Pulte Homes Inc. is buying Centex Corp. for $1.3 billion in stock in a deal that will create the largest U.S. homebuilder. This will give Pulte a large holding of land in Texas and the Carolinas, two of the most resilient real estate markets, and a presence in 29 states.

This purchase supports the buzz that the housing recovery is right around the corner. After a rise in existing and new home sales in February, and a increase in mortgage applications for actual home purchases, the sentiment is clearly improving.

This positions Pulte to be the leading survivor company amongst the big homebuilders in the U.S. Despite the fact that they are taking on Centex’s less healthy balance sheet, this still leaves Pulte with well over three billion dollars in cash.

“We’re not here to necessarily call a bottom of the industry. We do think we’re close to that, and we think this combination provides an accelerated return to profitability which frankly is very important as public companies to return to profitability for our shareholders.” Said Richard Dugas, Pulte’s CEO.

If you are a vacation rental homeowner then you can proudly claim to be part of the success story that is North Carolina’s $16.5 billion tourism industry, the dollar amount visitors spent in 2007.  Add to that the state and local taxes that are collected as a direct impact from tourism and you have an additional $1.3 billion. Tourism also has a payroll of $4 billion and annually employs over 190,000 North Carolinians.

Speaking at the North Carolina Governor’s Conference on Tourism, executive director Lynn Minges shared these impressive statistics and dollar amounts with leaders in the tourism industry.  Although North Carolina consistently ranks among the top 10 states visited each year, nationwide our state tourism marketing budget ranks only 21^st among the 50 states, and eighth when ranked against our southern peer states.

Our neighbor state of South Carolina has recognized what a powerful economic engine tourism is for them and has committed to investing heavily in the coming year.  South Carolina will be able to outspend North Carolina 3:1 based on the advertising/marketing budgets for each state.  In other words, SC could take out a beautiful 2 page spread in Southern Living magazine and NC would just have a little half-page ad.  South Carolina’s budget for the coming year is a whopping $46 million.  Recent independent research revealed that for every dollar North Carolina invested in tourism promotion we receive back $185 in travel expenditures, including those dollars spent by those families renting your vacation home!  For that same dollar invested in tourism promotion, $15 is generated in state and local taxes, an extraordinary 1:15 ROI (return on investment).

Chris Cavanaugh, Chairman of the North Carolina Travel and Tourism Board, has urged each of us who depends on tourism revenue to contact Governor Easley to advocate he fund North Carolina’s Division of Tourism by an additional $5 million for marketing and promotion in his budget for 2008-2009.  The General Session will re-convene May 13 and it is imperative that Governor Easley hears overwhelmingly from all of us that this funding is vital to protect our tourism economy.  You know that North Carolina’s tourism promotion has a direct impact on how well your beach investment property will perform this year.  With the grim economic news and threats of recession on the horizon, it is more important than ever that we protect North Carolina’s market share in regards to tourism.  Please take a few moments today to call, write or e-mail Governor Easley.  Remind him of what your beach home means to you and how important it is that we keep those visitors returning to North Carolina and not let them be lured to South Carolina’s beaches. 

Julia Batten Wax

Broker/Owner Emerald Isle Realty 

Travel and Tourism businesses are gearing up to provide the best services for NEXTgen Travelers, better known as “Tech-savvy” travelers. PhoCusWright, a travel industry research authority, conducted a recent survey of 2,559 adults who are active users of the latest computer, entertainment or consumer technology.

According to the survey, these “next generation” travelers are highly educated, affluent, and are equally likely to be Baby Boomers (43 to 61 years of age) as Echo Boomers (18 to 28 years of age), thereby debunking the belief that the usage of new technology is concentrated strictly among younger travelers.

The NEXTgen travelers are defined more by their attitudes towards technology than their demographics. It is vitally important that industry observers fully understand the lifestyles, travel habits and travel intentions of this emerging group.

Survey respondents revealed their preferences for using the Internet when planning travel:

• 71 percent use the Internet to search for travel information
• 41 percent have taken a virtual tour of a destination
• 38 percent have built a trip itinerary online
• 58 percent cite the “ability to check the best fares/rates” as the most important feature in a travel website.
• 37 percent say that personal comments on social networking or travel advisory sites influence their travel decisions
• 33 percent have posted their own travel review online

The survey indicates a need for a fresh approach to media strategies that will reach this growing travel audience. Is your business ready for the “NEXTgen” travelers?

Elizabeth Barrow 

Crystal Coast Tourism Authority 

While more than 80 percent of seafood served in the U.S. is imported, the Crystal Coast — North Carolina’s Southern Outer Banks — provides visitors the chance to dine on “fresh from the docks” seafood that was caught the same day in clean, North Carolina coastal waters with the Carteret Catch program. Culinary connoisseurs enjoy the freshest ingredients on menu items designated with the Carteret Catch logo, from Wild Mushroom Encrusted Trigger Fish and Scallops A ’La Florentine to She Crab Bisque, while supporting the local fishing industry of the Crystal Coast.

            Over the last ten years an influx of lower-cost imported seafood has began to displace domestic seafood in many commercial markets; however, Carteret County’s Carteret Catch program is a joint venture between local restaurants, retailers and the fishing industry that guarantees fresh seasonal seafood caught by local fishermen. Restaurants and retailers displaying the Carteret Catch logo on their menus and windows are partners in the program and provide their customers with seafood fresh off the Carolina Coast, which are significantly healthier than the antibiotic-fed, farmed fish commonly used in restaurants.

            Fishing has been an integral part of Carteret County’s heritage and economy for nearly 400 years, and the goal of Carteret Catch is to once again make fishing a viable lifestyle and preserve a culture that characterizes the central coastal region of North Carolina. Carteret Catch supports the business of nearly 1, 850 local fishermen making a living off the waters, and preserves a culture that characterizes the central coastal region of North Carolina. With populations reaching only 350 in some areas, the hometown feel reinforces the sense of obligation and responsibility the fishermen have for their communities. The fishing way of life is interchangeable today with the lives of the first settlers of Carteret County in the 1700s. From the whaling industry in the early 18th century, through the mullet and oyster trade in the 19th century, all the way up to the thriving modern seafood industry, Carteret County has relied on the bounty of the sea for its livelihood.

            Dangling like a delicate strand of pearls off the coast of North Carolina, the favored Atlantic beach destination of generations captivates discerning palates with the “Crystal Coast is Cookin’” promotion encompassing food festivals, restaurant offers and epicurean excursions. With 85 miles of silken coastline along the southern Outer Banks, 56 miles of which are in the protected Cape Lookout National Seashore, the Crystal Coast includes the seaside towns of Atlantic Beach, Beaufort, Emerald Isle, and Morehead City. The Crystal Coast is also home to one of the oldest cemeteries in the state, Fort Macon State Park, Blackbeard’s legendary ship the Queen Anne’s Revenge and is the setting for several of Nicholas Sparks’ best selling novels.

To experience North Carolina’s Crystal Coast, call (800) 786-6962 or visit www.crystalcoastnc.org 

EMERALD ISLE • ATLANTIC BEACH • MOREHEAD CITY • BEAUFORT • CAPE LOOKOUT, NORTH CAROLINA 

While early spring weather curbs beachside activities in other destinations, the Crystal Coast – North Carolina’s southern Outer Banks – captivates culinary connoisseurs with the “Crystal Coast is Cookin’” promotion encompassing food festivals, restaurant offers and epicurean excursions. More than 80 privately owned dining establishments are located throughout the Crystal Coast, including outdoor bistros, southern fried seafood shacks, upscale cafes and coastal barbecue joints – all serving “fresh from the docks” seafood. Local favorites include El’s, a dive famous for its mile high stacked Shrimp Burger, Blue Moon Bistro known for its Pan Seared Salmon over Lobster Ravioli and Beaufort Grocery, a Southern Living favorite with charm reminiscent of a French country Bistro, known for its Lemon Chess Pie.

Events such as The Beaufort Food & Wine Festival, North Carolina Seafood Festival and the Newport Pig Cookin’ Contest blend coastal delicacies with fun activities such as wine tastings, concerts, historical tours and golf contests. “Breakfast with the Rays” at the North Carolina Aquarium, indulgent picnic excursions to the Cape Lookout Lighthouse, and quaint waterfront dining in a 1700s Victorian home are just a few of the year round epicurean activities visitors can partake in to enjoy coastal cuisine in a relaxed, beach environment.

Another initiative part of Crystal Coast is Cookin’ is Carteret Catch, a program ensuring that visitors are able to get fresh local seafood caught right off the coast of North Carolina in Carteret County. While more than 80 percent of seafood served in the U.S. is imported, the Crystal Coast provides visitors the chance to dine on “fresh from the docks” seafood that was caught the same day in clean, coastal waters. Culinary connoisseurs enjoy the freshest ingredients on menu items designated with the Carteret Catch logo, from Wild Mushroom Encrusted Trigger Fish and Scallops A ’La Florentine to Lobster Risotto and She Crab Bisque, while supporting the local fishing industry of the Crystal Coast.

Dangling like a delicate strand of pearls off the coast of North Carolina, this favored Atlantic beach destination of generations captivates discerning palates with the Crystal Coast is Cookin’ promotion and represents one of the only remaining natural barrier island systems in the World. The Islands are strung together with 85 miles of silken coastline along the southern Outer Banks, 56 miles of which are in the protected Cape Lookout National Seashore. Comprised of the seaside towns of Atlantic Beach, Beaufort, Emerald Isle, Harker’s Island and Morehead City, the Crystal Coast is home to one of the oldest cemeteries in the state, Fort Macon State Park, Blackbeard’s legendary ship the Queen Anne’s Revenge and is the setting for several of Nicholas Sparks’ best selling novels.

To experience North Carolina’s Crystal Coast, call (800) 786-6962 or visit www.crystalcoastnc.org

EMERALD ISLE • ATLANTIC BEACH • MOREHEAD CITY • BEAUFORT • CAPE LOOKOUT, NORTH CAROLINA 

North Carolina’s Southern Outer Banks, known as the Crystal Coast, provides history buffs a glimpse into its mysterious past by encountering its “Ghosts on the Coast” this fall. Encompassing historic towns steeped in swashbuckling pirate tales, romantic mysteries, maritime heritage and wartime triumphs and tragedies, visitors experience attractions from the haunted houses of Beaufort and legendary ghost-soldiers at Fort Macon to the Cape Lookout Lighthouse, which bared witness to many of the 2,000 ships that sunk in the “Graveyard of the Atlantic.” A sampling of the spooky sites on the Crystal Coast include: 

• The Old Burying Grounds in Beaufort enshrouded by ancient live oaks and weathered tombstones dating back to 1731 are the final resting place of soldiers of the Revolutionary War, famous privateers and even a young girl buried in a keg of rum
• Visitors search for soldiers who haunt the top of Fort Macon, a five-sided fort that served during the Civil War and World War II, as well as Blackbeard’s crew in the 1700s after they sunk and abandoned the legendary Queen Anne’s Revenge
• Historic Beaufort, founded in 1709, is dotted with Victorian mansions from the 1700s including the haunted Hammock House, where ghostly activity has been seen from a young lady hung by Blackbeard from a live oak tree, three soldiers found buried under the porch and a mistress pushed down the stairs
• Mysterious wild Spanish Mustangs are the only permanent residents of Shackleford Banks, a nine-mile long island where these survivors of Spanish galleon shipwrecks, have roamed freely for more than 300 years
• History comes alive at the Cape Lookout Lighthouse built in the mid-1800’s to warn passing ships of dangerous coastal waters where a hidden graveyard of more than 2,000 vessels made their final resting place at the bottom of the Atlantic 

A variety of lodging options on the Crystal Coast suit every lifestyle and budget from seaside cottages and massive beach mansions to oceanfront hotel accommodations and coastal bed and breakfast inns. A sampling of accommodation rates for the fall include the Inlet Inn: $85/night and Pecan Tree Inn Bed & Breakfast: $110/night both in Beaufort, Holiday Inn Morehead City: $105/night, Sheraton Atlantic Beach: $154/night and Bluewater GMAC’s eight-bedroom oceanfront rental, Sand Dollar: $3,595/week.

Dangling like a delicate strand of pearls off the coast of North Carolina, the favored Atlantic beach destination of generations represents one of the only remaining natural barrier island systems in the world. The Islands are strung together with 85 miles of silken coastline along the southern Outer Banks, 56 miles of which are in the protected Cape Lookout National Seashore. Miles of shimmering water reflects countless tiny suns during the day and shatters the moon into a thousand pieces at night.

Guests interested in experiencing Ghosts on the Coast in North Carolina’s Crystal Coast call (800) 786-6962 or visit www.crystalcoastnc.org 

EMERALD ISLE • ATLANTIC BEACH • MOREHEAD CITY • BEAUFORT • CAPE LOOKOUT, NORTH CAROLINA