Charleston SC Metro Real Estate: October 2007

A new towne center is set to be built in early 2008 in the Foxbank Plantation community on Hwy 52 between Goose Creek and Monks Corner.  Twin Rivers Capital, LLC has purchased 42 acres with plans to host 500,000 square feet (nearly 50 businesses) of retail and office space which will be anchored by a grocery store.  The new housing developments within Foxbank Plantation plans to have about 40,000 new residents upon completion of the communities to support the new commercial development.  The price range for homes in Foxbank Plantation range from 120,000 to 450,000. Contact me for more information about homes in this or any community in the Charleston, SC metro.

In today's market a seller needs every edge he/she can get in order to sell their home.  It is the Realtor's responsibility to not only share a Comparable Market Analysis (CMA) with them, but in the current market we also need to go a step further.  With inventory out pacing demand in most of our markets we need to take into account the accumulation rate (rate at which inventory comes onto the market) as well as the absorption rate (rate at which homes are selling in any given area).  If we as Realtors simply hand the customer or client a CMA, that person's home may be on the market for quite some time. 

There are two ends of the spectrum - price is on one end while time is on the other.  If the price is only average in your market then the condition, incentives, and marketing effort have to be better than average in order for it to sell before the other homes on the market.  If the condition, incentives and marketing effort are average or worse, then the price will have to be better than average to sell in a reasonable amount of time.  Knowing how to read the area's absorption rate and monthly accumulation rates can help sell the home for the most money in the least amount of time.  That, after all, is the ultimate goal and the very definition of a successful sale!

Charleston, SC has been voted one of the best cities in America according to the readers of Travel and Leisure magazine.  Charleston finished third behind San Francisco and New York, first and second respectively.  Charleston got high marks in the categories of shopping, antiques, architecture, friendliness, and even "attractive people."  The categories that probably brought Charleston's overall ranking down included clubs, singles' venues, and live music.   

The #1 industry in Charleston is tourism and the leaders of the city have invested heavily into it.  Visiting Charleston is a great experience but it doesn't compare to actually living here.  The Charleston metropolitan, which consists of three different counties (Tri-County area), offers most of the amenities that major cities offer but also has a small hometown feel that most visitors fall in love with almost immediately.  The beaches, history, preservation, great food, and down home friendly folks make Charleston and its surrounding cities a great place to live.    

There is no better time to buy a home in the Charleston area.  There are a lot of great deals available ranging from high end homes and condos downtown and on the beach to great prices for single family detached homes in the surrounding cities of Mt. Pleasant, North Charleston, Goose Creek, and Monks Corner to name a few.  Don't let the opportunity to live in America's 3rd favorite city pass you by.

Today I took a short drive to the outskirts of Charleston to an area between Summerville, Goose Creek, and Monks Corner.  The new development is called Cain Bay.  New development is going up all over the place here, but what is going on in Cane Bay is unique for the Charleston area.  Del Webb is developing a new retirement community for people 55 years and older.  Retirement communities are one of the few things missing in this area.  

The development is going to be a resort style community with amenities galore from indoor and outdoor pools to tennis courts and more.  They have already started building the first phase of homes.  These homes are quite nice and relatively affordable.  Their are 11 different floor plans.  I toured all 11 different models and I was quite impressed.  The homes range in square footage from 1103 to 2597, and in price from $159,900 to $369,990.   

If you, or someone you know, are interested in a retirement community in the Charleston area this may be the perfect place and the perfect time to get in on the "ground floor" of the development.  Remember, the agents at Del Webb work for Del Webb, not for you.  You need someone to represent you so that you get the best house for the best price.  Everything is negotiable!  Let me help by facilitating the process of buying a new home in one of newest retirement communities in the southeast.

One of the more confusing things in real estate is distinguishing the difference between a townhouse and a condominium.  There are some vast differences between the two, and depending on what you are looking for, the features of each can help determine which is best for you.  I have complied a list of things for each that set each apart from one another.

Townhouse

• buyer owns the individual unit and the ground beneath.
• usually comes with a small backyard and possibly even a garage.
  
• each townhouse has its own roof
• usually has front door located on the ground level.
• some townhomes have a blanket policy and some do not.  If not a separate insurance policy would need to be purchased by the buyer.
• there is generally a monthly HOA fee but this does not usually have a repair budget.  Each owner is usually responsible for their own exterior repairs.

Condominiums 

• buyer owns an individual unit and a portion of the surrounding property and amenities.
• overall master deed which indicates the amount of ownership each unit has within the entire complex.
• responsible for the space inside their own walls and the freedoms therein to alter it, but this freedom does not always transfer outside of the unit.
• If you have to climb stairs to get to the front door of any unit in the complex, it is usually a condo.
• has a blanket policy for building insurance included in the monthly HOA fee.
  

According to a recent study by the Milken Institute, the Charleston, SC metropolitan has climbed the list of the top 200 cities in America for creating and sustaining jobs.  Charleston has risen from being ranked number 22 a year ago to an impressive ranking of 12th in the nation on the list of "Best Performing Cities."  The following is the breakdown of how Charleston was evaluated as taken from the Milken Institute's website:

Overall Rank: 12
MSA Population: 603,000

According to the report the cities low cost of living ""provides more opportunities for retirees outside the area, while its diverse industry base attracts skilled workers."