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Research Triangle, NC Area is one of the Nation’s Fastest Growing Metro Areas May 21, 2009

Posted by Newt and Karen in Life, News, Real Estate.
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According to data released from the U.S. Census Bureau on March 19, 2009, Raleigh-Cary, N.C., and Austin-Round Rock, Texas, were the nation’s fastest-growing metro areas between 2007 and 2008.  Data is based on to July 1, 2008 population estimates for the nation’s metropolitan and micropolitan statistical areas and counties.

Raleigh-Cary saw its population climb 4.3 percent between July 1, 2007, and July 1, 2008, to 1.1 million.

Some other highlights of the report are as follows:

  • Large metro areas — those with 2008 populations of 1 million or more — were home to nine of the 10 fastest-growing counties.
  • All in all, 94 of the 100 counties (with a population of 10,000 or more) with the fastest population growth last year were in either the South (71 counties) or the West (23 counties). The remaining six were in the Midwest.
  • Among the 10 counties that added the largest number of residents during the period, four were in Southern California (Los Angeles, San Diego, Riverside and Orange), three were in Texas (Harris, Tarrant and Bexar), and one each was in Arizona (Maricopa), Nevada (Clark) and North Carolina (Wake).
  • Among the 100 fastest-growing counties, the majority were in Texas (19), Georgia (14), North Carolina (11) or Utah (nine). 
  • Twenty-seven of the 50 fastest-growing micro areas were in the South, 21 in the West and two in the Midwest.
  • Between April 1, 2000, and July 1, 2008, the fastest-growing metro area was Palm Coast, Fla., increasing by 83.1 percent. (Its single county, Flagler, was the second-fastest growing county.) Four western metro areas (St. George, Utah; Provo-Orem, Utah; Greeley, Colo.; and Bend, Ore.) rounded out the five fastest-growing metro areas. Three of the 10 fastest-growing metro areas had 2008 populations of 1 million or more: Raleigh (sixth), Las Vegas (seventh) and Austin (10th).

This information obtained from http://www.census.gov.

CCCC offers state’s first ecotourism certificate program May 12, 2009

Posted by Newt and Karen in Business, Events, Life, News, Schools.
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Some interesting information to share from Chatham County, North Carolina.

Starting with its summer session, Central Carolina Community College will  offer an Ecotourism Certificate program in Pittsboro, the first in the state community college system. 

Courses to be offered include Introduction to Ecotourism, Natural and Cultural Resources, Safety and CPR, Interpretation and Guiding, Nature-Based Law, and Business of Ecotourism. The program will appeal to a variety of audiences, including students who might go on for higher education in tourism, business owners, and entrepreneurs who might be inspired to venture into ecotourism.

The 10-week courses to be offered in the summer session are:
1. Introduction to Ecotourism, 6 p.m. – 8 p.m. Tuesdays, May 26-July 28
2. Natural and Cultural Resources, 6 p.m. – 9 p.m. Thursdays, May 28-July 30
3. Safety and CPR, whose meeting times will be announced later.

Vacations and travel are getting “greener” as people opt for visiting national parks, taking nature adventures, hiking, biking, birding, or any of the many leisure activities that involve getting closer to nature.

According to the travel website, www.tripadvisors.com, more Americans plan to be environmentally conscious about their travel and vacation decisions. Seventy-three percent said they plan to visit a national park, up from 62 percent a year ago. Forty-seven percent plan to engage in a nature adventure activity, up from 40 percent in 2008.

Enjoying nature as it is, without damaging the environment or ecological system, has spawned a branch of the tourism industry known as “ecotourism.” Tourism industry workers trained in ecotourism are needed to serve this growing industry.

Students will be able to take classes at the college’s Chatham County Campus in Pittsboro for personal enrichment or to earn the certificate. The program was developed in conjunction with an advisory committee led by the Pittsboro-Siler City Convention & Visitors Bureau, and included recreational and environmental organizations in the county.

The Chatham County Economic Development Corporation recently unveiled a plan for the county. It noted that “quality of place” is necessary for economic development.

Chatham County offers many locations for nature-based activities: Jordan Lake State Recreation Area; Lower Haw State Natural Area; many nature preserves; Jordan Lake State Educational Forest (and its Talking Tree Trail); championship golf; birding, hiking, and cycling trails; three rivers – Deep, Rocky, and Haw; and much more.

On April 6, the Chatham County Board of Commissioners passed a resolution in support of the college’s ecotourism program.

“We are very pleased to offer support for the new ecotourism program at Central Carolina Community College,” said Chatham County Commissioner Carl Thompson Sr. “Chatham County is ripe with nature-based assets. The introduction of this program is therefore most timely, appropriate and needed. It will also impact directly on our economy by generating new ecotourism entrepreneurs and tour guides, thereby creating more green jobs and businesses.”

“We are delighted to see a certificate program offered through the community college that considers the growing trend of our largest visitor draw, the nature-based traveler,” said Neha Shah, director of Travel & Tourism for the Pittsboro-Siler City CVB. “It is exciting for Chatham County and for tourism. We hope to see students who take what they learn one step further, whether higher education, further certifications, developing current nature-based ventures and/or creating an entirely new venture that serves a tourism niche to further enhance what we do.”

The college is seeking individuals interested in teaching ecotourism classes in the fall semester. Contact its Continuing Education Department, 919.542.6495, ext. 223, for more information.

For more information about the ecotourism program, contact the Chatham County Campus, http://www.cccc.edu/green/ecotourism/courses.php or call 919.542.6495. For more information about Chatham County tourism, contact Director of Travel and Tourism Neha Shah at neha@visitpittsboro.com or 919-542-8296.

Fast facts about tourism in Chatham County:

  • Domestic tourism in Chatham County generated an economic impact of $24.83 million in 2007, a 6 percent increase from 2006.
  • More than 170 jobs in Chatham County were directly attributable to travel and tourism. 
  • Travel generated a $3.16 million payroll in 2007. 
  • State and local tax revenues from travel to Chatham County amounted to $1.87 million. This represents a $30.43 tax saving to each county resident.

CONTACT:
Katherine McDonald
Central Carolina Community College 
919-718-7265
ksmcdo15@cccc.edu

 

This information obtained from http://www.chathamnc.org.

Raise money for your favorite cause May 6, 2009

Posted by Newt and Karen in Business, Life, News, Schools.
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Here’s a new easy way to raise money for your favorite cause. Just start using Yahoo! powered GoodSearch.com as your search engine and they’ll donate a penny to your favorite cause every time you do a search! For example, I’ve downloaded the Goodsearch toolbar onto my homepage. Every time I need to do a search, I do it in the goodsearch window. With each search, I earn $.01 for my children’s school.

In addition, you can do all of your shopping through their online shopping mall, GoodShop.com, where you can shop at more than 900 top online retailers and a percentage of your purchases will go to the charity or school of your choice. You pay the same price as you normally would, but a donation goes to your cause!

Here’s the web site — http://www.goodsearch.com. You can also read about GoodSearch in the NY Times, Oprah Magazine, CNN, ABC News and the Wall Street Journal. Check it out.

First Quarter Real Estate Statistics for Orange and Chatham County, NC May 1, 2009

Posted by Newt and Karen in Business, Life, News, Real Estate.
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The turmoil in the national financial markets during the third quarter of 2008 continues to produce scared consumers which in turn produce scared employees. The employed workforce has decreased and the unemployment rate has doubled. This is rare territory for the Triangle area. The current level of employment is the lowest level since March of 2006.  Job creation or loss is one of the main components in the local residential real estate market.

Here are some first quarter statistics for the Orange/Chatham area:

  • inventory levels increased 6% in Orange
  • inventory levels decreased 2% in Chatham
  • first quarter showings were up 27% in Orange from 1Q/08
  • first quarter showings were down 23% in Chatham from 1Q/08

Orange County is the only one of the main five counties in our market that had a higher level of showings compared to this time last year. This is a positive sign, however the level of contract pending sales continues to decrease. The number of expired and withdrawn listings has increased dramatically in both Chatham and Orange. These are sellers who have yet to adjust to current market conditions or do not have pricing flexibility.

The result has been a decrease in the amount of closed sales: down 27% in Orange, and down 25% in Chatham. The dramatically lower amount of closings has produced a higher current supply. Now is the time to be the buyer.

Data regarding house prices produces mixed signals. The average list price increased 4% in Orange and 1% in Chatham.  The average closed price increased 8% in Orange and decreased 7% in Chatham.

The market is heading into the part of the year that typically produces the highest amount of showings, contract pendings, and closed sales. Stimulus from Washington aimed at helping first time home buyers should provide a nudge to those sitting on the fence.

In Chatham and Orange County there is a great oversupply of homes in the 400K and up price points. There is no stimulus on the way to produce more buyers in this price segment. The oversupply in this and other segments in Chatham and Orange is expected to continue for an extended period of time. The lack of buyers in these price points is the main explanation for increases in the average list price.

The inventory situation in the 400K+ price points is not going to fix itself quickly. Many practitioners are searching for a bottom. There will probably be a bit more bottom searching before the market can begin to make its recovery.

This post is a summary of the Market Statistic Report, by Stacey Anfindsen, provided by the Greater Chapel Hill Association of Realtors to its members.

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