Downtown Hendersonville Christmas Tree Lighting

I can’t believe that Thanksgiving is almost here (it happens next Thursday).  Where has the year gone?  After you’ve recuperated from your turkey hangover, come to beautiful downtown Hendersonville for the annual Christmas Tree Lighting Celebration.

The city’s official welcome to the holiday season will take place on Friday, November 25, 2011 at the Downtown Hendersonville Historic Courthouse on First and Main.  Beginning at 5pm, anyone in attendance will have the opportunity to enjoy a free carriage or trolley ride.  Santa will be strolling around for all the boys and girls to visit with.  The tree lighting itself takes place at 6pm.  Afterward, get a head start on your shopping by visiting the great merchants in the downtown Hendersonville area.

Bring the family, including all of your out of town guests, to downtown Hendersonville for the Christmas Tree Lighting Celebration the day after Thanksgiving.  It’s definitely a fun way to kick off the holiday season.

Rich Cooke, your Western North Carolina real estate specialist

Originally posted on my Hendersonville real estate blog here: http://activerain.com/blogsview/2608068/downtown-hendersonville-christmas-tree-lighting.

Health and Animals are the Focus in Hendersonville NC

Health and animals are the focus in Hendersonville, North Carolina throughout the rest of the month of September.  The Blue Ridge Humane Society Thrift Shop will be hosting a Pet Adoption Day at its Greenville Highway offices on Saturday, September 12th, from 11am-2pm.  Come on down and adopt one of these pets into a loving home they so desperately need.  For more information, please call 692-3503.

The third annual 5K and 1 Mile Fun Run for the Horses to benefit Hope for Horses, an equine rescue, rehab and adoption program in Western North Carolina, will be held at the Buncombe County Health Department in Asheville (35 Woodfin Street) on September 20th from 1-4pm. For more information and to register for the event, please visit www.hopeforhorses.org.

Get your flu shots at the Pardee Health Education Center in the Blue Ridge Mall from 8am-7pm on September 24th and  8am-5pm on September 25th.  The shots cost $30, but are free with participants who have Medicare Part B insurance.  The flu shot does not protect you against the H1N1 virus (swine flu).  Make sure you have your Medicare card with you (if applicable).  Otherwise, bring cash or a check.  To call for an appointment (required) or more information, please call 828-692-4600.

On September 25th, FREE cholesterol and diabetes screenings will held at the Asheville K-Mart (980 Brevard Rd) from 10am-3pm.  There is no appointment necessary and it is absolutely free to the public.

Music and Passion are Always in Fashion in Hendersonville

While the summer months are beginning to wane, Hendersonville is still alive with the sound of music, laughter and art.  Tuxedo Junction will be performing music from the 40’s through the 90’s at the Music on Main Street event on Friday, August 28th, from 7-9pm in Hendersonville.  There will also be a classic car show hosted by the Hendersonville Antique Car Club happening in addition to the Music on Main Street performance.  This event is sponsored by Burger King and FREE to the public.  Make sure you bring a chair and leave the pets and alcohol at home. 

Monday, August 31st, is the last scheduled performance of the Southern Crescent Bluegrass and the Rough Creek Cloggers at the 91st Street Dances on Main Street.  Also sponsored by Burger King, this event is FREE to the public.  You just need to bring a chair and enjoy the show from 7-9pm.

Going on now through September 26th, the Arts Council is hosting a “Bring Us Your Best” show at the Neill Gallery on Main Street.  Visitors are welcome to attend this juried and judged show of artisans from all around the Hendersonville area absolutely FREE.  The gallery is open Tuesdays through Fridays from 1-5pm and Saturdays from 1-4pm.

If you have a chance, head over to the Flat Rock Playhouse anytime from now through September 6th to catch their romantic comedy Real Estate, about what happens when selling your home.  Performances are at 8:15pm, with matinees on the weekends at 2:15pm.  Please call 866-732-8008 for more info.

Hendersonville Market Statistics for June 2009

According to the North Carolina Association of Realtors®, home sales may be down overall across the state, but Hendersonville experienced a 2% increase in home sales from the same time last year.  The 110 Hendersonville homes sold in June 2009 was a 2% increase from June 2008 figures and was a 31% increase from sales figures in May 2009.  The average cost for a Hendersonville home was $219,362 (down 17% from June 2008’s average cost of $264,559).

In comparison, Asheville home sales were down 7% from the previous year (June 2009 showed 217 units sold, June 2008 showed 233 units sold).  However, June 2009 sales were up 45% from May 2009 figures.  The average cost for an Asheville home was 6% less than the same time last year ($266,883 in June 2008, $253,852 in June 2009).

What do these figures mean for you buyers out there?  These low prices aren’t going to last long.  Asheville real estate already seems to be experiencing what may be a bottoming out of the market, with home sales only slightly down from the previous year and the average price being only slightly less as well.  Hendersonville real estate is not too far behind, with its home sales almost exactly the same as the previous year and up significantly from the previous month.  You don’t want to miss out on owning your piece of the American dream.  With the expiration of the $8,000 tax credit coming quickly upon us, now is definitely the time to buy.  Contact me today to let me know how I can make your Hendersonville or Asheville homeownership dreams come true!

Laurel Park Named #3 Neighborhoods to Retire in USA

As a resident of Hendersonville, this comes as no surprise.  But, now the rest of the country will know what I’ve known all along.  Laurel Park has been named as one of the Best Affordable Places to Retire in the USA, according to NeighborhoodScout.com.  This online resource for buyers and investors across the country ranked neighborhoods around the United States according to the median home value and cost of living as well as other factors and gave them a score from 1-100 (100 being best).  With its beautiful surroundings in the Blue Ridge Mountains, mild climate and its median home value of $346,100, the Laurel Park neighborhood of Hendersonville, NC was given a high score of 95 out of 100.  The only two neighborhoods in the country to surpass Laurel Park were Brecksville, OH (who scored a 97) and Englewood, FL (who scored a 98).  So, don’t take my word for it.  Listen to NeighborhoodScout.com and see why Laurel Park and the Hendersonville area were named as one of the Best Affordable Places to Retire.

Year-Round School Comes to Hendersonville

Today is back-to-school day for students of Bruce Drysdale Elementary School in Hendersonville, North Carolina, making it only the second school in Henderson County to utilize the year-round system.  This makes the start of the school year only four weeks after the end of the previous school year.  Rotating tracks will now have 3 months of school for every 1 month break instead of the traditional 9 months on and 3 months off.  Both teachers and janitorial staff have worked feverishly to get the school ready for the new year during the shortened summer break.  Luckily, many parents have volunteered to help as well, making the transition a little easier.

The reasoning behind having students on a year-round track instead of a traditional school year is so that students will retain more of what they learned over the previous year during the shortened time between studies.  Many school districts across the country are beginning to see the benefits of having a year-round curriculum for their students as opposed to the traditional school year.  Now, Hendersonville has joined them.  This should help our Hendersonville students be more successful in their academic careers.

Red, White & Blue Celebration in Hendersonville NC

Hendersonville will be showing its patriotic pride on Saturday, July 4th, in celebration of the birth of our country.  If you are a car enthusiast, head to Jackson Park from 2-9pm for the Fourth of July Cruise-in of antique cars sponsored by the Hendersonville Antique Car Club.  While you’re at Jackson Park, you can enjoy food, beach music by The Embers, crafts and fun for the kids.  Just make sure to bring a chair.  Jackson Park events will culminate in a fabulous fireworks display at dusk.

The Independence Day Parade will be held on Main Street at 11am, too.  Don’t miss it!  I’ll see you there.

Rich Cooke – The Cooke-Knapp Team, Keller Williams Realty – Mountain Partners

Hendersonville’s Music on Main Event

During the warm summer months, the Visitor’s Information Center in Hendersonville (201 S Main Street) will be hosting its “Music on Main Street” event every Friday evening from 7-9pm for free starting this Friday, June 5th, and continuing through August 28th.  All you need to do is bring the family, your dancing shoes and a chair to rest in between musical interludes.  No pets or alcohol are allowed.  Enjoy music of all kinds, including classic rock, oldies, big band, pop, beach music and even an Elvis tribute.  This year’s festivities will begin and close with the great Tuxedo Junction band, who will be performing hits from the 1940’s through the 1990’s.  The schedule for Hendersonville’s summer music series is:

June 5: Tuxedo Junction (music from the 1940’s-1990’s) and Classic Car Show
June 12: Tom Brown-One Man Band (oldies rock)
June 19: Night Crawlers (classic rock)
June 26: Sound Investment (oldies rock) and Classic Car Show
July 3: Special Edition (oldies rock)
July 10: Capital Sound-Army Band (patriotic, big band and pop), Classic Car Show
July 17: Caribbean Cowboys (beach music)
July 24: The Crew (Top 40) and Classic Car Show
July 31: Night Crawlers (classic rock)
August 7: Asheville’s Mix 96.5 House Band (dance)
August 14: Sound Investment (oldies rock)
August 21: Phil Urban & The TCB Band (Elvis tribute) and Classic Car Show
August 28: Tuxedo Junction (music from the 1940’s-1990’s)

So, put on your dancing shoes, kick up your heels and head on down to Hendersonville’s Visitors Center every Friday this summer to enjoy real music with real people.  I hope to see you there!

Easter Weekend in Hendersonville

If you are in the Hendersonville area this weekend, there will be some wonderful events going on that you may want to take your family to enjoy.  Mountain Lore Books & More will be hosting an Easter Party from 1-4pm on Saturday, April 11th, at their Main Street store in Hendersonville.  This is part of their ongoing Second Saturday Kids progam.  For more info, please call 693-5096.

Downtown Hendersonville will be the scene for the Easter Bonnet Contest and Promenade from 11am-12pm on Saturday, April 11th.  Put on your best Easter Bonnet and take a nice little stroll starting from the gazebo located on the 400 block of Main Street for about five blocks, then go north to the 600 block and head on back to the gazebo to complete your promenade.  Narnia Studios will award the winner of the Easter Bonnet Contest with a fun basket of “goodies”.  For more info, please call 697-6393.  I hope to see you there in all your Easter Bonnet glory!

There will be several Easter Egg Hunts around the area on Saturday as well.  Henderson County Parks and Recreation have invited the Easter Bunny to visit with the kids at Jackson Park starting at 12pm.  There will be food, fun, music and prizes as well as inflatables for the kids.  The Easter Egg Hunt begins at 1:30pm.

The Easter Bunny will be busy this Saturday.  He will also be making an appearance with the Laurels of Hendersonville on Saturday at 1:30pm to participate in an Easter Egg Hunt, pictures, refreshments and prizes.  For more info, please call 692-6000.

Etowah will be holding its own community Easter Egg Hunt on Saturday from 3-4:30pm at the Etowah United Methodist Church.  You can register for the hunt at the church’s fellowship hall at 2:30pm.  Enjoy crafts, fun for the kids, an Easter Egg Hunt and a moving telling of the Easter story.

“Locked Up” for Charity

On March 25th, I was “locked up” at our local Hendersonville Outback Steakhouse to help raise money for the Muscular Distrophy Association.  This was a fun event where about 120 local business-people were thrown in a makeshift jail, complete with striped uniform, shackles and even a mug shot (you can see mine here).  Before I was picked up and taken to the association’s Maximum Appreciation Facility, I had raised $1500 for my “bail money”.  However, after making some phone calls from my “jail cell”, I helped raise even more.  This was a fun event that helped raise $45,000 for a great cause, which, even in these tough economic times, was $5000 more than last year.

Rich Cooke, Western North Carolina Real Estate