The story of the summer so far is rain and more rain. It barely held off long enough for the parade in downtown Blue Ridge Saturday, but it rained on the Abominable’s concert afterwards.
Almost every afternoon or evening, we’ve had at least a heavy shower, and often an outright downpour accompanied by thunder and lightening. Yesterday evening, we had two strikes within walking distance of the house, and the thunder clap was nearly deafening. As I’ve said before, I’m enjoying it, because it is a real throwback to the normal weather pattern of twenty-five years or so ago. We’ve spent most evenings just sitting on the porch watching it rain.
In addition to transforming the property into a mycologist’s paradise, I’ve noticed an unusual number of toads and baby toads. I’ve also heard the occasional katydid in the evening, but I’ve yet to hear a real chorus of more than one katydid. I did see a red-eyed locust over in Young Harris, but I think we are out of the main zone for the locust brood that’s hatching a little further north of us in North Carolina.
The 4th of July weekend was mostly a rainout for real estate, and I imagine that trend will continue so long as the weekends are so wet. In case you haven’t noticed, interest rates are rising, although they remain historically very low. Nothing has happened to change our feeling that we’re going to have another good business year. We’re seeing some modest appreciation, and buyer interest remains strong for this time of year, which is usually a bit slower than spring and much slower than fall. In view of the interest rate trend, if you are still sitting on the fence, it might be time to think seriously about whether this is the time for you to buy. We’re still a bit short of good inventory, and I expect that situation to accelerate as we enter the fall selling season.