In this issue... Making The Move To South Carolina... Green Technology at Rainmakers ...
"Mommy, are we rich?"... Building Family Compounds...News You Can Use...Queens Gap Getaway Special …and more
MAKING THE MOVE
The Gagstetters of Chicago
Craig & Patti Gagstetter started the search for their ideal retirement community looking for different things: he wanted the perfect golf course (“challenging but not overwhelming”) and she was looking for the perfect “feel” (“tennis, fitness center, lots of activities, a casual country club atmosphere”). They were determined to keep looking until they found a place that was the first choice for both of them. They started the process by attending a LiveSouth Real Estate Show in Chicago in 2003. They picked up lots of brochures, then started planning vacations around the different areas of North and South Carolina that were under consideration. Their fourth excursion, in July 2004, brought them to Grand Harbor Golf & Yacht Club on Lake Greenwood in South Carolina. As they were touring the community in a golf cart, Patti looked at Craig and said, “I think this is my first choice.” Craig replied, “Mine too.” Craig played a round of golf, then later he and Patti were picked up at the lake by a pontoon boat filled with 12 of their “new best friends” and taken to dinner. That sealed the deal. Patti reports: “People back at home got sick of hearing that I already had more friends in South Carolina than I’d made in 30 years in Chicago.” Craig and Patti moved into their new home in Grand Harbor in 2006. Patti has this advice for others about the whole process: “Do your homework; meet the people in the development and make sure you are compatible; pick a town where there’s a lot going on; and, most important, keep looking until you and your spouse are in agreement about your first choice.”
- The Settings of West Point Lake
Reception, May 30th
Newnan, Georgia - The Settings of Mackay Point
Reception, May 30th
Atlanta, Georgia - The Settings of Mackay Point
Reception, June 6th
Cary, North Carolina - The Settings of Mackay Point
Summer Premiere
June 22-24
LaGrange, Georgia
New Communities
CHECK IT OUT
Making “Green” Technology Work at Rainmakers
Golf courses are supposed to be lush and green, of course; but there’s green and then there’s “green”, as in enviro-friendly. The Rainmakers development in Ruidoso, New Mexico, is taking environmental building technology to a whole new level. For example, advanced natural polymers are spread on the fairways and greens of the golf course to retain moisture and cool down (by 10-12 degrees) the moisture that is retained. The golf course also uses special low distribution sprinkler heads and a weather station to control when and where the course is watered. All homes built in the development are equipped with an advanced rain catchment system that can capture as much as 1.5 million gallons of water per year per house. They use special foam blocks for the outer walls of the town homes - like a foam cooler, the foam walls keep both cold and warm air trapped better than conventional cinder blocks. If you’re interested in a community that’s clearly trying to be responsible about protecting our natural resources, Find out more about Rainmakers.
Rainmakers was recently mentioned in an article on Master Planned Communities
YOUR MONEY
Teaching Your Kids “Economic Self-Defense”
Author and speaker Joline Godfrey’s passion and mission in life is giving families the tools and information they need to raise “financially fit kids”. To combat our culture’s rampant consumerism, she has written several books to help parents equip their children to deal with money, including Twenty $ecrets to Money and Independence: The DollarDiva’s Guide to Life and Raising Financially Fit Kids. Says Godfrey, the CEO of Independent Means: “Children – at all levels of the economic and class spectrum – are targeted to buy and consume 24/7.” Her books, seminars and summer camps are designed to fight back and to teach parents how to answer such dreaded questions as, “Mommy (or Daddy), are we rich?” or “How much are we worth?” or “Will I inherit the family’s money?” If your kids have had it with the same-old-same-old summer camp, then consider Summer$tock camp for your 14-to-18-year-olds, where teens learn about financial planning and investing; or Camp $tart-Up, where they learn to be entrepreneurs, including creating a company and writing a business plan. For more information, go to www.independentmeans.com.
TRENDS
Second-Home Industry Marketing Family Compounds.
Your last name doesn’t have to be Kennedy or Forbes to build your very own family vacation compound. Developers are actively designing and marketing communities that include lots specifically zoned for multiple dwellings, including (typically) a “main house”, several guest cottages, and a “family gathering house” or common recreation area. Examples include Lake James in western North Carolina; Palmetto Bluff near Hilton Head, South Carolina; and Chapin Estate in the Catskill Mountains about two hours from New York City.
The revised and updated second edition of The New Retirement is coming out on July 24th, but it can be pre-ordered now from Amazon.com at a discount of 32%.
GETAWAY SPECIAL – Queens Gap, Rutherfordton, NC
Enjoy a relaxing and refreshing three-day-two-night stay, courtesy of Queens Gap, at either the Lodge on Lake Lure (one of the top three B-&-Bs in North Carolina) or the Firehouse Inn in charming downtown Rutherfordton. Either option costs only $149.00, which also includes a certificate for dinner for two. The friendly folks at Queens Gap can also arrange for fly-fishing, boating, hiking or climbing adventures. Call 1-888-388-4640 to make your reservation for this outstanding Getaway Special or click here to request more information.
