Recycle That Christmas Tree

Are you ready to throw out your Christmas tree?  From now until January 10th, you can drop your old Christmas tree off at the parking lot for Field 6 at Jackson Park for the annual Henderson County Christmas Tree Recycling event, which takes place on January 10th from 9am-2pm at the park in Hendersonville.  The Environmental and Conservation Organization (ECO) sponsors this event every year to help recycle old Christmas trees into wood chips and mulch for use in home gardens and as fragant additions to firewood.  ECO will be directing traffic and passing out free hot apple cider to those attending the chipping event on January 10th.  Christmas tree vendors are welcome to drop off any leftover trees at Jackson Park as well.  Hendersonville residents can simply leave their Christmas trees at curbside to be counted in the recycling event.  Last year, ECO was able to recycle over 1200 trees in Henderson County alone.  Anyone wishing to bring some of the mulch home for their own lawn and gardens simply need to bring a bag or a box to carry it in.  Bring your old tree down to Jackson Park and help recycle some of Mother Nature’s best work.  You won’t be disappointed!

Winter is Totally Tubular in North Carolina

Do you love playing in the snow but have trouble staying in an upright position?  If skiing and snowboarding aren’t your thing, try tubing.  Hawksnest Mountain Resort in North Carolina has changed from a typical ski resort to a tubing only resort.  This not only saves the owner money in staff and equipment, but saves the visitor money as well.  It costs roughly half of a daylong lift ticket to go tubing on a weekend or holiday (approximately $30 for a 2-hour session).  Hawksnest Mountain Resort offers 20 lanes for riders to run on a heavy-duty inflatable tube or raft.  There are other ski resorts on North Carolina’s Beech and Sugar Mountains that offer tubing runs as well, but Hawksnest is the only resort to go totally tubular.  After you unwrap gifts this Christmas, take the family and enjoy some old fashioned tubing fun in North Carolina.  Happy Holidays!

Further Rate Reduction Proposals

The Treasury Department is listening to proposals from the National Association of Realtors and National Association of Home Builders to have a wide-scale reduction in interest rates to as low as 4.5%.  One of the proposals suggests that a government agency (such as the Treasury Department) could buy up 30 year mortgages below the market’s fixed rate of 4.5%.  Another proposal suggests that the government play a role in lowering interest rates to home buyers by as much as 1% or more by paying loan discount points or fees.  The whole idea behind these proposals is to bring large numbers of people into the marketplace to stimulate construction as well as move large numbers of unsold inventory quickly.  By doing so, this would help create jobs by increasing the demand for building materials, appliances, furniture, paint, etc.

This rate reduction concept isn’t a new idea.  It was used in the 1970’s through the government’s Tandem Plan.  At that time, the Government National Mortgage Association (Ginnie Mae) bought below-market mortgages from Fannie Mae who had aquired mortgages from thousands of lenders across the country.  So, instead of the private lenders and Fannie Mae eating the losses, Ginnie Mae absorbed them.  This was an effort to stimulate homebuying in a stagnate market.

The most recent proposal has been to have the Treasury Department lower mortgage interest rates for home buyers.  The government could then sell debt securities to bond investors at 3% and acquire privately originated mortgages at 4.5%, providing a profitable business model.  For more information on how these proposals can help you in the Hendersonville real estate market, please contact me today.

Celebrate an Olde Fashioned Christmas in Hendersonville

Relive the Christmas spirit of yesteryear in downtown Hendersonville on Friday, December 5th from 5-9pm.  This Downtown Hendersonville, Inc., and Henderson County Travel and Tourism Visitors Center sponsored event takes place throughout the entire downtown shopping district.  Local merchants will be dressed in Victorian garb, offering refreshments to shoppers that grace their stores.  Carolers will stroll throughout Main Street and the avenues singing Christmas tunes, free carriage and hay wagon rides will be offered, live entertainment will take place at the gazebo and you can even expect a visit from Father Christmas himself!  As a special Christmas treat, the city of Hendersonville is allowing free public parking at Dogwood, Azalea and Maple Streets straight through until the day after Christmas.  The Henderson County Heritage Museum will also be open from 5-9pm on Friday.

Take a trip to the Historic Johnson Farm on Saturday, December 6th.  They are holding their Christmas at the Farm celebration from 12-5pm.  Henderson County schools have decorated trees that line the Christmas Tree Trail leading to the 1880s farmhouse.  Included in the festivities are refreshments, holiday music, a bake sale, a tour of the oldest brick building in Henderson County and even a visit with Santa (including photos with the big guy himself).  Just $5 for adults, $3 for students and preschoolers allowed free, all proceeds will benefit the nonprofit farm, educational programs, restoration efforts at the farm and a scholarship fund for high school seniors.

Take the family on a trip to enjoy a Victorian Christmas in Hendersonville this weekend.  You’ll have lots of fun!