October 29, 2007
City of Fairhope’s Annual Tree Lighting Ceremony
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October 22, 2007
Week of October 22nd, 2007
The Secret to Pricing Your Home to Sell
When you are selling your home, its value is determined by one thing only—what a qualified buyer is willing to pay for it. No more and no less. A home without a buyer has no value in the market place. It might have a great value to you, your banker, your insurance agent and your appraiser. But none of these people are buyers.
So here is the secret to pricing your home to sell—it’s not what you think the home is worth that really matters, but it’s what a reasonable buyer will think your home is worth that will ultimately determine:
● if your home will sell at all
● how fast it will sell
● how much it will sell for
Many sellers believe that they can hold out for an inflated price and the market will come to them. This is often a mistake because buyers are under no obligation to buy any particular home—and no amount of advertising, flyers, open houses, websites, signage or other marketing will motivate a buyer to purchase an overpriced home. Why? Because they can always buy one of your neighbor’s homes for less!
So, what is more important—price or time? The answer is unique to every situation and controls every seller’s decision to sell and every buyer’s need to purchase. Sellers either need to sell within a certain amount of time or can hold out for the best possible price. Buyers either need to buy within a certain amount of time or can wait to purchase a home for the lowest possible price.
A seller who would like to sell for top dollar should be prepared to potentially wait longer for a buyer willing to pay a premium price. On the other hand, a seller who needs to sell quickly should expect to discount their price somewhat because of the limited time they have to leave their home on the market.
Successful sellers take ownership of their pricing by making a clear decision about which is more important to them—selling quickly or getting the highest possible price. When selling your home, ask yourself what is your highest priority—price or time?
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October 15, 2007
Week of October 15th, 2007
Visit the 26th Annual Grand Festival of Art by the Bay
If you’re an art lover, you’ll want to save the dates of October 20 and 21st to attend the 26th Annual Grand Festival of Art by the Bay in Fairhope, Alabama, sponsored by the Eastern Shore Art Center.
This fine arts show will be located in Pier Park, which is close to downtown Fairhope. The show will feature over 90 artists exhibiting in a variety of mediums, including oils, watercolor, acrylics, photography, ceramics, glass and fine jewelry. Artists include both local and national artists, many of whom return each year for this unique venue on the shores of Mobile Bay—a beautiful backdrop for the show.
Plan a weekend in beautiful downtown Fairhope to come and enjoy the southern hospitality as well as a festival that offers beautiful and unique art by the best local artists! You’ll have lots of time to shop for that very special piece of art from 10:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m each day. Grand Festival admission is free. And there will be public shuttle service from several downtown locations to Pier Park
For further information on these events contact the Eastern Shore Art Center at (251) 928-2228. Or go online to www.easternshoreartcenter.com. The Eastern Shore Art Center, a part of downtown Fairhope for 52 years, features five exhibit galleries with new exhibits monthly of both local and traveling shows.
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October 8, 2007
Week of October 8th, 2007
More Info on the 4th Annual Alabama Coastal BirdFest
The 4th annual Alabama Coastal BirdFest is just a week or so away. This year’s festival is October 18-21 and it features 18 guided birding tours to prime spots—by land and on the water, with two evening events with great speakers, and a free, daylong Bird & Conservation Expo.
Guided trips include Fort Morgan and the Hummer/Bird Study banding site, Bon Secour National Wildlife Refuge, Dauphin Island, Bayou La Batre and Forever Wild Grand Bay Savanna, boat trips on the A.E. Verrill, the Dauphin Island Sea Lab research vessel, boat trips in the Mobile/Tensaw River Delta, backyard birding, and more.
All trips will depart from 5 Rivers, Alabama’s new Delta Resource Center, located on the causeway between Mobile and the Eastern Shore, which makes it convenient to I-10 and close to many hotels and restaurants. The evening events include an opening night reception at 5 Rivers, featuring a display or works by award-winning photographer Terry Hartley, and a Friday night BBQ & Seafood dinner and silent auction at the Nix Center in Fairhope, with keynote speaker, Dr. Geoff Hill, ornithologist, author, and professor at Auburn University.
The Bird & Conservation Expo includes hands-on activities, exhibits, demonstrations, giveaways, vendors, artists, films, lectures, and more. The Expo takes place on Saturday, Oct. 20, from 9 am to 4 pm on the grounds of Faulkner State Community College in downtown Fairhope; admission is free and open to all ages.
The guided trips and evening events require advance registration. To register or to view the complete schedule of trips and other events, visit www.alabamacoastalbirdfest.com. Registration and information is also available by calling 251-621-1902.
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October 1, 2007
Week of October 1st, 2007
Look, up in the sky? Is it a bird? Is it a plane? Actually, it is a bird, and lots of them! Every fall about this time, the original “snowbirds” come to visit, as migrating birds from all over the North American continent pass through the Eastern Shore on their way to winter homes in Central and South America. The 600-mile trip across the Gulf of Mexico is one tough flight, so the birds spend some time here on our shores ‘bulking up’ for that perilous journey.
Alabama Coastal BirdFest
Did you know that sometimes flocks of migrating birds make a temporary rest stop during that flight by landing on large tankers in the Gulf of Mexico? I learned that from a local birder who is involved with the Alabama Coastal BirdFest, a four-day event coming up later this month, Oct. 18-21. The BirdFest has guided birding tours, evening events with speakers, workshops, and a free, daylong Bird & Conservation Expo that takes place in downtown Fairhope. BirdFest’s guided tours and evening events require advance registration, and I know from past experience that trips fill up fast! To register for a trip or to learn more, visit www.Alabamacoastalbirdfest.com.
Five Things to Know About Landscaping for Birds
1. Food. Every species has its own unique food requirements. Learn about the birds you want to attract to your yard.
2. Water. With a source of water – a pond, fountain or well-maintained birdbath – you can almost double the number of bird species in your yard.
3. Shelter. Birds need places to hide from predators or escape bad weather. Trees, shrubs, tall grass and birdhouses work great.
4. Diversity. A wide variety of native plants will attract the most bird species.
5. Year-Round Care. Remember that birds need food, water, and shelter all year long.
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