I took my 6-year-old granddaughter, Abbey Grace, to Covington's historic square last night to watch the "Lighting of the Courthouse."  This Covington tradition signals the start of the Christmas season. Santa arrives in town in a horse-drawn carriage (well, we are in the South here!), there's free hot chocolate and cider on the sqaure, and merchants decorate their shops and extend their hours for early shoppers. Then, as darkness sets, there's a little ceremony on the steps of the historic courthouse, people crowd into the street to watch, and a local "celebrity" throws the switch to turn on the courthouse's Christmas lights. All that happened last night, but there were no "Oooo's" and "Ahhh's!" I knew it might be a long evening when Mr. and Mrs. Claus came by in the carriage.  Abbey Gr... 11/21/2008

It's something of a tradition with a large number of families in Covington to eat Sunday lunch out after church.  In fact, I've heard from a number of clergy in town that some members of their congregations get a bit upset if services run overtime so that they don't beat the Methodists/Baptists/Presbyterians, or whomever to their favorite restaurant. This past Sunday, my wife and I tried a place new to us... Yummy's.  It's located past Oxford at the intersection of highways 81 and 142 in one end of a small strip anchored by a Texaco service station.  Here's our personal impression of the place. Atmosphere and Ambiance:  You have to stretch some when you're in one end of a Texaco station, but Yummy's was nice for it's location... very clean, light and airy with table seating for 30 to 40... 11/17/2008

Ireland... 40 shades of green, thatched cottages, quaint villages, pubs, St. Patrick, leprechauns,   friendly, ruddy-faced people, sheep, a pint of Guinness and a dram of good Irish whiskey.  All those things pop to my mind when I picture Ireland.  But it's all that and so much more! My wife and I and two of our closest friends, Hal and Harriette, just returned from two weeks in Ireland.  Hal and Harriette had visited several times before, but this was the first trip for Jean and me.  Although we've lived and worked and traveled all over the world, we'd never made it to Ireland.  We're so happy we finally got there! The first part of October is a great time to go.  The tourist season is almost over so the crowds are gone.  The weather is still comfortable... upper 40's at night, lower 6... 11/08/2008

What's the most important thing you'll put your "X" beside when you go to the polls in Covington on November 4th? The name of the next President?  We hear more about the Presidential race than anything else.  In fact, we've been bombarded for months with positives and negatives about each candidate, what they allegedly stand for and what they'll do for us if elected.  That's pretty important stuff.  But, most important? The name of your next Senator or Congressman?  Heck, if elected, they'll be part of the 535 people who really run this country.  That makes their election or rejection pretty important too.  But, most important? Equally important as either of those races is whether you put your "X" beside the "YES" or "NO" on three Georgia Constitutional amendments on the ballot this yea... 11/03/2008

  This is about the state of the real estate market in Covington, Georgia… what caused the state of affairs we find ourselves in today. It’s also a little about politics. It’s also about our main stream media. But mostly it’s about honesty. I’ve written before that, from my perspective, the root cause of our problems with today’s depressed real estate market – and, indeed, with the current economic condition in our country – is the federal government’s misplaced premise that everyone in the United States should be able to own a home, and our mainstream medias’ crusade to reinforce and perpetuate that position. The current real estate crisis didn’t just spring up from nowhere. It is the direct result of a Clinton administration decision in the late ‘90s to loosen lending rules to make mo... 10/24/2008

Looking for a home to rent near the Newton County Medical Center?  You have found it.  Only seven (7) minutes, 3.32 miles from the medical center.  The home has five bedrooms, three full bathrooms, kitchen with upgraded cherry cabinets, refrigerator, microwave, stove, dishwasher all appliances are black, separate dining room, great room with fireplace.  The masterbedroom has a his/her vanity, garden tub and separate shower.  Two car garage and a security system. For further information contact: sjackson@kstrealty.com Website: www.kstrealty.com   07/31/2008

Location,   Location, Location.  These days with the outrageously high price of gas, you want to live close to all the services you and your family use.  No need to drive 15 plus miles to the grocery store, drug store, gas station, bank ,home goods store,  hardware store, and a good discount store.  The restaurants are close by for those Friday or Saturday evenings when the family eats out. You want the doctor's offices to be near by, and the hospital, especially if you have secured a job there.    Grocery Store       5 minutes  2.39 miles Gas Station          5 minutes   2.39 miles Bank                   5 minutes   2.25 miles Home goods store and discount store    5 minutes 2.39 miles Restaurants         3-5 minutes  Depending on which one Newton County Medical Center    7 minutes  3.... 07/24/2008

Listed is this lovely five bedroom, three bathroom home in Covington, Ga.  The kitchen is decorated in the latest kitchen fashions: cherry cabinets, black appliances (dishwasher,stove,refrigerator, microwave)  and hardwood floor.  There is a separate dining room with hardwood floor.  The great room has a fireplace, and a door to the deck.   The master bathroom has a his/her vanity, garden tub and separate shower. A two car garage and level backyard.  The home is only seven minutes  (3.32 miles) from the Newton County Medical Center.  It is a fifteen minute ride or less to the following elementary and middle schools: Porterdale, Oak Hill, Fairview, Livingston , Ficquett, South Salem, Palmer Stone, Clements, Indian Creek, Veterans Memorial, and 1.62 miles to Newton High School, and 4.25 t... 07/23/2008

Covington located in Newton county, Georgia is the county seat, has a population of approximately 11,600 and covers 13.86 square miles.  The city of Covington is know as a full service city an offers a multitude of services: electricity,water, sewer, natural gas, sanitation, police, fire protection and boast about its Covington Municipal Airport.   Fans of the late Carroll O'Connor know that "In the Heat of the Night" was filmed in Covington.  A popular T.V. show which ran for eight years. There is a great five bedroom, three bathroom home for rent in Covington.  The home was built in 2006.  The kitchen has upgraded cherry cabinets, black appliances , hardwood floor.  It is an open floor plan, a great room with a fireplace and a separate dining room.  Two car garage and a level backyard... 07/20/2008

The lovely five bedroom, three bathroom home in Brown Bridge Crossing is back on the market for rent. This well maintained home has many features.  The kitchen has upgraded cherry cabinets black appliances and hardwood floor.  The kitchen looks out to the great room with fireplace.  For further information visit our website: www.kstrealty.com and click on the rent tab.   07/19/2008

Rachel Oswald, reporter for the Covington News, wrote an article in today's edition about irregularities in the campaign of one of our candidates for chairman of the Newton County Board of Commissioners. In her article, Oswald alleges that Democratic candidate Hubert White, a prominent developer in Newton County has been issued numerous citations for violation of the County's Soil Erosion and Sedimentation Control Ordinance (for which he hasn't paid his fines), that he switched parties to run for Commission Chair but still donates to the Republican Party, and that, since quakifying as a Democrat, White has "campaigned hard for the votes of newcomers to the county, particularly the votes of black residents," according to Oswald.  He has even garnered the endorsements of former county NAA... 07/11/2008

As Realtors in Georgia, we are extremely fortunate to have the insight, expertise and guidance of a very wise man, Seth Weissman.  Weissman is a senior partner in the law firm of Weissman, Nowack, Curry & Wilco, P.C., and serves as general counsel of our Georgia Association of Realtors.  In that capacity, Weissman is not only an advocate for Georgia Realtors, but equally for every home buyer and seller throughout the State. Mr. Weissman recently co-authored and article with Dan Forsman, president and CEO of Prudential Georgia Realty entitled "Sorting Out Atlanta's Housing Market."  I just came across the article, but wish I had found it earlier.  The article provides a very astute insight into our current real estate marketplace, where it's going, and when. Weissman begins the article b... 05/27/2008

I was just going through my online news, when I discovered a report that new home  construction was up by 8.2% according to new figures released by the government. I was just wondering whether this is true in your neighborhoods. Here in my area (Covington GA Real estate market), there's virtually no new construction going on. I drove around the other day trying to locate any new houses under construction, but was surprised to find that many of the Covington GA new homes built more than a year ago are still on the market. There's virtually no new construction activity in these subdivions. The home builders are trying to sell their current inventory an they have drastically reduced the prices on these houses. We scout around and pu together a list of discounte homes in the area. CLICK HER... 05/16/2008

  At the risk of loosing about 51% of my readers, I have to say right up front that... No, girls!  This is not about the 1983 movie, "Risky Business," that propelled Tom Cruise to fame.  Sorry! This is the third in a series of articles on mortgage lending in the Covington Georgia real estate market.  And that, too, in today's market, can be a "risky business." In mortgage transactions, the lender takes the risk that you and I, as borrowers, may default on the loan and not repay the debt.  Therefore, they assess their risk on every type of mortgage loan to determine whether the loan should be approved or declined.  There are four major risk factors lenders consider today when underwriting a mortgage loan in the Covington real estate market and several lesser ones.  In this part of the se... 05/13/2008

In real estate, we talk about Smart Homes, meaning everything from ecologically sound building practices, materials and systems to being digitally wired so that one can dial in on their cell phone and turn on the oven. We talk about Smart Growth, environmentally and politically sensitive land use zoning and planning... maintaining greenspaces in cities, conservation neighborhood development, TND/PUDs, attractive commercial spaces without acres of asphalt. And now, there's the "Smart Car."  They don't have a lot to do with real estate in Covington except that I'm a Realtor and now I drive one! While we were in Europe last year, my wife and I noticed them everywhere, and kinda fell in love with them.  She said they were so ugly, they were cute!  When we got home, I did a little research a... 05/10/2008

In this second part of my series on mortgage lending, we'll discuss "underwriting" and the difference between being "pre-qualified" or "pre-approved"  for you mortgage loan.In the Covington real estate market, for every mortgage loan transaction, the lender must determine how risky it is for them to give you a mortgage loan.  Lenders have much more vigilant in today's market due to the high default rate on mortgages in the U.S., and rightly so.  After all, lenders are the ones who take the risk that you and I, as borrowers, may default on the loan and not repay our debt.  To assess their risk, lenders use a process called "underwriting."  That's a term I'm sure you've heard, but may not fully understand.In mortgage lending, underwriting is simply a detailed credit analysis the lender do... 05/05/2008

There are 2826 Covington GA houses for sale listed in the FMLS system today. 62 of them are foreclosures and 52 of them are HUD homes. A few of these foreclosures and HUD homes have just been discounted for quick sale. These discounted Metro Atlanta houses are very good deals for savvy home buyers.Click HERE for our list of Discounted homes for sale.Click HERE to Search ALL Metro Atlanta Houses for sale.26 of these Covington GA houses are being offered for lease purchase option. The prices of these lease purchase homes range from $60-313K. 11 houses in Covington are for sale by owners who have already moved out to another location. Such home sellers are usually very motivated to sell, because a lot of them cannot afford to carry two mortgages for a long time. Prices in this category ran... 04/27/2008

How many homes have you bought and sold?  How many times have you sat at a closing table, signed your name about a thousand times, walked away with the key to your new home and all you understood about your mortgage was how much the monthly payments were?I’ve done that – 10 times!  Before I became a Realtor®, mortgage lending was all a big blur to me.  I knew I applied for a mortgage loan, gave the lender tax returns, bank account records, and my bosses’ contact information to verify my employment.  But what happened between then and the time I walked away from the closing with my new key and a silly grin – no clue!  The whole mortgage lending process was a mystery.  I know from dealing with home shoppers every day that there are a lot of people out there just like I was.  They have no ... 04/22/2008

Around the first of this month, I wrote a short blog called "The Time Is Now!" about when is a good time to buy a house.  This morning, an article in the Atlanta Journal Constitution reinforced my idea that there's no better time to buy real estate than now.Julie Hairston wrote in the AJC this morning that Atlanta Falcons owner Arthur Blank has just put his seven-bedroom Buckhead mansion on the market for $10.9 million.  Well, most of us couldn't even afford one bay of the three-car garage or a couple of the seven full baths in that home!  But, that's not the point.The article says that the Blanks will be moving to another Buckhead home the are renovating, and are joining a trend among their moneyed peers of investing in new homes.Julie writes that a recent American Express/Harrison Gro... 04/18/2008

At the end of this year's first quarter, here's what's happening in the Covington and Newton County Georgia real estate market.According to the Georgia Multiple Listing Service (GAMLS), there are currently 1964 single family homes actively listed for sale in Covington and Newton County.  The average list price of these 1964 homes is $207,125., and they have been on the market for an average of 133 days.Most of the homes listed are three (3) bedroom homes - 864 of them, at an average list price of $152,962.  Four (4) bedroom homes comprised the next largest number on the market - 691 homes with an average list price of $228,314.  There are also 349 homes with five (5) or more bedrooms (average list $308,779.), and 60 homes with two (2) or fewer bedrooms (average list $151,753.).How does ... 04/02/2008