Riverfest logo 2011 from www.wilmingtonriverfest.com

The first Riverfest was October 1979.  A group of Wilmingtonian’s who were interested in the arts and wanted to resurrect the feeling of community in Downtown Wilmington brainstormed on how to bring back the alive nature of the downtown riverfront.  The area had become in disrepair and not family friendly.  The beautiful old buildings and the setting on the Cape Fear River deserved something better than the current conditions in the 1970′s.  The group of 40 volunteers put together the first Riverfest  with a budget of $5,500 (all donations).  This would be a free festival and would include trolley rides, 4 concessions and fireworks.  It was a huge success, thereby starting the tradition of holding the Riverfest every year since then on the first week of October.  This years festivities have grown even larger than past celebrations.

According to the Riverfest 2011 Reflections website ”

Over thirty years later Riverfest consists of: Twenty plus committees, over 300 volunteers, a budget of $90,000, over 200 craft vendors, 35 concessions booths, entertainment on various stages, Saturday night fireworks, Run the River 8K, the Great Wine Waiter’s Race, A Children’s Area, and more than 6 sporting events with contests for all ages. The end result is a half mile of free family entertainment, dependant on sponsorships and donations from community businesses and organizations. The economic impact on Riverfest on the surrounding community has been estimated at over three million dollars with attendance in excess of 100,000 per year.

As delightful as the festival outcome is, the end result is awarding of scholarships for marine related studies at Cape Fear Community College. The ultimate goal of Riverfest is to increase the amount of scholarship funds each year to Cape Fear Community College.”

It is wonderful to see such a great event in the fall in Wilmington NC.  The arts, cultural scene, music scene and the picturesque background of the city, is something not all cities can boast about.  Please join us in celebrating this years Riverfest ~ Reflections on the River October 7th – 9th.  For all the highlights and schedules please visit  www.wilmingtonriverfest.com

If you see any historic homes or any neighborhoods  that catch your interest, give us a call and we can show you the homes available in the area.  Feel free to visit http://www.cbbaker.com or text 14059 to 44133 to view listings on your phone.  Above all, welcome to our town and may you feel the Southern Hospitality all weekend.  Enjoy.

Safe At Home For The Summer

The song says that living is easy in the summertime, but don’t let the lazy days of summer lead to accidents. Keeping you and your family safe is just a matter of following simple precautions. Here are some tips for ensuring your family’s good times and good heath:

• Beware of the cutting edge. Lawnmowers and other power tools can cause serious injuries. When you’re mowing your lawn, keep children out of the area, and don’t allow children to ride on a mower.

• Before mowing, take the time to move outdoor furniture, toys, sticks or other obstacles out of the way. Especially if you have children or pets, you don’t want to turn your back on an idling mower to move objects.

• If your older child will be helping you out this summer by mowing the lawn, make sure he or she understands how to safely operate the equipment. Read all instructions and warning information together.

• Always turn a mower off before attempting to unclog debris from the blade.

• Tend to the fire. Grilling food outside is a wonderful way to escape the heat of the kitchen. Keep children away from grills or open fires. You should always have water on hand in case a fire gets out of control.

• Lighter fluid should be off-limits for children.

• Be safe about food handling. Never return cooked meat to a container that has held raw meat. Keep coolers in the shade and add ice to them as needed. Keeping drinks and food in separate coolers will cut down on the number of times the food cooler is opened.

• Watch out for other living things. Insect bites and bee stings can be reduced by dressing children in shoes and clothing that is light in color. Make sure you know what is growing in your yard. Teach children about poisonous plants and berries so they know what plants not to touch, pick or eat.

• Beat the heat. The dog days can be deadly. When the temperature tops 90 degrees, fans alone will not be able to cool a home. If you don’t have air conditioning, get out of the house and head for air-conditioned public places, such as libraries or shopping malls. Taking a bath or shower in tepid water will help you keep your cool. Stay well-hydrated, and make a point to check on elderly friends or neighbors who may be especially susceptible to heat-related illness.

Best wishes for a safe and happy summer!

Wrightsville Beach is a hidden gem that we treasure for it’s clear crystal clear waters, quaint atmosphere and wonderful people.  With Banks Channel, ICWW and the Altlantic ocean at our fingertips what is there not to like.  Great restaurants, a couple of shops and fishing piers provide entertainment for all.  We are pleased to  share with you our newest waterfront listing just in case you are interested in Wrightsville Beach.

www.WrightsvilleBeachWaterfront.com

Spectacular dream home on Banks Channel with over 4100 sq. ft. of gorgeous living area. 5 bedrooms and 4.5 baths in a well thought out open, floorplan with ELEVATOR. Incredible views await you from most every room including large decks from the owners suite and main living area. Vintage inspired kitchen w/bead board cabinets, Champaign and cream granite counters, kitchen island with built-in gas, downdraft cook top, and 2 raised breakfast bars. And a breakfast room with uninterrupted views of the channel and your private pier with floating dock and 2 boat lifts. One is a 13000 lb. lift for your fishing machine and the other a 3000 lb. lift for smaller pleasure craft. A recently new bulkhead was installed along the beautiful backyard with sod, knockout roses and other indigenous shrubs and bushes. The large owners suite has beautiful Brazilian Cherry floors and a fireplace that is shared with the spa like master bath offering unsurpassed views from the 2 man whirlpool and separate walk shower.

Over 4100 sq. ft. 5 BR, 4.5 bath dream home on Banks Channel with private pier, floating dock/gazebo and 2 boat lifts. Incredible Views. Prepare to stay awhile, because you have just found your new home.

Enjoy.

According to a post on Mothers Day History by 123holiday, contrary to popular belief, Mother’s Day was was not made up by Hallmark.  The annual spring festival the Greeks dedicated to Rhea, the mother of many deities, and to the offerings ancient Romans made to their Great Mother of Gods, Cybele. Christians celebrated this festival on the fourth Sunday in Lent in honor of Mary, mother of Christ. In England this holiday was expanded to include all mothers and was called Mothering Sunday.

In the United States, Mother’s Day started nearly 150 years ago, when Anna Jarvis, an Appalachian homemaker, organized a day to raise awareness of poor health conditions in her community, a cause she believed would be best advocated by mothers. She called it “Mother’s Work Day.”

To all the mothers everywhere a blessed Mothers Day to you.

A mother is a person who seeing there are only four pieces of pie for five people, promptly announces she never did care for pie.  ~Tenneva Jordan

Hundreds of dewdrops to greet the dawn,
Hundreds of bees in the purple clover,
Hundreds of butterflies on the lawn,
But only one mother the wide world over.
~George Cooper

Being a full-time mother is one of the highest salaried jobs… since the payment is pure love.  ~Mildred B. Vermont

The sweetest sounds to mortals given
Are heard in Mother, Home, and Heaven.
~William Goldsmith Brown

If you have a mom, there is nowhere you are likely to go where a prayer has not already been.

The State of the County address was given this week by Chairman Jonathan Barfield Jr. and the news was good.  After thanking all involved including the County and City staff, as it is a group effort to make this county a great place to live, Barfield said tough measures were taken to insure to maintain the quality of this area.  The 1/4 percent raise in sales tax last year helped maintain the county budget even though it was a hard tough decision to vote the increase in.  The schools, parks and core services were mentioned as projects that the county has paid particular attention to.  New Hanover counties credit rating is golden.  That will help this county move forward and continue to grow.  To read the whole address read more here….

To view the video click here.

The great town of Wilmington NC is what we call home and to say we of proud of our town, would be an understatement.  To view Wilmington NC real estate please visit www.cbbaker.com

Facing a budget deficit, the city of Wilmington NC would like to have your input on the 2011 budget with a little challenge.  To take the challenge you can visit www.cityofwilmingtonbudgetchallenge.com

Home Ownership Matters

Would you like to lose your Mortgage Interest Deduction when you do your taxes next year? Then act now and call your Congressman or Congresswoman and your Senators. In North Carolina, call Congressman Mike McIntyre- 202-225-2731 | Senator Richard Burr – 202-224-3154 | Senator Kay Hagen – 202-224-6342 as this is on the table now…

Homeownership matters and this is an important ideal that will become less affordable than it currently is.  Get involved and give your opinion to your representatives.  To look for affordable homes, please visit here….

Wilmington NC Worlds Largest Christmas Tree | Star News Photo

The Worlds Largest Christmas tree lighting ceremony which has  been held every year since 1928 (except the one year during World War II), unfortunately will not be held this year.  The tree will be lit, but there will not be a ceremony and access to the tree  will be limited.  The age and health of the tree has been a concern in prior years.  The City of  Wilmington is doing renovations at the Sweeney plant next to the tree, and these are safety concerns as well.  To upgrade and accommodate changes to make the area around the tree safe is not in the City budget.

So, we will have to view the tree from afar, and visit the new tree and Santa’s house on the downtown Wilmington NC riverfront.  This new tree will be lit at 5:45  – Friday November 26, 2010 at 5:45 Riverfront Park.  Maybe next year tree will make another grand appearance.  Until then, we can still say Wilmington NC has the “Worlds Largest Christmas tree” but with a quiet ceremony.

If you are in town and want to search Wilmington NC real estate – visit www.cbbaker.com/

The National Association of realtors has posted that the existing home sales rose again in September.  This affirms that a sales recovery has begun. 

The NAR states that the “existing-home sales1, which are completed transactions that include single-family, townhomes, condominiums and co-ops, jumped 10.0 percent to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.53 million in September from a downwardly revised 4.12 million in August, but remain 19.1 percent below the 5.60 million-unit pace in September 2009 when first-time buyers were ramping up in advance of the initial deadline for the tax credit last November.”

Lawrence Yun, NAR chief economist, said the housing market is in the early stages of recovery. “A housing recovery is taking place but will be choppy at times depending on the duration and impact of a foreclosure moratorium. But the overall direction should be a gradual rising trend in home sales with buyers responding to historically low mortgage interest rates and very favorable affordability conditions,” he said.

According to Freddie Mac, the national average commitment rate for a 30-year, conventional, fixed-rate mortgage fell to a record low 4.35 percent in September from 4.43 percent in August; the rate was 5.06 percent in September 2009.

The national median existing-home price2 for all housing types was $171,700 in September, which is 2.4 percent below a year ago. Distressed homes3 accounted for 35 percent of sales in September compared with 34 percent in August; they were 29 percent in September 2009.  Ten years ago, the mortgage rates were twice what they are today and the home prices were at least 20% more, making this a great time to purchase Wilmington NC real estate.  Please visit www.cbbaker.com to search all Wilmington NC area homes, land and boatslips.

What if every home for sale had a bar code capable of being scanned by any smartphone? How about bar codes on your business cards, listing flyers, postcards etc? Bar codes or QR Codes are starting to appear more frequently in the real estate business and are being hailed as the “next big thing.” Do you see this technology taking hold in real estate? If so, what other uses can you imagine?  Instead of handing out your business card you could just hold out your card with a QR code on it and someone with a smartphone could scan it with an application and all your contact information will be correctly added to their contacts.  WOW…

Kay Baker Google Map QR code

My Google coupon is a QR code and will take you directly to my Google Places and you will be able to access my profile on Google maps.

Maybe soon, we could put codes on For Sale signs and buyers can access information with one scan.  Technology is changing the way we do business.