Charleston SC Metro Real Estate: February 2009

Summerville is a suburb of Charleston SC that has its own unique history.  It is about a 30 to 45 minute drive to downtown Charleston, depending on what part of Summerville you are in.  The big attraction to Summerville is both its numerous highly desirable neighborhoods and its highly rated schools district which are considered some of the best in the state. 

One of the newest neighborhoods to the area is The Ponds located off of Hwy 17A just between Old Orangeburg Rd and Hwy 642 (Dorchester Rd).  The community is still in the beginning stages but already has an amenities center, fire station, and a recently built YMCA. 

The amenity center is a gorgeous newly restored home which was originally built on the property in the 1830s.  The Ponds has an abundance of hiking and walking trails with more to be established in the future.  There is also an amphitheater, and large pond that greets you upon entrance into the neighborhood.  

The Ponds is a unique neighborhood because it gives you the feel of an old distinctly Southern community.  The homes are large with southern style porches on nearly all of them.  The tall ceilings and wide open hallways stand in stark contrast to most of the modern homes being built in today's newer neighborhoods.  

Perhaps the most impressive thing about the ponds is the conservatory effort of all involved.  The neighborhood consists of 2000 acres of which only half of that will be used to build upon.  The remainder will be left alone to add to the natural romantic appeal of the neighborhood.

For more information about The Ponds or homes in Summerville SC, please contact me at 843-817-5299 or by email michaeljohnson@carolinaone.com.  You can also visit my website.

anner Plantation is a relatively new development in Hanahan SC, a suburb of Charleston SC.  Hanahan is nestled between North Charleston and Goose Creek and surrounds the Goose Creek Reservoir. People love Tanner Plantation for many reasons but those that I know that live there overwhelmingly say they love the location and its convenience to nearly everywhere.  The neighborhood is only minutes from I-526 which makes a semi circle around the northern end of Charleston.  Tanner Plantation is also in the popular Hanahan school district which many people are anxious to get into.   The neighborhood is also conveniently located near Rivers Avenue shopping but it is far enough away to not have to deal with traffic if you don't want to. 

Below is a list of homes that I feel are the best price homes in the neighborhood.  The list excludes new construction homes, foreclosures and short sales.  I have used price per square foot as my primary criteria.

Please contact me if you are interested in buying or selling a home in Tanner Plantation or anywhere in the Charleston Metro. 

Click here for a link to the homes

1. 1225 Creek Stone Way - $200,000
2. 1411 Crossbill Trail - $258,000
3. 7226 Harrier Dr - $257,000
4. 1420 Gemstone Blvd - $249,000
5. 7214 Weavers Way - $206,900
6. 7306 Coopers Hawk Dr - $230,000
7. 7321 Kestrel Trl - $229,900
8. 1332 Song Sparrow Way - $259,900
9. 7317 Kestrel Trl - $279,000
10. 1414 Kinglet Ln - $279,900

Michael J. Johnson

Carolina One Real Estate

Cell: 843-817-5299

Fax:  843-202-3639

www.providingthelight.com

www.metrocharlestonhomes.com

Crowfield Plantation is a highly sought after neighborhood nestled inside of Goose Creek SC, a suburb of Charleston SC.  Over the last year prices have adjusted in a manner that will now allow those who could not afford to live in Crowfield to now experience the joys of home ownership in the wonderful little community. 

Below is a list of the Top 10 best priced homes in Crowfield.  The criteria for my list is based upon the best price per square foot of each house in the neighborhood but excludes foreclosures and short sales.   I excluded foreclosures and short sales for several reasons.  First and foremost is that most foreclosures are not in great shape (there are exceptions to this rule).  Second is that some foreclosures and most short sales are an enormous hassle for the buyer to deal with.  If you are not careful the experience with either can leave you wishing you would have bought a regular resale home. 

Please contact me if you are interested in any of these homes shown here are any other home in Crowfield Plantation. I can also help you if you are interested in selling your home. My cell phone number is 843-817-5299. Here is the list: (select the link to see information about all of the homes)

Top Ten Best Priced Crowfield Homes

1.  105 Carter Dr - $87 per square foot - $219,900

2.  203 Challis Ct - $89 per square foot - $167,000

3.  120 Belleplaine Dr - $89 per square foot - $225,500

4,  113 Stonehurst Dr - $91 per square foot - $215,000

5.  111 Waddington Tr - $91 per square foot - $235,000

6.  133 Chatfield Cir - $91 per square foot - $229,900

7.  106 Trent Ct - $92 per square foot - $229,900

8.  184 BridgeCreek Dr - $95 per square foot - $159,900

9.  144 Chatfield Cir - $95 per square foot - $245,000

10.  150 Fox Chase Dr - $97 per square foot - $220,000

"Love anything and your heart will be wrung and possibly broken.  If you want to make sure of keeping it intact you must give it to no one, not even an animal.  Wrap it carefully round with hobbies and little luxuries; avoid all entanglements.  Lock it up save in the casket or coffin of your selfishness.  But in the casket--safe, dark, motionless, airless--it will change.  It will not be broken; it will become unbreakable, impenetrable, irredeemable.  To love is to be vulnerable."         

*C.S. Lewis*

"Life's greatest happiness is to be convinced that we are loved."

*Victor Hugo* (Author of "Les Miserables")

"Young love is a flame; very pretty, often very hot and fierce, but still only light and flickering.  The love of the older and disciplined heart is as coals, deep burning, unquenchable".

*Henry Ward Beecher* (1813-1887)

Like most cities and towns in the U.S., Goose Creek South Carolina (a suburb of Charleston SC) has felt the blow of the recent economic downturn.  As the graph below indicates, the number of homes sold in 2008 dropped back down to 2001 and 2002 numbers.  But, the housing prices have only dropped back to 2004 numbers. 

You can also see that the number of homes listed only dropped slightly and the gap between homes listed and homes sold is quite large.  This is due in part to a lot of new development going on all over Berkeley county, of which a large portion of that is Goose Creek.  Another reason for the gap between homes listed and sold is the inability for sellers to adjust their prices.  This inability hinges upon several things which include unreal seller expectations and home owners who are upside down in equity (they owe more than the market will allow them to get for their house). 

Sellers are going to have to come to grips with the fact that what they could have gotten in 2005 is not what they will get today because of the number of homes on the market.  Value in real estate is based upon current market conditions.  Those who are upside down in equity should either hold on to their homes until the market turns, or contact the bank and pray they give you mercy for a "short sale" (bank takes less than what they are owed. 

Overall we in Goose Creek and the rest of the Charleston Metro are doing relatively well compared to the rest of the nation's real estate market.  If you have any questions regarding the Charleston area real Estate market please contact me at 843-817-5299 or visit my website at www.providingthelight.com

"The denunciation of the young is a necessary part of the hygiene of older people, and greatly assists in the circulation of their blood."

Logan Pearsall Smith (1865-1946)

"First it is necessary to stand on your own two feet.  But the minute a man finds himself in that position, the next thing he should do is reach out his arms."

Kristin Hunter

"If God had wanted us to vote, he would have given us candidates."

Jay Leno

"Habit is necessary; it is the habit of having habits, of turning a trail into a rut, that must be incessantly fought against if one is to remain alive."   

Edith Warton (1862-1937)

"The thing that is really hard, and really amazing is giving up on being perfect and beginning the work of becoming yourself." 

Anna Quindlen

"The human brain starts working the moment you are born and never stops until you stand up to speak in public."

George Jessel