If you are shopping for a home in the Tega Cay or Fort Mill area right now you will notice lawns looking brown instead of green these days. With higher or I should say HOT summer temperatures and water restrictions that are in place, it is difficult to maintain a bright green lawn. So you might ask what are the current water restrictions? Here is an update. Tega Cay's city council did revise the current stage 3 water restrictions on May 31st. Stage 3 restriction have been in place since October of last year. We were blessed with much needed rain during the spring season so the council reduced the restrictions slightly from the April 21st, 2008 change. We are still in stage 3 water restriction with the following changes: You are allowed to water lawns with sprinklers or irrigation syste... 06/12/2008

View Larger Map York County Council approved on May 19 to re-zone 32 acres in Fort Mill on highway 160 west across from Baxter Village to mixed use. ELA, a Rock Hill based developer, original planned to build apartments but sought to add retail and office developmemt to the project. The development after last months county approval will now consist of 288 apartments and 110,605 square foot of retail and office space. The buildings in the front of the development facing highway 160 will be 4 to 5 story buildings with retail and restaurants on the first floor and offices in the upper floors. The apartments will be located in the rear of the development. The county has tried to restricted further commercial development on this part of highway 160 to minimize the traffic impact on the highw... 06/06/2008

Fort Mill School District Superintendent Keith Callicut wrote an update recently in the Fort Mill Times. Here is a summary of his school growth update. Besides the two new Fort Mill School District elementary schools planned to open in the fall of 2009, the district is busy working on a plan to spend the money raised by the March 4th bond referendum that was passed. The Fort Mill School District is looking at the following areas for 3 new schools (2 elementary, 1 middle); Possible Elementary School Locations: Massey home development area which is south west of Fort Mill. Tega Cay Sutton and I-77 near the planned York County Museum Possible Middle School Location: An area near the southern part of the Springfield Parkway. The district plans to finalize the sites and acquire the land for... 05/19/2008

I wrote a post recently about a rumor all Fort Mill Schools are in an enrollment freeze. Here is a link to the posts  Fort Mill Schools Freeze Enrollment?  As I stated that was simply not true. In the post I mentioned therewill be 2 new elementray schools. Well the Fort Mill School District Board has approved names for the district’s newest elementary schools. The elementary located adjacent to Nation Ford High will be known as Sugar Creek Elementary. Sugar Creek Elementary Capacity - 900 Location - off Farm House Rd. Adjacent to Nation Ford High A second elementary now under construction on Pleasant Road will be known as Pleasant Knoll Elementary. Pleasant Knoll Elementary Capacity - 900 Location - Pleasant Road Both schools will open in August of 2009. This post is from my blog http:/... 05/09/2008

Fort Mill SC will celebrate Springfest on Saturday, May 3 at Walter Elisha Park.  Tega Cay will be hosting its tour of gardens and homes on the same weekend.  It looks like a busy time for the Fort Mill and Tega Cay residents.  05/01/2008

Hey Fort Mill / Tega Cay locals!   Remember when the only "sit down" restaurant in town was Fish Bones?  Things are REALLY changing fast around here....Ok, I've never been a big fan of Wal-Mart.  I just don't like the way the 800 lb gorilla bully's the little mom and pop shop keeper.  Well, it's kind of hard to hate the new Tega Cay store.  I thought Wal-Mart coming to town wouldn't be such a good thing, but it's just so darn convenient!  Not only does the facade look great, but the parking is wonderful.  No more fighting for a spot at the one in Rock Hill or up in Charlotte.  I can run by on the way home to pick up something and it's not a huge trip.  And now it looks like we're getting even more options to eat out - Dunkin Donuts going in beside McDonalds at 160 and Gold Hill Road (no... 04/26/2008

Listening to the National Media drone on about how dismal things are in residential housing is enough to make you cry, get a little sick, then cry again.  And, after seeing the California Market first hand last month, it's not pretty.  But, you have to remember that the National numbers are not necessarily an accurate reflection of what's going on right here in Fort Mill, Tega Cay, and Lake Wylie.  Here's the facts:  The Charlotte Metropolitan Area was one of 3 major cities that actually experienced increased appreciation in 2007 by a little over 4.5%.  The average price for a single family home for January, 2008 was only very slightly down from the same period in Jan 2007 ($218,610 down from $219,270) which represents less than 1 percent.  The number of sales transactions is down and h... 04/24/2008

The Fort Mill School District is rated 9 out of a high score of 10 by greatschools.net. See the ranking of each school on my Fort Mill Info page . One of the reasons those of us who have school age kids picked the Fort Mill or Tega Cay area to live is because of the great public school system.Rumor has hit with a handful of neighboring Realtors® all Fort Mill Schools are now on a new enrollment freeze. This is absolutely not true!Yes two elementary schools which are Gold Hill and Orchard Park are currently in a new enrollment freeze. New students will be enrolled in Riverview Elementary. The distirct will fill any available seats that may open over the summer.New to the freeze list is Springfield Elementary. Any new students after June 2008 will be enrolled to Fort Mill Elemenrary.I cou... 04/23/2008

Rates went up this week as the stock market had a strong week. Current 30 Year Fixed rates are hovering around 6.00% but can easily range between 6.00% and 6.50% depending on credit score and loan program. ARM pricing is still weak. The 7/1 ARM rates are about the same as 30 Year fixed rates. It should get to about a 1% lower than the 30 Year Fixed before the value is the worth the risk. The mortgage bond market is near unchanged right now. 100% Programs GONE. The only way to buy right now without any down payment is with some time of down payment assistance. FHA loans are back in the spotlight! STATED INCOME These programs are rare but still exist. You must be self-employed, and the credit must be pretty good. Rates for these programs range from 6.375% to 7.25% for fixed rate loans. NO... 04/21/2008

So Charlotte is ranked 9th most miserable city to live. What does that mean for those of us that live near Charlotte? After polling a few neighbors, I put togther my first top 10 list called Top Ten Reasons To Live in Fort Mill SC.   If you would like to see my top ten list please visit my post at Homesfortmill.com here is the link to my post.http://homesfortmill.com/local-information-fort-mill-lake-wylie-carolinas/top-10-reasons-to-live-in-fort-mill-sc/I welcome comments on Active Rain or especially on my personal blog site. 02/04/2008

Regardless if you are looking to purchase or sell a home in Tega Cay, or Fort Mill you will find that the quality of life, the cost of living and the school systems offer both buyers and sellers the opportunity to maximize their investment. According to the New York Times and other national publications and programs, such as CNN, the Carolinas are one of the few places in the country where the real estate market has continued to show a steady growth. This area is indeed a perfect little haven. 11/20/2007

Congratulations to Gold Hill Elementary School. GHES has been selected as a National Blue Ribbon School by the US Department of Education. Gold Hill is one of four schools in South Carolina to receive this prestigious award. Click to see more. 11/20/2007