Surrounded by the beauty of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Asheville is a dynamic, vibrant city that has attracted visitors for centuries. With nearly 72,000 residents in the city of Asheville and approximately 390,000 in the Metro area, Asheville is the largest city in Western North Carolina and the 10th largest city in the state.

Founded in 1793 by real estate broker John Burton, Asheville was established as the county seat of Buncombe County. Called Morristown and Buncombe Courthouse, Asheville incorporated in 1797 and was named after North Carolina Governor Samuel Ashe.

The construction of the railroad brought visitors across the country, one of whom was George Washington Vanderbilt, one of the wealthiest men in America. He quickly fell in love with the area, purchased 125,000 acres of land that included Mount Pisgah and set out to establish a grand estate. Vanderbilt named the estate "Biltmore" by combining the words "bildt," an area in the Netherlands where Vanderbilt's family comes from, and "more," an old English word for open, rolling land.

After Vanderbilt's death in 1914, his wife sold 87,000 acres of land to the U.S. Forest Service, which now composes the core of Pisgah National Forest. In 1930, Biltmore Estate opened to the public. As the largest home in the country, Biltmore remains a central tourist attraction in Asheville, drawing millions of visitors each year.

In the 1920s, Mrs. Vanderbilt sold 1,600 acres to be established as a luxurious suburb. This area, which became Biltmore Forest, remains as an independent township with its own community parks, police department and public works. About 600 homes compose Biltmore Forest and range in price from the $300s to the multi-millions.

In 1913, The Grove Park Inn was constructed on Sunset Mountain overlooking Asheville. The resort attracted a number of characters including Thomas Edison, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Henry Ford, Will Rogers and Calvin Coolidge.

The boom of the 1920s and 30s brought commercial development to downtown Asheville. Implementing art deco designs, architects created the bulk of downtown, including Asheville's eight-story City Hall. Today, downtown remains a center of energy as gargoyles keep watch over an Art Deco skyline, with eclectic shops, art galeries, cafes, bistros and fine restaurants. A number of condominiums downtown offer urban living within this historic district.

The Wall Street and Haywood Avenue block features jewelry stores, craft galleries and restaurants, and Lexington Avenue attracts antique lovers with its unique shops. As the center of arts and culture, Pack Square houses four museums, a number of galleries and the Diana Worthanm Theatre.

In addition to its smaller shops downtown, Asheville also offers a number of shopping areas and malls. During the past five years, the area around South Tunnel Road has seen increased commercial development.

Asheville real estate remains affordable with a diverse selection of older Victorian homes, new construction, condomiuniums, townhomes and single-family homes. Statistics from our Quarterly Marketing report for the months of January - March, 2009, show the median home price in Buncombe County is approximately $278,232, up 1% over the same quarter in 2008. For more information about Asheville real estate, contact me today.