Charleston, South Carolina Real Estate Blog

Do We Truly Have Low Inventory?

Do we truly have low inventory? Or is our market just that hot?   

If you’ve been paying attention to the real estate market, you know that everyone is talking about low inventory. However, do we truly have low inventory? What do our supply levels mean for you? Let’s talk about it. 

I just came back from a seminar, and the leader said there’s no such thing as low inventory. This went against the conventional wisdom, so I decided to pull up some numbers from the Wild Dunes and Isle of Palms markets. 

In 2019, we had 320 sold listings. In 2020, we had 502 sold listings, and in 2021, we had 485 sold listings. It turns out that we’ve never had more listings; homes are just selling so quickly that it looks like there’s low inventory. 

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2022 Market Forecast

An update on how the 2022 market is starting the year this January.   

Today I’ll give you an update on what's happening in the market right now and what we're looking forward to in 2022.

There are currently very few homes on the market, so when something comes up, and it's priced correctly, it receives multiple strong offers. People are also waiving some contingencies like the appraisal so when something comes up that is priced correctly, it receives multiple strong offers.

Will this situation continue throughout 2022? We aren’t expecting many homes to come on the market. We'll still see good appreciation, just not as crazy as 2021. Interest rates are also predicted to rise this year. If rates do increase, they will have a big impact…

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Should I List This Winter?

Here are a couple of reasons why this winter is the best time to list.  

Today let’s discuss whether this busy winter is a good time to list a home. For the past three years, the majority of homes have sold in the spring. However, now there's no reason to wait.

There are a couple of reasons why I advise people to list now. With COVD, things have completely changed. Our inventory is now at a record-low; in 2019, we had three to four times as much inventory as we do today. The standard 12-month cycle to sell a home now only takes two months. Right now, we also have lots of serious buyers and no properties to show them.

As soon as you list your home in this market, you should get a lot of showings if your property is priced correctly. If…

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Happy Holidays

Friends and Clients,

Happy holidays to you!

The holiday season has officially arrived. We hope you enjoy this wonderful time of year and make some fantastic memories.

We wanted to take a moment to thank you for your continued support. We love helping people make their real estate dreams come true, so thank you for working with us and supporting our business.

This may be a busy time of year, but we are always here to help you and answer any questions you may have. Give us a call or reply to this email, and we’d love to help out.

In case we don’t hear from you until 2021, have a happy New Year!

Betty Gales

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Why Now Is a Great Time To Sell

An example of why it’s still a great time to sell in this market.  

Today I’ll discuss why it's still a very good time to sell. In the Charleston, Mt. Pleasant, and Wild Dunes markets, we continue to see a very limited inventory of properties. 

Here is an example of what happened to a Wild Dunes property. A fabulous property came on the market at $1,575,000. I had clients call me wanting to write an offer. We called the listing agent, and it turned out that there were already eight offers on the property, even though it just came on the MLS. 

That gives you an idea of why now is a great time to sell your home, even with the holidays coming up. The rental season is also more sporadic right now, and people have more money saved than they did…

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5 Closing Costs Sellers Pay

Here are the five closing costs sellers will pay for in the transaction. 

Many sellers wonder what they’ll pay in closing costs, which you need to know to budget for your transaction. So here are the five closing costs you’ll pay as a seller:

1. The commission. This is the largest closing cost and is usually paid for by the seller. You’ll pay a fee to your real estate agent for listing your property, and typically your agent will share that with the buyer’s agent. This is all negotiable, but generally, that’s how it works. If you’re selling a $500,000 house and the commission is 6%, you’ll pay $30,000.

2. Deed stamps. Also called a transfer fee, it’s $3.70 per $1,000 in South Carolina. So if you’re selling a $1 million house, you’ll pay…

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Rick Barry Interview: Part 2

 Here’s the second and final part of my recent discussion with Rick Barry.

Today I’m sharing part two of my interview with NBA champion and Hall-of-Famer Rick Barry. This part of the conversation focuses on competitiveness, coaching, accountability, and much more.

Cited below for your convenience are timestamps that will direct you to various points in the video. Feel free to watch the full message, or use these timestamps to browse specific topics at your leisure:

0:30 — Where Rick got his competitive drive from
2:50 — Lessons Rick learned from coaching the game
5:05 — How proper coaching and mentorship brings accountability
5:49 — Why Rick always played well against the Knicks
6:45 — What’s next for Rick Barry?
8:22 — Wrapping things up

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What To Do with Your Vacation Home as Summer Ends

What To Do with Your Vacation Home as Summer Ends

As summer comes to a close, is it time to think about selling your vacation home? Based on recent data and expert opinions, it’s something you may want to consider. According to research from the National Association of Realtors (NAR), vacation home sales are up 57.2% year-over-year for January-April 2021.

If you’ve taken your last vacation this summer, here are reasons you should consider selling your vacation home this year.

1. Remote work continues to drive demand for vacation homes.

As the report from NAR says, based on continuously evolving work needs, there could be more interest in your second home than you think:

“In 2020, across all nine divisions, the fraction of the…

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What Real Estate Agents Can Learn From Sports Legends

 Hall of Famer Rick Barry speaks on how pro athletes and Realtors are alike.

Today I had the unique privilege of talking with someone who is not a real estate agent or coach but a legendary Hall of Fame basketball player Rick Barry. He and I had a conversation comparing top athletes to real estate agents. It might seem odd, but they actually have more in common than you’d think.

Feel free to follow along in the video above or else use the timestamps below to navigate the discussion at your leisure:

0:30—How does mindset factor into being a superstar?
1:35—You can’t build a tall building on a small foundation
2:30—Don’t be afraid of failure
3:40—Taking pride in what you do
4:30—You’ll never achieve your full potential if you don’t understand what…

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Can You Rely on Automated Home Values?

Are automated home values really all that reliable? Find out today.

Most people are familiar with Zillow’s Zestimate tool, which generates an estimated home value based on public data. But therein lies the problem; Zillow might factor in a home’s square footage, general location, and appearance, but they don’t know everything that factors into a home’s value.

For example, they might know where the home is located, but they don’t know where on a particular street it is and whether that spot provides an ocean view that would boost a home’s value. They also can’t factor in any upgrades you’ve made to the property.

"Automated home valuation tools don’t know everything about your home that affects its value."

Today’s market is…

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