You are on the private e-group of Adrienne "Abe" Wagner and Robert "Wags" Wagner, Realtors of Prudential Preferred Realty, Laurel Highlands Office, Donegal PA, in the Laurel Highlands of SW PA, USA. If this message comes to you in error our apologies. Please let us know and we will clear you from this group. This update is not an attempt to solicit the offerings of other brokers and is for informational purposes only. Properties referred to are those listed or represented by our team and do not represent all properties in market area. All opinions are ours alone.

Thank you to all who enjoy our updates! Always know that we do post these updates on our Newsletters Page on our website so if in the future we may seem to be late please check our site, your spam system may be blocking our message.

1. Market Overview With the first seven months of recorded sales in for 2008 two distinct markets have appeared. Hidden Valley has been the market leader with excitement about the new owners creating new confidence in the resale market. Seven Springs is lagging behind recorded transfers with prime locations and popular floor plans seeing longer days on market. Headed into what has historically been the best sales period for both resorts we are very curious to see if buyers continue the trend or if the economy will catch up with us. Here's what the current inventory (as of August 12) has to offer you. As there have been so few transfers under $100,000 we've lumped the numbers into the under $200,000 category.

2. SEVEN SPRINGS: CEO Scott Bender turned in his resignation on July 8 and on July 9th the cover of our Somerset Daily American announced his move to Hidden Valley. (our Blog had some interesting comments posted!). Eric Mauck has stepped into his shoes. Eric comes from Oglebay, the Nuttings other Resort where he was VP of Operations. He's been on the mountain for a year and according to the story, "He is not planning on moving here full time. He is not a skier." Robert "Dubby" Duppstadt also has left Seven Springs to join the Hidden Valley leadership team. And most recently, graphic designer Jennifer Benford followed suit. That's three key employees headed into their busiest festival season. Chris Lehman was one of the first to swap resorts. He was a newer employee (less than 5 years) with staffing who joined 7 Springs shortly after Seven Springs ran Laurel Mountain.

Home owners should be VERY involved with their associations NOW. Over the past 25 years if there was a handshake or written deal concerning the services provided by Seven Springs, Scott was in the middle of the deal. Village Drive which is the only paved access road to Southwind and the sporting clay range would be another type of agreement between the association and Seven Springs.

Really the only news we've heard about upcoming winter updates is that Seven Springs has reached an agreement with Somerset Trust Company to "regain management of Laurel Mountain Ski Resort." Read the front page story in the Somerset Daily American. Locals would love to see this resort STAY open but there are many issues that need to be addressed before that could happen. Money and upgrades are the two big stumbling blocks.

The Villages at Seven Springs Real Estate Resort Property Sales has been changed to Seven Springs Resort Realty, LLC. Our Blog discusses this move and how it is rare to find a Pennsylvania real estate company doing business as a Limited Liability Company, think about the ones you know. The total number of active listings continues to grow and now stands at 81. The resale transfer numbers have changed very little since our June report.

3. Hidden Valley: Hiring Scott Bender, VP of Resort Operations away from Seven Springs is a coup for Buncher's. There are few resort CEO's that have been through as many experiences and triumphs as Scott during his 25 year tenure. His personal experiences and contacts set up Hidden Valley to be a very competitive opponent much earlier in the game. We're betting you'll see a water park here! Getting Dubby and Jennifer to follow add more feathers in their cap. Dubbie has great connections with the biking industry and they both bring years of marketing experience to the table. We still believe strongly that the first resort to commit to substantial employee housing will be the big winner.

New Development - So far they really haven't released any new products and are finding the permitting process takes longer here! They did release 4 pre-construction condos which were originally being presold when Kettler Brothers was still around (Tennis Court Drive). Then (July 06) the entry price was $280 now with a new name of Summit Place it's $325,000. With a selection of resales in that price range it will be interesting to see which way buyers decide to go!

Winter - If you ski here this season you'll believe Buncher is seriously committed to improving your Hidden Valley winter experience! A new quad with ANOTHER Emmegi loading conveyor (replaces two doubles on Roadrunner) will be ready to go for the first snow. Capitalizing on their "Family Friendly" history this new addition is ideal for beginners and children as it moves slowly at about 450 feet per minute (half the speed of a normal chair). There will be a total of 80 (50 this year 30 last year) TechnoAlpin Automatic fan guns on the slopes for this winter! According to their "What's New" section they have added full automation to the pumping system. These guns utilize less water and more air to produce "carvable snow." Center Ski and Snowboard (ski shop) is open for business and targeting Seven Springs home owners!

New web site - "my hidden valley resort.com" has disappeared and has been replaced by www.hiddenvalleyresort.com. We found it interesting that their IT department didn't route the old site to the new one and that there was no blast to their contact database for e-letter updates about the new address. Also be patient as they work out the phone kinks. They have an automated system that wants to throw you into a directory, we've tried the customer service line (extension 2) several times with no success.

Active listings have increased to 52. More higher priced transfers are being seen as the under $150,000 price tags have been slower to sell this year. We'll see just how confident buyers are at the end of the 2nd half by total sales. This time period has always produced the highest number of sales for both resorts. The on site office has expanded their sales force with many new agents who have to learn the market. As always make sure your REALTOR is working for YOU!! We'll be happy to refer you to agents that we know are very familiar with the buying side of the sales process.

4. Local Activities: WELCOME LADELS! Finally a restaurant that makes you think you're in the city!! What we mean by that is the menu is extensive, the staff have a professional approach, the quality and quantity are exceptional, AND you can't beat the prices!! When you get off of the Donegal turnpike just hang a right and you're there!! It used to be the Rowdy Buck. What's extra special is you can eat in or take out (call ahead and have it waiting for you)! They also cater and have room for get togethers or small parties. Give them a try and post your experience on our BLOG!

Donegal Boro and Township Comprehensive Plan - When you get off of the Donegal Turnpike exit and head to either resort you may have noticed the Welcome Banners (thank you Mountain Laurel Chamber). You are driving through both the boro and township of Donegal, what is considered the GATEWAY to the LAUREL HIGHLANDS. Funding of grant money has almost dictated the joining of areas to complete comprehensive plans. Christy DeMuth from Makin Engineering (the firm that put the plan together) confirmed that the 45 day public review will end September 10. After that the supervisors will vote to approve and implement the plan.

5. Chimney Safety: Barry Fitzgerald, a long time chimney sweep servicing both Seven Springs and Hidden Valley home owners has added a unique tool! He can now provide an interior view of your chimney. This system will show defects like open mortar joints, disconnected liners or liner warpages or blocked flues (he’s found several filled with birds nests). The “Enviroflex-cam” is a 1.4” diameter color camera head with options of instantly seeing what’s inside on a 7” field equipped L.C.D. screen or a laptop! There are 9 interior lights affixed to the camera which make the display crystal clear. Images may be recorded on a CD or as a stand alone JPEG format. Our advice is to book your appointment NOW! You can reach Barry at 814-445-8063. He’s also on list of vendors on our web site. More details about the system may be found on line at www.chimscan.com

6. National: Housing And Economic Recovery Act of 2008. First-time home buyers now have a tax credit equal to ten percent of the cost of their home, NOT to exceed $7,500. Purchases made from April 9, 2008 through July 1, 2009 are eligible. The amount is repayable over 15 years making this more like a short loan. Check out this chart provided by our National Association. It's not a cure but in this market it certainly will help many.

7. Virtual Mapping: We have been expanding the Microsoft virtual mapping system to include Seven Springs, Hidden Valley, Developments, Attractions, and our listings. Use the link on our website page. Open the collection and highlight the property with your cursor, then zoom to street, and use the aerial view. Really neat, if you take the time you can measure out how many feet it is from your front door to the pool, get directions, and more.

8. New Rental Department at Prudential: Erin Mikolich from our office is taking over the Prudential Preferred rental program and is planning on adding new services! Funds will be disbursed after each rental, there will be Visual Tours, and you'll be on multiple web sites! We think you'll be pleasantly surprised at the rental split but we'll let Erin share the details! Shoot her an e-mail at EMikolich@prudnetialpreferred.com or give her a call at 814-233-7318 for more details. Look for her letter within the next few weeks.

9. Team News: Our BLOG continues to evolve! Be the first to hear about mountain news by activating the RSS feed. This e-letter contains a short sampling of what's posted. The comments add a whole new perspective! Next to appear are pictures and video clips! Try it out!

10. Tek Tip: As members of the Real Estate Cyber Society we have a Monthly Newsletter with really neat Internet tips and tricks. This months tips are a site that gets you online coupons, link to Microsoft's World Wide Telescope which has views from outer space, a personal estate organizer and more. Enjoy!

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Active (8-12)
	HV	7S	TOTALS
<$200,000	15	10	25
$201-300,000	12	22	34
$301-400,000	16	25	41
$401-500,000	4	10	14
>$500,000	5	14	19
TOTALS	52	81	133