Myrtle Beach Real Estate

Once of the most commonly asked questions that I receive when representing a buyer is “How much should we offer?”

I understand that many buyers are looking for the best deal out there and there are two factors in today’s market to consider before making an offer on the house that you really like.

1. When did the sellers purchaser purchase the home and at what price did they pay for it?

This question is important, because Myrtle Beach Real Estate prices are currently back to 2004-2005, and they seller might not be able to come off of the price of the home much. If you are a bargain shopper with your Real Estate transaction, you might want to consider something that the seller has owned for at least 5 years. Chances are that you won’t find the bargain that you are looking for in the Carolina Forest Area in less the seller is willing to take a loss or I can find you a foreclosure.

2. How are the other properties in the same neighborhood priced, and/or what did the last one sell for?

This question is really important in today’s market because many seller have already discounted their homes to be the lowest priced in the neighborhood, or better yet, they have discounted the house lower than the last one sold for. In this situation, you want to be very careful not to insult the seller with a ridiculous offer. If the house is already discounted, we probably shouldn’t offer them any less that 90% of the asking price. In this situation, we want to have the seller take some money off the asking price, but we don’t want to insult them to the point that they just reject us.

With these things in mind, I feel that there are great bargains to be had whether you are searching for a primary residence, second home or a rental property. Call me at 843-267-4627 if you have any questions about this matter. I am a certified “Accredited Buyer’s Representative” and would love to help negotiate your next Real Estate Transaction!

For now, the Myrtle Beach Area has no Interstate Access which would be great for Industrial and Economic Growth for the Area. Both Charleston to the South and Wilmington to the North have Interstate Access, but the Myrtle Beach Area has been left behind in that one aspect. The closest Interstate is I-95 which goes through Florence 1 hour West of Myrtle Beach. The Infrastructure of the Myrtle Beach Area will soon change with I-73 scheduled to connect S.C. 22 and I-95 in Latta. S.C. 22 currently runs from the Southern tip of North Myrtle Beach to Highway 501 West of Conway.

The Federal Highway Administration has recently approved the Corridor that will connect 22 to 95. The remaining question now is, how is the State going to pay for the road? This much needed Interstate will be the first to connect to Horry County and construction on the Interstate has already begun in sections of North Carolina and Virginia. The Interstate will run from Highway 22 to Salt St. Marie, Michigan at the Canadian Border.

Are you thinking of selling your Property “For Sale By Owner”? Here are a few things that you should think about and consider before continuing this quest yourself. First of all, most people sell “For Sale By Owner”, because they feel that they are competent of marketing their property in a way that will save them healthy real estate commissions. The fact of the matter is that they are leaving themselves wide open for disastrous lawsuits and almost every “For Sale By Owner Transaction” that takes place.

 There are a few that you need to consider before placing you property on the market. If you find these factionsof selling your property ridiculous, think again. We are in a “Sue Happy” country, and more and more people are being awarded settlements for these ridiculous factions everyday. There are three big No Nos that come to my mind that you should take into consideration before selling “For Sale By Owner” or deciding to hire a professional.

1. State of South Carolina Residential Property Disclosure Statement- It is law in the State of South Carolina to disclose and pertinent information that you have about the property to the party in the transaction that is purchasing the property. The Property Disclosure Statement is a four page document that you should present to the buyer before an offer to purchase is made on the property. Buyers have a right under law to know about any latent defects with the property. Be very careful if you don’t have one of these forms to present the buyer.

2. Fair Housing Act- This Act Prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental, and financing of dwellings, and in other housing-related transactions, based on

• Race
• Color
• National Origin
• Religion
• Sex
• Familial Status
• Handicap

You may not know that you are discriminating, but it is very easy for one to do when they are dealing directly with a buyer and don’t know what to watch out for. As Realtors handling the multitude of Buyers looking at your home, we take a big liability off your back with this one. This leads into the third subject that is a real biggy that you may overlooked. The way that you advertise your property may be discriminating, because of the “Federal Fair Housing Act”

3. Descrimitory Advertising- What makes for a good Clean Ad? You may think that a walk to the park or beach sounds great. Wrong answer… You have just descriminated against a handicap person. You may think that “Perfect for Empty-Nesters” sounds good. Wrong again… You just descriminated against a familiar status. As a matter of fact you have to be extra careful when talking directly to buyers. Your first instinct is to sell your home, but what do you say when the buyer ask you about your neighbors. You are leaving yourself wide open on this one.

When Realtors show houses, they let the buyers formulate their own opinions. After the buyer formulates an opinion, a good Realtor will use their expertise to overcome any objections that your buyer may have.

You may think that you selling “For Sale By Owner” is going to save you money in exchange for just a little bit of your time and money. The fact is that you are one person with very little up-to-date marketing experience; you don’t know the laws of today; and as I said you are only one person with limited access to the Internet and the local media. Let a Realtor market your property and you will get exposure to the other 4000 agents around Myrtle Beach; you will gain access to the 70% of buyer’s who are already working with a Realtor before they begin looking at properties. More exposure to your property increases demand to your property which will also increase the price that you can expect to receive in less amount of time. You are going to be steering yourself clear of many liabilities, because you are not dealing directly with the buyer.

With all this in consideration, is “For Sale By Owner” really saving you Money?

This is an absolutely beautiful condo with vaulted ceilings in Carolina Willows at Carolina Forest. This 3br/2ba beauty is in pristine condition and barely used.  You won’t go wrong with this complex. There is a security gate, pool, trash pick up, basic cable is included. The HOA fee is one of the lowest in Carolina Forest and you are in a great location between Avalon and Plantation Lakes. This open floor plan has a large utility room, tile in all of the wet areas, and a very nice screened back porch. Carolina Willows is about three miles from Highway 501 and 4 miles from the International Drive, therefore it is in a centralized location. I have been getting a lot of activity on this condo, so don’t wait. Call me today to make an appointment. 843-267-4627.

Asking $128,000
149 West Haven Drive Unit 13-g

This is a great deal on this 2 bedroom/2bathroom condo in Westfield off of Highway 707 in Socastee. The HOA fee is minimal and does include insurance. There has been an assessment that has been paid to take care of some exterior maintenance. This would be a perfect property for an investor or first time home buyer in the Myrtle Beach Real Estate Market. Here in Westfield, you are near the airport, 6 miles from the ocean, close to the “Coastal Grand Mall”, dining, golf, entertainment and everything that Myrtle Beach has to offer. Take a look at the pictures as I will have more in the future. This is a great buy and won’t last long.

Asking $87,000
115 Horizon River Drive # D-8

Here is a beautiful one of a kind low-country home in much sought-after Waterford Plantation. This home a 4118 Kirby Court is a must see with side loading garage and large cul-de-sac lot backing to conservation area. This home is also laid out with several upgrades which are to include:

Utilility Sink, Screened Rear Porch, Ceiling Fans in all major Rooms, Master bedroom downstairs, Hardwood Floors, 80 gallon hot water heater, Dura-Loc Siding, Tile in bathrooms and utility, alarm system and much more.

Waterford Plantation is in a great location and one of the most desired neighborhood when looking for Carolina Forest Real Estate. This community has many trees, sidewalks, walking trails, greenways, ponds, golf course and is in a great location for area schools, dining, entertainment and the airport. If Waterford Plantation is not what you are looking for, you can search for Myrtle Beach Real Estate through the a Myrtle Beach MLS Search.

 
Waterford Plantation - CF
Asking $388,900
4118 Kirby Court

When summer ended, several sellers were faced with a dilemma. “Do I keep my property on the market possibly through the winter or do I rent the property out until the market turns around”. My listing inventory dropped nearly 20% in the past several weeks from people making the decision to lease the property until next Spring. Carolina Forest Real Estate is being affected more than several areas around Myrtle Beach, because many investors bought new homes in a flipping frenzy. Add these investors to the investors that bought with an intention of renting and you have a major surplus of inventory to lease. Not only have the values of the homes come down, but now we are seeing the rental incomes come down as well, while these investors lower the prices in order to secure a tenant. Many areas of Myrtle Beach are not suffering as much as Carolina Forest with rentals, because the properties have been around longer and hasn’t had as much of the pre construction investor occur. I personally feel that if the sales market doesn’t turn around soon, we will witness several foreclosures in the Carolina Forest Area. People tend to walk away from their second homes and investment homes before their primary homes. Therefore, we will witness several bank owned properties in the Carolina Forest Area soon. The market most likely will turn around in a few years, but it simply has to correct itself first. I think that we will never again witness the boom of the new home construction that we witnessed over the past 3 years. Several local new home builders are witnessing the same market affects as the national builders. Spec homes have been built at an unprecedented rate and are not selling. Some of these homes are not very easy to rent. Myrtle Beach does not support the need of executive rentals. It will be interesting to see what the Winter of 2007 brings, but let me make one thing clear. Don’t reject any offers on your properties. It may not be what you are looking for, but you can always counter-offer in an attempt to bring the buyer back to reality.

Today I read in “The Sun News” about the auction of nearly 50 properties that took place at the Myrtle Beach Marriott Resort at Grande Dunes. There was not much bidding going on with these properties and very few sold for more than the opening bid price. This auction has been expected for weeks and of course I was hearing information that conflicted with the final results. For weeks the word was that these properties would bring great sales prices compared to market value. I guess the idea was that investors and shoppers would get caught up in the heat of the auction and bump the prices a lot. From what I am reading, none of the properties resulted in price battling. A few hundred attending the auction, but very few bid on properties. The company, “Coastal Auction Company” will hold another auction October 27, 2007, and will concentrate on South End properties from Murrells Inlet to Georgetown. Several properties in the Grande Dunes never receive bids.

Here is a great home near the Golden Mile at 6204 Sancindy Lane. This home is located on a double lot off of 62nd Avenue North which is centrally located to hospitals, shopping, Schools and golf. There is a nice pond in the rear of the property. This home has an enormous sunken entertainment room and a very nicely situated mother-in-law suite. You really can’t find a better location for the money; close to the Grand Dunes and not far from Pinelakes Country Club. Take a look and then decide that this is where you would like to be.

Lake ShoreLake Shore
Asking $389,000

Lane6204 Sancindy Lane

Absolutely immaculate home in much sought after Waterford Plantation. Great curb appeal with extra large side loading garage, great bonus room with extra storage, very large

4711 Harvest Drive is my latest listing and wow what a gem. This home is in absolutely great showing condition and has lots of very nice features. This gorgeous home has great curb appeal with an extra large side loading garage, great bonus room with extra storage, a very large master suite, screened porch and many other upgrades. This home is truly a must see and I will be doing an open house there on September 23, 2007.

Waterford Plantation - CF
Asking $314,900
4711 Harvest Drive