Coldwell Banker Platinum Partners Supports Numerous Local Charities

Coldwell Banker Platinum Partners Supports Numerous Local Charities

The agents, staff and management of each Coldwell Banker Platinum Partners office in South Carolina and Georgia, strive for philanthropy.  In fact, it is part of the Company’s mission statement.  This Holiday season, especially, they united with one common goal, to ‘give’ back to their communities. 
Partners rallied throughout 2015 and participated with numerous charities, with a special focus on the holiday season.

Some of the year’s programs included: Toys for Tots (for the 14^th consecutive year!); Salvation Army Bell Ringing; Habitat for Humanity; Dinner in a Box; Angel Tree Donations; March of Dimes; Meals on Wheels; Relay for Life; Manna House, local Lions Clubs; Coastal Coalition for Children; VFWs; Hospice of the Golden Isles; Dataw Historic Foundation (Beaufort); “Shop with a Realtor®” (donations for the holidays) and Adopt-A-Family.     

"The holiday Toys for Tots campaign is one example of an opportunity where anyone can participate to provide assistance to needy families.  Toys for Tots is now a part of every holiday season for us and we consider it an honor to help as many community members as possible," Connie Farmer Ray, CEO and Broker said.  She continues, “Everyone can be a Santa through any of our drives; in each of our offices we take up collections and we hope to give even more next year!”  

Kim Iler, a member of The RCA (Realtors Commercial Alliance),
sang Christmas carols, passed out fruit bags to attendees,
and made a monetary donation
(proceeds - rather than have a year-end holiday party)
to the Meals on Wheels program
at the Senior Citizens Group in Savannah.

For more information, please contact me at Announcements@mycbpp.com or toll free at 800.505.8111. Coldwell Banker Platinum Partners Real Estate Service in Georgia and South Carolina.

5 Deals to Score in January::featured agent, Robert Martin

5 Deals to Score in January

Looking to save money in the New Year? Shop in January.

"January is great time to find savings on items that people will need to start the year off on a good note," says Brent Shelton, online shopping expert for FatWallet.com. "Many items from new bed and bath textiles to health and wellness products see heavy discounting to help people save money out of the gate."

FEATURED AGENT:
Robert Martin
Sales Associate, ABR, SRES,
DNS, CMS,Christian Community Specialist
Office Phone: (912) 267-0054
Home Phone: (912) 264-9334
Voice-mail: (912) 617-4442
Cell Phone: (912) 617-4442

The biggest savings to be had, according to FatWallet.com, are in the following categories:

Fitness: Resolutions for better fitness collide with the best time of year to save money on fitness equipment, workout gear and fitness wear and sports apparel. January shoppers can find savings of 25-50 percent off these items at stores like Sears, Walmart and Dick's Sporting Goods. It's also a good month to stock up on health supplements, vitamins and dietary foods, as sales on these items are abundant the entire month.

Tax Software: The majority of tax software retailers, including H&R Block and TurboTax, offer some of their best discounts of the year for early filers, including up to 50 percent off on desktop and online tax software deals for both personal and small business tax.

TVs: Following a long month of holiday TV bargains, the second half of January offers the best selection of top-end HDTV deals leading up to the Super Bowl. Shoppers can expect average savings to exceed $200 on 40-inch and larger 4k TVs and last year's 50- to 60-inch 1080p TV models.

White Sales: Unlike holiday deals on lower quality linens, traditional January White Sales bring big discounts up to 50 percent off quality sheets, towels, window treatments and other textile items for the home from big-box stores that offer additional savings with cash back.

Winter Apparel and Gear: Warm weather has slowed retail sales for cold weather apparel, so January shoppers will see an extra boost in discounting of winter coats, boots, hats, gloves and under garments. Winter sporting good deals will offer shoppers up to 60 percent off from top stores with top name-brands like Under Armour, North Face and Timberland throughout January.

Source: FatWallet

For more information, please contact me at Announcements@mycbpp.com or toll free at 800.505.8111 .

Reprinted with permission from RISMedia. ©2016. All rights reserved.

For more information, please contact me at Announcements@mycbpp.com or toll free at 800.505.8111. Coldwell Banker Platinum Partners Real Estate Service in Georgia and South Carolina.

Great Spaces: Connecticut's Big Blue House Uses Revolutionary Building Technology:: feature agent, Lyn McCuen

Great Spaces: Connecticut's Big Blue House Uses Revolutionary Building Technology
By Zoe Eisenberg


If you’re driving down Greenwich, Conn.’s, iconic Old Church Road, you might notice something strange: a very big, very blue house. Known as “The Big Blue House,” the green building project spurred by designer and real estate developer Sabine H. Schoenberg is wrapped in Blueskin, a new adhesive house wrap designed to revolutionize the construction process. Unlike the more popular Tyvek house wrap, this new product is adhesive on one side and does not require staples to install. The breathable material can also be used on the roof, not typical in traditional home building, and can prevent moisture build-up. This means the entire home can be sealed, which allows construction to continue year-round—even in the chilliest of New England winters.

Feature Agent
Lyn McCuen
Broker Associate, ABR, CRS, GRI
Office Phone: (912) 232-7127
Home Phone: (912) 355-0927

Big Blue, spanning 4,800 square feet, is the first home in Greenwich to use Blueskin, typically utilized along the coast where building projects need to be protected from salty, damp atmospheres. In addition to the high-tech wrap, the home’s layout features all the latest in innovative and eco-friendly products and technologies. Pressed lumber and rot-proof, eco-friendly windows are just a few of the green features, which cost more to install, but will save heaps of cash in the long run.

Schoenberg, founder of This New House, is using the build-site as an educational platform, where she is teaching architects and builders about up-and-coming, innovative construction trends.

Source: ThisNewHouse.com 

For more information, please contact me at Announcements@mycbpp.com or toll free at 800.505.8111 .

Reprinted with permission from RISMedia. ©2016. All rights reserved.

For more information, please contact me at Announcements@mycbpp.com or toll free at 800.505.8111. Coldwell Banker Platinum Partners Real Estate Service in Georgia and South Carolina.

Consumers Have Confidence in 2016

Consumers Have Confidence in 2016

The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index®, which had decreased moderately in November, improved in December. The Index now stands at 96.5 (1985=100), up from 92.6 in November. The Present Situation Index increased from 110.9 last month to 115.3 in December, while the Expectations Index improved to 83.9 from 80.4 in November.

“Consumer confidence improved in December, following a moderate decrease in November,” says Lynn Franco, Director of Economic Indicators at The Conference Board. “As 2015 drew to a close, consumers’ assessment of the current state of the economy remains positive, particularly their assessment of the job market. Looking ahead to 2016, consumers are expecting little change in both business conditions and the labor market. Expectations regarding their financial outlook are mixed, but the optimists continue to outweigh the pessimists.”

The monthly Consumer Confidence Survey®, based on a probability-design random sample, is conducted for The Conference Board by Nielsen, a leading global provider of information and analytics around what consumers buy and watch. The cutoff date for the preliminary results was December 15.

Consumers’ appraisal of current conditions was mixed in December. Those saying business conditions are “good” increased from 25.0 percent to 27.3 percent. However, those saying business conditions are “bad” also increased from 16.9 percent to 19.8 percent. Consumers, however, were more positive about the labor market. The proportion claiming jobs are “plentiful” increased from 21.0 percent to 24.1 percent, while those claiming jobs are “hard to get” decreased to 24.7 percent from 25.8 percent.

Consumers’ optimism about the short-term outlook was somewhat mixed in December. Those expecting business conditions to improve over the next six months decreased slightly to 15.2 percent from 15.7 percent. However, those expecting business conditions to worsen increased slightly to 11.0 percent from 10.6 percent.

Consumers’ outlook for the labor market was more optimistic. Those anticipating more jobs in the months ahead increased slightly to 12.9 percent from 12.0 percent, while those anticipating fewer jobs decreased from 18.5 percent to 16.6 percent. The proportion of consumers expecting their incomes to increase declined from 17.3 percent to 16.3 percent. However, the proportion expecting a reduction in income decreased from 11.8 percent to 9.7 percent.

For more information, click here.

For more information, please contact me at Announcements@mycbpp.com or toll free at 800.505.8111 .

Reprinted with permission from RISMedia. ©2016. All rights reserved.

For more information, please contact me at Announcements@mycbpp.com or toll free at 800.505.8111. Coldwell Banker Platinum Partners Real Estate Service in Georgia and South Carolina.

U.S. Home Values Gained $1.1 Trillion in 2015

U.S. Home Values Gained $1.1 Trillion in 2015

The value of all homes nationwide grew $1.1 trillion in 2015, and is expected to end the year at $28.5 trillion total. The value of the entire housing stock grew 4.1 percent over the past year, slower than the 6 percent growth in 2014.

The total value of all homes has regained $5.3 trillion since hitting its lowest point during the housing bust in December 2011, but is still $782 billion below the bubble peak value of $29.2 trillion, reached in October 2006.

The dollar amount itself underscores the significance of housing to the U.S. economy. In the third quarter of 2015, the U.S. gross domestic product was $18.1 trillion, $10 trillion less than the total value of the housing stock.

"This reminds us of the large role housing plays in the overall economy," says Zillow® Chief Economist Dr. Svenja Gudell. "Total home value growth slowed this year, but there was still a significant increase in overall value, and many markets are more valuable than they've ever been. At the same time, more renter households and rising rents combined to set new records in rental spending in 2015. Americans are spending a lot of money on housing, and that will make affordability an important issue next year."

Housing value isn't distributed equally across the country. California is home to about 12 percent of the U.S. population, but the state accounts for nearly a quarter of the country's total home value, driven by highly valued markets like Los Angeles and San Francisco.

Total Rent Paid
Americans shelled out nearly $20 billion more in rent in 2015 than in 2014 as people around the country set up 1.8 million new renter households and median monthly rents rose at a record pace.  In all, renters spent $535 billion on rent in 2015 – nearly as much as the total budget of the Department of Defense ($575 billion), according to a new Zillow rentals analysis.  In 2014, they spent $516 billion.

Renters of single-family homes and apartments spent about the same amount on rent this year, with apartment renters paying $239 billion and single-family home renters paying $245 billion.

Renters in the New York/Northern New Jersey metro area spent the most on rent in 2015 – about $56 billion. Los Angeles-area renters spent nearly $35 billion, and San-Francisco renters spent $17 billion. About two-thirds of the total rent paid in 2015 was spent in the 50 largest metros.

November Real Estate Market Report
Home values rose 3.9 percent annually in November to a Zillow Home Value Index of $183,000, according to Zillow's November Real Estate Market Reports. Denver home values grew fastest for the tenth consecutive month at 15.5 percent annual appreciation. Miami joined Dallas, San Francisco, San Jose, and Portland as other metros seeing double-digit growth.

Rents also continued their steady climb, growing 3.8 percent annually to a Zillow Rent Index of $1,382. The pace of rental appreciation has slowed over the past four months. Only San Francisco and Portland saw rents grow at a double-digit pace, as Denver and San Jose slipped back into single-digit growth.

For more information, visit www.zillow.com.

For more information, please contact me at Announcements@mycbpp.com or toll free at 800.505.8111 .

Reprinted with permission from RISMedia. ©2016. All rights reserved.

For more information, please contact me at Announcements@mycbpp.com or toll free at 800.505.8111. Coldwell Banker Platinum Partners Real Estate Service in Georgia and South Carolina.

Abby Schreiber Joins Coldwell Banker Platinum Partners’ Sales Team in Beaufort

Abby Schreiber Joins Coldwell Banker Platinum Partners’ Sales Team

Abby Schreiber has joined Coldwell Banker Platinum Partners as a Realtor for the Company’s Beaufort office, located at 1211 Boundary Street.  Abby chose Coldwell Banker Platinum Partners because, “…the presence in the local market and tools of the international company are unrivaled.”

Abby Schreiber
Realtor
Office Phone: (843) 986-2444
Cell Phone: (843) 422-6730
Fax: (843) 986-2445

Abby, who also holds her BS in Industrial Engineering from SUNY College, NY, is an experienced REALTOR who specializes in the Beaufort & Hilton Head Areas.  “Let me take the stress out of buying and selling!” says Abby.  She is also a member of the Beaufort County Association of REALTORS and the Hilton Head Multiple Listing Service; and enjoys volunteering as a docent at Davenport House Museum in Savannah. 

Abby Schreiber may be reached at 843.422.6730 or via email at abby.schreiber@coldwellbanker.com.

For more information, please contact me at Announcements@mycbpp.com or toll free at 800.505.8111. Coldwell Banker Platinum Partners Real Estate Service in Georgia and South Carolina.