Matthews, NC. 28105--Labor Day Weekend Matthews Alive 2012

Looking for something fun to do this labor day weekend? Come to Matthews, NC. for the annual Matthews Alive festival held every year during Labor Day weekend. This year the event starts on Friday September 2, 2011 and ends on Monday September 5, 2011. This is a great fun filled family attraction. In the eight years I have lived in Matthews, NC.; a year has not gone by that I have not visited Matthews Alive. Each day and night there are different bands and musicians playing on one of the three stages set up. There are carnival rides and games for the kids ( and kids at heart). Large arts and craft show, various food vendors and other family oriented events. Do not miss the parade on Saturday morning. This is the LARGEST Labor Day parade in the Southeast ( who would think a small town like Matthews NC would be such a large attraction for labor Day?). It starts at 10:a.m. SHARP. Come see the various bands from area high schools, floats and organizations throughout Charlotte area for this great event. Come by on Labor Day and see the classic car show held in front of the Town hall/Library. it is held in the morning and is a great place to spend soem time if you enjoy antique cars and collectible cars. The part that attracts me most to go to Matthews Alive (besides the great fun and memories it brings) is that 100% of all the profits are given back to the local charities and organizations in the community....This is a fundraiser but not one for the town of Matthews...but one for the local charities in Matthews and the surrounding area that help out families...it makes it even more worthwhile knowing I not only get to have fun; but my money is going to worthy causes.... I hope to see you all there this weekend...I know you will not be disappointed..... http://matthewsalive.org Dave diCecco Realtor/Broker Coldwell Banker United www.davedicecco.com

Why You Should Not Sell Your House As A For Sale By Owner

In this market there are a lot of home sellers that contemplate the concept of selling their house on their own without the services of a Real Estate Agent. They are trying to keep their costs to a minimal and in the process are willing to do some extra things on their own to sell their home as a For Sale By Owner. Does it work? Well 10% nationally sold their home without the assistance of a Realtor to list their home for them last year....ironically, 9% of those that sold involved a realtor in the transaction one way or the other...... And the average for sale by owner tends to get less money for their house than a home listed for sale by a Realtor...On average the price is 21% less. We have all heard the story by now of the owner of forsalebyowner.com tried to sell his home last year for a little over six months unsuccessfully and hired a Real estate agent to list and sell his house and even after paying the 6% in commission he still made $150,000 more than what he had it priced at. Most FSBO'S tend to hire a Realtor at some point in the process. Now one knows the exact number but it is well over 80% of the families that try to sell their home give up. Today, I met with and spoke in great detail with a family that tried that route.... They explained to me the perils they went through in trying to sell their house. Finding comparable sales for the house were very difficult. They had to scrounge through various websites to see if they could come up with a price that would work. After that failed they interviewed a couple of Realtors to get their price opinion on their house and used that as a pricing matrix. Second, getting calls at all hours of the day and night about wanting to see their house....They said the phone would ring starting at around 7a.m. in the morning to well after 9p.m. at night and even more so on the weekends.... it was quite frustrating dealing with all the calls they said and not knowing if the person on the other end of the line was legitimate or not. Third, having random people just walk up to their door unannounced and ask if they could see the house because they saw the sign out in the front yard....Most of the time that happened at night with the kids getting ready for bed or during dinner hour. Without the prep time of knowing someone wants to look at the house they were scrambling to keep the house clean at all times....With three children actively involved in sports and extra curricular activities and both parents working...You can only imagine how difficult it was. Fourth, having complete strangers walk through the house not knowing if they could buy a house or not...Were they casing the house out for a potential robbery? A few people they said made them feel uneasy.. Fifth, advertising the house...How do they advertise it? What do they write? How many photos do they take? What type of pictures do they take? Where do they put it? How will people find their house? Paying for all these services including getting it out there on the internet cost money....Almost as much as it would cost they said to hire you. Sixth, not knowing what to do if someone wanted the house. How do I write an offer? How do I know if their mortgage is approved? What are the steps involved in the process? There were they said various websites to help you through the process; but it is very difficult to navigate with a full time job and children at the same time. Last, peace of mind of knowing that with a Realtor they can set some of the guidelines and boundaries and not feel overwhelmed led them to call me today.... Is selling a house on your own doable? Maybe. Is the savings there versus hiring a Realtor to help you sell your house? Probably not...There is a lot of factors that need to be weighed in when you are looking to sell your home on your own. these were ones that they never really thought would be too bad until it was happening to them.....And probably the reason more than 80% of FSBO's end up using a realtor at some point Dave diCecco Realtor/Broker Coldwell Banker United www.davedicecco.com.

First Day Of School In Charlotte, NC. Comes With New Core Standards

Today marks the first day of school for students in the Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools system (CMS). As my children will tell you; I call it the happiest day of the year as a parent. But this year marks the beginning of new changes within the Charlotte Mecklenburg School System that filters all the way down to the parents. How this will play out I am not sure yet....But I am encouraged by the changes. CMS is changing the way teachers teach and our children learn in school. Gone are the days of facts and memorizing information. They want the children to ask questions and interact more in the classroom and be inquisitive rather than take notes and memorize information to pass a test. This is part of the common core standards that the school has rolled out in conjunction with a large amount of other states in math and reading. But they are asking the teachers to take it to another level in other classes as well... My oldest daughter teachers in science and history were talking about it as well.... She likes the idea of preparing us for real life and being creative and thinking things through and reasoning to the why than just accepting it as a fact..... Charlotte schools are also rolling out new end of the year tests to see how the students performed over the year and how much they grasped. It will also be used to evaluate how teachers are performing in school as well... This has been a hot topic among teachers, parents and students alike on how one exam can decide a teacher's fate. it has met with lots of controversy and I know teachers that teach the kids to the exam and not how they normally would just to ensure they do well on the test.....This will continue to be a very heated topic during the school year again this year. Charlotte schools are also trying to go more digital across the board. Most classrooms have smart boards and computers in the classroom. Now they are trying to take it to another level in the age of digital and move toward children having access to electronic devices in school. For example i-pads or net books and small laptops. They are rolling it out in a sample amount of schools to test it. I think in this digital age that as the children move up computers are necessary for the everyday work. One of the largest and most sought after changes is parent and community involvement in the education. In the past it was perceived (whether right or wrong) that it did not matter what the parents said the school board did what it wanted to and had made their minds up about it. Now the new superintendent of schools for charlotte is taking it to the people so to speak. Trying to get parents and communities involved in the education of our children is a hot topic this year . All in all this is the first day of school and the new changes being implemented starting today. Being a parent of four children in the school system form elementary school all the way up to high school; I am looking forward to see what the year brings on.... These new standards are supposed to help our children learn more and be better prepared to join the workforce or attend college. Change is a necessity today and I am open to change that will help our children blossom in the future. Dave diCecco Realtor/Broker Coldwell Banker United www.davedicecco.com