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The town of Duck is home to many amazing communities north to south from ocean to sound.  One of the most desired communities to own a home in Duck is the Four Seasons.  The Four Seasons has long been a vacationers and owners paradise due to its beautiful homes and its proximity to the center of town.  Many of Duck's fine shops and restaurants are only a walk or bike ride away.  The homes from ocean to sound are some of the Outer Banks finest.  The amazing Four Seasons homes are highlighted by outstanding community amenities.

The community amenities in the Four Season include:  community clubhouse, indoor and outdoor pools, trolley service, soundside pier, and trashcan rollback service.  Life at your home in the Four Seasons is usually just another day in…

One of the highlights of owning or buying a home in the Outer Banks is the accessability to water.  From the Atlantic Ocean to the numerous sounds and lakes, if you enjoy life on the water, the Outer Banks is for you.  No matter if you enjoy surfing, fishing, kiteboarding, parasailing, or just sitting on the edge of the water, life in the OBX is a water lovers dream.

The proximity of the Outer Banks to the Gulf Stream allows for some excellent fishing on and off shore.  For those that love to surf the area is home to some good breaks.  If you enjoy kiteboarding depending on the direction of the wind you can find yorself in the sound or ocean.  Anyway you look at it, life on the water is good.

For many part of the dream is buying a boat slip in the Outer…

Pine Island homes have long stood as the pinnacle of luxury on the Outer Banks.  Many of the homes in Pine Island benefit from both ocean and sound views.  If you are fortunate to own one of these homes, you can enjoy the sunrise over the Atlantic and the sunset over the Currituck Sound without ever having to leave your home.  The beautiful homes in Pine Island will continue to stand as the pinnacle of homes in Corolla.

Besides opulent homes Pine Island is also home to some amazing community amenities.  The beautiful oceanfront community pool and tennis courts are two of the highlights.  The homes are also located across from the Audubon Bird Sanctuary, so there is almost no chance of more homes being built.  There are currently 36 homes for sale in Pine…

One thing you will find when you invest in real estate is that all markets are local.  While markets are definitely affected by what is happening nationally and internationally, take availability of credit and interest rates.  The greatest influence is exerted by the local area. 

Often areas are greatly influenced by the predominant industry.  Here in the Outer Banks of North Carolina, our main industry is tourism.  Tourism swells the summertime population and local businesses reap the benefit.  With very few hotels and motels, the majority of Outer Banks visitors stay in vacation rental homes. Often it is possible to forecast the coming season by how local property managers are doing. 

Initial estimates were very gloomy.  It seems now, that the numbers…

There are many concerns along the New Jersey shore, especially in towns that receive most of their funds from tourism like Avalon or Sea Isle City, about what this summer will bring.  A sucessful tourist season will help to keep the life in the Sea Isle City real estate market.  After all tourism is New Jersey's third largest industry. 

That may come as a shock to some with all the industries that New Jersey has, that tourism is the third largest.  One study done by the state showed that for every dollar the state invests in tourism - we get back $36 into New Jersey’s economy.  For many coastal towns in New Jersey tourism is the sole industry.  These towns especially are working to ensure the 2009 summer season at the Jersey Shore is a sucessful…

If you are sour on the United States real estate market, you will be interested in the finding by the Knowledge@Wharton Real Estate in Emerging Markets Forum.  The forum had good insight into countries like China, Brazil, India and Russia, to name a few.  The consensus from the forum was...look for countries with strong middle-class growth -- say, China or Brazil. Stick mainly to housing and retail. Focus on the long term. And don't attempt to do it without a local partner.

The consensus sounds simple but once you read through the entire article you realize how important it is to have a solid foundation and local partners.  The findings of the forum definitely provide some great insight into investing in foreign countries.  For those without the partners…

If you have listened to the news in the last sixty days.  The word bailout has dominated the news.  Every week there is another group lining up at the trough for some taxpayers money.  Without getting into the apparent moral hazards of these bailouts or realizing that all the money from the Treasury and government is looted from the taxpayers, the problem of how to "fix" the real estate market has been constantly debated.

The latest proposal has been to achieve a fixed mortgage rate of 4.5% in order to stimulate the housing market.  How this would take place is covered well here.  A number of other plans have also been floated around by both the NAR and NAHB.  Both plans offer different ways to stimulate the housing market.

Perhaps the best idea I have…

The month of September was a good month for Outer Banks real estate and it appears rather good for the rest of the country.  In some good news this week, the rate of existing home sales rose in its largest monthly increase since July 2003.  This is definitely some promising news.  The over 5% increase from August could be an indicator of the market turning in the right direction. As minimum it is an indicator that at current prices many homes are a becomming a bargain.  For many who were kept out during the housing boom, now is becoming the chance to pick up the home they wanted for a reasonable price.

Some negative news did come out late this week.  The prices paid for those homes in September fell by 9% from September a year ago.  This is not…