CHAPEL HILL -- Zinn Design Build saw nine homes go under contract during the fourth quarter of 2008 at prices between $515,000 and $1.3 million.

All told, Chapel Hill home sales between $500,000 and $1 million were down 39 percent from 2007, according to the Triangle Multiple Listing Service.

Zinn Design Build's Claremont community is located on Homestead Road, minutes from downtown Chapel Hill and Carrboro. Single-family homes are available from the $500s to $1 million and twin townhomes priced from the $350s. Visit Claremont's model home Monday through Saturday, noon to 5 p.m., Sunday, 1 to 5 p.m. or by appointment. To learn more call (919) 967-1813 or visit www.claremontchapelhill.com.

Montclair is an upscale neighborhood off Culbreth Road in Chapel Hill offering single-family homes for $1 million to $2 million plus. For more information go to www.zinndesignbuild.com/communities.asp.

Allen Tate Realtor earns designation

CHAPEL HILL -- Allen Tate Realtors announces that Jenny Barber, a Realtor in the Chapel Hill office, recently earned Tate's Master's Designation awarded to associates who have furthered their professional real estate education through a comprehensive program of specialized, in-house coursework. The Master's curriculum includes specialist certification in technology, finance, new home construction, relocation, marketing and communication skills.

Realtors who join Allen Tate with prior real estate experience must complete 48 credit hours, while those new to real estate must complete 60 credit hours to earn their Master's Designation. Allen Tate Company developed the Master's Designation program to keep its associates up to date on the real estate industry and market.

Clubhouse receives LEED certification

Newland Communities' Briar Chapel, a 1,589-acre mixed-use community in northern Chatham County, has achieved Silver certification for its community clubhouse under the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design Green Building Rating System from the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC).

The LEED for New Construction certification was obtained for the community's 11,000-square-foot clubhouse. The building is the first Newland-owned community building to receive LEED certification. Some of the sustainable and green elements incorporated into the facility include:

• 95 percent of space is daylight accessible

• Low emitting materials such as low Volatile Organic Compound (VOC) paints, composite woods and agricultural fibers

• Water consumption reduced by 40 percent through low-flow toilets and showerheads

• 50 percent more efficient landscaping by using indigenous plants and a rainwater harvesting system

The LEED program regulates energy efficiency, materials and resources, indoor environmental quality and sustainable sites. The certification is based on a points system, and each category requires specific requirements, which must be met before points are awarded.

The LEED for New Construction Rating System is designed to guide and distinguish high-performance commercial and institutional projects, including office buildings, high-rise residential buildings, government buildings, recreational facilities, manufacturing plants and laboratories.

Marine, textile manager joins real estate firm

Doug Nelson, broker, Realtor has joined Peak Swirles & Cavallito as a full time sales associate.

He recently relocated from Stamford, Conn., where he was the regional manager for William Raveis Real Estate; the largest independently owned real estate Company in New England.

Nelson was born in New Jersey, graduated from the University of Evansville, Indiana with a bachelor's degree in marketing. He served in the United States Marine Corp in Vietnam. Before entering the real estate business, he held management positions in the textile industry.

Nelson is an advocate for leukemia and MDS foundation research and consults with veterans who have contracted leukemia type diseases.