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Article:
Take me Home Country Road: Purchasing Rural Homes by: Elaine VonCannon In a world where the news flashes daily images of war, terrorism and crime more Americans are dreaming of a safe, quiet place to call home. They imagine moving to a small town community where safety and simplicity are easy to find. Potential homebuyers between the ages of forty and sixty are the most likely to be fed up with the fast pace of city dwelling. They are in search of a renewed sense of community and family. Relocation or purchase of a second home in a rural area can also be the perfect idea for homebuyers looking for long-term retirement solutions. I Was Born In A Small Town Small town living is especially attractive to buyers who were raised in a rural setting. Many want to recapture the security of their childhood and preserve it for their children. According to the National Association of REALTORS 2003 Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers fifty-six percent of the homebuyers purchasing in a rural location bought because of the neighborhood, while thirty-eight percent purchased in order to live closer to family and friends. The possibility of owning more land is also appealing. The 2003 Profile also shows ten percent of repeat buyers purchased property in rural settings and most were hunting for more space. In Virginia, rural counties like New Kent, Middlesex, Gloucester, King and Queen, Mathews and King William are all seeing this relocation trend. In my real estate business about eighty percent of my sales in these areas are buyers moving from metropolitan areas. These are places where you can sleep with the windows open and everyone in town knows you. Many locations are only forty-five minutes or an hour from the city, so buyers still have access to health care, higher paying jobs, shopping centers and other activities. Telecommuting: The Wave Of The Future Technology is one of the driving forces behind the rural relocation trend. According to the Main Street Economist (a publication of the Kansas City Federal Reserve Bank's Center For The Study of Rural America) one fifth of the US workforce in rural and small towns was self-employed in 2004. CNN.com writer Jakob Nielsen, a web usability expert, also believes technology will change the way Americans live and work over the next fifteen years. On July '4
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