Auston Woods Apartment Homes Blog

Attention Auston Woods Residents, Employees, and Friends!

The Bobcats hope your 2012 is off to a great start. Below is the next installment of games for our Arena Insider members. As you can see below, there are two (2) more great games to choose from for January, and you can save on up to 48% off just for being an Arena Insider.

Check out these great January games:

Tuesday, January 24 at 7PM Bobcats vs. New York Knicks

• Don’t miss Carmelo Anthony and Amare Stoudemire’s visit to Time Warner Cable Arena.

Saturday, January 28 at 7PM Bobcats vs. Washington Wizards

• Adult Jersey giveaway to first 10,000 fans!
• White Winter Hat Giveaway with ticket purchase through your Arena Insider Link!

To order is easy. Simply click on the 'buy now' icon or link and purchase your tickets (prices will include TM fees).

Order early as the best seats will go fast!

Buy Now | More Info

The Auston Woods Welcome Center will be closed on Monday, September 5, 2011 in observance of Labor Day. We hope that everyone has a safe and happy extended weekend.

Children of all ages come out for a community movie night. We will be viewing “Rio” (2011 - Rated G), the story of a blue macaw, Blu, who is taken to Rio de Janeiro to save his species. With the aid of a colorful group of friends, Blu sets out on an adventure to escape from an evil Cockatoo, Nigel, and his fumbling, bird-smuggling owner.

The viewing will be at 7pm on Friday, September 23rd at the Resident Activity Center. All children under 16 must be accompanied by an adult. Popcorn and sugar-free Kool-Aid® will be provided while supplies last.

Everyone has heard about having a window herb garden. There is nothing more delicious than fresh rosemary, basil and parsley in your home cooked recipes. The bright and airy apartments of Auston Woods are the perfect place to set up your own little garden inside. Not only will you have fresh ingredients, but you will bring light and cheer to your home.

Rosemary grows into a beautiful and low maintenance plant, and parsley, basil and chives are universal and easy to care for as well. Really, any herb you enjoy is easy to grow indoors, but don’t just stop with herbs. Did you know there are several vegetables that are easy to grow too? Leaf lettuces such as Boston and Bibb are very easy to grow from seed in a small window box.  Spinach and Kale work well also. You can pick off the leaves as you need them and enjoy a fresh salad at lunch or dinner.

Veggies like tomatoes can be grown inside as well.  Cherry tomatoes are best but you can grow any size tomato. The larger tomato plants do need a larger pot with more soil, but the rewards are worth it for a nice, fresh tomato in your sandwich. Give tomatoes a spot in your apartment home that gets about 6-8 hours of light and the soil should remain moist.

Believe it or not, green beans and peppers are also great plants for indoor gardening. They both have lots of beautiful foliage and it is fun to watch the initial flowers turn into edible veggies. Be creative with your indoor garden, and give it a try. Add a burst of color and life to your apartment home and enjoy picking and eating fresh herbs and vegetables.

Finding your new apartment is just the first step in creating your home. Decorating makes your apartment feel like a home. It is important to create a space to come home to after a long day at work. It’s a good idea to start with a focal point for each room like a piece of furniture that can multitask. For example, in your living room, use a chest which could be used for storage and as a coffee table. Pick a piece of furniture you love or a color palette that feels inviting, and the rest will begin to fall into place. You can find affordable furniture at a number of stores as well as by asking around your new apartment community.

Once you've got the furniture in, it is time to make the space feel comfortable. There are several things you can do to warm up the space. Pay extra attention to lighting, which can make a room feel larger and increase the ambiance. You can use both natural and artificial light to make your apartment feel big and bright. Along with windows for natural light, lamps and ceiling lights can bring the effect you are looking for to your apartment.

Along with light, think about color selection as well. Use a fun and interesting color on the wall which will accent the quality craftsmanship, crown molding, or cathedral ceilings. Lighter colors on the walls and white ceilings with a darker floor, carpet, or throw rug will make the room look and feel larger and taller. For bright colors, you can use toss pillows with exciting and bold colors.

Accessorize your space with mirrors, plants, vertical pieces and lamps in vertical shape. Also, be sure to keep your eyes open at flea markets and garage sales for interesting items with character. If you keep the color, texture, and feel consistent in the items you buy, they're sure to look great in a room together. Greenery is a simple and inexpensive item that can enhance any room. Plants not only help to clean the air, they give your new place a splash of color and life. Enjoy your new apartment home.
 

The Charlotte North Carolina area has a lot to offer.   Whether you want exciting city life or the quiet country living, Charlotte has something for everyone. Charlotte's population has been growing anywhere from 5% to 10% the past few years, and shows no signs of slowing down. Charlotte has also been voted one of the ten best places to live. The city has many different neighborhoods, and there is no shortage of great food and fun night life. If you are relocating to Charlotte, you couldn’t have found a better place to live.

10 Reasons to live in Charlotte North Carolina:

1. It is a perfect destination. The Appalachian Mountains are only a two hour drive to the west and the sun filled beaches are only three hours to the east.
2. Charlotte N.C. was selected as one of the "10 Best Places to Live" by Money Magazine.
3. "Best Cities For Black Families", the city ranked #4 of 20. Bet.com compiled data on African Americans in the cities with the largest Black Populations.
4. Second largest center of financial transaction in the United States.
5. Some of the best known fortune 500 companies are located in Charlotte.
6. There are very good schools in and around Charlotte.
7. The cost of living in Charlotte is relatively low compared to the national average.
8. The weather is mild in the winter and warm in the summer.
9. There are numerous Pro Sports teams: Carolina Pathers, Charlotte Bobcats, Charlotte Sting, Charlotte Checkers, and of course, it is the home of NASCAR's Lowes Motor Speedway.
10. Last year, the city created 12,000 new jobs.

We all need a place to call home but even with the real estate downturn, many people continue to think that buying a home is a good investment and a way for them to build wealth. When times were good, this was not really the case for most people. Wherever you choose to live, make sure it’s for the right reasons. Owning a home can be rewarding. Renting an apartment home with Auston Woods can also be very rewarding. Don’t just take our word for it - check out this article on Yahoo Finance - Why Your Home is not the investment you think it is. In recent months, the housing market, interest rates and the economy have been the focus of many news stories and are key issues in the political arena. Consumers have been inundated for years with visions of the American Dream and why homeownership is a great investment.

As seen with the recent housing crisis, homeownership may not be right for everyone.

• If you bought in Rochester, N.Y., in 1980, you would have seen only a mediocre 4% annual growth for the next 25 years.
• If you bought in Dallas in 1986, as the oil boom went bust, your home wouldn’t have appreciated at all before 1998.

It is also important to look at the “net appreciation”. Most people do not subtract all of the interest paid to the banks, maintenance, decorating costs, closing costs, taxes, and insurance from the appreciation. In many cases, especially if you do not own your home for more than a few years, there is not true appreciation and in more and more cases, there is negative appreciation. Many do not realize the real financial and practical advantages HHHunt residents experience every year when they decide to rent an apartment home at one of our communities.

There are just a couple of points to consider and think about. Renting is a long term investment and very rewarding. Especially in the North Carolina area we are a respected and very diverse community. Be sure to take a look at our communities and our activities we have to offer. Our unique apartment homes at Auston Woods combine convenience, comfort, and technology for today’s lifestyle in our apartment homes. Our beautiful interiors are designed to optimize the way you live, work, and play. Contact us today to learn more about renting at Auston Woods, or feel free to stop in and take a tour of our community.

Apartments in Charlotte, NC

Start Feeling the Love in Your Apartment with These Tips

Love is in the air this month, and these tips were made for anyone who wants to find a little more love in their apartment living.

Plan a Romantic Date in Your Apartment

You don’t have to spend top-dollar out at a quiet, candle-lit restaurant to have a romantic date. Why not create an intimate mood in your apartment? Read on for fun dating ideas to try inside your own four walls... read more

Valentine's Day Ideas

If you’re fortunate enough to spend time with someone to love on Valentine’s Day, you’d like to make it special. But it’s the same dilemma every year: How can you bring a bang to Valentine’s Day without doing what everyone else is doing? Should you go low-key or all-out for the big romantic day? Here are some tips on how to give your loved one a Valentine’s Day to remember... read more

How to Love Your Apartment

There’s nothing like moving into that new-to-you apartment. It’s a chance to decorate unadorned walls, cook in a new kitchen and see if the furniture looks better in a different setting. If you’ve fallen out of love with your place, there are some things you can do to get that new-apartment feeling back. To revive the magic, follow these suggestions and watch yourself fall in love with your home all over again... read more

Pamper Your Apartment Pet

Finding the perfect roommate can be challenging, but if your roomie has four legs and eats out of a bowl, then you’ve surely found a friend for life. All the more reason to pamper your apartment pet with the finest luxuries around! Check out these pet-pampering supplies that will truly show your BFFs (Best Furry Friends) how much they mean to you... read more

Apartments in Charlotte, NC

Re Salon and Med Spa is committed to keeping our clients informed and educated on what we have to offer. Thank you in advance for subscribing to our newsletter! We look forward to seeing you soon!

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Book your next 3 appointments and receive 15% off of the the 1st two, and 20% off your 3rd! (Appointments may not be canceled and must be consecutive)

Apartment in Charlotte, NC

Green living should become the motto of the present and future generations. It has become essential for all of us to educate our children about eco-friendly methods so that they learn to respect the environment they are born into. The love and respect for nature has to be inculcated right from childhood. Children of today are adults of tomorrow; hence values instilled today will reap rich dividends in the future.

The children who are brought up in a surrounding that is healthy and green would definitely get used to this kind of living. Therefore, when they grow up as citizens they will ensure that they do not do anything that would jeopardize the health of the planet. Which is why Auston Woods and HHHunt are committed to green living in all of our apartment homes.

There is a need today to develop new technologies which would facilitate green living. New researches are being done to find out new forms of green energy. The oil and coal reserves of our planet are fast depleting owing to massive industrialization.

We do our part to provide that all new communities developed by HHHunt save as many well-established trees as possible, and upon completion will exceed local standards for the size and number of trees re-planted within the community. Our company strives to exceed government standards for energy efficiency and water conservation during the development process and beyond. As a part of green living, people should be encouraged to use solar power for house lighting. These days, technology is also developed to run vehicles on solar power. Though, this is still in the gestation period, it would be a great alternative to gas and petrol used for running the vehicles.

The effects of irrational use of the natural resources should be explained to the people in detail. People in general have a tendency to misuse and waste fresh water. This has led to scarcity of water. Steps should be taken to curtail this wastage and make people more responsible. Similarly, people also tend to waste electricity by switching on lights unnecessarily. If one extra bulb is lit in every household, then imagine the amount power consumption. So we encourage you, our residents and customers, to join us in our efforts to sustain our environment.

Apartments in Charlotte, NC

So you’ve just moved into your new apartment, great! How exciting is this, a new start in a new place! When searching for apartments you only visited the ones you believe to be in a desired location; but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t follow a few extra resident safety precautions. Here are a few tips Auston Woods recommend:

Resident Safety Tip Sheet

As a resident at an HHHunt Community we unfortunately can never provide any assurances or guarantees for your personal safety.  Crime and other emergencies are often inescapable and occur indiscriminately.  However, all of our residents can be certain we are committed to a proactive approach concerning deterring and managing criminal activity at our communities.  It is in your best interest and ours to take the necessary steps to deter crime from occurring when possible.  Below are some general safety tips for you to follow while living at our community to help protect yourself, your family and your property from criminal acts.

• Always report suspicious people or cars to the proper authorities, then to the Management Team
• Keep all doors and windows locked in your apartment home, even if home or taking a short walk.
• Never open your door to strangers and report solicitors to the Management Team immediately.
• Teach your children not to open the doors to strangers, talk to strangers, or get into a vehicle with any strangers and to report strangers to an adult..
• Always be aware of your surroundings and avoid strangers at night.
• Avoid walking or running alone at night.
• Avoid using headphones while walking or running.
• If someone in a vehicle stops and asks for directions, answer from a distance. Do not approach the vehicle.
• Try to take trash out during daylight hours.
• Never give amenity access codes or gate keys or codes to friends or guests.
• Do not label your keys with your address.
• Report inoperable window or door locks to the Management Team.  Inoperable window and door locks are considered emergency service requests.
• Do not discard mail with your name and address listed into common area trash receptacles.  Shred all mail or documents with your personal information (name, address, social security number, etc.) listed prior to disposing.
• Never publicize planned vacations or business trips.  This may notify potential burglars of opportunities to commit theft.
• Use lamp timer devices when out of town for an extended period of time.
• Request a mail and newspaper stop when out of town.
• Let a spouse, friend or other relative know your whereabouts, especially if you live alone.
• Vary your routine.
• Do not hide a key to your apartment under a mat, plant or other patio decoration.  Give a spare key to a trusted friend or relative instead.
• Purchase a Renter’s Insurance policy to cover loss of personal property due to theft.
• Purchase Comprehensive Insurance to cover loss due to auto theft.
• Take pictures or a video inventory of all valuable possessions in case of theft or fire.
• Never leave candles, oil lamps, stoves, ovens, or any other heat-producing element unattended.  
• Know all escape routes from the building and discuss escape routes and how to react in the event of fire with all family members.
• Report lighting outages in the breezeway to the Management Team.
• Check the backseat before entering your vehicle.
• Always lock your car doors.  
• Never leave packages, store bags, and other valuables in plain sight in your car.
• Avoid leaving cars running in the parking lot unattended to “warm up” during winter months.
• Always have car keys or apartment keys in hand when walking to and from your vehicle.  Never overload yourself with packages, bags or groceries when coming home.
• Do not leave your keys in your car.
• Develop a Family Emergency Plan to prepare for natural disasters, fire, crime, acts of terrorism and other emergencies and communicate to all family members.