Blue Ridge, Georgia

In her own words

What does a cabin here usually cost?

It depends more on the view and the water than on the square footage. A cabin on a creek or with a long ridge view sits in a different bracket from one tucked in the trees, and the Toccoa and Lake Blue Ridge pull prices up around them. Tell me what you want out the window and I'll send you what sold near it this month instead of a number off the top of my head.

Do cabins here rent well?

Blue Ridge has a lot of weekend rentals, which cuts both ways: plenty of guests, and plenty of cabins competing for them. The ones that do best have the things people drive up for, a view, a hot tub, a creek. Fannin County has its own short-term rental rules, so I check what a particular cabin is allowed to do before we talk about income.

What should I know about mountain roads?

Drive it in the rain, and if you can, in January. Gravel, steep grades and who clears the road after an ice storm all matter when you're coming up from Atlanta on a Friday night. I'll tell you honestly which roads I'd hesitate on with a two-wheel-drive car.