U.S. Highway 84 is the main corridor from Dothan to the Fort Rucker post, and it is a quick 20 minute trip from the west side of town to the gate.

Dothan is home to many retired military folks that chose to either stay here upon retirement or moved back to Dothan because they liked it so much when they were stationed at Fort Rucker. They discovered the easy lifestyle, the reasonable cost of living, and all the other intangibles that enhance the quality of life here.

Getting in and out of southeast Alabama is easily accomplished through the Dothan Regional Airport. Whether it is travel for TDY, or back to Hometown, USA to visit family, a quick flight to Atlanta will connect you with any worldwide destination.

Here is a link to homes currently on the market around west Dothan which might be convenient for a Fort Rucker soldier.

Homes for sale in west Dothan area up to $125,000

Homes for sale in west Dothan area from $125,000 to $200,000

Homes for sale in west Dothan area over $200,000

Being an Army wife myself, I understand the needs of military and civilian personnel relocating to the Fort Rucker area. Give me a call and let me help you find that perfect place! 334–798–9067

Tags: Fort+Rucker+housing, Dothan+real+estate

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The number of homes for sale in the Dothan area is down to around 934 from 985 at the end of July. Will the downward trend continue? It is likely it will, if for no other reason than we are finishing up the busy season for home sales. To what level inventory will fall remains to be seen.

Absorption rate

The absorption rate for August is down again to 7.72 months of inventory. Comparing this summer’s numbers to the summer of 2007, the rates are a little higher this year. However, inventory was below 900 at that time, so the variance is understandable.

Inventory and absorption rates can vary between different areas around Dothan. If you would like to see these numbers for a particular area, drop us an email or leave a comment below with your request!

Tags: absorption+rate, Dothan, real+estate+market

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Carver Magnet School is currently the only magnet school for grades 6-8 here in Dothan. That will change next school year when Dothan City Schools will add another magnet middle school and magnet elementary school. These additions are part of a plan to create neighborhood schools. More on that concept to come in my next post.

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Kolomoki Mounds State Park

Location – Early County Georgia, just north of Blakely. Take Hwy 52 on the east side of town toward Columbia. Once in Georgia, just follow the signs.

Drive time from Dothan – about an hour or so

Cost – $3 to park, a few dollars to see the presentation at the Interpretive Center. Overall, we spent less than $20 for a family of five. Camping, etc. are extra.

Amenities – Camping, swimming pool, lots of picnic and play areas, fishing, hiking, Indian museum

Best advice – Appreciate the history of this area, and wear comfortable climbing shoes

Website – Georgia State Parks – Kolomoki Mounds

One of the most important and well preserved archaeological sites in our area, Kolomoki Mounds nearly 1300 acres feature seven earthern Indian mounds built by the Swift Creek and Weeden Indians somewhere between 250–950 A.D. The Temple Mound is by far the largest, and a walk up the steps to the top gives you a view of most of the park. The park was formed back in the late 1930’s, and in 1940 the Civilian Conservation Corp built a camp and a dam to form the 80 acre lake.

Archaeological excavations took place in the late 1940’s and early 1950’s lead by Dr. William Sears. The Museum and Interpretive Center are actually built around one of the burial mounds, so visitors can see first hand what the inside of one of the mounds looks like.

Realistically, you can see the sights and the museum in just a few hours. There are some great picnic areas and pavilions scattered throughout the park, so be sure to take a lunch and enjoy those. The kids will love the playgrounds!

Tags: Kolomoki+Mounds,

Things+to+do+around+Dothan

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A request for approval of development plans for the business/office section of Grove Park were tabled until September. In addition to the questions about traffic and parking, it seems the property in question was not platted correctly when the original subdivision was done.

The recommendation was made to rezone 10.63 acres near the intersection of East Main Street (U.S. Highway 84 East) and North Beverly Road. The parcel is actually part of a larger parcel already zoned for business. This area is experiencing a lot of commercial growth recently, as two new strip centers have been built in the last few years just up the road near Southeast Alabama Medical Center, and SAMC is working on plans to develop their large parcel of land across Main Street from this parcel.

The Planning Commission also recommended to the City Commission the creation of a special type of Office zoning. There has been a need for this change and it was brought to the forefront at the June meeting when a rezoning request was turned down for a property on Kent Drive.

While not on the Planning Commission schedule this month, expect to see development plans for a couple of new shopping centers near the intersection of West Main Street and John D. Odom Road in the near future. The Dothan Eagle has a few details of what may be in the works for this area.

Tags: Dothan+Planning+Commission, Dothan+real+estate+development

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One of the most popular Dothan neighborhoods is called the Garden District. Located in northwest Dothan, the Garden District is roughly bordered by West Main Street, North Park Avenue, Montgomery Highway, and Ross Clark Circle. Known far and wide for the annual Azalea Dogwood Trail in springtime, the beauty of this area is really unparalleled in Dothan. The explosion of color from the azaleas, dogwoods, and camellias, the unlimited shades of green on the lawns, and the elegance of the pastel colored antebellum gowns worn by the Trail Queen and her court set this neighborhood apart.

The Garden District is unique in that there are many architectural styles and home sizes within the neighborhood. Unlike many new subdivisions, where every house is in the traditional style and the vast majority have red brick exteriors, the Garden District offers homes of all shapes and sizes. Several homes on North Cherokee Avenue and Girard Avenue are quite large Colonial or Georgian style homes, while there are many cottage style smaller homes on North Orange Street and Choctaw Street on the eastern side of the neighborhood and even townhouses on Martha Avenue and North Roberta Avenue. You can see contemporary style homes, with their low roof lines and abstract facades, scattered throughout the area.

Many children who grew up in the Garden District enjoy moving back to the area to start their family. Solomon Park, where many played as children, is just a short stroll away. Girard Elementary and Middle Schools are also within walking distance, and many amenities, such as some of Dothan’s best restaurants and shopping, are a five or ten minute drive from the neighborhood.

If you think the Garden District area might be somewhere you would like to live, I would be happy to help you find a home in this popular area. Our office has several listings in the area right now, and here is a link to all the homes currently on the market in the Garden District area. Let me know if you see anything that peaks your interest!

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Pending Sales

A new report format (or my paying closer attention) has brought to light the fact that I have been under reporting the number of pending sales. Since pending sales are measured at a specific point in time, I can’t go back and see what they were on any given day. So, we will have to track pending sales each week on the Monday Market Snapshot. Per the lastest snapshot, there are 133 homes listed in pending status in the Dothan MLS. Once enough data has built up, we’ll go back to comparing month-to-month.

Homes sold

Sales are now down just a little over 10% for the year, compared to 2007. In spite of all the horror stories the media feeds us on a daily basis, that is a healthy real estate market, no matter how you look at it.

If you are reading this and wondering if it is a good time to buy or sell a home in Dothan, then we need to talk. Pick up the phone and call me at the office, 334–793–6990, or on my cell, 334–596–0808. I’m not going to give you a hard sell or anything like that, we will just talk about your situation and try to figure out what is best for you right now. Sound fair?

Tags: Dothan+real+estate

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Legislation has been introduced that would bring back these programs. H.R. 6694 would regulate the programs instead of eliminating them. What can you do? Visit Rally for Home Ownership for information on contacting your legislators. Let them know you support down payment assistance and that right now is the wrong time to be eliminating something that means so much to our economy.

Here is a video that really brings to light the real reason for eliminating DPA’s. HUD wanted them gone.

h/t Jonathan Dalton of All Phoenix Real Estate and Jay Thompson, the Phoenix Real Estate Guy

Scariest sentence in the English language – “I’m from the government, and I’m here to help.”

Tags: down+payment+assistance, FHA+home+buyers

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