. “It’s a difficult, strenuous hike, in some respects a little bit dangerous.”

A 35-minute hike from the parking lot, the forested summit provides views of Davidson, Rowan, Stanly and Montgomery counties and, on a clear day, uptown Charlotte. Another feature in the area is the mountain’s sheer cliff face that attracts rock climbers and rappellers. It’s the site of an old quarry from which workers pulled stone to build the dams that harnessed the Yadkin River. Getting to it requires a scramble back down the mountain and along a trail that is better-worn and more colorful. Graffiti decorate rocks along the trail. “Jesus saves,” one proclaims. Another says that Ted Nugent does something not nearly as nice. Remains of the old quarry conveyor stand nearby like ruins of a thick-walled fort. (more…)

search for : Bald Mountain, hikers, land trust, Davidson, Rowan, Stanly, Montgomery, Yadkin River

It’s easy for taxpayers to deduct the cost of a home office. To qualify for a deduction, the space must be used exclusively and on a regular basis for either the entire business or its administrative and management activities.

A home-office deduction is comprised mainly of depreciation, utilities and insurance. For example, if a home has 2,500 square feet and the detached garage, now deemed “the office,” is 250 square feet, then 10 percent of the utilities and insurance are deductible. The actual office depreciation is 10 percent of what would be a depreciation deduction if the entire home were being depreciated for tax purposes. (Depreciation is not allowed on a typical principal residence, so the square footage allotted to “residence” would not qualify.) Supplies and other expenses directly related to the home office are fully deductible. (more…)

search for : taxpayer, home office, deduction, insurance, depreciation

When the HGTV network airs its 40-minute live special, “Dream Home Giveaway” on Saturday, April 29 at 8 p.m. PT/5 p.m. PT, the Blue Ridge Mountains won’t be high enough to contain the energy and excitement. The home is located at Grey Rock, Lake Lure, North Carolina.

The grand prize package in the HGTV Dream Home Giveaway has a retail value of approximately $2 million and includes the custom-built home with more than 3,000 square feet of flooring from Lumber Liquidators, a matching Doggy Dream Home, an all-new 2007 GMC Yukon and a $250,000 cash prize from LendingTree.com. The spectacular fully-furnished house is more than 5,000 square feet and features sweeping mountain views, a large covered porch with terrace for outdoor living and separate upper level guest quarters. (more…)

search for : HGTV, Dream Home Giveaway, Blue Ridge Mountains, Grey Rock, Lake Lure, North Carolina

David Bach’s latest book, “The Automatic Millionaire Homeowner,” is eighth in his FinishRich Series. To say that it is a quick read is an understatement. He means for it to be read in just an hour or two, so you can get cracking. Yes, the ubiquitous best-selling author is back with his cheery, can-do message. This time he is talking directly to homebuyers. Buying a home is the smartest investment you can make during your lifetime, according to Bach. “According to the National Association of Realtors, the median home price in America hit $220,000 in August 2005 — a more than 55 percent increase in less than five years,” he writes.

Investing in real estate has been Bach’s mantra. In “Start Late, Finish Rich,” he said one-third of your assets should be in real estate, one-third in stocks and one-third in bonds. In his newest book, his formulaic, action-oriented approach cuts through the intimidating challenge of buying a house for the first-timer. He covers all the bases, including the tax advantages of homeownership, ways to save for a down payment, figuring out what type of house to buy, finding a real estate agent and a mortgage broker, shopping for a mortgage, understanding and negotiating closing fees and costs. (more…)

search for : David Bach, The Automatic Millionaire Homeowner, homebuyers, investment, National Association of Realtors

In southern Watauga County, condos with a view of Grandfather Mountain sell for $500,000 to baby boomers, who don’t mind the drive from Winston-Salem, Greensboro or Charlotte. It’s also the backyard of U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C., one of the nation’s stronger advocates for tougher immigration enforcement – the kind that could end up penalizing farmers, acknowledged her chief of staff, Richard Hudson. Four years after Mexican President Vicente Fox visited President Bush in Washington to discuss immigration, Congress is wrestling to find the right blend of compassion and vigilance as it discusses what to do with an estimated 11 million illegal immigrants and how to stop people from crossing the U.S. border illegally. (more…)

search for : foreign workers, Christmas trees, Tree growers, imported labor, Fraser fir, Christmas, N.C. Christmas Tree Association, Watauga County, Grandfather Mountain, U.S. Rep. Virginia Foxx, Mexican President Vicente Fox, President Bush, Congress

Mabry Mill may be the most-photographed spot on America’s favorite highway. The water-powered mill, once owned and operated by Ed and Lizzie Mabry, sits along the Blue Ridge Parkway in southern Virginia. Many consider the mill to be the best-loved attraction along the federal parkway..

A short paved walkway leads to the mill and adjoining exhibits that look at rural life in the Blue Ridge Mountains. That includes weaving, spinning, blacksmithing, woodworking, moonshining and sorghum making. You will also see old farm implements, millstones, lumbering equipment and tanning operations. The Mabry Mill is open to the public from May through October, and there are two parking lots off the parkway.Surrounding the mill are extensive wooden flumes to direct water from nearby streams to power the waterwheel at the Mabry Mill. (more…)

search for : Mabry Mill, water-powered mill, Blue Ridge Parkway

This year’s peak spring home sales season appears to be a “buyer’s market.” That means there are more houses and condominiums available for sale than there are qualified home buyers. As a result, home buyers can be more selective and negotiate harder even though mortgage interest rates remain remarkably affordable in the 6 percent interest range. To help home buyers negotiate their best possible sales price and terms, here are the five key questions home sellers and their real estate agents hope buyers don’t ask. (more…)

search for : rising mortgage interest rates, home sales price, buyer’s market, condominium, mortgage

The property is one of the last, vast undeveloped tracts of property that has been for sale in the northwest mountains of North Carolina, according to Sheldon Good. With an altitude of over approximately 4,600 feet, a mile of highway frontage, only two miles from a high-growth, historic village and no zoning restrictions, Sheldon Good officials state that the property offers unlimited development potential. Phoenix Mountain has an altitude of over approximately 4,600 feet, a ¾ mile long 300-400 foot cliff face, a mile of highway frontage, 150,000 gallons per day of sewage and water capacity, unspoiled mountain streams, only two miles from a high-growth, historic village, and no zoning restrictions.
(more…)

search for : Vincent Properties, Blowing Rock, Prestige Builders, Phoenix Mountain, ski slope, North Carolina, unspoiled mountain streams