Lake Martin Voice Realty
Archive for the 'Neighborhoods' Category
Winner Announced: Free Weekend At Water’s Edge on Lake Martin
I am pleased to announce the winner of a free weekend stay at a cabin at Water’s Edge on Lake Martin, please see this video:
Congratulations to Cecil G of Greenville, Alabama. He and his luckiest friends and family will be enjoying a free stay next weekend.
Thanks to everyone that entered. We had a tremendous response. Some of you really made me laugh with your comments that you left in the form. Some of you left some things I can’t print (you know who you are 
) and others left some funny ones. To wit, a few examples:
We had the spam fearers:
“Please do not distribute or sell my number or email address.” and “Please do not give out my personal information!”
Don’t worry, your info is safe with me. I will put you on my once a month email list, and if that’s too much, by all means, unsubscribe.
Also we had some folks that have obviously dealt with some aggressive realtors before, here are a few:
“please use only for wining giveaway—no sales calls” and my personal favorite: “Please do not share my phone number or bombard me with calls. Thanks.”
We had some very complimentary words about the new homes for sale at Water’s Edge, and Lake Martin in general:
“We actually drove by this development recently. It looks great, we’d love to spend an weekend there.” and “Can’t wait to see the finished homes.” and “one of my favorites home sites on the lake” and “Lake Martin is by far the best lake in Alabama. The water is so clear, the restaurants on the water are great and everyone is so friendly!”
There were a couple of good natured attempts to influence the results. All were unsuccessful, of course. This one took the cake: “I hope I win, then you can sell my old lake house for the new one!!” - Wow, talk about temptation!
If you are wondering how I made the draw, please let me explain. I took all entries and then dropped their info into a spreadsheet. Every entry had a row #. I then went to Random.org and used their random number generator to give a number, then I looked up the row, and saw who won. That’s how Cecil G. scored a free weekend at Lake Martin.
For More Information on the Waterfront Homes for sale at Water’s Edge, see:
Lot 1 Water’s Edge – $589,000
Lot 2 Water’s Edge – $569,000
They each have 3 beds and 3 baths, and are sitting literally on the water’s edge. The view is stunning – jaw dropping even – you can see for miles, from its spot at the end of Coosa 20. You can see much of Parker Creek, the old Veazey’s Marina, Willow Point, and all the way to Sand Island.
Neighborhood Spotlight: The Landing at the Rock on Lake Martin
The Landing at the Rock is a waterfront development on Lake Martin. It was formerly called Karis Park, and is across the water from another Lake Martin development: The Village at Lake Martin. Both of these neighborhoods have a central-eastern lake location.
I shot this video from The Village to give you an overall look at the neighborhood. I’m not the listing agent for The Landing (Butch Billingsley is), but I can help you find a home in this neighborhood, or any property in the Lake Martin Area MLS. Just give me a call or contact me using the “Contact” tab at the top of this page. I’d love to help.
Enjoy the tour!
Announcing Water’s Edge at Lake Martin
Lake Martin Voice Realty is proud to announce the opening of Lake Martin’s newest waterfront development – Water’s Edge.
Check out our press release video of Water’s Edge below. Turn up your speakers a tad to hear the narration!
Located on the popular west side of Lake Martin, Water’s Edge is located at the end of Coosa County Road 20 – just across the water from Veazey’s Marina. The homes are literally at the water’s edge, with unparalleled miles long views down Big Kowaliga, encompassing Willow Point, Parker Creek, Sand Island and all the way to Governor’s Island.
Currently Water’s Edge offers two homes for sale, priced modestly yet giving you all the modern conveniences. So many new homes on Lake Martin are spec homes built on a design that could go anywhere. Often, that results in a home that’s new and shiny, but doesn’t feel like a lake house. Not true at Water’s Edge. The homes were custom designed for these exact lots by award winning architect Bryan Jones, of Jones Pierce Architects – Atlanta, Georgia.
Bryan “gets” Lake Martin – having designed many homes on the lake, as well as enjoying his own Lake Martin home in the Bay Pine area.
The site was especially challenging – given that the lots and roads were already laid out by a former developer that called it “Eagle Point.” Jones came in and started with a fresh set of ideas, namely:
* how do we design a home that takes advantage of the huge, “big water” view
* that is low maintenance
* doesn’t make you walk a million steps to get to the water
* that feels like a lake cabin, yet has modern features
* gives you privacy inside a development
* without a million dollar price tag
Just a few of the ways he found were:
* each home will have a deeded boat slip on a community dock
* creative use of space in between homes gives each home a “lakeside courtyard” for privacy
* create space inside the home with multiple uses to let a home live bigger than the square footage might suggest
* never forget that this is a lake house, with all of the form and function of the design that points to the lake
Currently Water’s Edge offers two waterfront homes for sale on Lake Martin:
* a 3 bedroom home that has approximately 3,200 +/- square feet over 3 stories for $589,000
* a 3 bedroom bath home with approximately 2,500 +/- square feet over 3 stories for $569,000
Water’s Edge also offers eight other waterfront lots for sale, their prices to be announced at a later date.
If you are interested in getting more information about Water’s Edge, or any more details, please feel free to contact me, John Coley, at 334-221-5862 or email me at info at lakemartinvoice dot com. I am honored to be the listing agent here, and would be more than happy to go on and on about the many cool details! So please call!
Lake Martin Video: Highway 63 Construction North of Kowaliga Bridge
ALDOT has Highway 63 under heavy construction. I shot this video today, about a mile north of Lake Martin’s Kowaliga Bridge. It’s across the road from where Windermere Road intersects Highway 63, aka Our Children’s Highway. The construction zone stretches from Russell Crossroads (location of Catherine’s and the Springhouse) south to just below Windermere Road. As of this writing, the highway is passable, you just need to slow down a bit.
I think that Russell Lands is also using this opportunity to create a golf cart path that will go under the highway. The theory is that you would be able to walk, jog, etc. continuously from The Ridge Club to Willow Point.
Tour Lake Martin’s Ridge Homes And Help Out Children’s Harbor
Will you be at Lake Martin this Saturday, May 16, 2009, and enjoy touring waterfront homes on Lake Martin?
Then you may be interested in the Third Annual Lake Martin Tour of Homes. Proceeds from the tour will benefit Children’s Harbor. Children’s Harbor serves seriously ill children and their families at the Family Center at Children’s Hospital in Birmingham and at Lake Martin, which is just south of Kowaliga Bridge on Highway 63
Last year the tour was of homes in Trillium. This year the tour will visit four homes in The Ridge designed by architects Bill Ingram and Bobby McAlpine.
The tours will begin at The Ridge Club from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Tickets are $25 in advance and can be purchased in Alexander City at MacDavid & Company, Cloud Nine, The Shoppes of Queens Attic, and Catherine’s Market. Tickets will also be available the day of the tour at the Ridge Club.
To learn more about Children’s Harbor, an extremely worthy cause, visit www.childrensharbor.com.
Lake Martin Real Estate Spotlight: Windermere West
Windermere West – off of Windermere Road on Lake Martin – is a Russell Lands waterfront development that was started in the early 1990s.
It had two phases, and about 236 waterfront lots. The typical Windermere West lot is well wooded, and deep – most homes are not easily seen from the road. Because it is off of Windermere Road and close to highway 63, it is close to the Russell Crossroads town center.
Windermere West is a great mix between town and country, for lack of a better phrase. They have Covenants and Restrictions to protect the homeowners’ rights of development. They have 2 landscaped entrances for aesthetics. But, they don’t have amenities such as a clubhouse, pool, or walking trails. Windermere West does not have its own sewer system, each home has its own septic system. Depending on your wants and needs, that could be good news. The upside is that Windermere West has a relatively minuscule HOA fee – currently $20 a month, same as it has been since 1991.
Here’s the first entrance from Windermere Road:
 |
Windermere West Parkway:
 |
There is an old cemetery right across from the second entrance
 |
Would you like to buy a home in Windermere West? Contact me, I would be glad to help. There aren’t many undeveloped lots left, but there are a few for sale. Call me at the number at the top of the page, I can help you find the best deals.
Video Tour Of The Ridge – Beach Park, Ridge Trails
Since I have a waterfront lot listed for sale in Lake Martin’s The Ridge, I get a lot of questions about the various amenities of the Ridge. One of the huge benefits to owning a waterfront home or town home in the Ridge is access to all of the “stuff.”
Though I have been in the neighborhood countless times, I had never been by road to The Ridge’s Beach Park before yesterday. It was really nice, it has a big covered pavilion, changing / rest rooms, and, of course, a big beach. The water view is of Lake Martin icons Chimney and Acapulco Rock Islands.
While I was there, I also hiked a bit on some Ridge Trails (download a map). The developer, Russell Lands, has done a really nice job about incorporating off the water features here. There are tons of mulch lined trails through the woods, that explore common areas and various other parks in the Ridge.
One example is Red Oak Trail and Hickory Hill Trail, I took these down to Hidden Park. Hidden Park has its own gazebo, boardwalk, and fishing pier. It was really nice and peaceful. Now that the leaves are down, you can sit up on the gazebo and get a nice view of woods and water of Lake Martin.
If trail hiking is not your thing, you can stick to the sidewalks. There are many of those around The Ridge, too. Check out my video of the morning:
If you are interested, see my listing info for Lot 72 The Ridge.
Related Posts:
The Ridge Amenities Video Tour
Lake Martin Voice Neighborhood Spotlight: The Ridge
Another Broker Told Me “Your Price Is Too High”
One of my listings for sale is 302 Villas On The Harbor, a 1 bed 1 bath condo in Lake Martin’s Stillwaters Community. The Villas On The Harbor sits right next door to Harbor Pointe Marina, and Harbor Pointe Condos.
I got a challenging email the other day from Ron Botterbusch, Broker of RB Commercial Properties in Montgomery. He said:
“I read your Lake Martin Voice from time to time and enjoy your insights and
“take” on things. I sometimes browse your listings and today I viewed the
above and was curious about your statement “at a price that makes sense”.
$304.95 per square foot for a 1/1 condo??? Wow, even with a boat slip, that
price seems sky high. If you sell it for anywhere near that amount there
is reason to be optimistic…good luck!”
<<Here is the video tour>>
Here was my response:
Hey Ron- thanks for the email and the kind words. You may have read elsewhere on my blog that I almost never pay attention to per square foot pricing on the Lake Martin. Too much of the value of a property is in the lot. Big exception – condos.
Even then, I am careful to compare condo to condo, because a lot of them have different amenities. As to the condo pricing in this case – you’re right, at PSF level, it looks a bit high. When pricing things, I advise sellers to place their price based on SOLD properties, not what is for sale, or what they are hoping to get.
Another 1/1 unit in there recently sold for about 170k. This particular unit is being sold with a deep water boat slip. (I say deep water because it had plenty of water left at the height (or valley??) of the drought.) Anyway Harbor Pointe is selling boat slips (some of which do NOT have year round water) for around $40k. So that’s why I think that price makes sense. Plus at Villas on the Harbor, you can rent out the unit and make a little money to dampen the total ownership expense.
Again, taken at a PSF perspective, I agree, it may seem high. But where else on Lake Martin are you going to get a waterfront property for the low 200s?
Hey – do you mind if I use this email as an “ask the broker” post like this one I did a couple of weeks ago? I can use your name or you can remain anonymous. I think your question is a great one and could spark a lot of discussion.
What do you say?
Ron: “Feel free to use my name and thanks for the reply. I’ll be famous!”
Thank you, Ron, for the great question. I must admit, it made me triple check my numbers!
What do you think, reader? Am I crazy? Despite everything, I think there is value here. Reply and comment below to let add your voice to the topic.
Video Tour: Amenities Of The Preserve At Stoney Ridge, Lake Martin
If you’re wanting to find out more about The Preserve at Stoney Ridge on Lake Martin, please see the below video I shot to show the amenities, just click the play arrow below:
I was shocked at how big the view is from the Pool / Cabana area. Check the video, about a minute in to it. You can actually see Lake Martin from there.
Also you may be interested in the video home tour of one of my homes for sale, 791 Old Still Road, that is in the Preserve at Stoney Ridge. It is a unique and beautiful Lake Martin home. If you haven’t watched this video yet, #1. – you are in the minority and #2. – you will be surprised by one of its features, see if you can guess which:
Amenities Of The Ridge, Lake Martin
I am working with a couple of buyers in The Ridge, a Russell Lands development in Lake Martin. I always get asked lots of questions about the amenities at the Ridge, so I thought I would shoot a video to show some of them.
Basically, if you own a home, a lot, or a town-home in the Ridge, you have the right to access all of the amenities, like the pool, the Ridge Club, the tennis courts, walking trails, boat launch, and Beach Club. The Ridge Marina is public, but of course easily accessed by Ridge owners.
Here is the video:
I should have shot more footage of all the walking trails and sidewalks of the Ridge, a lot of people like to use them. Maybe it’s material for a future video.
Properties for sale in The Ledges at The Ridge:
276 Ledges Trail (click here for property description)
here is a video tour of the townhome:
Related Posts:Lake Martin Real Estate Spotlight: The Ridge
Lake Martin Real Estate Spotlight: The Ridge Update
