Archive for the ‘Atlanta’ Category

Here at the Atlanta movers, we love keeping our readers informed of local events and happenings. This March, the 24th Annual Hunter Hotel Conference will be coming to the Atlanta, Georgia Marriott Marquis Hotel. The Hunter conference is one of four major annual hotel industry conferences.

The Hunter conference focuses on hotel owners, real estate and finance. Keynote speakers include Tom Corocran, chairman of FelCor Lodging Trust, which currently owns 76 hotels. There will be a total of 100 conference speakers throughout the entirety of the event.

If you’re interested in attending the conference, visit www.HunterConference.com.

The real estate market keeps taking blows, and the most recent is from the mortgage industry. The new record low for 30 year fixed mortgages, 3.87 percent, is the ninth “lowest” rate in the past year. Basically, the numbers keep dropping. And for a 15-year fixed mortgage? Another record low, at 3.14 percent.

Here in Atlanta, we are no exception to the trend. With loan qualifications increasingly difficult, job loss increasingly common and an abundance of foreclosed homes permeating the market, it seems the condition of the real estate industry is steadily getting worse. The whole industry is suffering in terms of value. So what to the Atlanta movers feel about it? We need a way to inject faith into homeowners, buyers and builders. Who knows how long it could take to re-instill hope in the industry, but we feel 2012 just may be the year that everything falls back in to place.

While the entire country has been battling with a floundering real estate market, cities notorious for poor real estate investments didn’t take the cake in 2011 for the weakest real estate market. In fact, the “winner” in that department is right here–Atlanta. The Atlanta movers hope we can get our local economy turned around in 2012.

Residential real estate took a blow, and the price of homes was down about 12 percent compared to 2010 figures. That make Atlanta the biggest decline in the nation. Paired with the housing market is the significant Atlanta unemployment–an above average 9.2 percent.

The Atlanta movers hear that there has been a new sale of commercial property in downtown Atlanta. The Imperial Hotel has long been inhabited by the homeless and low income families of the Atlanta metropolitan area. The last 15 years have seen the hotel house homeless and advocates at low costs–a far cry from the hot spot that it used to be back when it was one of Atlanta’s leading hotels.

Recently, the building was purchased by Columbia Residential and National Church Residences, and will remain a safe haven for the needy. Initial fears were apparent that the property might be remodeled and flipped as luxury condos, however, the goal is to provide high quality affordable housing for the needy. The current residents will be displaced while renovations are underway, however.

Buckhead has long been noted as an upscale and prominent area of Atlanta–but also one that had potentially jumped the gun and built too many new developments too quickly, such as expansive condo and apartments and also a plethora of office space. With the recession, many of these new and beautiful luxury buildings were left vacant.

However, with a new year seems to be a new turn for Buckhead. At it’s vacancy peak for offices, Buckhead was at 23% open units. Currently, that number has dropped to 18.7% vacancy. While the change may not seem significant, the Atlanta movers are hoping its a positive step in the right direction.

While residential real estate is staying busy with buyers, landlords, and renters; the commercial site isn’t doing as well–but it’s getting there. Hopefully in the first quarter of 2012 we will see some positive movements in the Atlanta market.

The Occupy movements are moving on to a new cause–saving foreclosed homes. Not just for the owners, mind you, but also for themselves to basically squat in. Public spaces such as parks have driven out the crowds, so they have taken to boarded up and condemned properties and claiming them as their own.

However they do also claim to be saving homes for families being foreclosed on. In Atlanta specifically, Occupy protesters held a rally in front of a county courthouse with whistles and sirens intended to disrupt auction proceedings indoors. The auctions were of course to sell the foreclosed homes. The foreclosure protests have also been popping up in New York, Seattle, and in Southern California. The motto? “Foreclose on banks, not people.”

The Atlanta movers have learned through a Newsday article that Occupy protesters feel they are saving homes for the needy and that their acts are a sort of “Christmas gift to the people.”

According to a recent Bloomberg report, home prices are down in many major American cities–Atlanta included. Of 20 cities monitored by Standard & Poor’s index, 17 of them lowered home prices in September when compared to August.

Atlanta, San Francisco, and Tampa are among the cities with the biggest decline in prices. While this isn’t promising news for the local real estate market, the Atlanta movers want to remind you that it may be your time to buy!

At the opposite end of the poll, home prices rose in New York, Portland, and Washington.

Renters are more popular than ever, and it seems as though property management companies and landlords are looking to maximize the industry as much as possible. According to a recent article by the New York Times, the companies use a pricing tool similar to that of airlines, which compares pricing based on markets and competitors. So essentially, a computer will determine if your rent is raised.

The Atlanta movers want to remind you that just like with most technological advances, the trick is in knowing when to strike. The same pricing tools that monitor fluctuations in plane tickets also applied to apartment rents, so if you search buildings that are less popular or that a landlord is desperate to fill asap. Be smart and don’t show your desperation…regardless of your situation.

This week, the United States celebrates American Education Week, which is an annual event that aims to encourage students, parents, and faculty to get involved in the public education system. Within the week long event is another community geared happening called Principal for a Day, where area leaders swap places with over 60 local schools to see what being the principal entails.

The Atlanta movers wanted to share the list of participating schools, which can be seen here. The fill-in principals will handle everything from parent-teacher conferences, disruptive and disciplinary needs, and lunchroom duty, among other tasks. You can also view the informational site about the week and how you as parents and neighbors can contribute.

The US Census has released new reports that show the metropolitan Atlanta area as a popular area for people seeking to move. Over the past 10 years, the percentage of new residents has grown almost 28 percent. Consistently it is one of the top 10 regions of the United States in terms of population size and growth.

Atlanta appeals to many Americans as a place with a vibrant economy, a diverse population, family oriented areas, exceptional amenities, and low cost of living.

The Atlanta movers are confident that this area has something to offer everyone. Come see for yourself why Atlanta is one of the most popular cities in America and also one of the most urban areas of the Southern United States.