Three Cape May County, NJ realtors decided to do something about it and formed a non-profit corporation called “The Free Meal Center”.  The goal is to serve lunch Monday through Saturday, plus breakfast on Saturdays.  The double meal on Saturdays is targeted at kids, who often don’t have a decent meal after school lunch on Friday until returning to school for free breakfast on Monday.

TFMC takes possession of a 4,000 square foot former restaurant on March 15th, just 12 short days away.  We’re still $4,000 short.  We hope to be open to the public by Memorial Day.

Check out our website at http://www.FreeMealCenter.com .  Perhaps you can see it in your heart to make a small donation.

Thank you for caring.

- Mountain Man and City Girl    http://www.MountainManandCityGirl.com

The blogsite of Jewell Real Estate Agency, Wildwood Crest, NJ    http://www.JewellRealEstateAgency.com

The township completed a full-blown revaluation in 2007, raising the total value of all properties from $1.5 billion to $4.73 billion.  While the new figure was more in line with reality, it came at the time when the real estate market was in a deadfall.  Property values were dropping about a half percent per month.

A petition signed by 1,500 property owners against the new valuations put the township on notice to expect plenty of costly tax appeals.  It would also cause an imbalance in values, since those folks out of a total of 15,930 property owners in the town that didn’t bother to appeal would unfairly be picking up the new burden.

Township Tax Assessor Art Amonette undertook an in-house reval in 2009, which cost just $25,000 instead of the $1 million price tag associated with a full reval.  Smart thinking, big savings!

The completed revaluation shows that the value of the township did indeed decline, from the previous $4.73 billion down to $4.1 billion, a drop of about 15%.  About 15,500 properties had their values reduced, while another 400 saw increases.

The range of change had some properties dropping 30%, as opposed to a high of a 10% increase.  Anyone who’s value dropped more than 15% will see a lower tax bill.  A reduction less than 15% will see the owner’s tax bill increase accordingly.

So once again, the playing field appears to be leveled for Lower Township property owners.  Town officials being proactive was a wise decision all around.

- Mountain Man and City Girl    http://www.MountainManandCityGirl.com

The blogsite of Jewell Real Estate Agency, Wildwood Crest, NJ    http://www.JewellRealEstateAgency.com

While at one point in the first storm there were 80,000 people without electricity and roads were impassible, we had our own drama.  Yes, we also went 34 hours without power, unlike 4,000 less-fortunate that still don’t have power a week later.  But that’s not our story.

We saw Fluffy, our 11-year old long-haired orange & white neutered male cat, at the food bowl on the back porch Friday afternoon of the first storm.  It snowed through the night and all day Saturday and we never saw him or Rusty, his 11-year old and lifelong best buddy cat.  But, heck, it was whiteout conditions so who could blame them for not coming out from under the safety and security of our garden shed.

Sunday afternoon, as we shoveled out, a weary Rusty appeared.  We happily greeted him and quickly got him a bowl of catfood and a bowl of warm water.  But where was Fluffy, the chowhound of the pair?   That boy loves to eat.  It wasn’t like him to miss a meal.

By Monday, we were real concerned.  Rusty was acting strange, as he had on Sunday.  He was standoff-ish, even maybe afraid.  He seemed to be sending us a message:  Fluffy was dead.  We were despondent.

Tuesday afternoon the second storm hit.  Rusty had been around all morning and we assumed he sought out his sanctuary under the garden shed to sit out the storm.  But Wednesday Rusty never appeared.  We called and called for him, but no reply. 

By Thursday morning, we were beginning to figure that maybe Rusty was so upset over the death of Fluffy that he too had perished.  Kinda like an old couple where one dies, then the other goes a few days later.  After all, they were best of friends since they were kittens.  They were all they knew, the constant in their lives, along with us two humans.

Late Thursday morning we returned to our house and a couple minutes later Rusty appeared.  We were so relieved.  We petted him and fed him and loved him.  He loved us back.  It had been 48 hours since we’d seen him and that had never happened before.

And so Friday morning, as we settled into life with just one feline friend, a miracle happened.  Fluffy appeared.  It had been seven days.  We petted and petted him.  He reveled in the attention.  We quickly got him a bowl of catfood and twenty minutes later he still had his head in the bowl chowing.  Just like old times.

Our drama came to a fitting conclusion.  Fluffy and Rusty were back.  All was well.  And we appreciate them more than ever.

- Mountain Man and City Girl    http://www.MountainManandCityGirl.com

The blogsite of Jewell Real Estate Agency, Wildwood Crest, NJ    http://www.JewellRealEstateAgency.com

In a county that has hundreds of multi-million dollar vacation homes overlooking the Atlantic Ocean and Delaware Bay, there is a flip side to the coin.  Of 42,000 yearround families, nearly 4,000 households live under the poverty line ($22,050 for 4) and another 9,500 have social security as their sole source of income.  The unemployment rate is around 13%, and when you add in those who have basically given up ever finding gainful employment the jobless rate approaches 30%. 

As realtors, we get the opportunity to go into a lot of people’s homes every year.  In one home we had listed last year, we noticed that the five kids had different colored lips.  We soon discovered why.  The only food in the house was those frozen sugar-water ice pops that come in tear-away plastic tubes.  The refrigerator was empty except for condiments and the freezer was full of different flavored ice pops.  It’s sad.  In the homes of the elderly, we have seen them subsist on Saltine crackers the last days of the month.  They are proud and they don’t complain.

While so many have so much, these others have so little.

This month, we organized “The Free Meal Center” with a volunteer Board of Directors and incorporated as a New Jersey secular, non-profit, charitable organization.  By the way, the politically correct term nowadays is “meal center” and no longer is “soup kitchen”.  We found a 4,000 square foot former restaurant centrally located in the middle of the county on the main highway, Route 9, and negotiated a purchase price.  It has four dining rooms, four restrooms, a large kitchen area, and parking for 40 cars on the 2.2 acre property.  We will be able to seat 100 or more at a time.

We take possession of the building March 15 and hope to be up and running by Memorial Day.  We will serve lunch Monday through Saturday, plus breakfast on Saturday.  Meals will be free and open to anyone who walks through our doors.  We won’t even ask their names.  Our volunteers will treat everyone with respect and dignity.

The building does need a bit of work.  Part of the roof needs repairs, the interior needs painting, the bare kitchen needs equipment, and we need tables and chairs.  A few other repairs may become evident once we’re in the building, but its all no big deal.  We can do it.

We’ve undertaken becoming a 501(c)(3) tax deductible entity and expect to be approved in the spring.  Our website, http://www.TheFreeMealCenter.com should up on-line by next Tuesday, February 16, 2010.

If you’d like to help us help these less-fortunate folks, you can donate through our website next week, or mail a check to The Free Meal Center, PO Box 863, Cape May Court House, New Jersey  08210.  We’ll mail you back a tax deductible receipt.

Thanks for caring.

- Mountain Man and City Girl    http://www.MountainManandCityGirl.com

The blogsite of Jewell Real Estate Agency, Wildwood Crest, NJ  08260    http://www.JewellRealEstateAgency.com

COAH came into existence in the late 1970’s as a result of the New Jersey Supreme Court’s Mt. Laurel Decision, which basically said that municipalities cannot zone against low and moderate-income housing and must supply affordable housing.  COAH set quotas for each of the state’s 567 (now 566) municipalities.

The quota system was unfair to many municipalities, setting unrealistically high numbers for some towns.  Here in Cape May County, Middle Township is still required to offer 932 more affordable units by 2018 and Upper Township still owes over 500.  It’s unrealistic and puts a heavy burden on taxpayers, who must fund new schools and services to meet the demand of so many new residences.

Senate Bill S1, sponsored by Raymond Lesniak and Christopher Bateman, and its companion State Assembly bill A2057, would abolish COAH.  It would also do away with State-imposed calculations of affordable housing needs.  Instead, it would permit municipalities to determine their own needs.  The State Planning Commission would assist towns in facilitating opportunities for affordable housing.

The bill would require municipalities to re-examine their master plan and adopt an ordinance that provides an opportunity for an appropriate variety and choice of housing.  They must show that they have complied with their obligations under the Fair Housing Act.  Any municipality not enacting ordinances by December 31, 2011, would be required to have any developers set aside 20% of their project for low or moderate or work force housing.

What does all this mean?  COAH and its assigned numbers of affordable housing units will be put to rest.  But municipalities aren’t off the hook.  They must still offer affordable housing, but on their own terms, not Trenton’s.

-Mountain Man and City Girl    http://www.MountainManandCityGirl.com

The blogsite of Jewell Real Estate Agency, Wildwood Crest, NJ    http://www.JewellRealEstateAgency.com

“Your boy got accused of cheating,” I said, speaking of PGA Tour golf icon Phil Mickelson who also happens to be City Girl’s favorite golfer.

“That’s impossible,” she replied.  “There’s no cheating in golf.”

You be the judge.  The PGA Tour outlawed golf clubs with square grooves, effective this year.  They reasoned that they give the golf ball more backspin, hence lessening a player’s necessity to actually make a skillful shot.  So at the PGA Tour’s fourth stop of the year at Torrey Pines GC outside San Diego, tour player Scott McCarron accused Mickelson of cheating by using a square-grooved wedge.  At least three other players have used the same square-grooved club this month – John Daly, Hunter Mahan, and Dean Wilson.

The golf club in question is a Ping-Eye 2 wedge.  It seems that in settling a court case brought by Ping against the United States Golf Association (USGA), any Ping-Eye 2 iron built before April 1, 1990 was deemed legal.  The PGA Tour agreed to abide by the USGA’s concession in 1993.  The Ping irons in question were manufactured from 1985-1989.  No other golf club company manufactured square-grooved clubs.

 So knowing that square-grooved clubs would be illegal on the PGA Tour this year, some savvy tour players scrambled to find the still-legal vintage Ping wedges.  While at least Mickelson, Daly, Mahan, and Wilson succeeded, most tour players weren’t even aware that the obscure rule existed.  Technically, the four did nothing wrong.  They stayed within the rules. 

But, golf is known as a gentlemen’s game.  What other sport has players call penalties on themselves, even if no one else saw the infraction?  They – in most cases – could get away with it, but it’s an honor system.  “Gentlemen, honor” – that’s a heavy responsibility.  It’s not the type of lingo you’d associate with the NBA or NFL.

Did Mickelson and the others cheat?  Mickelson says, “No.”  McCarron says, “Yes.”  In question perhaps is the spirit of the rules versus some technicality.

Perhaps tour pro Robert Allenby’s take is appropriate.  “I think cheating is not the right word.  But it’s definitely an advantage,” Allenby said of the Ping-Eye 2.  “There’s only a certain amount of players that can find them and I think it’s not right if you’re using them.”

The entire controversy may soon be a moot point.  Don’t be surprised to see the PGA Tour find a way to outlaw the Ping-Eye 2 in the next week or so.

How are the players mentioned doing at Torrey Pines?  After two rounds McCarron and Daly missed the cut and were sent packing.  Maybe that’s a factor in McCarron’s strong accusation?  Allenby is three shots off the lead, Mickelson four, and Mahan six shots behind the leaders.

Don’t worry, City Girl.  Your boy still has a chance to win again this week.

- Mountain Man and City Girl    http://www.MountainManandCityGirl.com

The blogsite of Jewell Real Estate Agency, Wildwood Crest, NJ    http://www.JewellRealEstateAgency.com

So when the Vatican gave the movie a thumbs down, it piqued our curiosity.  This morning we read a Letter to the Editor in the Atlantic City Press by Sharon Hutchinson of Buena Vista, NJ.  Here’s her take on the Vatican’s reaction to the movie:

“As a nontheist, I am amused at the Vatican’s condemnation of the movie ‘Avatar’ as nature worship.  A respect for and communion with nature is one of the most positive experiences that a person can undergo.

“The fact is, we depend upon nature for all the necessities of life.  The religions that worship land – yes, those awful pagan religions – develop a respect and appreciation for our planet that is sorely lacking in our modern society.  The belief that Earth’s resources are put here solely for man’s benefit has led to not only an estrangement from the natural world around us but also the plunder and devastation of the world.

“If I were to choose a religion, it would make the most sense to worship that which provides the necessities of daily living, rather than some ephemeral being who has supposedly placed man above all creatures.  The destruction of the Earth and its resources is the result of such mythical and arrogant thinking.

“It is no surprise to hear this protest from the Vatican, as Catholicism and other forms of Christianity continue to lose ground as science and reason grow.  That ‘Avatar’ has struck such a nerve is but another sign that religions are aware that more people are coming to the realization that it is the ground under our feet, not some spirit in the sky, that helps to sustain our very lives.”

- Mountain Man and City Girl    http://www.MountainManandCityGirl.com

The blogsite of Jewell Real Estate Agency, Wildwood Crest, NJ    http://www.JewellRealEstateAgency.com

In 2005, there were 3,628 properties sold.  The asking price total was $2.01 billion and they got $1.92 billion, meaning sellers got 95.5% of asking price on average.  The average property was listed at $555,000 and it sold for $530,000.  (All prices are rounded off).

In 2006, there were 2,386 properties sold, a volume drop of 34% from 2005.  The total asking price was $1.43 billion and sellers received $1.34 billion, or about 94% of asking price.  The average asking price was $601,000 and the selling price averaged $563,000.  Did you just notice that the 2006 price average was up 6% over 2005?

In 2007, there were 2,279 properties sold, a slight drop of 4% from 2006.  The asking price total was $1.33 billion and sellers received $1.28 billion.  The average asking price was $583,000 and sellers averaged $539,000.  So even in 2007, prices were still higher than in the benchmark year of 2005.  Of course, sales were off 37% in volume in 2007 from 2005.

In 2008, there were 1,901 properties sold, a drop of 16.5% from the previous year.  The total asking price was $1.07 billion and they got $978 million, or about 91% of asking price.  The average property listed at $564,000 and sold for $514,000, which is still in the ballpark of 2005.

In 2009, there were 1,879 properties sold, a 48% drop from the gold rush era of 2005, but still close to 2008 totals.  But here’s where the numbers dive.  The total asking price was $889 million and sellers received $813 million.  The average listing price of $473,000 went for $432,000.  Selling prices dropped 16% from 2008.  That’s substantial.  Hopefully the market found the bottom and will now level off.  Short sales were a big part of 2009, driving down price averages.

Here at Jewell Real Estate Agency, our figures for sales and commissions from 2001 to 2009 tell our story.  Our most sales, in order, were 2002, 2004, 2005 and 2003.  Those four years had double – and sometimes triple – the sales volume of 2001, and 2006 through 2009.  Our best year of gross commissions was 2005 (no surprise there), followed by 2004, 2002, and 2003.  Again, 2001 (our first year in business, so it might not be a fair comparison) and 2006 through 2009 were the dog years. 

We do expect 2010 to be our best year since 2005.  In January, we’ve already had 25% as many transactions closing as in all of 2009.  And the phones are ringing and the offers are coming in.  Yeee-haaa!

- Mountain Man and City Girl    http://www.MountainManandCityGirl.com

The blogsite of Jewell Real Estate Agency, Wildwood Crest, NJ    http://www.JewellRealEstateAgency.com

The battle between environmentalists looking to preserve the trees and loggers looking at profits and jobs has been going on for a century, and the fight intensified beginning in the 1960s.  It’s an emotional issue, with both sides resorting to vandalism or violence at times to protect what they believe is right.

National Geographic ran a feature article in October, 2009 about the redwoods and their future.  It was a politically-correct, safe article.  As is NatGeo’s philosophy, they strongly presented both sides while not taking a stand. 

Here is an interesting Letter to the Editor that I just read this morning in my new February issue of NatGeo, written and submitted by John Ruch of Boston, giving his views of the validity of the redwood article’s points.

“Regarding your paean to capitalist “forest management” as the solution to saving redwoods, forests already have a manager.  It’s nature itself, which has a head start of hundreds of millions of years on our wisdom.  Conservation has become hubristic meddling, capitalism still is barely tamed greed, and the unholy alliance of the two is a scam masquerading as hipster realpolitik.

“Here’s the truth:  Redwood lumber is not a vital resource.  It is a luxury item that no one has any need or right to cut.  The key to an ecological future is reducing our own population by three-quarters, not turning even more people into luxury-slurping consumers.  The key to ending global warming is paying people who don’t drive cars at all, not paying forest companies.  And anybody who kills any living thing more than a thousand years old is simply a jerk.  Your article used the word “cut” a lot.  What it meant is “kill”.”

- Mountain Man and City Girl    http://www.MountainManandCityGirl.com

The blogsite of Jewell Real Estate Agency, Wildwood Crest, NJ    http://www.JewellRealEstateAgency.com

We were both excellent students in school.  We did our homework, got good grades, and didn’t cause trouble.  What more could a school expect from us.  We did our part.

But in retrospect, the schools didn’t hold up their part of the bargain.  Upon graduating from high school (City Girl in Philly, Mountain Man in a Boston suburb) it was time to strike out into the great, big world awaiting us.  We weren’t prepared.

Like most our age, we had never been taught in school how to manage our lives.  We had never been schooled in how to rent an apartment, buy a house, finance a car, pay our utility bills, and set ourselves on a monthly or weekly budget.  We hadn’t been taught how to apply for a job, do our taxes, or raise a family.  Through 12 years of school, we had never been offered a course on LIFE.

Fortunately for us both, we were quick learners and we each navigated the bumpy road of life.  Like every twenty-something, we still made our share of mistakes.

Today’s post-school young adults have had a different experience than us.  The majority can’t form a complete sentence.  They were more interested in MTV and video games and texting than what we called “book learning”.  Much of that can and should be blamed on the parents.

We had three young men – 18, 19 and 20-years old – working for us a few years ago.  None were married, but each had at least one infant kid.  One had an apartment but was constantly behind in rent and facing eviction.  The other two had their kid and girlfriend living with them and their maternal unit - one a mother and the other a grandmother.  They had no financial responsibility for house bills as the mother and grandmother – both only semi-literate - had become “enablers”.  Only one of the three young men even owned a vehicle.

One particular week, the guys worked long hours and on payday each received about $600.  As we paid them, each was warned to spend it wisely.  “Don’t blow it,” we said in a big brother-type way.  Each had children to feed and clothes to buy.

Monday morning, they each returned to work with big grins.  “Guess what we did?” they said proudly.  Unbelievably, each rolled up their sleeve to reveal their new $300 tattoo.  “You mean you each spent half your paycheck on tattoos?” was our heartbroken reply.

And so it goes.  Each is trapped into a life of underachievement and wasted potential and hardship.  The parents didn’t have the intellectual tools to give proper guidance.  That said, didn’t our educational system drop the ball on several generations? 

- Mountain Man and City Girl    http://www.MountainManandCityGirl.com

The blogsite of Jewell Real Estate Agency, Wildwood Crest, NJ    http://www.JewellRealEstateAgency.com