A Great Auctioneer/Realtor Passed Away

A great Auctioneer/Realtor has gone home to be with the lord. Dannie Hess set a high standard for us in the real estate profession to follow. Integrity, kindness, concern for others and willingness to do the right thing...are my memories of Mr. Hess. He will be missed.

Veterans Day Video

Today is Veterans Day! Here is a video that honors our brave men and women and those who have paid the ultimate price. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ui4-65MCv_Y

Auditor's New Website

Highland County Auditor Bill Fawley was the guest speaking at our recent Highland County Board of Realtors meeting discussing the launching of the new website. The website now offers aerial maps and searching features to make doing business easier. The world now knows all about you! You can run but we will find you! To check out your new auditor's website click here.

Long Time Funeral Director Remembered

I was out of town celebrating my wedding anniversary with Karen when I got the news. The passing of Don Edgington. My earliest memories of Don were playing knothole baseball on a team in Mowrystown where he was the coach and Craig and I were players. He told me to go to right field and I did not know where right field was. Pretty good indication my future would not be in baseball.

Don encouraged me in my real estate career on numerous occasions and his words were always the same. He would say "Jeff, the word around town is that you work hard and are a hustler. Keep your nose clean and you will do just fine. He always stressed to me to keep my nose clean.

Don ... I'm doing the best I can. You will be missed.

We're Number One!

According to Wednesday, October 21st's issue of The Times Gazette, Highland County's jobless rate is now highest in Ohio. This is not a list we want to be on but it is were we now find ourselves.

Jobs...we need jobs. Until quality employment opportunites return to our area, the local economy is going to struggle at best...which includes real estate values. To get out of the slump we are in is going to take everyone's effort. We need your idea's ... money making, job creating ideas now. You community and your leaders need to hear from you now.

We, the people of Highland County, may not come out of this recession as quick as other parts of the country if we can not put our families back to work. My real estate collegues around the country who have experienced markets with major jobs losses say it will take 10 years to see recovery. Jobs...putting people back to work quickly is the key.

Ohio Fence Law Changes

Many landowners of Highland County real estate are not aware of the new fence law that took affect September 2008. You can now write your own fence agreements with your neighbors. You can agree to choose the type and kind of fence and who is paying for it. The old fence law of "equal shares" is all but gone. Changes have been made to the law when a despute occurs. To read more Click Here.

Rocky Fork Lake: ODNR Denies Request

I believe waterfront homes with access to docks at Rocky Fork Lake just became worth more. With ODNR continuing to hold off the Rocky Fork Golf Course project, it makes a statement to me that those who own waterfront homes with docks own something very special that there might not be any more of...at least in the near future. Only a half dozen or so waterfront homes sell each year now and most of those have limited views of the water with no access to a dock. If you own one...who knows what it might be worth? Click here to read more.

What's Behind Recent Increases in CAUV?

The government has been updating it's information used to calculate CAUV tax rates and the results are going to be increase taxes for farms. In some cases taxes may be increase significantly. CAUV tax rate for land owners is based on a formula that takes into consideration a number of factors such as soil type, yields, crop prices, production costs and whatever else to come up with a net profit per acre. There are 3500+ soil types alone in Ohio. Buckeye Farm News has a frotn page article in its online issue. Click here. YouTube.com video link explaning why are CAUV values increasing? Click Here.

Watson-Luman Closing on YouTube!

See our newest YouTube video:

OAR Conference

Karen and I attended the Ohio Association of Realtors Conference held in Columbus Ohio earlier this week. We recieved updates regarding real estate law and technology including social media sites including Facebook, Twitter, and blogging. I look forward to utilizing a lot of the information I learned!

Thanks to The Highland County Press

Thanks to Rory Ryan of The Highland County Press for the picture on the front page of the September 12th edition! We appreciate the support and recognition for celebrating 20 years! Rory is the new owner of the paper....we look forward to working with him!

Highland County Fair

Today concludes the 2009 Highland County Fair. It has been another successful year for fair-goers. We enjoyed spending time with friends while celebrating our 20th year with cake and ice cream on Labor Day. Thanks to all those who stopped by for a visit!

We were able to attend several of the shows and sales to support the area youth. After purchasing several grand and reserve champions and several other exhibitor projects, we can say that this year has been one of the best! Congratulations to all the young people in our county! Way to go!

Remembering September 11th

Yesterday was Patriot Day. A National Day of Service and Remembrance. Patriot Day is an annual observance on September 11 to remember those who were injured or died during the terrorist attacks in the United States on September 11, 2001. President Obama released this proclamation.

We pause and give thanks to all the service men and women who are defending our freedom and protecting our country.

Busy Week at the Dickey Group!

It's been a busy week at the Dickey Group! We listed 6 properties, sold 4 properties and 2 more went under contract! We have also been getting ready for the fair. The booth is decorated and ready to go! Stop by and see us next week in the Wharton building!

Local Schools Achieve!

Congratulations to Hillsboro Middle School and Whiteoak High School for receiving "Excellent" ratings from the Ohio Department of Education. What an accomplishment for the youth in our area as well as the staff of these two schools! Way to Go!

Helping Feed the Hungry

Two local churches, New Life Church and Ministries and the Hillsboro Church of the Nazarene have teamed up to distribute over 50,000 pounds of food at Liberty Park in Hillsboro today! Contained in two semi truck loads of food, the food which is obtained through Operation Outreach in Washington Court House is intended to give hope and help to people in Highland County.

There will be entertainment and a sermon by pastor Bill Bowman. Also, prior to the start of the event at 6 p.m., a "Scoring Touchdowns in Life" message will be shared by NFL referee Steve Wilson, who also serves as an associate pastor of the Nazarene Church in Washington state. All are invited to attend and receive food. Each individual will receive food at the end of the program, regardless of income.

Thank you to these two local churches! For more information, please contact Help the Hungry at 937-393-2429.

New School Year in a New Building!

The new school year starts this week for all Highland County Schools! Hillsboro Middle School and High School start in a new building that has been described as "big" and "beautiful"! New traffic routes and parking areas for buses, students, parents and teachers can be found in the article linked below!

Click here for traffic routes

Free Money

There is only four months left to recieve an $8,000 tax credit for purchasing a new home! You must have your home closed by November 30, 2009 when the tax credit expires! To close by November 30 you need to go on contract to buy a home no later than September! Call us for details!

Home Prices on the Rise

It's always good to read something positive in the newspaper....

According to a recent article published in the Wall Street Journal, home prices in the U.S. are on the rise. Home prices in major U.S. cities registered the first monthly gain in nearly three years. This is an indication that the severe U.S. housing downturn could be easing.This is good news!

To read more, click here.

It's Been a Busy Summer!

Houses are selling and The Dickey Group is busy! We love it!

In the past few weeks, we have sold several homes:

52 Walnut Creek Rd., Greenfield
8607 Stoney Point Rd., Hillsboro
247 East Main St., Hillsboro
5430 Grande Rd., Hillsboro
2145 Stringtown Rd., Sardinia
9439 US 62 N., Hillsboro
3521 St. Rt. 247, Hillsboro
9072 Evans Rd., Leesburg
6695 Golden Doubloon Ln., Hillsboro

We have had great success and thank all the wonderful families with which we have worked. We have seen an increase in the number of short sales. With this situation, transactions become more difficult and time consuming. We continue to work with sellers, buyers, lenders, and mortgage companies to get homes sold!

If you or someone you know is interested in buying or selling, please call us 937.393.7222 or visit us on the website www.TheDickeyGroup.com