It’s on the first floor, and is an end unit with lots of windows. Enjoy comfortable living in a convenient location. Walk to to University Mall, Community Center Park, Battle Branch Trail & the free Chapel Hill bus lines, giving you easy access to UNC.

The home has two bedrooms and one bath, and an eat-in kitchen that includes refrigerator, dishwasher & stove, plus a stacking washer and dryer. The carpet and paint have been recently updated.

This is the final unit left in the seller’s 10 Shepherd Lane Condos. It was rented through October 2010 at $750/month. Right now it is vacant & is easy to show – or move into.

These photos are from a similar unit. This one has more windows!

There are 4954 square feet of living space – five great bedrooms and 3 1/2 baths! You’ll have tons of room to spread out and live. The eat in kitchen is bright and airy, and opens into a wonderful family room with a gorgeous stone fireplace. Formal dining and living rooms add to the entertaining areas.

The house also sports a huge floored attic and an outdoor workshop.

This home is actually owned by a real estate agent, who is a very motivated seller.

Call me now – and let’s turn this house into a home!

My favorite thing about this tour is that the homes are designed by architects. They are not spec homes. The architect and the homeowner work together to come up with a design that fits their style of living and the way they really want to live in their home and our environment. As a result, every home is unique, and reflects the personality of the homeowner and the style of the designer.

A side note – it’s not just aesthetics that interest me. I have my eyes open for solutions to practical problems. I’ll be looking at one particular element that is a challenge for me in my home – dealing with clutter. A well designed home includes places for getting rid of, storing and hiding clutter – for the morass of paperwork, the kids’ schoolwork, the artwork, the stuff for the IRS. I’ll be watching for ways to store shoes at the door, gardening and sports equipment, keys, shopping bags, and rain paraphernalia.

So join me on the tour. It’s self guided – you drive to the homes in the order you choose. Directions and descriptions of the homes are online here. Of course, when you get there, docents will answer any questions you have. Tickets are a steal at just $15, and they can be ordered online – but they don’t have many more. Get yours today.

One of my clients – I’ll call her Amy – wanted to purchase a lower cost townhome in Chapel Hill near UNC, where she worked. She was prequalified for a $102K loan. We found a townhome complex with twelve units for sale. They ranged in price from $109k to $130k, out of my clients price range. But I did some research and found that in the past year, only four units had sold.

Amy and I looked at seven of the homes, then prioritized which ones she liked best.

And then I declared war. I emailed the agents for each of the homes, and told them something like this:

My buyer is an owner occupant who works as a housekeeper at UNC. We saw seven units in the Commons* today. She is pre-qualified to purchase a home up to $102K. Only four Commons units sold in the last 12 months. There are 12 units currently for sale. Obviously some are in better condition than others and the prices vary. If you are interested in selling your unit at $102k, please contact me as I have a very serious buyer. Thank you in advance for your consideration. This is a tough market; I hope we can work something out. Thank you,

Vivian Olkin

Within days, I had four responses, including one for the unit Amy liked the most.

We sign the peace treaty close next month.

*The Commons isn’t the real name of the complex.

Hardwood/ laminate flooring on both floors and tile bathroom floors. This condo is wired for surround sound and flat screen tv over fireplace. The floorplan is great for roommates w/ 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms upstairs. It has a large deck with 2 sliding doors. There are balconies off both bedrooms. All applances, washer/dryer, fridge. Three minutes to I40, free bus, walk to Meadowmont, community pool, and tennis. Home warranty!

First floor master bedroom, living room/Office and formal dining. 450 sf bonus/theatre room and tons of storage.

A must see!!! Call me today!!

This is an end unit and it has been updated. It has large rooms, privacy, nice rear deck overlooking the woods. It has new Paint, Laminate & wood floors throughout this beautiful townhouse. Low HOA fees. Washer, dryer and refrigerator all convey.

A must See!

Priced to sell!!!

This beautiful condo can be yours! Call me and let’s check it out today!

This week, for example, they are serving up courses (that’s two puns, in case you missed it) on Valentine’s Cookie Decorating, Three Quick Chicken Dinners, Valentine’s Aphrodisiacs, and Firehouse Cooking. The instructors vary, but one is taught by the legendary Captain Byron Greeson of the Chapel Hill Fire Department! How cool is that?

But my eye was especially drawn the Valentine’s dinner. For those of you looking for a unique Valentine’s weekend date, this one is IT! You’ll watch and learn, then eat a very romantic menu of Citrus, Avocado, and Almond Salad, Baby Scallops with Lavender Lemon Pasta, Asparagus with Chive Truffled Mousseline, Big, Bad Voodoo Brownies with Cajeta. The cost is $90 for two.

Get the schedule and prices for all the meals on the Southern Seasons website.

Photo used by permission of A Southern Seasons.

While it’s an entertaining way to spend your time, would you like to know “the rest of the story”?

My daughter’s friend Zach Ward was a budding stand up comedian without a venue. She suggested that I have him entertain folks at my ice cream shop “The Inside Scoop” after the shop closed for the evening. Why not?!

So we made arrangements for late night comedy at Scoops, and it was the beginning of a brilliant career in comedy for Zach.

Late night Ice cream and laughter turned out to be a winning combination.

I’d like to think he honed his razor-sharp comedic skills during those Midnight Improv ice cream shop sessions. One thing led to another — classes were taught, more venues opened up and now, Zach has recruited a great number of comedy stars to perform for three weeks of stellar comedy.

The North Carolina Comedy Arts Festival — just one more reason why you like to call Chapel Hill home.

The Festival runs now through February 20th, and it has several venues, so check out the website to get directions and buy your tickets!