Changing demographics
Part 6: Real estate in north Georgia
By KATHLEEN MCKEVITT Sentinel Writer

Tom Carlton of Oprandi Realty

Real estate growth forecasts have been somewhere between "Is the party over?" (meaning the over-inflated bubble of housing prices was about to burst), to projected growth rates continuing to increase and even soar in certain areas.

One of those areas is north Georgia. While more conservative estimates of growth in north Georgia are seen as 4-5 percent over the next ten years, real estate brokerage views in this area are discerning a probable six percent and up!

Nationally, the overall outlook seems reasonable at 7 percent appreciation for 2006, and flatten for 2007 and markets that have had the greatest appreciation also slowing, but that isn't how it's viewed by many realtors in the north Georgia area.

Tom Carlton of the Blairsville Oprandi office has run the numbers, done demographic research for Union, Fannin and Gilmer counties and where prices in Fannin county "sky rocketed" in 2006, and overall where all three counties saw sales prices that "smashed all records," according to Carlton, 2007 is projected to have another good year.

In other words, property sales here do not match the doom and gloom reports from the last quarter of 2006. Nationally as well, only 13 of the 30 reporting large city areas showed declining or flat sales.

Carlton said, "If a property is priced right, it will still sell easily in this area. Buyers are not only the retiring Baby Boomer generation, but Floridians coming to purchase land or a second property to use in their retirement or to get away from the effects of changing weather patterns."

Carlton's research covers a three-year period for Union, Fannin, and Gilmer counties and takes into account the growth in business enterprises in Blue Ridge especially, which most local residents know has shown amazing increase over the last 3-5 years.

Local resident Susan Nusen said, "I've been here for 27 years and now it feels like I don't live in the same place, everything has changed so much and so fast…"

Remax realtor and president of the Northeast Georgia Board of Realtors in the area Karen Godfrey said of the north Georgia area, "We are still very much in a growth period, and this is also true of North Carolina. The media has been projecting gloom and doom for housing,, and while there are some down-trends around the nation, we are one of those areas still experiencing growth."

Noting that the National Association of Realtors shows "spots in adjustment nationwide," Godfrey goes on to say that the NAR is also showing in their latest research that the nation's housing market and homes for resale remains in a growth trend.

The chart (right) is part of the recent research done by Tom Carlton of Oprandi Realty. It indicates a continuing growth trend in home sales prices. Other similar information in this series of research shows the same trend.

According to Carlton, "Interest rates are still attractive, quality of life in north Georgia is excellent, and many beautiful places to live are very available."

Carlton projects that 2007 and 2008 may not be the record-setting growth rates that happened two years ago and into 2006, but it will likely stabilize at a "normal pace" which is still a growth market.

It appears that this side of severe economic downturns or other unforeseen factors, northeast Georgians who presently have property can breathe easy as their property grows in value, while prices and locations are still very attractive to newcomers interested in buying.

The final parts of this series on changing demographics are Medical/Health (including crime), and Education.

Corrections to last week's Changing Demographics Part 5

+ The introductory letter from Governor Perdue went to 1, 069,814 hourseholds. The second mailing is being sent to those individuals who request long term care tool kits. + The campaign engourages people to plan ahead in a varierty of ways. + States applying to send our Long Term Care Planning kits did not pay money to the Federal government or receive money for the program. + The 2005 pilot campaign resulted in a 7.7% return. Georgia has not yet completed it's campaign which ends in March and new return rates will be known then. + The Governor's office and Health and Human Services so not endorse any specific companies for Long Term Care.