Did you know the Alabama Gulf Shores is considered one of the best beach wedding destinations? With the incredible soft white sand as your aisle, the warmth of the sun above you and the emerald green water nearby, all of this becomes an amazing backdrop for your special day. Destination weddings often maximize romance and minimize family pressures at a reasonable cost.  Nature provides the beautiful setting, so you can make the event as simple or sophisticated as you‘d like.  Since most couples live out of the area, wedding planner firms local to Orange Beach or Gulf Shores can coordinate the event for you by phone or email. When you step off the plane in time for the big event, the cake, the photographer, the set up on the beach await you. When your guests come, beautiful beach condos ... 11/10/2009

WASHINGTON - Nov. 5, 2009 - The $8,000, first-time homebuyer tax credit has not yet been extended beyond its Nov. 30 end date, but it's very close to gaining a longer life.The extension was added as an amendment to an existing bill, HR 3548, that extends unemployment benefits. The U.S. Senate passed that bill on Wednesday and, after debate, the U.S. House passed HR 3548 this afternoon. It now needs only President Obama's signature to become law, and the White House has indicated it will sign it, perhaps as early as tomorrow. Until the president signs the bill, however, it is not law.In addition to extending the tax credit for first-time homebuyers under the current rules, the bill adds a smaller tax credit for move-up homebuyers who have lived in the house for five of the past seven yea... 11/05/2009

Since the 1960s there has always been a fishing pier located in Gulf State Park. In 2004, Hurricane Ivan decided he had other plans for the pier by destroying its structure. The storm's heavy rain and strong winds wrecked the pier until there was nothing left. Maybe it's the sound of the waves against the shore, or perhaps it's the white sand and sparkling emerald water that makes you think of Gulf Shores. But now there is another reason to think of Gulf Shores.  Gulf Shores is the new home to the longest fishing and sightseeing pier on the Gulf of Mexico. The new pier is not only the largest, but is considered the best and most modern pier that has ever been built. Without a doubt, the newly built pier is the ‘'gem'' of the entire gulf coast.  The $16 million pier is 1,520 feet long, w... 10/30/2009

Gulf Shores foreclosures can be considered by every investor as there are several investment opportunities available in this regard. Although there is no doubt about the fact that foreclosure rate is declining in the State of Alabama you can still find several homes available in foreclosures. Talking about Alabama foreclosures, you will find a decrease in the rate of foreclosures in February as compared to January this year. According to a real estate foreclosure listings provider, there were as many as 713 auction sale notices and bank repossessions in the last month. With these default and auction sales notices, there was one foreclosure filing for 2,997 households in Alabama. This rate of foreclosure is much lower than the rate of foreclosure in the US where one out of every 440 hous... 10/28/2009

If you are looking for a great opportunity to buy a condo on the beach, look no further than Gulf Shores, Alabama. The prices have dropped to approximately $139 per square foot for an amazing Gulf Shores condo. Whether if it will be your full-time home, or a vacation destination, now is your best opportunity to live at the beach. You can experience the resort lifestyle 365 days a year when you buy a condo in Gulf Shores. You'll find an average summer temperature around 90° and temperature winters that average about 65°. The gorgeous Gulf Shores coastline is over 30 miles long.  Once you have experienced Gulf Shores you will never want to leave the warm emerald green waters and the white sugar sand beaches. The beaches are considered some of the whitest in the world because of the quartz... 10/23/2009

  Alabama Gulf Coast Condominium Market Update...The condo market in Gulf Shores and Orange Beach, AL is very favorable to buyers. There has never been a better time to invest. Condos are 50% off what they were several years back. In some cases you can get a condo at 2002 prices! We have gorgeous beaches, golf courses, fishing, tennis, boating, shopping, sailing, jet skiing, diving, terrific restaurants, parasailing... and the list goes on and on. Join us! The Alabama Gulf Coast attracts the investor who is looking for all of this and more...  CLICK HERE to receive WEEKLY UPDATES of Gulf Shores, AL and Orange Beach, AL foreclosures.  I offer updates for condo buyers looking for Alabama Gulf Coast real estate. Alabama Gulf Coast Beaches....Something magical happens when you visit Gulf S... 10/22/2009

Find Fort Morgan Alabama Beach House Rentals at www.GoToTheGulfCoast.com   Prickett Properties is your vacation rental connection for Fort Morgan beach homes in communities such as the Dunes, Bay to Breakers, Morgantown, Surfside Shores and other popular Fort Morgan beach neighborhoods. Our Fort Morgan rentals include gulf front houses perfect for beach weddings or family reunions. We also have large beach homes with up to 8-10 bedrooms such as the Four Fun Beach House and Sandy Feat Beach Home that many church groups and large families have enjoyed for their vacation. These homes are built like a duplex but have the capacity to open up in the living room areas to make it feel like one super sized house. This is perfect for people who want to vacation together but need plenty of living ... 10/18/2009

Prickett Properties is now offering private golf cart rentals for our guests staying at the Indies condos we offer for rent in Fort Morgan Alabama.

After personally owning a golf cart for a number of years, it occurred to us that our guests were not truly getting the "full" experience of staying at the Indies. Now, our guests can rent their own private four person golf cart for $125 per stay.

The golf carts make the stay at the Indies convenient and fun. You can zip back and forth to the beach with all of your chairs, umbrellas etc...without any hassle. Bathroom breaks are also a whole lot easier! Its just fun to ride in the open sea air around the beautiful neighborhood of the Dunes where the Indies is located.

Prickett Properties is the ONLY company that offers... 10/11/2009

Make plans now to attend the 38th Annual National Shrimp Festival in Gulf Shores Alabama. October 8th - 11th The festival is held right on the beautiful Gulf beaches.Enjoy over 300 vendors of fine art, arts & crafts and ofcourse lots of great seafood! Live entertainment starts10:00 on Thursday morning, October 8th.   This is a really fun festival for people of all ages and tastes. Theyhave something for everyone, plus you get to enjoy beautiful weather on an absoluately fabulous beach. If you have never visited the gulf beaches of Alabama this would be a perfect opportunity. 09/16/2009

by Tinsley Myrick, September 9, 2009 The following information was shared at the RE/MAX of Orange Beach sales meeting yesterday by Patrick Daily, Broker/Owner. Patrick recently attended the RE/MAX Owner meeting and brought us back this interesting info given by David Linegar, founder of RE/MAX in 1973, and Carter Murdock, Bank of America's Economist: •Savings is at its highest level.  People are saving and not spending. •The economy is already beginning to improve.  It's going to recovery slowly. •Unemployment is REALLY at 11-12% right now. •Have to get more people working before people will start spending again. •Small businesses will lead us out of the recession.  However, there are no incentives for small businesses right now so the recovery will be slower than it has to be.  All the... 09/09/2009

We have seen activity pick up along the Alabama Gulf Coast. There remains a large inventory but the number of sales has been increasing. I have analyzed data from our local MLS system for both sales and active listings located in the Gulf Shores area for Gulf Front or Beach Side condominiums. This analysis includes areas of Gulf Shores such as East Beach, West Beach, and the Fort Morgan area. Condo complexes such as the Beach Club, Plantation, and The Indies are located in the Fort Morgan area. Please review the table below. Please let me if you are interested in purchasing a beach condo in our area. I will be happy to set up a search for you and send the bargains as they hit the market. Please e-mail me or call me (251-215-9382 ) at anytime. You can also search for condos using our Rea... 08/19/2009

Deals, discounts fuel resort market Realtors say both sales and rentals at Gulf are brisk at bargain prices Sunday, August 16, 2009 By KATHY JUMPER Real Estate Editor Realtor Steve Neitzel has already sold five condominium units in August and predicts his best months will be this fall. "We've cut half of our inventory because of the great deals," said Neitzel of Brett Robinson Real Estate in Gulf Shores. Prices in the current market can be summed up as "what someone is willing to pay," said Neitzel, who sold a large Gulf-front unit in Phoenix 9 in Orange Beach for $700,000, a half-million less than the original asking price. Summer brought increased sales and rentals at the Gulf, but with sales prices 35 percent to 45 percent less than listing prices of two to three years ago. Most cond... 08/17/2009

Pier into the future: After five years, new Gulf State Park Pier set for July 23 opening Wednesday, July 01, 2009 By JEFF DUTE Outdoors Editor Shortly after Hurricane Ivan destroyed the Gulf State Park Pier in September 2004, many fishermen began counting down the time until a new pier would be built. On Tuesday, Alabama conservation department officials announced that the clock would officially reach 00:00 at 9 a.m. on July 23. That's when Gov. Bob Riley is expected to cut the ribbon to open the 1,520-foot-long pier after more than 18 months of construction and a bid cost of $16.2 million. "As you know, good things come to those who wait. We had hoped to open the new Gulf State Park Pier this spring, but Mother Nature decided otherwise," state conservation commissioner Barnett Lawley s... 07/01/2009

Beach rentals brisk but last-minute Sunday, June 21, 2009 By KATHY JUMPER Real Estate Editor A two-bedroom, two-bath condominium unit on the beach in Gulf Shores that sleeps six: $1,500 to $1,900 a week. A five-bedroom, five bath Gulf-front house in Orange Beach that sleeps 16: $4,800 a week. Watching dolphins play in the surf from your balcony: Priceless. Well, it's not exactly cost-free, but renters do have a great view of the dolphins, according to Sarah Kuzma of Meyer Real Estate, which manages rentals for 1,600 condo units and 300 houses at the Gulf. It's summertime, and the race is on to keep the rental units booked. "We have 10 weeks to make it happen," Kuzma said. Rental agencies are open 24-7 to accommodate guests who are following a national trend - booking rooms at the last m... 06/21/2009

Major development planned around Lulu's restaurant Sunday, June 21, 2009 By KATHY JUMPER Real Estate Editor Mac McAleer recalls bringing Lucy Buffett to the 27-acre site near the Dr. W.C. Holmes Bridge and hugging the Intracoastal Waterway and saying it would be the home for her new restaurant. "She said, 'Are you kidding me?'" McAleer said last week, smiling. Lulu's at Homeport Marina opened five years ago. Last year, 200,000 people came through, and the restaurant did $13 million in food and retail sales, McAleer said. Folks wait up to three hours for a table, listening to live music while sitting at one of three bars or watching their kids play in the mega sandbox. Sometimes, a visitor even catches a glimpse of Lucy's famous singer- songwriter brother, Jimmy Buffett. (He pilots his o... 06/21/2009

Orange Beach/Gulf Shores auction with 30 condos to sell at absolute auction on July 25th. Seamitchell Team can help you with questions and details. The complex is designed with families in mind, owners may choose three bedroom units that sleep up to 10, two bedrooms that accommodate up to six and single bedroom units that sleep four.  Owners can look forward to an array of private amenities, including a beach side gazebo, boardwalk, indoor and outdoor pools and fitness room complete with sauna, steam room and spa. For photos of the resort amenities we can provide both indoor and outdoor pools, a hot tub, fitness center, sauna and steam room, an indoor activity area, a water playground and barbeque grills, and The Shores' treasured Landmark Gazebo. The solid concrete construction is desi... 06/03/2009

Riley signs bill for beach hotel at Gulf State Park Wednesday, May 13, 2009 By GEORGE R. ALTMAN Capital Bureau Gov. Bob Riley on Tuesday approved a compromise bill to bring a new, beachfront hotel and convention center to Gulf State Park, after years of court battles over the project. But legal problems for the planned hotel may not be over. Senate Bill 254 requires that room rates at the hotel, planned for public land, be reasonable in comparison with similar hotels. "Because a four-star hotel's rates would not be reasonable to the public, if Governor Riley violates this section of SB 254, I will carry him back to court so fast it will make his head swim," former Conservation Commissioner Charley Grimsley said in an e-mail. Lee Sentell, director of the Alabama Tourism Department, said ... 05/12/2009

Condo business stable Even with tighter lending guidelines, buyers are out there looking for deals Sunday, May 03, 2009 By KATHY JUMPER Real Estate Editor Two weeks after broker Tammy Godbold listed 10 condominium units in Crystal Shores West in Gulf Shores, four were under contract, and she also sold two units in the nearby Crystal Tower, off the beach. "This is a sign that people are ready, willing and able to buy," said Godbold, owner of Waterways Realty in Orange Beach. The two-bedroom, two-bath units in the 170-unit Crystal Tower were listed for $225,000 to $250,000; the three-bedroom, three-bath units in the 108-unit Crystal Shores West on the beach were listed for $382,250. Buyers are coming back to the resort market, looking for deals, plunking down cash or financing condo purch... 05/03/2009

Gulf State Park hotel supporters take case to Legislature Tuesday, April 28, 2009 By GEORGE ALTMAN Capital Bureau MONTGOMERY - Backers of a plan, rebuffed by the Alabama Supreme Court, to put a private, luxury hotel on state-owned Gulf Shores beaches are taking their case to the Legislature. For nearly 90 minutes of a House committee meeting last week, some of the state's most influential figures debated whether an unrelated bill should be changed to block the hotel or to fast-track its approval. State Revenue Commissioner Tim Russell told the House Government Operations Committee that his department must take in $1 million per hour to keep agencies running, and a beachfront resort would mean big money. "I'm here to say that, on behalf of the governor and the state, we think we need th... 04/28/2009

The Dunes is a quaint, family-oriented beach subdivision in Fort Morgan (Gulf Shores) Alabama. The neighborhood sits almost at the end of Fort Morgan Road, near the actual Fort

It is a wonderful spot for history buffs and nature lovers. The neighborhood is adjacent to miles of undeveloped beachfront property owned by the State of Alabama where guests can walk and explore real war bunkers as well as beautiful, undisturbed beachfront property. Also located at the Fort is the Mobile Bay Ferry which runs regularly back and forth to Dauphin Island. It is an excellent day trip and a convenient way to travel back to Mobile Alabama.

The Dunes features a private beach boardwalk and a community pool. The community pool has a cabana as well as a huge hot tub. The Dunes shares amen... 03/21/2009