North Metro Commercial Real Estate

Cell Phones going Public Today! Block!

2008-05-09T05:02:00.000-07:00

Cell phone numbers going public tomorrow REMINDER....all cell phone numbers are being released to telemarketing companies tomorrow and you will s tart to receive sale calls. ....YOU WILL BE CHARGED FOR THESE CALLS To prevent this, call the following number from your cell phone: 888-382-1222. It is the National DO NOT CALL list. It will only take a minute of your time It blocks your number for five (5) years. You must call from the cell phone number you want to have blocked. You cannot call from a different phone number. HELP OTHERS BY PASSING THIS ON TO ALL YOUR FRIENDS. It take about 20 seconds.

Amphitheatre Opens May 10

2008-04-30T16:18:00.000-07:00

Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre Opens May 10, 2008
The first concert to be held at Alpharetta’s fabulous new 12,000 seat amphitheatre will be May 10th at Encore Park with Atlanta Symphony Orchestra. The first rock performance will be “The Eagles” on May 14th.
The $16 million amphitheatre has 12,000 seats, with 7,000 concert-goes under roof and another 5,000 on the event lawn. The venue resides on 45 acres of land in Alpharetta off Westside Parkway across GA 400 from the North Point Mall area. Construction began in June 2007.

ACT
Date
Time
Price
ASO
May 10, 2008
TBA
TBA
Eagles
May 14, 2008
8 p.m.
$69.50 to $198
Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
July 9, 2008
TBA
$72 to $82
Rush
July 22, 2008
TBA
$72
TICKETS
Tickets for the concerts are on sale beginning February 1, 2008. Tickets are available at all Ticketmaster outlets, online at www.ticketmaster.com and charge by phone at (404) 249-6400.
VENUE INFORMATION
(Changes subject to each show)
Parking: Must park in assigned lot. Look at section box on ticket.
Items NOT allowed: NO lawnchairs, NO food, NO beverages, NO umbrellas, NO recording devices.
Items allowed: Blankets, Cameras (subject to show)
Smoking Policy: Smoking IS permitted
Children Rules: Under 2 is free on lap. Some shows will be kids shows which they will be free on lawn only with adult.

Best place to buy a home? Alpharetta

2008-04-30T15:16:00.000-07:00

2008-04-10 ALPHARETTA AND ROSWELL REVUE & NEWS
Best place to buy a home? Alpharetta
April 24, 2008ATLANTA -- According to a new article out this month on CNNMoney.com's "100 Best" series, Alpharetta was named one of six suburbs across the country in major metropolitan areas in which home prices are likely to rise the most and fall the least in the next 12 months; this was reported in the category of "Best Places to Buy a Home."The six suburbs selected were also considered to be the "most recession-resistant."The average home price in Alpharetta is $359,950. The story states frenzied home building in Alpharetta has been stalled, which should start to reduce the area's large supply of vacant housing and therefore propelling housing prices upward.The second market listed is Boston (Waltham, Mass.) with an average home price of $406,000. Waltham is one of the first places to experience the downturn of the market and appears to be among the first to rebound as well. In the last quarter of 2007, prices of homes in Waltham rose only 1 percent.Cincinnati (Mariemont, Ohio) was next with an average home price of $354,800. The city should benefit from the falling dollar due to the city's manufacturing industry which weighs heavily on the economy. Commercial building is high, and high-end developments are moving into the area.The fourth market is Cleveland (Shaker Heights, Ohio) with an average home price of $146,100. Shaker Heights gaining recognition as "ground zero for foreclosures" seems to be benefiting from their plans to assist distressed borrowers. Prices of homes have stabilized in this area and prices should be rising in the near future.Detroit (Farmington Hills, Mich.) is the fifth market with an average home price of $215,000. With an average price-to-rent ratio of 15, a buyer can potentially get nearly 7 percent of their purchase back every year.
The final market is Houston (Sugarland, Texas) with an average home price of $180,600. The soaring oil prices in this particular area complement the real estate industry. In the fourth quarter of 2007, prices rose to 1.4 percent, the fastest of all metro areas analyzed.In its inaugural year, this study looked at price momentum and price-to-rent ratio metrics for the nation's 30 markets.

Bear Sterns Demise May affect Commercial Real Estate Market

2008-03-19T14:49:00.000-07:00

Following the fire sale of Bear Sterns this past weekend, commercial real estate investors could see their lending pool shrink up. The sudden downfall of the 85-year-old investment bank could increase investors' fears about commercial mortgage-backed securities, or CMBS, a key financing vehicle for commercial real estate. In addition, Bear Stern's demise removes a once sizable player in the industry. Bear Stearns was a major underwriter of CMBS, and held some $16 billion of commercial real estate bonds on its books.

Despite the sub-prime problems of the residential market the commercial market has remained fairly stable the past few years thanks in part to CMBS, which are basically repackaged loans of commercial buildings that are sold to investors, much like residential loans are.

The problem began about a year ago when the housing market really began to see a turn down. Many lending institution's not only tightened their standards on residential underwriting but also on commercial underwriting amid fears that lending practices had been too loose on those loans as well.

With the liquidity of the CMBS market drying up and the number of players involved shrinking, it is harder still to effectively price the securities, in turn making investors more cautious.

Mixed Use Developments Becoming more Popular

2008-03-19T14:40:00.000-07:00

Johns Creek is coming into its own as one of the metro Atlanta newest cities. Now more than ever, demand for great neighborhoods is at its peak. Atlantic Realty Partners, an Atlanta-based developer of mixed-use communities, has built, Johns Creek Walk, North Fulton County’s first true live, work and play neighborhood. Johns Creek Walk offers a unique blend of sophisticated manor homes, Arts and Crafts-inspired town homes, luxury rentals and specialty retail.

The 26-acre community will have a mix of housing choices, including 17 custom-built single-family homes and 44 three- and four-bedroom town homes and 210 luxury apartments with condominium-grade finishes when complete. Amenities currently in place include a swimming pool with outdoor kitchen and cabana, state-of-the-art fitness center, 24-hour Wi-Fi equipped cyber café, business center, pocket parks with outdoor gazebo, pond with ambient water feature, sidewalks on both sides of the streets, park benches, period streetlights and sign posts.

The single-family Manor homes, constructed in the classic old-world style, start in the low $500,000s, while the craftsman-style town homes range in price from the low $300,000s to the low $400,000s. The sales center is open Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday 1 to 5 p.m. The telephone number is 678-261-7587.

Lodestone Building history in Milton

2008-02-21T18:10:00.000-08:00

By: Bob Pepalis
February 11, 2008MILTON -- Crabapple Mercantile Exchange broke ground Feb. 5 on property in the midst of the historic district.The mixed-use development will have six buildings, including the Donnelly House, a historic home on the property near the Crabapple Road-Broadwell intersection in historic Crabapple."I want to get people to drive by here and sort of remember yesteryear," said John T. Adams, Lodestone's CEO.Handmade Virginia bricks and features such as stained glass windows from Germany that were hand-blown and painted at the close of the 19th century, 200-year-old carved mahogany doors from a French chateau and 150-year-old English Oak doors are the types of antiquties he plans to make part of the development, a hallmark of the company's philosophy.Crabapple Mercantile Exchange should open by late summer, said Will Gurley, whose commercial real estate firm handles leasing for Lodestone. The property consists of:• Retail space 22,352 square feet• Office space 23,450 square feet
advertisement(Individual suites ranging from 1,200 to 12,000 square feet)• Residential 4 residential condominiums• Build-to-suit space 6,500 square feetLease rates currently list at $22 to $26 per square foot, including both terrace and plaza units.Plans call for the four condos to be on the second floors of the two-story buildings, with office space also on top. Retail will stay on the first floors of the buildings.Space already leased includes:• Zest A restaurant to occupy the Donnely House• Scoops Locating in the building rising beside the historic home, this will be an old-fashioned ice cream parlor. Lynn Janovec of Will Gurley Realtors plans to operate the business.Daily traffic counts through the area top 108,000 vehicles, and the mean area income is nearly $110,000.00.- www.northfulton.com
by Bob Pepalis
For your commercial Real Estate needs in the Milton & Alpharetta area email me: Kim@powersolditcom

Alpharetta Unveils History Walk

2008-02-13T09:03:00.001-08:00

February 06, 2008Alpharetta continues its 2008 Sesquicentennial celebration with the unveiling of an all new Alpharetta History Walk through historic downtown.The event began outside Alpharetta City Hall (2 South Main Street). The unveiling continued on a narrated visit of 16 buildings, homes and notable sites located on several blocks in the Historic Downtown area.Members of the public were invited to join Mayor Arthur Letchas and other city officials.