The Divide at Bald Rock - Western North Carolina

Divide Your Time... Define Your Life...

The Western North Carolina Mountains offers a beauty all its own. It is a way of life... a place of peace and tranquility that can only be described by living it.

Creekside at The Divide:

Creekside lots nestle up to the bold fresh mountain stream of Little Hogback Creek. With its waterfall backdrop, lush forest, and stunning rock formations this is the hidden gem you have been looking for. If your desire is to experience mountain living the way it was meant to be, you owe it to yourself to experience mother nature at her finest... The Divide At Bald Rock.

Panther Ridge:

Panther Ridge boasts lots at the highest elevations in the community. At around 4500 feet this phase posses views overlooking Panthertown national forest, signature mountains such as Whiteside and Chimney Top, and vistas as far away as Georgia, South Carolina , and the Blue Ridge Parkway. These views simply must be seen to be believed. With only six homesites left this phase is a must see.

Contact Mathew S. Kowal O: 828-743-7077
C:404-394-7144

The Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust

"The mission of the Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust is to preservethe natural areas, scenic beauty, and green spacesof the Highlands-Cashiers Plateaufor the enjoyment and benefit of the public."

Disappearing Land
In North Carolina more than 155,000 acres of farm land and open spaces are lost each year to development. That's an average of 427 acres of open space a day, or 17 acres an hour lost forever. That is a land area the size of Charlotte, North Carolina, gone each year that will never be restored. Only you can help us protect our natural lands, water quality and wildlife.

How we Work
A land trust works privately with property owners who have a deep love for their land and want to protect it from intrusive development. Some of the ways we conserve natural areas are through:
-Fee simple donations of land to be owned and protected by the land trust forever
-Conservation easements in which property owners donate certain development rights to the land trust forever, while retaining ownership
-Bargain sales of property to the land trust at a reduced price.
All these protection methods may bring considerable tax benefits to property owners.
The Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust exists to help property owners and their community save something they love Please contact us to learn how you can leave a natural legacy for the future.

THE CONSERVATION EASEMENT

The conservation agreement is an effective means of conserving land in North Carolina. A conservation agreement or an easement, have been used to protect lands as varied as mountain ridge tops, piedmont river corridors, farms, Christmas tree farms, and coastal beaches. Nearly half of the 225,000 acres protected by Land Trusts in North Carolina are conservation easements. In Highlands and Cashiers, easements have led to the protection of nearly 1,000 acres.
Because conservation agreements have only recently become popular, most landowners are unaware of how useful this land protection tool can be. Conservation agreements enable landowners to preserve their land, maintain ownership of it, and usually realize significant tax savings and reduced property taxes.
What is a conservation agreement? A conservation agreement is a written agreement between a landowner and a qualified conservation organization such as a Land Trust in which the landowner promises to keep the land in its natural condition and the land trust is granted the right to enforce the agreement and to monitor the property.
The conservation agreement is similar to a declaration of restrictive covenants in a subdivision. It contains a series of restrictions relating to various uses of land.
Conservation agreements are intended to preserve property in its natural, undeveloped condition providing a benefit to the public by conserving open lands, forests, farmland, streams and significant natural resources. Because of the public benefit, there are federal, state, and local tax incentives for the landowner who donates a conservation agreement.
On August 17th, 2006, President Bush signed into law significant new tax incentives for conservation agreement donations that increase these incentives. The new law raises the deduction a landowner can take for donating a conservation agreement from 30 percent of their adjusted gross income in any year to 50 percent and up to a 100 percent for farmers and ranchers; increases the number of years over which a conservation easement donor can take those deductions from 6 to 16 years, and these incentives are in effect for only 2006 and 2007.

For additional information on the Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust you can contact them directly or contact The Blue Ridge Summit Group at 828-743-7077 or 404-394-7144

Let it Snow on the Highlands Cashiers Plateau...

In a place where it rarely snows in the dead of winter we had a beautiful fall dusting last night. It has been a friged week as we in the Western North Carolina Mountains got our first taste of winter this week. The funny part is it was probably colder than it will get all winter. We traditionally have very mild winter here on the Plateau and can enjoy days in the mid 60's even in January.

To miss the fall color of Highlands area mountains is a personal tragedy, it is a time of such beauty that it is hard to describe. Hues of oranges, yellow, red flame from the forests, hills and valleys. Mother Nature's artistic talent at her finest. Fall typically makes a gentle transition into winter, but this year we have been blasted with some cold. Thanksgiving and Christmas/New Years week are very popular times for area inns and restaurants. Winter is also a great time to see the scenic character of property that you might be interested in. During the winter months more and more retail stores, restaurants and inns remain open as the number of visitors to Highlands and Cashiers have increased greatly during these months. The Cashiers-Highlands plateau is quickly becoming a year round destination....

For more information on how to become a member of our lovely mountain community contact The Blue Ridge Summit Group at 828-743-7077 or 404-394-7144

www.dividenc.com

www.baldrock.com

Bald Rock - Equestrian Community in Western North Carolina

775 Gated acres with the most pristine mountain veiws in all of cashiers. This full service equestrian community is bordered by 6500-acres of Panthertown Valley National Forest. At a breathtaking 4100 feet Bald Rock carefully blends a limited number of estate lots with the natural beauty of a secluded wilderness. If it's a second home, a mountain retreat, or just escaping the city life come visit "Bald Rock".

For information on how to become a member of this magnificent community contact Mathew S. Kowal with The Blue Ridge Summit Group at O:828.743.7077 or C: 404.304.7144

Is the housing market on the Highlands Cashiers Plateau near bottom??

Here is a great article I found about the housing market. Remember the the Cashiers Highlands market is always a bit ahead of the curve. I hope you enjoy.....



Bottoms Near in Housing Market

By Mike ColpittsEditor

The big question everyone seems to be asking these days is when will the bottom of the housing market hit? The toughest aspect of forecasting any real estate or financial market for that matter is this proverbial age-old question.
The bottom of the real estate market will hit the over-whelming majority of U.S. housing markets beginning in mid-2009 and slowly move across the country through mid-2010, according to the newly issued Housing Predictor forecast. The bottoms for local housing markets won't happen all at once. Instead, they'll occur in stages and slowly spread in domino fashion across the country from one market to another.
The majority of local housing markets are still working through their downturns and won't see lower pricing levels flatten until sometime in 2009, close to what we forecast last April.
In April we also forecast an up tick in home sales in many markets across the country, which developed during late summer as a result of the epidemic of foreclosures. Pent up demand played a part, and now we project lower interest rates will combine to trigger an increase in home sales by late spring, 2009.
The massive $700-billion plus bailout, efforts by special interest groups to limit the number of foreclosures and interest rate cuts will all be part of the effort to stabilize the housing market. Additional efforts by the Fed and Treasury will also act to aid the marketplace.
But the real question consumers might be more concerned about these days is just how long it will take for improving market conditions to develop in the overall housing market. Housing Predictor analysts have examined our data to determine just how many years it will take for the market to show an overall sign of improvement, and at this point in the economic cycle we just aren't sure of how many years it will take for conditions to improve. Our best guess is that that conditions might begin to show overall economic enhancements sometime by 2011.
Although still in housing depressions, markets in California, Florida, Ohio, Indiana and Michigan are showing signs that some markets are nearing their bottoms, despite many of these areas being the hardest hit in the real estate crisis.
The Housing Predictor forecast is based on studies of more than 250 markets regularly tracked by researchers.
As forecast by Housing Predictor, the national mortgage crisis triggered by Wall Street bankers working in conjunction with mortgage companies to sell loans as securities on Wall Street seized credit markets around the globe, to become the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression.
As government efforts across the world increase to stabilize nation's economies, efforts to stabilize housing markets should develop into improving overall economic conditions in coming months and at least return local housing markets to be more attractive to real estate buyers.

For more information on the Cashiers or Highlands markets, contact Mathew S. Kowal with The Blue Ridge Summit Group at 828-743-7077 or 404-394-7144

Are you retiring in Highlands or Cashiers???

Medical Care on the Highlands Cashiers Plateau should be a concern if your looking to retire to the area.... We have a fantastic facility, The Highlands-Cashiers Hospital. Here is some food for thought when it comes to your health on the Plateau.

The Mission Statement

For more than half a century, Highlands-Cashiers Hospital has been dedicated to serving the medical needs of the people of southern Macon and Jackson Counties. In recent years we extended quality medical care to people in western Transylvania County and to residents of the Sky Valley and Dillard communities in neighboring Rabun County, GA.
Highlands-Cashiers Hospital is a modern 24-bed hospital and 80-bed long-term nursing center (the Fidelia Eckerd Living Center) staffed by highly qualified, dedicated physicians and a caring team of medical professionals.

The hospital continues to expand its services to provide you with the widest possible range of quality heath care. Our full-time medical staff and roster of associated physicians continues to grow.
In fact, medical specialties usually found only in much larger, metropolitan areas are now available locally. We've also expanded the range of diagnostic procedures available "on the mountain" by adding important new equipment and also utilizing a variety of mobile services, including bone density testing, nuclear medicine scans, and stereotactic breast biopsy.
And through our series of community health screenings, we're bringing heath care practically to your doorstep.
Although we've grown in recent years, we still go the extra mile to make you feel special every time you pass through our doors. Whether you are a patient, a family member, or a visitor, you're among friends who care about you as well as for you.

How do I get to the Medical campus????

Highlands-Cashiers Hospital is located just off US 64 between Highlands and Cashiers, NC -- approximately four miles east of Highlands and eight miles west of Cashiers.

From the South, travellers should take GA 246 to the right just north of Dillard, GA (which becomes NC 106) and follow it until it intersects with US 64 in Highlands (turn right at the first stop light and continue on US 64 east until you reach the Hospital campus).

If you need to phone the hospital....

Main Switchboard..................(828) 526-1200
For All Emergencies, Call 911

For more information on how to become a member of our gorgeous mountain community contact Mathew S. Kowal with The Blue Ridge Summit Group at 828-743-7077 or 404-394-7144

The Highland Hiker - A staple of the Highlands and Cashiers Area

When your traveling in the Western North Carolina Mountains, and you find that you have forgotten something, the Highland Hiker is the place to go. With locations in both Highlands and Cashiers you are sure to find what you are missing. The Store is filled with the mountain essentials from socks and shoes, to climbing gear, camping equipment, you name it they've got it. One of my favorite things they sell is the guide to day hikes. It breaks it down for you with difficulty levels, and even how long the hikes take. When you here on the Plateau, don't forget to stop at the Highland Hiker or visit their web-site at http://www.highlandhiker.com/

For more information on how to become a member of our mountain community contact The Blue Ridge Summit Group at O:828-743-7077 C:404-394-7144

Highland Hiker Day Hike Guide

The purpose of this trail guide is to provide information to visitors on many of the local hiking trails that can be completed in one day or less. It covers a large area encompassing parts of 3 states, 3 National Forests, and some state and private lands.
The guide includes a general location map to show the approximate location of the trails. It can be used to determine which trails are closest when time is limited. An appendix at the end of the guide lists the trails in the approximate order of their length and severity. The shortest and easiest trails appear first.
Several of the trails detailed in this guide have hand drawn maps to help orientate you before, during, and after your hikes.