Row, row, row your boat gently up the stream, merrily, merrily, merrily, life is but a dream. Rain, rain, go away, come on back another day..Oh sorry! I just cannot seem to get those songs out of my head lately. Wonder why? Maybe because it has rained for like 2 months straight? Or at least it feels that way.

As you will see, we are well above normal both for the year and the month of September and it is STILL raining.  I have lived in some gray places including Lansing, MI, but this is starting to really get to people. There is hope for brighter days ahead, but at this point no one believes it.  For all of those out there that would like a home with a mountain view and lake side, we may have more and more of these type properties if this keeps up.

Went to Asheville NC earlier this afternoon & on the way back to the office, the weather was CRAZY..  talk about driving through heavy rain, lightning, thunder, wind & sun just in a 35 minute drive back was eye awakening..  plus there were semi-trucks driving tailgating… not really understanding why.. but they did… I hope mother nature makes up her mind soon as to when this madness will show sunny & brighter days…

When arriving at the office, apparently lightning hit the side of our building knocking out the phone lines.. but at least we still have internet to make sure we still up & running to service clients.. so if you’re curious about the weather, follow us on twitter or facebook.. We give regular updates of what’s happening in Maggie Valley…

It is a bit grey in Western NC today, but there is still plenty to do with the Arts/Crafts Festival in Maggie, National Park Celebrations etc. Last night a good time was enjoyed by all at the Waynesville Block party. I hope all will get a day off on Monday!

Last night I attended the opening of the House of Terror at Ghost Town in the Sky in Maggie Valley. Business owners were treated to food and beverage, live music, and a great atmosphere before viewing the “House of Terror”. The night started off by riding the chair lift up to the top of the mountain.

The House of Terror was very well done and I think all that visit and go through will be entertained and impressed.

As I type I have just gotten word that the scenic train at Ghost Town has just opened leaving just the roller coaster to be cleared by the state.

As we waited for the House of Terror the roller coaster was going through some test runs. Check out the video below! Get to Ghost Town and have some fun!

Ghost Town in the Sky in Maggie Valley NC needs our HELP!

We received this letter from Ghost Town in the Sky.. Hope you’re able to help!

-Realty World-Heritage Realty

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All friends of Maggie Valley and Ghost Town in The Sky,

I can’t thank you all enough for the support and continued emails regarding beautiful Maggie Valley and Ghost Town in The Sky. Today, we passed the final State of NC inspection for our House of Terror and Scenic Train and we are extremely thankful for Jonathan Brooks, Tommy Petty and Preston White of the NC Department of Labor for their continued assistance.

We have invested millions of dollars and thousands of man hours getting Ghost Town back in shape and the NC Department of Labor has been extremely helpful. We are on the verge of getting everything in this park open and operational for the first time since we acquired the park in 2006 and are now one inspection away from that significant milestone. Today at 5pm, we are scheduled to open the House of Terror and the Cliffhanger Roller Coaster to a host of dignitaries and media as well as local elected officials, business owners and those dependent on Ghost Town’s survival. I can’t impress upon everyone enough the critical nature of this inspection to take place today or tomorrow. We are mindful of the stress on the department with current economic conditions and budgetary concerns that face almost every state in the nation.

We realize the inspectors in this region are extremely busy, but need our supporters to call Commissioner Cherie Berry or Andy Frazier asking them to allocate the necessary resources to get this done today or tomorrow. They have the resources in our area to help us but apparently due to budget cuts and being short inspectors in this region, they are not able to get to us.

GT will pay for overtime, if necessary, just to get this done. They must be made to realize that this is essential to our economy and the future of the Park, and the success of this Park means added revenue for the State, and continued employment for Maggie Valley and all of Western North Carolina.

With this in mind, please join us in making the NC Department of Labor understand the extreme need to support the tourism industry here in Maggie Valley and to get the inspection done on our Cliffhanger Coaster. Please contact the following to urge them to do everything possible.

Honorable Cherie K Berry, Commissioner, NCDOL Phone 919-733-7166 Email: cherrie.berry@labor.nc.gov
Andy Frazier, Deputy Commissioner, Standards and Inspections, NCDOL Phone 919-807-2794 Email: andy.frazier@labor.nc.gov
Jonathan Brooks, Elevator & Amusement Device Bureau Chief, NCDOL Phone 919-807-2770 Email: jonathan.brooks@labor.nc.gov

Once again, it has been a significant challenge to get Ghost Town in The Sky back to its former stature as one of the largest economic engines in Western North Carolina. On behalf of our employees, investors and myself, I want to express our heartfelt thanks and sincere gratitude to all of you that believed in us and continue to make us a success.
As always, if you have any questions or would like to discuss this further, you can email me any time at steve@shiver.com

I hope all of you have a wonderful and safe holiday weekend and we all look forward to seeing you here in Maggie Valley, NC at Ghost Town in The Sky.
Travel Safe, Steve Shiver, President/CEO Ghost Town in The Sky

In our sales meeting yesterday we looked at how land sales compare to previous years. What spurred this investigation was the fact that I realized that since our last meeting which was one week ago there were ZERO land sales.

For the year through 9/2/09 we have had 74 land transactions. To give some perspective last year through the same time period we had 134 land transactions.

Hang on because this is were it gets interesting…In 2007, from 1/1/07-9/2/07 we had 301 land transactions! It gets even better (or worse) for the same period in 2006 we had 434 land sales and 440 in 2005! To say we have had a slow down is a gigantic understatement.

To put this in perspective lets look at it like this. Let’s assume that we will end the year with 100 land transactions. Currently, we have 1871 land listings in Haywood County. If you calculate what we call the “absorption rate” (how long it will take to sell the current inventory) based on 100 listings sold in a year and 1871 listings, it would take 224.52 MONTHS or 18.71 YEARS to sell off the existing inventory. If you have land for sale in the county you just read the facts of why it is not selling. The interesting part to all this is it seems most owners have not lowered their prices to match the current marketplace. Should they?

Today the Realty World Heritage Realty family will say good bye to a great man, Mr. David “Dave” Johnson. It is a rainy day in the mountains which seems to be fitting. As we weep so does the lord for this great man. We will truly miss him and the tremendous support he has given this business for so many years.

The 2009 North Carolina General Assembly has enacted legislation that provides for a temporary additional 1% State sales and use tax effective September 1, 2009 and will expire on July 1, 2011.  Senate Bill 202 was ratified by the House of Representatives and the Senate on August 5, 2009 and has been signed by Governor Perdue.

As a result of the additional 1% State rate increase, the combined State and county tax rate will increase to 8.25% in Mecklenburg County, 8% in Alexander, Catawba, Cumberland, Haywood, Martin, Pitt, Sampson, and Surry Counties, and 7.75% in the remaining ninety-one counties.

The combined general rate of tax, which applies to telecommunications service, ancillary service, video programming, and spirituous liquor other than mixed beverages, is the State’s general rate plus the sum of the rates of local tax authorized for every county in the State.  Therefore, since the additional 1% has been temporarily increased, the combined general rate will increase to 8% in all counties, including Mecklenburg County, until July 1, 2011.

The following resources provide additional information about the State rate increase and you can link directly to them:

• Important Notice: Sales and Use Tax Rate Change
• Important Notice: Increase In “Combined General Rate” of Tax Revised August 19, 2009
• Form E-502P – 7.75% Combined State and Local Sales and Use Tax Chart
• Form E-502M – 8% Combined State and Local Sales and Use Tax Chart
• Form E-502Q – 8.25% Combined State and Local Sales and Use Tax Chart
• Form E-589E – Affidavit to Exempt Contractors from the Additional 1% State and Use Tax
• Application of Additional 1% State Tax to Construction Materials
• Worksheet for Completing Form E-500, Sales and Use Tax Return, for Quarter Ending September 30, 2009 (available on or before September 1)
• Worksheet for Completing Form E-500, Sales and Use Tax Return, for Month Ending September 30, 2009 (available on or before September 1)
• Worksheet for Completing Form E-500E, Utility and Liquor Sales and Use Tax Return, for Quarter Ending September 30, 2009 (available on or before September 1)
• Worksheet for Completing Form E-500E, Utility and Liquor Sales and Use Tax Return, for Month Ending September 30, 2009