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What's Happening In Charleston, SC? - February 2015 Edition

The best thing about February is that we only have about another 4-6 weeks of this cold weather! But there is a lot to do in Charleston in February.

The largest event is the Southeastern Wildlife Expo on Feb. 13-15th. In addition you have:

• WWE Live: Feb 6 Wrestling @ North Charleston Coliseum
• Cirque de la Symphonie: Feb 7 @ North Charleston PERFORMING ARTS CENTER
• Kathleen Madigan: Feb 7 @ The Charleston Music Hall
• Glen Hansard: Feb 8 @ The Charleston Music Hall
• Ingrid Michaelson: Feb 9 @ The Charleston Music Hall
• The Book of Mormon: Feb 10-15 @ North Charleston PERFORMING ARTS CENTER
• Jason Aldean: Feb 14 @ North Char...

Charming One-story Home For Sale in Belle Hall
Close to Beaches, Ready to Move In

This charming 3-bedroom ranch home is in move-in condition and ready to be occupied! This home has an open plan with tall ceilings and an upgraded kitchen with granite countertops, cherry cabinets and stainless steel appliances. 

The living room has a fireplace and opens up to the eat-in dining area and sunroom.  The spacious master bedroom has a walk-in closet and a bathroom with dual sinks. The other two bedrooms are located on the opposite side of the home and share a second bathroom.

Details: 229 Mossy Oak

Showings & Information: 800-294-1074 code 4098

Our Average Sold Price/Original List Price ...

Never Get Bored in Charleston, SC - December Events

No matter how you spell it, the holiday season is special for everyone. The Lowcountry takes its holidays seriously. Take part in all that we have to offer and fill your hearts with the joy of the season.

With Thanksgiving falling so late in November, there’s a slight pause before the holiday celebrations begin. Between the neighborhood drop-ins, the office parties and friendly get-togethers, there are some large scale gatherings planned throughout the area. 

Right out of the gate, we have Hanukkah from the 16th through the 24th. Christmas falls on a Thursday, the 25th. Boxing Day is the 26th, also the first day of Kwanzaa which runs ...

This story came from our client Jerry Garner, Reverse Mortgage Specialist with TowneBank Mortgage. We thought it would be of interest to share it. 

"Mr. and Mrs. Grace (ages 62 & 66)  were living comfortably on Johns Island (they moved here from the upstate 2 years ago), until their daughter went thru a divorce and she and the grandkids needed financial help.  The Grace’s did what most parents would do and agreed to offer the support and welcomed them back home (for a while)…after a few months, they consulted with their financial advisor to make sure they had the money to help their daughter and grandkids and learned they did not have enough savings to maintain their own personal l...

Where are the Opportunities in Charleston, SC?

Interesting Real Estate Facts: The graph shows Months of Inventory (MOI) for the Charleston, SC residential market. MOI measures the relationship between supply and demand, and tells buyers and sellers whether the market is a "hot" (seller's) market (below 5 months) or a "slow" (buyer's) market (above 7 months). 

Quick Conclusion:

Best opportunities for BUYERS in Charleston: 
Above $300K (7.9 months)

Best Opportunities for SELLERS in Charleston: 
From $100K to $200K (3.7 months)

Of course, these numbers are averages and real estate is hyper-local. 

For a quick, free, online estimate of the current value of any home visit www.Cha...

CHARLESTON REAL ESTATE MARKET:
Is The Recent Boom Sustainable?

The Charleston, SC real estate market here is setting records for buying activity this time of year:  We are experiencing record highs for the number of properties going under contract each week, and we may set an all-time record for the whole year. 

Year-to-date, median sales price in the Charleston Metro Area went up to $222,000 (an all-time high for the Charleston area and up by 6.5% over 2013).  And number of transactions increased to more than 10,000 (up by 6.2% over 2013) in just the first 3 quarters. 

Mount Pleasant continues to be the most popular area for buyers with median sales price in the $350,000 range.  I...

NEVER GET BORED:  NOVEMBER  EVENTS

Charleston, SC was just voted #1 City in the U.S. by Travel and Leisure (T&L) Magazine for the 4th year in a row, and #2 City in the World (behind Florence, Italy).  T&L also named Kiawah Island as the Top Island in the U.S. and the 2nd best in the World. 

Trip Advisor named Halls Chop House as the 4th best restaurant in the US and Circa 1886 came in at #12.

Here are some great events for you to attend in November:

• Nov 8: The 1st Annual Folly Beach Battle of Bags (Corn Hole Competition);
  
• Nov 9: The 21st annual Charleston Cup Steeplechase Race at Stono Ferry;
  
• Nov 14: The James Island Holiday Festival of Lights begins;
  
• Nov 27: The 37th A...

HUNGRY KIDS? KIDS EAT FOR FREE IN CHARLESTON (*)

Mondays and Wednesdays are the best days in terms of choices to go get free meals for your children. Please contact your restaurantof choice before heading over, as these specials are subject to change.

Here is a partial list of restaurants in Charleston that offer free meals for kids:

(*) Information gathered from http://www.outtoeatwithkids.com/, deemed reliable but cannot guarantee it, please call restaurant in advance.
(**) Reduced Prices Only

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Foundation For A Mortgage (Key Items Lenders Look For In A Mortgage Application)

If you are still renting, the above graph shows half of the story of why you may wish to consider buying a home (the other half is the prevailing low interest rates on mortgage loans). Bobby Green, an experienced mortgage lender with Starkey Mortgage, sent us this information that we thought would be useful for anyone getting (or thinking about getting) a mortgage loan. 

1. CREDIT – Does the borrower’s credit meet the minimum guidelines? Is the credit score above the minimum? Are their any liens or judgments? The minimum credit score for Conventional is 620 (without MI) 660 with MI. FHA goes down to 580. ...

SPECIAL FINANCING FOR FIXER UPPERS!

We never thought we would see mortgage rates below 4% in our lifetime again...

Huge Rate Drop Today!

If you are THINKING of buying or refinancing, act NOW!

Call us on 843-900-0155.

Carolina Walk
New Luxury Townhomes in the Heart of Mount Pleasant

National builder Pulte Homes just released preliminary information about their newest project in Mount Pleasant, SC: Carolina Walk, located near Towne Center shopping mall. 

Carolina Walk will offer two floor plans, starting from $375,990. All the town homes will come with standard luxury finishes, including granite countertops, stainless steel appliances, and many energy efficient features. 

For a copy of the floor plans and additional information please call us on 843-900-0155. 

Why hire us to buy a new construction home? Watch this VIDEO TESTIMONIAL from clients who purchased a new construction home at Tupelo in Mount...

Beautiful Home in Cane Bay - Ready to Move Right In!

Wonderful home on premium pond lot with a fenced backyard. The "Penrose" floorplan is a very efficient layout with 4 bedrooms, a loft, 3 full bathrooms, and a 2-car attached garage. The upstairs loft is very large and would make a great game/media room. There is a bedroom and a full bathroom downstairs that may be perfect for guests or for someone who has difficulty climbing stairs.

This home also has a 12'x12' screened-in porch, 9' ceilings on the first floor, double sinks and separate tub and shower in the master bathroom, a large walk-in closet in the master and in the 2nd bedroom, a sizable laundry room (upstairs), stainless st...

Inspections and Repairs - Should They Give You the Jitters?

We provide a variety of services throughout the real estate transaction to help our buyer clients make informed decisions. One of the key aspects of the buyers' due diligence is performing inspections such as the home inspection (which checks structural integrity, mechanical systems, appliances, plumbing, electrical, etc.)  and the pest/termite inspection (which checks for termites, fungus, wood-eating insects, etc. and  in South Carolina produces the CL-100 Report).

Some of our value-added services include:

• Recommending experienced home inspectors, termite inspectors, structural engineers, mold inspectors and other spec...

DR Horton just unveiled details for Wyndham at Park West, their newest townhome community in Mount Pleasant, SC. 

Wyndham at Park West is a small neighborhood of 26 homes. Three and four bedroom townhomes from 1781 sq. ft. to 2107 sq. ft priced from $260K.

This community adds to DR Horton's growing portfolio in Mount Pleasant homes, which includes Oyster Point, Wyndham Park, Cascade, Park Place and Abbotts Glenn. Oyster Point is the second largest planned community in Mount Pleasant, SC, with about 700 homes planned on completion. 

To receive information on new construction communities in Mount Pleasant, please fill out this quick form. 

Call us now on 843-900-0155 to help you reser...

JULY NEWSLETTER

This coming August has 5 Fridays, 5 Saturdays, and 5 Sundays. So get out there in Charleston and enjoy your weekends! Need to buy anything? The Annual Tax Free Weekend starts on the first Friday of August. 

The best way to enjoy the Dog Days of August is at the beach or at a baseball game with the Charleston Riverdogs. Keep cool at the Riverdogs baseballbgames on the 3rd and the 17th, which are Seersucker at the Joe nights. Seersucker and Madras are the clothing of choice during the dog days.

Folly Beach, Isle of Palms and Kiawah were named among the top 10 Southern Beaches by USA Today. I would suggest lunch at Rita’s on Folly, Poe’s on Sullivans Island, or the Ocean C...

IMMACULATE ONE-STORY HOME IN MOVE-IN CONDITION!

This home has been used as a second home only a few weeks per year and it shows! The owners are very meticulous and have added desirable extras like a wooden fence, an alarm system, an irrigation system and a garage door opener.

Great curb appeal and a very attractive front porch where you can sit on a rocking chair and enjoy an evening drink.

As you walk in you will see the kitchen and eat-in area on the left, and a family room with vaulted ceilings, which opens to a screened porch and a large, fenced backyard (with irrigation system so your grass does not die in dry weather, and a garden shed that provides room to store all your gard...

Looking for a home with...

• Hardwood floors
• Screened porch
• Pond lot
• Fenced yard
• Upgraded kitchen (42" cabinets & granite!)
• New carpet & paint
• Gas fireplace
• FROG

LOOK NO FURTHER!! 2255 Sandy Point Ln. has it all!  

This is a wonderfully upgraded home on a premium pond front lot! Watch the sunrise while drinking coffee on your full front porch or serenade sunset with a glass of wine while watching egrets and herons from your rear screened porch.

This 4 bedroom, 2.5 bath home features two rooms flanking the foyer which can serve as Formal Living Room and Formal Dining Room or make one room a home office. The entire downstairs had hardwood floors installed in 2011, which is a...

Have the Cake and Eat It Too...

This is a true story shared by our client Jerry Garner, who specializes in Reverse Mortgages:

"A retired couple in late-60s purchased a home for $250k in Summerville to be closer to their children and grandkids. They moved here from NC and initially thought they needed to sell their NC home first OR take $250k from their retirement savings (this concerned their financial advisor about liquidity) to pay cash for an ideal home for retirement.

Long story short… based on their ages, this senior couple was able to put $125,000 (50%) cash down and moved in with a Reverse Mortgage for Purchase and have no payments. 

Now when their NC home has sold, they can ...

FYI on DYI

Many homeowners spend a lot of money renovating their home before they put it on the market, thinking that they will make a profit on the money they spend on renovations. Remodeling Magazine (http://www.remodeling.hw.net/) publishes a regional analysis that will make most homeowners think before they embark on expensive and troublesome renovations! Sometimes it is just best to drop the price to reflect the current condition of the home than to spend time, energy and money on upgrades, additions or modifications that at the end of the day will not result in increased profits. 

Here are the current winners & losers for remodel projects in the Southeast Region/Charleston, SC: