Tag Archives: christmas

Nashville New Homes: Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Peace, and Joy!

Do you ever wonder how the world would be if the things that happened way-back-when happened now instead? 

What if Joseph and Mary were in Middle Tennessee this year, instead of Bethlehem hundreds of years ago? 

One thing for certain, they wouldn’t have had to look any further than a new Ole South neighborhood to find a warm place to stay.  And with the increased income and purchase limits offered on THDA loan programs, they could even live in Williamson County if they wanted to – without a single penny out of pocket using the “Great Start” program!

And what about the Three Wise Men?  Could we even find three?  Or could they have been women?  Would they have arrived by camel, on horseback, on a John Deere Tractor, or maybe even a Chevy Volt?

 

Either way, would they have brought gifts of I-pads, smart phones, and flat screens?  Or would they have simply brought gift cards?

This time of year can bring out the best in people.  Attention is directed toward the less fortunate, families gather, and good times are shared.  Why can’t we do that all year? 

We live in a complicated world, a world that is full of diversity.  Over the years, I have had the priviledge to work with many home buyers from all different cultures and religious beliefs.  I am eager to learn about their cultures and religions, and feel they are eager to learn of ours.  Why can’t we leave it at that? 

Why do the “politically correct” step in and screw it all up for everyone.  After all, the Jewish people have tolerated Christmas for many years and generations and not thrown a fuss.  

Let’s make it simple.  When it is my birthday, you do not have to celebrate it.  It is your choice to even acknowledge.  You don’t have to do anything that you do not want to do, but you cannot change the fact that it is my birthday.  And the same goes for your birthday. 

 

Christmas is Jesus’ birthday and nothing can take that away. 

Click here to read the full Christmas Story, as told in Luke.

Peace on Earth and Goodwill Toward Men (and women too) can certainly cross religious and cultural boundaries. 

And musical masterpieces can also:

Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, Peace and Joy to everyone!

Advertisement

Nashville New Homes: 2011 is looking up!

The New Year of 2011 is upon us, and I couldn’t be happier!  Even the media is spreading positive news about the housing industry.  Here’s one example:

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-12-28/housing-seen-rising-to-3-year-high-with-boost-for-jobs.html

The time is now to buy a new home.  Not just because fixed interest rates are historically low and rising, Not just because costs are going up and not yet being passed on to the consumer.  Not just because of great incentives and selections of brand new homes at www.OleSouth.com. 

Buying a new home offers many tax advantages for those that can itemize expenses.  Your closing costs are deductible.  Your property taxes are deductible..and the list goes on.  Here is a list of 2011 tax tips.  Pay special attention to #4!

http://www.bankrate.com/finance/taxes/10-tasty-tax-tips-for-2011-1.aspx?ec_id=cmct_003

If you weren’t able to purchase a new home in time for Christmas, inking a contract before the New Year could be the next best thing!

Nashville New Homes: Merry Christmas!

I just cannot chance Christmas going by without putting out another plug for buying a new home. 

If Joseph and Mary had been in Middle Tennessee instead of Bethlehem, they wouldn’t have had to look any further than Ole South for a brand new, warm place to stay.  And as first time buyers, with THDA financing through Ole South Financial, they wouldn’t have needed any cash to put down.  The Three Wise Men, which might have been women, could have brought housewarming gifts instead of the herbs and ointments that were on sale that night at the local Walgreens.

 Being a church organist for most of the past 30 years, I’ve had the pleasure of serving Congregations of a variety of denominations –  Presbyterian, Baptist, United Methodist, Episcopal, and Lutheran.   I never have played at a Church of Christ.  They don’t have organs, remember?  Although each have differences, they all have one thing in common… the Christmas hymns.

I used to dislike the release of  new hymnals.  The ministers just could not wait to pick hymns that no one knew – including me.   Some in the congregation would bitch about the new hymns, and then the selections would be back to the more familiar hymns, except for one glitch…in the new hymnals, some of the words had been changed!  As the hymnals get newer, the verbage used  becomes more “inclusive.”   In other words, more liberal.   The Christmas hymns have fortunately escaped these revisions, for the most part.

As a child, I always pictured God as an old man, similar to Santa Claus, with a Charlton Heston voice.  After all, it does say in Genesis that man was made in the image of God.    Now we have that “inclusion” thing that brings that image into question.  The modern translations say man AND woman are made in the image of God.  Does this mean the first woman looked like Santa?

Could God actually be a woman?   Yes, God could be a woman.  Women get great pleasure in saying “I told you so” when you don’t believe them and they are proven right.    But we have to be realistic here.  God is more likely a man.   A woman God simply wouldn’t keep putting up with everything that goes on down here on earth!    So lets not split hairs.  What about God being a Spirit that can only be seen and felt through others?   That works. 

This past year has been difficult for Beth and I, along with many of our friends.  We have lost dear friends, family, and loved ones.  Others have been diagnosed with not-so-good news.   But at the same time, it has been a good year.   New friendships have been created, old friendships have grown stronger, and we are much more thankful for the simple things in life that we had been taking for granted.  

To fully appreciate being happy, you have to experience being sad.  To fully appreciate comfort, you have to experience pain.  To fully appreciate life, you have to experience death.  Sometimes, we simply have to sacrifice for everything to work out in the grand scheme of things.   God proved that, with Jesus. 

In the early 80’s, The Presbyterian Church released a new hymnal that included a simple hymn that has become one of my favorites for Christmas Eve.   Here are the words to this beautiful hymn:

Born in the night, Mary’s Child, a long way from Your home:
Coming in need, Mary’s Child, Born in a borrowed room.

Clear shining light, Mary’s Child, Your face lights up our way:
Light of the world, Mary’s Child, Dawn on our darkened day.

Truth of our life, Mary’s Child, you tell us God is good:
Prove it is true, Mary’s Child, Go to your cross of wood.

Hope of the world, Mary’s Child, You’re coming soon to reign:
King of the earth, Mary’s Child, Walk in our streets again.
 

May this year be your best Christmas ever!

 

Trey Lewis is a licensed Real Estate Broker in the State of Tennessee with Ole South Realty, 615.896.0019  direct 615.593.6340.  Specializing in new home sales in the Greater Nashville area to include Nashville, Murfreesboro, Smyrna, and Spring Hill, Tennessee

Nashville New Homes: ‘Tis The Season.

My first real job after college was a National Accounts Representative for a furniture manufacturer…in other words, a furniture salesman that travelled around the country.  The year had been pretty good, and to show appreciation during the holidays,  I sent my customers sausage and country ham from Early’s Honey Stand.  I felt real good after the packages were sent until my Dad said…OH NO, YOU DIDN’T!   

So, most of these buyers were sent food they are not supposed to eat, for a holiday that they do not celebrate.  Call me a fool, but I never thought to ask what religion these furniture buyers were.   Well, guess what…no one got offended, no one got mad.  They all appreciated the gesture and probably remembered me as a dumbass!

As you know, we have delicious Otis Spunkmeyer cookies at our model homes and we offer them to everyone that visits.   I’ve made the cultural “faux pas” of offering these cookies to international home buyers during Ramadan.  No one got mad, no one got offended, and I learned more about that tradition.  And we are still friends.

One thing I think everyone can agree on is… ’tis the season!  Regardless of your religious preference or tradition, this is a season for kindness and being thoughtful to others.  Lets throw out political correctness and just be human.   Acts of kindness should not have cultural or religious boundaries.   And if myrhh and frankencense were suitable gifts for a king, a simple smile and kind word should suffice for all of us.

We all need a good laugh every now and then too!  Here is a cute parody on the modern day Nativity:

And what happened at this shopping mall in Canada is simply incredible.  The first time I watched it, I kept waiting to see mall security burst in and break it up.   I then remembered it didn’t happen in this country!   Take a look:

And now, everyone is glued to the local weather forecast!  Could it be that Nashville has the first “White Christmas” in 17 years?  Read more on this here:

http://www.tennessean.com/article/20101222/NEWS01/12220345/Will+Nashville+get+its+first+white+Christmas+in+17+years

Way cool!  I am excited about the possibility of snow for Christmas.  But there is another thing on my “bucket list.”  Spending the Christmas holidays somewhere warm….

And one year, we will.  Just not this year!

Merry Christmas!  (or Happy Holidays, if you prefer)

Trey Lewis is a licensed Real Estate Broker in the State of Tennessee with Ole South Realty, 615.896.0019  direct 615.593.6340.  Specializing in new home sales in the Greater Nashville area to include Nashville, Murfreesboro, Smyrna, and Spring Hill, Tennessee

Nashville New Homes: Realtors will go to heaven.

Well, most of them anyway!

One of the great things about getting old is forming new habits.  Habits like going to bed early only to find that you are not tired enough to sleep.  And there you find yourself scrolling through the TV guide thingy looking for a good movie that you’ve already seen a hundred times.

That was the case with me the other night and the movie I chose to watch again was “The Bucket List” starring Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson.  If you haven’t seen it yet, watch your TV guide thingy and it will be shown again soon I am certain.

There is one scene when both of them were sitting on top of the Great Pyramids and Morgan Freeman shared this with Jack Nicholson:

“You know, the ancient Egyptians had a beautiful belief about death. When their souls got to the entrance to heaven, the guards asked two questions. Their answers determined whether they were able to enter or not. ‘Have you found joy in your life?’ ‘Has your life brought joy to others?’”

WOW…This great comedy had just turned into a thought-provoking drama of self-reflection.   But don’t get out the violins just yet.. Jack Nicholson’s smart-ass reply brought the movie back into the “comedy zone.”

If those really are the two questions we will one day be asked, then most all Realtors can count on going to heaven.  After all, it is our vocation to bring joy into the life of others.  We witness the joy and excitement of people buying their homes!  That joy and excitement is taken to a whole different level when they purchase a brand new home, and an even higher level if that new home was built by Ole South in one of our Middle Tennessee neighborhoods!

We have the opportunity to bring joy into the lives of others every single day and everyone has the opportunity to participate.  Even the guy cooking McRibs at McDonalds can take comfort and joy that the McRib promotion will soon be over so he can go back to making kids happy with “happy meals.”    The only people that experience joy from a McRib are the makers of Tums. 

(McD’s needs to read the definition of madness – the one that says “madness is doing the same thing over and over again, expecting different results.”  And they keep trying to resurrect the McRib…I don’t get it.  McPizza would be better!)

We are now entering a time of year that can be difficult for many people.  It is important to remember that we don’t have to give someone the newest “Wii” or “Xbox,” or jewelry big enough to choke a dog to bring joy into someone’s life.   A can of King Leo candy sticks might do the trick.  Or, a kind word and a simple gesture of happiness may be just the right thing.  Especially for strangers too!   In the “Bucket List,”  the two men were complete strangers from two totally diffrerent walks of life, and their paths crossed to bring joy into each other’s lives, just when that joy was needed the most.

Just look around.  An opportunity arises every day.  Take it.  You will then find more joy in your life.

And Realtors, with interest rates at historic lows for who knows how much longer, we have an even greater opportunity to bring joy into the lives of others…the joy of home ownership. 

So, lets all go show some some homes this week!  And make a note, all of our model homes will be open on “Black Friday” and anyone visiting before 5:00 pm on Sunday, November 28th will get a flat screen HDTV certificate, good with any new Ole South home purchased before June 11, 2011. 

The “Bucket List” plays even better on a flat screen HDTV too!  

Trey Lewis is a licensed Real Estate Broker in the State of Tennessee with Ole South Realty, 615.896.0019  direct 615.593.6340.  Specializing in new home sales in the Greater Nashville area to include Nashville, Murfreesboro, Smyrna, and Spring Hill, Tennessee.

Nashville New Homes: A neat Christmas Gift!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Very few cities around the country have such great architectural examples as Nashville, Tennessee.  One particular architectural firm is celebrating 100 years of design and has published a wonderful book detailing the many contributions they have made to our city’s landscape.  Here is the link for more information on this great Christmas gift:

http://www.tennessean.com/article/20101014/DAVIDSON/101014071/New-picture-book-portrays-Nashville-s-unique-buildings-?GID=CUwLbLWjEcza8zrl41A2b3u4mHej0xs83K0D1SSsp4I%3D

There is nothing like the contrast between the old and the new.  You will enjoy the link below, which will take you back in time for views of what Nashville’s landscape was like long ago.  Click it and see for yourself!

http://nashville.about.com/cs/nashvillephotos/l/bloldpics1.htm

Isn’t it cool to reminisce?   Now that you have done that, why not take a look at what the future has in store for you by visiting the new homes and communities offered by Ole South Properties?  We have a home for every lifestyle.  See for yourself at www.OleSouth.com.

Trey Lewis is a licensed Real Estate Broker in the State of Tennessee with Ole South Realty, 615.896.0019  direct 615.593.6340.  Specializing in new home sales in the Greater Nashville area to include Nashville, Murfreesboro, Smyrna, and Spring Hill, Tennessee.

Nashville New Homes: Soon it will be Christmas Day.

In a previous blog topic, it was revealed that Santa Claus works for Ole South and is feverishly building new homes just in time for the holidays.  Well, here is proof!

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Did you know that the average apartment rent within a 10-mile radius of downtown Nashville is $937 per month?  For those struck with disbelief, click this link.  http://www.rentjungle.com/average-rent-in-nashville-rent-trends/  

Now that you are a believer, guess what?  Ole South offers BRAND NEW homes with monthly payments less than that.  They are only 5 miles from downtown Nashville.   YOU can easily own one!

In the above gallery you will see new maintenance-free town homes under construction in Rivendell Woods of Cane Ridge, in southeast Davidson County.  First time buyers can  purchase one of these new homes with ‘ZERO DOWN for less than $800 per month, including taxes, insurance, and HOA maintenance fees, with approved credit of course.  If you ask nicely, all kitchen appliances are included too!  (We also have new town homes 3 miles away at Old Hickory Commons for less than $750 per month)  No this is not a trick folks….FIXED INTEREST RATES also! 

Think you would rather have a traditional neighborhood home with a 2-car garage?  We’ve got those too!  Each of the homes displayed above in the “picture gallery thing” can be yours for less than $1000/month, including taxes and insurance!  Don’t tell anyone, but we’ll include all of the kitchen appliances on these as well!

For those desiring an all-brick home in Williamson County, Santa and crew are building your dream home right now in Benevento East.  Buy now and choose your interior selections – or buy later and like what I like.  You make the choice!

If you are looking for a home in the Greater Nashville area, including Smyrna, Murfreesboro, and Spring Hill, you owe it to yourself to explore the benefits of buying a NEW home from Ole South, Tennessee’s #1 Home Builder.  You just might be “one-click” away from your new home!  www.OleSouth.com  

There are many good reasons to live in Nashville.  Now you’ve got reasons to call it home!   You can reach me  anytime by e-mail (tlewis@olesouth.com).

Trey Lewis is a licensed Real Estate Broker in the State of Tennessee with Ole South Realty, 615.896.0019  direct 615.593.6340.  Specializing in new home sales in the Greater Nashville area to include Nashville, Murfreesboro, Smyrna, and Spring Hill, Tennessee.