Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving from the Coker family in Columbia, South Carolina! Today, we're doing some cleanup around the home, raking leaves and putting up our Christmas tree. Later today, we will travel to West Columbia to be with family and I will cook a turkey in a turkey fryer. I did this for the first time last year and it produces excellent results.

I did some reading this morning on the orgins of Thanksgiving Day in the United States. Thanksgiving Day began as a tradition at the end of the harvest season to express thanks for one's material possessions and spiritual blessings.

The first recorded Thanksgiving ceremony took place on September 8, 1565, when 600 Spanish settlers, under the leadership of explorer Pedro Menendez de Aviles landed at St. Augustine, Florida, and immediately held a Mass of Thanksgiving (with a feast and celebration) for safe delivery to the New World. Of course, the Pilgrims had Thanksgiving observances in Plymouth, Massachusetts in the early 1600s. As President, on October 3, 1789, George Washington made a proclamation and created the first Thanksgiving Day designated by the national government of the United States of America.

Click here to read more on the orgins of Thanksgiving Day in the United States.

Mel Coker

Columbia, SC

Community Spotlight - The Battery at Arsenal Hill

The Battery at Arsenal Hill... a diverse range of new homes for downtown Columbia living. Live here and you're in the heart of Columbia. Less than 5 minutes to: University of South Carolina, State Capitol Building, Palmetto Health Baptist Hospital, Finlay Park, Riverfront Park, Colonial Center and so much more. Also nearby are: Williams Brice Stadium, Palmetto Health Richland Hospital and Interstates 26 and 20.

Single family homes and cottages range in price from the low 200s to the upper 200s. Townhomes are priced from the 160s to the 230s.

Inspired Communities is the developer and builder. The community is appealing in both design and for incredible convenience. Each home is quality built for your enjoyment and for future resale potential.

NOW is the time to buy your new downtown Columbia home. Interest rates are near historical lows and special buyer incentives are available. Call Mel Coker, your Columbia Realtor, to see any home at The Battery at Arsenal Hill. With Mel Coker as your buyer's representative, I will offer a $300 Lowes shopping gift card at closing for any home bought in this wonderful community.

Click Here for Columbia Real Estate

Tips to Sell Your Home in a Slow Market

HOME SELLING 101:

Selling in a buyer's market, with an oversupply of homes and/or falling home values, does not occur often, but certainly presents challenges. My top ten tips listed here should help you and most tips are applicable in any home selling environment. Homes SELL because they exhibit great VALUE!

1. Prepare yourself for market conditions - Be prepared for fewer showings and longer "days on the market"
2. Make a good first impression - That first few seconds in front of a home can make or break a possible sale
3. Prepare your home for showing - make your home look like Mr. & Mrs. Clean live there
4. Hire an inspector - Very few sellers do it, but, a home pre-inspection may be of great assistance to you in determining what's wrong and what needs to be repaired in your home
5. Make repairs - Make repairs that are profitable or will be necessary for the sale of your home (for example, the Buyer will need to have "clean" heating & air and termite inspections
6. Special touches inside the home - eliminate odors, add seasonal touches or flowers, turn on lights or open blinds for showings, etc.
7. Select the best selling agent - Your choice of a Realtor IS important! Call Mel Coker.
8. Set a competitive price - Your home is in a competition... to SELL! An example... if you have a home to sell at $175,000 (close to the average home price in Columbia), you have 524 other homes for sale within 10% of $175,000 (that's just in the most sought after school district areas too). That's a lot of competition!
9. Offer a home warranty - buyer's agents will typically negotiate for this anyway and a home warranty gives buyers additional confidence in a real estate transaction
10. Be flexible and patient - use feedback and suggestions from your Realtor to make adjustments

Click Here for Mel Coker's Home Selling Tips web page (you can also obtain a Lowes 10% off coupon)

Contact Mel Coker when you're ready to sell your home in the Columbia area. I would be happy to offer a FREE market analysis, answer questions and explain my extensive marketing plan. Your choice of a Realtor IS important!

Internet: www.ColumbiaSouthCarolina.com/homes

Telephone: (803) 749-5800

email: melcoker@remax.net

Veterans Day - Columbia SC

I attended the Veterans Day parade in Columbia yesterday. There was a great crowd on hand to honor our veterans. I took a number of pictures and I also stopped by Memorial Park in downtown Columbia.

CLICK HERE for a link to my Veterans Day photo album.

More Links:

Columbia Veterans Day

Military in South Carolina

Charleston Day Trip

Want a suggestion for a great day trip or weekend trip to make from Columbia? Try Charleston!

Barbara and I went on a spur of the moment day trip yesterday (Friday, November 7th) to Charleston. Our primary focus was to visit Patriots Point and the USS Yorktown in Charleston Harbor. Click here to visit our photo tour.

The USS Yorktown (CV-10) was the tenth aircraft carrier to serve in the United States Navy. Yorktown received the Presidential Unit Citation and earned 11 battle stars for service in World War II. Yorktown also earned 5 battle stars for service off Vietnam and recovered the Apollo 8 astronauts and capsule (December 1968). Yorktown was decommissioned in 1970. In 1975, Yorktown was towed from Bayonne, NJ to Charleston to become the centerpiece of Patriots Point Naval and Maritime Museum.

Patriots Point tour exhibits include: USS Yorktown, historic planes and flight deck, USS Laffey, USS Clamagore, USS Ingham, Congressional Medal of Honor Museum, and the Vietnam Support Base.

Patriots Point website

We toured all of Patriots Point and walked some of the Arthur Ravenel Bridge over the Cooper River. My pedometer indicated that we walked 5.4 miles in our Patriots Point and Cooper River bridge walking!

After leaving Patriots Point, we headed over to the market area in Charleston on Meeting Street. We had a great seafood meal at Hymans Seafood (highly recommended!) and walked and shopped in the Market Area.

Hymans Seafood
Charleston Visitors Bureau
Ravenel Bridge over Cooper River

We recommend Charleston highly! Visit soon.

Click here for our Photo Tour

Veterans Day in Columbia, SC

Veterans Day is Tuesday, November 11th!

This federal holiday was initially known as Armistice Day to commemorate the end of World War I on November 11, 1917. The holiday officially began in 1926 and in 1954 the holiday name was changed to Veterans Day.

Veterans Day is largely intended to thank living veterans for their service, to acknowledge that their contributions to United States national security are appreciated, and to underscore the fact that all those who served - not only those who died - have sacrificed and done their duty. PLEASE BE SURE TO THANK A VETERAN FOR THEIR SERVICE TO OUR COUNTRY!

The City of Columbia will observe the annual Veterans Day Parade on November 11th in downtown Columbia. This parade is one of the largest Veterans Day parades in the United States.

I've created a webpage with information for the Veterans Day parade and to honor our veterans. Please check the page out as it contains other information such as: Veterans Day links, pictures from our Memorial Park in Columbia, SC and the name of America's most decorated soldier from ANY international/foreign war (HINT: it's not Alvin York or Audie Murphy and he WAS born in South Carolina!).

CLICK HERE for the Veterans Day website from Mel Coker

Click Here for: Military in South Carolina

The Flight Deck... Great Food, Great Fun in Lexington

Flight Deck Restaurant is my favorite place to eat in Lexington.

My friend, Ted Stambolitis, owns the restaurant and The Shoppes at Flight Deck. The restaurant is easy to find at the intersection of U.S. Highways 1 and 378 in downtown Lexington, South Carolina. The address (for your GPS) is: 109 Old Chapin Road, Lexington.

Enjoy great meals and desserts in a family friendly atmosphere. You will also enjoy the aviation theme throughout the restaurant. It's really a tour through the history of aviation. Your children will enjoy seeing King Kong and eating from the "Little Flying Aces" menu specials. There's a really large group area for celebrations, church socials or just friends getting together. Call (803) 957-5990 for your reservation.

I get by as often as possible at lunch to enjoy the Blue Plate Special! It IS "special." You will get a delicious entree, two vegetables, iced tea, and dessert bar or cookie. All of this is only $6.95 and it's served Monday - Saturday for lunch AND dinner. Of course, there's much more on the great menu. Click here to see the menu.

For a great meal, excellent service and and the fun aviation theme, please stop by soon to enjoy the Flight Deck Restaurant. Be sure to say hello to the ever present and friendly owner, Ted.

Flight Deck Restaurant website

The Flight Deck Restuarant is the anchor for the Shoppes at Flight Deck. So, while you're there to enjoy a delicious meal, be sure to do some shopping! Designed with architecture of the bygone era of the early 1900’s. The Shoppes At Flight Deck -“the place for one stop shopping AND dining."

Shoppes at Flight Deck website