Homes Sales are down in Goose Creek and in the Charleston, SC Area - Here are a Few Tips to succeed at buying and selling a home.
Home Selling Tips:
- Sit down with your real estate agent and review the marketing plan. Make sure the agent focus a majority of marketing on the internet, because over 90% of home buyers begin their home search on the internet.
- Make sure the home is priced where the market is going and it is not priced out of the market.
- If you gut is telling your agent is not doing the job, change agents. Remember not all agents are created equal.
- Be motivated. Any offer can turn into offer that is a win-win for both buyer and seller.
For FREE HOME SELLER EVALUATION - Call Matt Naumann at (843) 818-9898 or email Matt Naumann at matt@exitcharleston.com .
Home Buying Tips:
- Take advantage of low mortgage interest rates.
- Home Sellers are motivated.
- Home Prices are low.
- Determine your home buying criteria?
For a FREE Home Buying Assistance - Call Matt Naumann at (843) 818-9898 or email Matt Naumann at matt@exitcharleston.com
Home sales in Charleston area down 37% in July
Expiration of tax credit, jobless figures help drive sudden drop-off
Katy Stech - Post and Courier - Wednesday August 11, 2010 - CHARLESTON - The sales momentum that had been slowly lifting local home sales came to a jarring halt in July, raising questions about the long-awaited recovery of the real estate market.
Monthly home sales data released Tuesday show that 643 area homes sold during July, a striking drop-off from the 1,022 transactions recorded in June.
The Post and Courier
A bank-owned home sits for sale Tuesday in the Long Point subdivision of Mount Pleasant. One of the most active sales areas in Charleston County for July was in Mount Pleasant, south of S.C. Highway 41.
Berkeley County: Berkeley County saw 147 homes sell at a median price of $165,000 in July. This represents a 23 percent decline in sales and a 12 percent increase in prices, when compared with July 2009. Most of the sales activity was in the Goose Creek/Moncks Corner area, as well as the area between Jedburg Road and U.S. Highway 17A.
Charleston County: Sales fared better here than either of the other counties, with 341 transactions at a median price of $250,000. Compared with July 2009, the county saw a 16 percent decrease in sales volume but a 9 percent increase in median price. The most active areas were south of S.C. Highway 41 in Mount Pleasant and James Island.
Dorchester County: 131 sales represented a 23 percent decline from July 2009. Prices remained stable but reflected the smallest increase among the three counties, which could be attributed to the high number of foreclosures in the county. The median price was $169,829, up 2 percent from July 2009. The most active area was Summerville/Ridgeville.
The 37 percent month-to-month decline followed the expiration of the $8,000 federal tax credit for first-time home buyers, which applied to only a few July sales.
Local real estate agents say they were expecting a drop in sales last month, but they're struggling to grasp how long the dip will last and whether the momentum generated by the 16-month tax credit will return quickly.
"I believe the tax credit has given (the economic) healing some time to take place," said Jeremy Willits, president of the Charleston Trident Association of Realtors. "But the fact is, we're not done with these issues."
Housing sales are a major force in the economy, spreading money to agents, closing attorneys and home inspectors. And beyond that, sales typically drive business for moving companies, hardware stores and furniture outlets.
But Willits said buyers remain on edge about the economy.
"The thing we're seeking out there is stability. That's what the consumer wants," said Willits, a commercial real estate agent with Mount Pleasant-based Grubb Ellis WRS. "And I don't think consumers are convinced that we've turned the corner on this."
By all accounts, it's an ideal time to be a buyer. Nationally, interest rates on mortgages are near all-time lows, slipping below 4 percent for some 15-year home loans. And, locally at least, purchasers have plenty of choices.
Realtors association data show that prospective buyers are scheduling times to look at homes just as frequently as they did before the tax credit expired.
"It's been pretty much unaffected, which is puzzling," Willits said of local showings. "You'd think those would drop off."
Wells Fargo economist Anika Kahn said the housing market's recovery hinges on a key economic indicator: unemployment. South Carolina's jobless rate was 10.7 percent in June, one of the highest in the country. And without substantial job growth, the housing market will likely continue to suffer.
"The weak labor market is going to continue to put pressure on the housing market," Khan said. "Home prices will continue to decline because the bottom line is you'll get more foreclosure and delinquencies."
For sellers, other indicators are more worrisome, such as the number of homes available and the downward direction of the region's monthly median home price.
To read the rest of thist article, http://www.postandcourier.com/news/2010/aug/11/sudden-drop-off/ .
Charleston, Goose Creek, & Hanahan Real Estate For Sale
Matt Naumann – Charleston & Goose Creek, SC Real Estate Agent & Entrepreneur
"Taking Real Estate Home Buying, Investing and Selling to the Next Level" is my personal goal. I specialize in using creative strategies to help my clients buy, invest, or sell real estate in the Charleston & Goose Creek, SC Real Estate Market. My motto is “There is always a way!” Google or Call me (843) 818-9898 and let’s discuss how I can help you in save $1,000s when you buy, invest, or sell real estate.
Comments(3)