A fireworks display at Bridge Street Town Center has been part of a Huntsville Independence Day celebration since 1965. This year’s celebration is sure to rank up there as one of the best. Entertainment throughout the day includes an Chocolate Crocodile Apple Eating Contest, Farmers Market, concert by the Brent Morgan Band, Hot Dog Eating Contest, Disco Oasis Concert and of course the main attraction…fireworks. Bring the whole family for a day of fun!
It’s that time of year again… time to have a garage sale at your Huntsville home! This year, you can have your most successful garage sale ever. Here are a few tips to help:
Advertise your sale in local newspapers and online. Many of the habitual Saturday morning garage patrons use the paper to plan their morning. They do this to make sure they hit all of the sales in certain neighborhoods. In the ad, mention your Huntsville home address, date and time of your garage sale and big or hot items you have for sale.
Open early. It’s best to open early, around seven in the morning. Sales tend to taper off in the afternoon. Don’t disappoint early shoppers who are typically your best buyers. They have a busy schedule and a lot of sales to hit. Open on time, or even a few minutes before the time you advertised.
Make plenty of signs pointing the way to your Huntsville home. If your yard is difficult to see, or is not on a main road, post signs pointing the way. If allowed, post the signs near a main road and attach a few balloons to it. This will catch the attention of the passing motorists.
Have everything clearly labeled with reasonable prices. Keep in mind that these shoppers are looking for a bargain and price accordingly. You can individually label each item, or use an easily readable color-coded chart. For instance, a blue sticker means 25 cents, red stickers mean 50 cents, yellow stickers mean $1, etc.
Offer specials at different points during the sale. You can offer a “two-for-the-price-of-one sale” hour or a “twenty percent off during the next hour” special. Make sure to list your planned specials and their times at the bottom of your signs and newspaper ads. At the end of the day, you may want to have an unadvertised special such as “fill a bag for $1″ to get rid of as much as possible.
Donate leftovers. Make your life easier and do something good for others by donating any items that don’t sell. If you plan carefully, you can schedule a pick up by your local charitable organization at the end of your garage sale.
With these tips, you’re well on your way to having your best garage saleever.
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The Huntsville/Madison County community once again led Alabama in both population growth and new and expanding jobs. This is according to data recently published by the U.S. Census Bureau and the Alabama Development Office.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the metro grew by 9,323 people or 2.4 percent, which is the state’s largest population growth.. The metro area now has 395,645 residents, which makes this metro area the 27th fastest growing area in the nation. the HUntsville area is made up of Madison and Limestone Counties.
Also, Madison County led the state in new and expanding jobs with 3,464 jobs announced, according to the Alabama Development Office, the State of Alabama’s economic development agency. The State does not include the areas of Huntsville that extend into Limestone County. The number of jobs for Madison County including those jobs is 3,811. The runners-up included Jefferson County and Mobile County with 2,088 and 1,677 new and expanding jobs, respectively.
New jobs and growth in our population aids in Huntsville real estate appreciation. Are you considering buying Huntsville real estate in 2009? If so, visit MoveToHuntsville.com or give me a call for more personal service.
As banks are pulling in their reins and taking on less risk across the nation, the number of consumer-loans in Huntsville and other midsize U.S. cities are rising. The midsize cities seem to be riding out the recession better than the big cities and rural towns.
In Huntsville, a metropolitan area of 376,000 that is home to many government contractors, borrowing increased 13.2% per household in last year’s fourth quarter, compared with the year-earlier period, according to data provided to The Wall Street Journal by Moody’s Economy.com and Equifax Inc.
Huntsville’s increase was the largest among 207 U.S. metropolitan areas tracked by the two data-gathering firms. Similar-size cities such as McAllen and Brownsville, Texas; Yakima, Wash; Provo, Utah, and Lafayette, La., also saw consumer-loan balances rise by more than 8% year-over-year.
In Forbes Magazine’s 11th annual ranking of the Best Places for Business and Careers, Huntsville ranked 15. Fueling Huntsville’s success is the number 2 ranking for “Projected Job Growth”, as well as ranking 27 for ‘Educational Attainment’ and 88 ‘Cost of Doing Business.’
Alabama can be proud that all the metro areas are in the top 20 metros, out of 200 metros.
The rankings are determined by a series of metrics established by Forbes ranking factors including local colleges, educational attainment of residents, and quality of life offerings.
Huntsville does not get much snow. It only happens maybe once or twice a winter if we are lucky. Sometimes years go by without a flake. The last few years we have not seen snow at all. The weekend snow fell over night Saturday and into Sunday morning. Approximately a half to one inch fell in the Huntsville Metro area and some of the surrounding areas had as much as 3 inches. It was enough to bring out some sleds and have a good snowball fight for a few hours.
I spent a few hours with my daughters sledding down some hills in the neighborhood. They had a blast and ready for more. By the afternoon the snow had melted away. Maybe the big snow will come next year.
Email me your ‘Snow’ photos and I will post them for all to enjoy! Send to Mike@MoveToHuntsville.com.
It is nice to bring good news to Huntsville homeowners, when so much of what is going on in our country these days is troubling and down right depressing. TVA, Tennessee Valley Authority announced last week it is reducing power rates in April by 7 percent.
Rates were cut by 6 percent for bills beginning in January. These cuts are on the heels of last year’s sharp 20 percent rate hike which began in October.
TVA estimates bills will come down $4 to $9 a month. Thank you TVA from all Huntsville homeowners!
A Romantic Valentine’s Day In Your Huntsville Home
Valentine’s Day is the perfect time to stir up love in your Huntsville home. With the current economy, however, you may find yourself wondering how you can afford anything special. In the spirit of happy, healthy relationships everywhere, here’s an inexpensive Valentine evening to keep the romance:
Romantic Dinner
Although “The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach,” isn’t necessarily true, a romantic meal is a great way to start off the evening. Here’s what you’ll need:
Chicken Parmesan ($20) - Two large chicken breasts, rolled in herbs and breadcrumbs; bake for 20 minutes at 400 degrees. Melt sliced mozzarella over the top. Your favorite pasta, cooked al dente. Place the cooked chicken on a serving of pasta, with Marinara or spaghetti sauce spooned over the top. Serve with toasted garlic bread (or toast, buttered and flavored with garlic) and a side salad.
If you are relocating to Huntsville, AL or Madison County, you will be interested in the area demographics. Below is information provided by the Chamber of Commerce.
For more Huntsville relocation informaiton visit MoveToHuntsville.com or give me a call at 256-508-0211.
Amidst the gloom and doom, there’s some good news to report about metro Huntsville. Among large metro areas, Huntsville ranked #5 in the Best Performing Cities in 2008 survey conducted by the Milken Institute/Greenstreet Real Estate Partners. The Best Performing Cities ranking depicts those U.S. metropolitan areas that are recording the top economic performance.
Cities were ranked according to how well they are creating and sustaining jobs and economic growth. The ranking depicts those U.S. metropolitan areas that are recording the top economic performance for wage and salary growth.
Nationally, Huntsville ranked #5 in wage and salary growth for 2008, moving up from the #16 ranking in 2007. In other rankings, Huntsville is # 26 for 5-year job growth, and #15 for 1-year job growth. In Alabama, Montgomery ranked second behind Huntsville, which ranked as the #5 metro area overall. No other large Alabama metropolitan area grew in its ranking.
Job growth is important in maintaining Huntsville real estate values. Learn more about Huntsville real estate by visiting MoveToHuntsville.com.
