Sandy's Blog

Today is Saturday, June 13, 2009 and Myrtle Beach is booming with vacationers.  They seemed a bit slow coming to town this year but during the past few days they must have decided this was the place where they wanted to come for some R & R.

Myrtle Beach is a place where we have visitors, snowbirds, golfers, and second home owners all year long but there is an increase in traffic during the summer months. 

One helpful tip if you are planning to visit Myrtle Beach in the summer and do not like to wait in line at a restaurant or you have children with you when it is dinner time.  Be at the door by 5:00 P.M. or 4:30 P.M. if they happen to open early.   

Less then a year ago I took some clients to a housing community being built by a large national home building company in the coastal southeastern area of North Carolina.  The on-site salesperson told me that there were discounts available for standing inventory plus the builder gave additional upgrades at no cost to the Buyer when they were represented by their own Realtor because it was good PR and that Realtor would probably bring more Buyers.  My clients insisted on making an offer much less then the "Asking Price".  I had to hide my surprize when it was accepted. 

Last week I talked to the same salesperson and told her that within a few days I would be bringing some potential buyers to her development.  She said the builder probably wouldn't approve a deal as great as my former clients had received but she would put together a packet of standing inventory homes that had some potential for price negotiation because she was going to be out of the office when we were scheduled to visit.

Yesterday I took my clients to the development and there was no packet.  Another very nice salesperson took us to see the standing investory homes.  After looking at a few other developments my clients wanted to go back to the first one and make an offer on one of the standing inventory homes.  They had decided on an offer amount based on resent sales data I had provided.  The response from the builder was "NO, we're not accepting anything less than the posted Asking Price."  That was it, period, no counter, no make a better offer, nothing.  I was embarrassed and do not plan to include that neighborhood in what I show my clients unless they specifically ask to see their homes.

PS - We found a house in another new development tonight and our offer was accepted by the builder.

Todays buyer clients found my website Myrtle Beach Real Estate after looking on ActiveRain. 

The News today is that the NAACP is trying to block the ACC Baseball conference from coming to Myrtle Beach because they have a problem with the State of South Carolina.  They say there is an ongoing boycott by the NAACP against the State based on the Confederate Flag at the capital. That boycott has evidently been in place for years but has not been mentioned since its inception.  Blocking college baseball in Myrtle Beach when nothing has been said by the NAACP to participants coming to the Atlantic Beach Bike Rally that is held annually caused me to be confused.  Boycotting a few days of baseball or having the games moved to another State is not going to hurt the Capital it's going to hurt the people.  

BB&T Coastal Field in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina will host the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) five day baseball tournament annually on Wednesday through Sunday during the Memorial Day weekend each May of 2011, 2012 and 2013.  The games usually draw over 70,000 fans and will be a great benefit to the local economy.

In 2009 the tournament location is Durham, North Carolina and 2010 the location is Greensboro, North Carolina then Myrtle Beach is set for the following three years.

Myrtle Beach Real Estate

According to a May 5, 2009 article on Forbes.com - Indicators point to a fast approaching end date: May 2009.  It appears that several indicators are favorable for a turn around in the economy. 

Also on May 5, 2009 the state Supreme Court in South Carolina temporarily stopped thousands of pending foreclosure sales.  The ruling involves properties guaranteed by Freddie Mac, Fannie Mae or a mortgage company that has signed up for a federal assistance program.  In the Myrtle Beach area the majority of foreclosures are second or vacation homes that do not normally qualify for any assistance programs and they were not addressed in the court ruling.

If you plan to visit the Myrtle Beach, SC area you will quickly notice there are no signs of the wildfire from any of the standard highways you will probably travel.  Yesterday someone ask me why the fire had been on the national news because they had not seen any damage as they traveled south through North Myrtle Beach to Myrtle Beach.  I did show them the burn area on a map I had with me and told them the area was now a hundred percent contained. 

If you come to Myrtle Beach you will also notice it's perfect beach weather with temperatures just about 80 degrees this week.  Today or months from now a day at the beach, keeps the children occupied, or provides you a "you" day of R and R and it is free.    Gas prices are down and many hotels are offering discounts so I hope you get to take advantage of some quality time. 

The wildfire is almost completely under control and if it wasn't for road closings until 9 AM due to smokey fog it might become a memory.  In a few days the smoke too will fade but hopefully we will not forget the families that have lost their homes.

If you live in the area of Myrtle Beach please drop by one of the fund raising areas for the Red Cross.  The parking lot at Myrtle Beach Mall near North Myrtle Beach is one place where you can donate.

Real Estate News: 

Several of my clients who had real estate they needed to sell in Virginia and New Jersey before they bought in Myrtle Beach have had multiple offers on their homes during the past two weeks.  Their properties had been on the market for over a year with little activity and now they are under contract.  Neither property was a short-sale or foreclosure and the offers they accepted were just a few thousand dollars less then the asking price. 

Golfer's Economy News: 

Living on a golf course that has some of the highest fees I had noticed the decline of golfers during the past eighteen months.  Well the golfers are back and they brought their friends.  From dawn to dusk its none-stop golf carts.  The course has always been active even when there was a decline but in four years I have not seen this much action and the fees are up at this time of the year.   

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According to lenders a condotel is just about any condo that has an on-site short-term rental (daily or weekly) with a check-in / check-out service involved.  Some lenders even consider off-site check-in / check-out for short-term rental as a bad mortgage risk.  For those who are considering the purchase of a condo on the ocean there are some fantastic values available but loans for a mortgage have become a day-to-day event.

When considering an ocean front condo purchase in Myrtle Beach or anywhere else plan ahead.  If planning to obtain a mortgage first ask your Realtor if they know of a lender who is local to the area of interest.  If unable to locate a lender located in the area of the potential condo purchase try the present principal home mortgage company or a company used in the past.  Some may also want to consider a home equity loan if they qualify.

I know of two places where you might try to get a mortgage on a condo in Myrtle Beach:

Investors Mortgage and RBC  

Myrtle Beach SC Real Estate

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