Your new home and the current market

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In the past five to 10 years, we have all seen some odd things occur in our treasured economic market. Big name companies have been bought out and sold, much to our surprise. In the past few months, well known companies have closed their doors, stopped making deliveries, reorganized their financial structures, and most surprisingly, filed for bankruptcy. Financial institutions are struggling, so they say. Automakers are struggling. News organizations are losing subscribers. Of course, we all know of the real estate problems due to what many believe were government mandated loans given to home buyers who could not afford to pay their mortgages.

These situations may make us question the wisdom of investing in a new home, not to mention a log home. In reality, this is an unbelievably good time to invest in land and homes. Mortgage money is available and interest rates are quite low. Given that, I wish to make a statement for you about the financial health of our primary supplier, Honest Abe Log Homes.

News from Jack – In a confusing market, Honest Abe Log Homes wants customers to know that our deliveries are being made on schedule. Our suppliers are paid up. Our equipment is in good condition. We have materials on hand and our inventory is being built up for future orders. Our assets are paid for. Furthermore, inventory and receivables back our lines of credit. Our 2009 workshop and seminar schedules will be published very soon.

For more information about log homes, timber frame homes, and recreational cabins, visit www.LogHomesByJack.com. Contact Jack Hutslar at 800 767-4916 or Jack@LogHomesByJack.com.

Honest Abe year end sales promtion

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Honest Abe Log Homes announced a year end sales promotion November 25 that is in effect until December 31, 2008.

Place your $1500 deposit on the material package before the end of the year. This will lock in 2008 pricing. You have until June 30, 2009 to take delivery of the package. Clients will also receive either a $500 or $1000 credit toward the purchase of extra interior wood siding, upgraded windows and added insulation.

This year end promotion applies to log homes, timber frame homes and RuStick series of stick built "log" homes. This promotion does not apply the Sportsman [recreational] Cabin series.

For more information, contact Jack Hutslar at 800 767-4916 or Jack@LogHomesByJack.com.

Visit www.LogHomesByJack.com and learn more about

- Log Homes
- Timber Frame Homes
- RuStick built "log" homes
- Sportsman recreational cabins
- Sansin Enviro-Stains
- SIPs for ceilings and walls
- Flooring, over 25,000 selections
- Log Home Buyer Workshops

Meet Jack - Exhibits by LogHomesByJack.com - update

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News From Jack

Jack Hutslar announced that you can meet with Sally and me at the following 2008 shows:

Lynchburg Home Expo. September 12-13-14 at The Armory downtown.

Charlotte Log Home Show. September 26-27-28. Meet officials from our Moss HQ.

WV ATV Hatfield-McCoy Show. September 27-28 - To be announced.

Highland County (VA) Hands & Harvest Festival. October 11-12.

DC Log Home Show in Chantilly VA. October 24-25-26. See the Honest Abe booth. Sally will be at the Southern Lake Living booth adjacent to the Honest Abe booth.

Deadline for our Fall Savings Promotion ends October 31, 2008.

See News from Jack at www.LogHomesByJack.com. Telephone 800 767-4916.

Visit with Jack at Lynchburg Home Expo and Chantilly

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2008 Lynchburg Fall Home Expo

Visit our exhibit on the main floor of The Lynchburg Armory in downtown Lynchburg, Virginia

September 12, 2008
11:00 am to 7:00 pm

September 13, 2008
9:00 am to 7:00 pm

September 14, 2008
11:00 am to 4:00 pm


But wait, there is more . . .

Log Home Show in Chantilly, Virginia
Dulles Convention Center
October 24 - 25 - 26, 2008

Meet Jack at the Honest Abe Log Homes Booth
Meet Sally at the Southern Lake Living booth

See News from Jack on line for more information at www.LogHomesByJack.com.

Contact Jack at 800 767-4916 or Jack@LogHomesByJack.com

SAVE - discount program announced

SAVE on material package and shipping

Honest Abe announced three different promotions

[1] Place your floor plan order by October 31, 2008, take delivery in 2008 - receive 5% off material package.

[2] Place your floor plan order by September 30, 2008, take delivery between Jan 1 and June 30 of 2009 and your shipping charge will be cut in half.

[3] Place your floor plan order by October 31, 2008 and we will lock in current prices through November 30, 2009.

For more information about your floor plans and this new discount program, contact Jack Hutslar at 800 767-4916 or Jack@LogHomesByJack.com

Meet Jack - Exhibits by LogHomesByJack.com

- Virginia Outdoor Sportsmen's Classic

- Log Home Show in Chantilly, Virginia


Virginia Outdoor Sportsman's Classic

Salem Civic Center in Salem, Virginia [just outside Roanoke]
LogHomesByJack.com is at Booth 609 on the main floor

http://www.vaoutdoorsportsmensclassic.com

Friday August 22
Noon to 7:00 pm
Log Home Buyer Workshop - 2:30 to 3:30 pm

Saturday August 23
10:00 am to 7:00 pm
Log Home Buyer Workshop - Noon to 1:00 pm

Sunday August 24
10:00 am to 5:00 pm
Log Home Buyer Workshop - 2:00 to 3:00 pm


Log Home Show in Chantilly, Virginia
Dulles Convention Center
October 24 - 25 - 26, 2008

Meet Jack at the Honest Abe Log Homes Booth
Meet Sally at the Southern Lake Living booth

Building Green with Honest Abe Log Homes

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Honest Abe was "green" before Green was in vogue

Recently an industry newsletter included an article about another log home company that installed a saw dust burning dry kiln system in 1996 and since that time have saved over 1 million gallons of fuel oil. That's Great for our environment (but not so good for that companies middle eastern dealer manager).

Honest Abe has been using a saw dust burning dry kiln system for almost 20 years - 1987. Here are some other factors that make an Honest Abe Log Home Package "Green":

1) Pre-cut log wall system and other pre-cut items in the package that generate "green points".

2) No wood items sent to the land fill.

3) Logs not meeting the "Log Wall 40" standard can be re-sawn and used for other products. That is, 4x4's to stack materials on, porch spindles, roof blocking, etc. Nothing is wasted.

4) Wood items considered waste that cannot be used in the log package are sold to our sister company, Barky Beaver. They use it for animal bedding, mulch and other applications.

5) Honest Abe even uses an energy efficient golf cart to make daily rounds throughout the plant!

Our log homes are manufactured from a renewable resource. That means our homes were green before "green" was important. In fact, when you look at the energy savings that are inherent in our log homes and timber frame homes, it does not get any greener.

For more information, contact Jack Hutslar at
800 767-4916
Jack@LogHomesByJack.com
www.LogHomesByJack.com

Sportsman Cabin Construction - see on DirectTV

Jack Hutslar, full time independent dealer for Honest Abe Log Homes, announced that the construction of one of our Sportsman Cabins [the Obey River] is now showing on Direct TV. It started July 2008.

On DirectTV, go to Channel 611, the Pursuit Channel. Look for Dual Shot Outdoors with Charger Wiley. Show times are . . .

Sunday at 1:00 pm
Tuesday at 8:00 am
Tuesday at 8:00 pm

If you are not able to see it on DirectTV, view it on-line at

http://www.DualShotOutdoors.com - click on the Video button and see every show.

These Sportsman Cabins are great for hunting and fishing land, backyards and rental units.

There are 12 cabins in our recreational cabin series. They have the look and feel of a residential log home at a fraction of the cost.

To see these cabins on line, go to www.LogHomesByJack.com and click on the Cabin button.

For pricing and construction information, contact Jack Hutslar at 800 767-4916 or Jack@LogHomesByJack.com

Moving our little model log cabin

We have moved our little log cabin from its present location. It will be reassembled in the next 60 days or so. The new site is 441 Lakewood Forest Road in Moneta, Virginia. Moneta is one of nine Smith Mountain Lake communities.

The Lake is about
30 miles from Roanoke
45 miles from Lynchburg
90 miles from Greensboro
100 miles from Winston-Salem
200 miles from Richmond
300 miles from DC
350 miles from HotLanta
425 miles from Pittsburgh and Columbus

For up to the minute information about our log raising or to learn more about our Honest Abe Log Homes, contact:

Jack Hutslar
800 767-4916
Jack@LogHomesByJack.com
www.LogHomesByJack.com
www.HonestAbe.com

Update Memo on June 11, 2008

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. . . Sportsman Recreational Cabins
. . . . Legacy Series
. . . . . Genuine Select Series
. . . . . . Big Sky Series

Memo to Readers

From: Jack Hutslar
Date: June 11, 2008
RE: News from Jack – see our button at www.LogHomesByJack.com

The following memo is an Update from LogHomesByJack.com concerning our log homes, timber frame homes, and recreational cabins. I have a blog on www.LogHomesByJack.com called “News from Jack.” It covers the latest happenings. Call me any time and we can go over your ideas, plans and timetable.

- DirectTV show to feature construction of a Sportsman Cabin. Starting July 1, 2008, you can see our cabin being built over the course of 13 shows. See the Pursuit Channel 611. Look for Dual Shot Outdoors.

- New D Logs – Honest Abe Log Homes offers a 6x12 D log with dovetail corners. It really looks cool. For more cost conscious log home buyers, we offer a 6 x 8 D log.

- Price change – We will have a price change July 1, 2008. Put down a $2500 deposit before that time and it will lock in the current material package price and shipping fee for six months.

Jack and Sally Hutslar have been log home dealers for nearly seven years. We are based at Smith Mountain Lake in Virginia and serve the 8 county Roanoke Valley area plus the North Carolina Piedmont Triad from Kernersville NC. For more information about log homes, flooring or stain, see www.LogHomesByJack.com or contact Jack or Sally Hutslar about homes and land at 800 767-4916 or Jack@LogHomesByJack.com.

Please send us an update on your plans and timetable. We look forward to the opportunity to take care of your home needs. Feel free to call me any time. Thanks and take care . . . jack


• • • Next Honest Abe Price Revision – July 1, 2008 • • •


How to get started:

Settle on your floor plan with Jack

Receive your initial material package itemized estimate - Receive your shell or turnkey estimate

$2,500 deposit and we will draw your floor plans

OR 10% deposit and we will draw your floor plans

OR 50% deposit and we will put you at the top of the list for delivery

Balance due on material package before delivery

Log Home Buyer Workshop - FREE
2nd Saturday of each month - March through November.
10:00 am at Dairy Queen at Smith Mountain Lake.
Call Jack to Pre-Register at 800 767-4916

Price. Quality. Service. All three count. Just ask your lender.


Choices and Options

• Eastern White Pine and Cedar log material packages - all kiln dried tongue and groove logs

• 6x8 D logs, 8x8 round & D logs, 6x12 flat & D logs, 6x10 chinked logs

• Distinctive 10 inch round Big Sky logs for the mountain chalet style

• Timber frame packages include elegant 8x8 Douglas fir beams and insulated SIPs

• Quotes feature itemized list of all package materials + itemized list for builders = No Surprises

• Honest Abe material packages are precut and numbered for ease of construction

• Sportsman Cabins for recreational hunting and fishing spots, stores, offices, playhouses - they look and feel like more expensive cabins

• Catalogs with many floor plans - $18.00 or visit our web sites

• We will not be undersold on comparable material packages

But wait, there is more . . .

Flooring. Here at LogHomesByJack.com, we have added flooring to our offerings. We now have 25,000 selections – all at discount prices. Wood flooring. Eco-green flooring. Engineered flooring. Laminate flooring. Linoleum, Carpet. Eco-green carpet. Tile. Call Jack at 800 767-4916 to set up an appointment to visit one of our showrooms in Roanoke, Greensboro or Raleigh.

Sansin Enviro Stain. We are very proud to offer Sansin stains for your log homes, decks, docks, fences, wood siding, log walls and furniture. Sansin stains penetrate to the cell level of wood, adds strength and allow the wood to breathe. Sansin does NOT lay a film on the surface of the wood that locks in moisture thus causing rot.

• Sansin caulk and chinking has 300 per cent elasticity = it stretches. Sansin Seal and Hide Caulk is a new product coming in early July 2008

• Sansin PTL stain can be applied immediately to new pressure treated decks.

• Add Sansin Purity stain to your interior wood and log walls. It will prevent food stains, finger blemishes and odors from penetrating the wood.

Our Sansin PTL and Dec products is great to put on the flooring around your outside spas. They allow the wood to breathe and do not allow moisture to build up under the surface.

• Your Log Home Specialists – Build, Buy or Sell •

Jack Hutslar
800 767-4916 - Jack@LogHomesByJack.com - www.LogHomesByJack.com

• Good Price
• Good Quality Materials
• Good Service before, during and after the sale
• All Three Count, just ask your mortgage lender or banker

Sally Hutslar, Realtor
866 384-7080 - Sally@naysi.com - www.SMLHomesAndLand.com

www.LogHomesByJack.com - www.HonestAbe.com

Happy Father's Day

Dad Needs A Cabin

Dad needs a cabin
in the woods by a stream.
A place to fish and hang out,
it’s always been his dream.

It’s easier than you think
to get a cabin in just the right style.
Just give LogHomesByJack a call
and watch your Daddy smile


Contact Jack Hutslar at

800 767-4916
Jack@LogHomesByJack.com
www.LogHomesByJack.com

May 2008 Flooring Specials at LogHomesByJack.com

We have new products - - Harding Wood and Laminate displays, both offering 50 year warranties. We also have a new Esquire tile display with different sized tiles and accents that will look great in your log cabin, cottage or home.

May 2008 Specials

Tile:

13x13 Stone Gold tile = $1.66 / sf
18x18 Stone Gold tile = $1.80 / sf

12x12 Antique Beige tile = $1.66 / sf
18x18 Antique Beige tile = $1.80 / sf

12x12 Brixton tile = $1.64 / sf

Wood:

2 ¼ x ¾ Harding, Weston Ridge with 50 year warranty = $5.44 / sf,
when ordering over 640sf = $5.07 / sf

3 ¼ x ¾ Harding, Weston Ridge with 50 year warranty = $5.61 / sf,
when ordering over 704 sf = $5.14 / sf

3 x 3/8 Armstrong, Rushmore with 15 year warranty = $4.53 / sf

Laminate:

Yukon Gold = $2.01 / sf
Townsquare Clicquette = $1.39 / sf

To see our warehouse displays featuring 25,000 types of flooring, just set up an appointment with my sales specialists in Roanoke, Greensboro and Raleigh. Call Jack at 800 767-4916.

Cheap is not good and good is not cheap

I was discarding some old papers and came across the following quote by John Ruskin. It is well work keeping in mind as you shop around for all manner of items, including log homes and timber frame homes. He wrote:

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It’s unwise to pay too much . . . but it’s worse to play too little. When you pay too much, you lose a little money . . . that is all. When you pay too little, you sometimes lose everything, because the thing you bought was incapable of doing the thing it was bought to do. The common law of business balance prohibits paying a little and getting a lot -- it can’t be done. If you deal with the lowest bidder, it is well to add something for the risk you run. And if you do that you will have enough to pay for something better . . . by John Ruskin

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A few more quotes by John Ruskin [1819 - 1900], British author, essayist, critic

- There is scarcely anything in the world that some man cannot make a little worse, and sell a little more cheaply. The person who buys on price alone is this man's lawful prey.

- In order that a man may be happy, it is necessary that he should not only be capable of his work, but a good judge of his work.

- Say all you have to say in the fewest possible words, or your reader will be sure to skip them; and in the plainest possible words or he will certainly misunderstand them.

- The highest reward for man's toil is not what he gets for it, but what he becomes by it.

- What we think, or what we know, or what we believe is, in the end, of little consequence. The only consequence is what we do.

- When love and skill work together, expect a masterpiece.

- You will find that the mere resolve not to be useless, and the honest desire to help other people, will, in the quickest and delicatest ways, improve yourself.

- In order that people may be happy in their work, these three things are needed: They must be fit for it. They must not do too much of it. And they must have a sense of success in it.

- We require from buildings, as from men, two kinds of goodness: first, the doing their practical duty well: then that they be graceful and pleasing in doing it; which last is itself another form of duty.

- Let us reform our schools, and we shall find little reform needed in our prisons.

Get Floor Plans Drawn for $1500

Honest Abe Log Homes announced today that you can get your log home or timber frame floor plans underway for a deposit for $1,500.00. This offer expires May 31, 2008. Normally, customers pay a $2,500.00 deposit to get their floor plans drawn.

Other steps in the purchase process for your floor plans include:

Put 10% down and have your floor plans drawn
Pay an additional 40% and we will assemble and ship your material package.
Pay the final 50% when delivery occurs.

Some people elect to put 50% down. This puts you at the top of the list for assemblying your material package and getting it delivered.

Remember that all deposits go toward your material package.

For more information about Honest Abe Log Homes, contact Jack Hutslar at 800 767-4916 or Jack@LogHomesByJack.com

New Sales Promotion - Save up to $2500

Honest Abe Log Homes announced a new sales promotion March 14, 2008. Customers who purchase a log home package or timber frame home package are entitled to receive a discount on their material package from $750 to $2500.

This promotion ends April 18, 2008.

The package must be delivered by within six [6] months of the package purchase.

If for some reason, the package cannot be received within six months, the promtional discount becomes void. However, the deposit will still be applied to the package price. You will not lose the money but you will lose the discount.

For more information, or to begin right now, contact Jack Hutslar at 800 767-4916 or Jack@LogHomesByJack.com.

2008 Annual Honest Abe Dealer Convention

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Honest Abe Log and Timber Frame Homes hosted the 2008 Annual Dealer Convention at Gaylord Opryland Hotel in Nashville recently. Sally and I have attended event for the third time. If you have not been to the Gaylord Opryland Hotel and enjoyed their three interior atriums, add it to your list. Here are a few highlights from the convention . . .

Well over 100 dealers and their families attended the convention. We were delighted to hear several vendors mention “integrity” as one of the cornerstones of their relationship with the staff at Honest Abe.

It was announced that a new 6x12 D log with dovetail corners is now available along with the economical 6x8 D log. These log styles compliment our selections of 8x8 D and round logs, 6x12 flat logs, 6x10 chinked logs and 10 inch round logs.

Sally and I were honored to receive a Top 5 Dealership Award in 2007 by Honest Abe Log Homes.

Dealers with 25, 50, 75 and 100 sales were identified. Those are phenomenal achievements.

Dinner Friday evening was held on the stage of the new Grand Ole Opry. Honest Abe Log Homes is one of the long time radio sponsors of the Grand Ole Opry. Our speaker for the evening was Ralph Emery, long time radio and television host of numerous programs over the years that focused on the stars at the Music City. His treasury of stories about the celebrities who have graced his stage and studio were memorable.

But wait, there is more . . .

Flooring. Here at LogHomesByJack.com, we have added flooring to our offerings. We now have 25,000 selections – all at discount prices. Wood flooring. Eco-green flooring. Engineered flooring. Laminate flooring. Linoleum, Carpet. Eco-green carpet. Tile. Call Jack at 800 767-4916 to set up an appointment to visit our showrooms in Roanoke, Greensboro and Raleigh.

Sansin Enviro Stain. We are very proud to offer stain for your decks, docks, fences, wood siding, log walls and furniture. Sansin stains penetrate to the cell level of wood and strengthen it. It does not lay a film on the surface of the wood to lock in moisture build up [causing rot problems].

- Sansin PTL stain can be applied immediately to new pressure treated decks.
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- Add Sansin Purity stain to your interior wood and log walls. It will prevent food and finger blemishes and odors from penetrating the wood.

Jack and Sally Hutslar have been log home dealers for over six years. We are based at Smith Mountain Lake in Virginia and serve the 8 county Roanoke Valley area plus the North Carolina Piedmont Triad from Kernersville NC. For more information about log homes, flooring or stain, see www.LogHomesByJack.com or contact Jack or Sally Hutslar at 800 767-4916 or Jack@LogHomesByJack.com

Log Home Buyer Workshops in 2008 - FREE

RE: FREE CLASSES - Log Home Buyer Workshops
Public Service Announcement
For immediate release January 22, 2008

FREE Log Home Buyer Workshops are conducted monthly from March through November, 2008 at Smith Mountain Lake in Virginia by Jack Hutslar. These classes are held the second Saturday of each month March through November and are sponsored by LogHomesByJack.com.

The first class begins Saturday March 8th, 2008 from 10:00 am to 11:15 am. The location is Dairy Queen. Seating is limited to 25. Pre-registration is highly suggested. Individual meetings can be arranged by appointment. Contact Jack Hutslar at 800 767-4916 or Jack@LogHomesByJack.com.

Topics are designed to help new home buyers sort through the details involving the selection, purchase and construction, including budgets, of log and timber frame homes, garages and additions. Free handouts provided. Catalogs available. For more information, see the Workshop button at www.LogHomesByJack.com.

Workshop class dates for 2008 are: March 8, April 12, May 10, June 14, July 12, August 9, September 13, October 11 and November 8.

Directions: At Smith Mountain Lake in Virginia between Roanoke, Rocky Mount and Lynchburg. At DQ on Route 616 between Route 122 and Route 834.

Jack and Sally Hutslar represent Honest Abe Log Homes [www.HonestAbe.com]. The sales office and model cabin for LogHomesByJack.com is located at 1118 Hendricks Store Road on Route 655 in the old ShopRite Grocery Store. Look for our sign - - Log & Timber Frame Homes.

Contact: Jack Hutslar, 800 767-4916, 336 407-2157 [m], Jack@LogHomesByJack.com

www.HonestAbe.com
www.LogHomesByJack.com

Serving the 8 county Roanoke Valley area and the North Carolina Piedmont Triad.

Price. Quality. Service. All three count.

Construction seminars for builders and self builders

Construction Seminar Dates at the Honest Abe HQ in Moss, Tennessee

Should you decide to travel to Moss, you can see Honest Abe model homes in Crossville, Cookville and at the headquarters in Moss. Plant tours are also part of the agendas at Moss.

Construction Seminars to place on Fridays from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm and are ideal for contractors and home builders who plan to build their own log home.

March 7, 2008 Construction Seminar—Moss, TN

April 11, 2008 Construction Seminar—Moss, TN

May 16, 2008 Construction Seminar—Moss, TN

June 20, 2008 Construction Seminar—Moss, TN

September 5, 2008 Construction Seminar—Moss, TN

So, you're ready to start building that Honest Abe home you've just purchased? Not until you attend the Honest Abe Construction Seminar. Open to the serious do-it-yourselfer, the seminar will discuss subjects like site prep, package delivery, material storage and more. This full-day seminar blends technical classroom instruction with practical construction experience.

Learn about the quality material used in our homes, as well as building methods and tools utilized in the construction process. Get yourself a front row seat and ask our experienced Honest Abe personnel all those technical questions you've been wondering about. The Construction Seminar is open to new customers who have already purchased a log package and are not using a subcontractor through Honest Abe.

Are you not doing the actual work yourself? Then we invite your builder to attend and become familiar with our custom log system. The tuition for the Construction Seminar is $25 per person (limit two people per customer). Class size is limited and available on a first come.

www.LogHomesByJack.com - See the old catalog plans and many photos.

www.HonestAbe.com - See the new catalog plans. Cost is $18.00 if you want to purchase one copy.

Contact Jack Hutslar at 800 767-4916 or Jack@LogHomesByJack about reservations.