What do tax payers in South Carolina think of the current property tax legislation?
According to a recent survey the Chief Executive Officer of South Carolina REALTORS, Nick E. Kremydas tell us:
60% - We need tax reform
55% - Commercial and residential property owners both need tax relief
77% - Similar property owners should pay same tax
60% - Assess all property taxes at the same time
Contact your state representative and state senator and ask them to vote for property tax reform.
If you have any questions or would like to discuss the possibility of having me represent you on the sale of your home or the purchase of a home, you can contact me directly at 843-224-5398 Owen Tyler Realtor® Carolina One Real Estate.
Friday, January 30, 2009
Monday, January 26, 2009
Buyer and Seller Myths
I saw this on the Today Show on NBC yesterday morning and felt that it was timely and offered some good suggestions. Of course real estate is a local thing so not everything you hear from the national media applies to us.
If you have any questions or would like to discuss the possibility of having me represent you on the sale of your home or the purchase of a home, you can contact me directly at 843-224-5398 Owen Tyler Realtor® Carolina One Real Estate.
Visit msnbc.com for Breaking News, World News, and News about the Economy
Charleston in top 25
This morning in The Post and Courier, Katy Stech reported on Forbes magazine and Moody's Economy.com placing Charleston as one of the top 25 markets in the country. This goes along with the brisk activity we are seeing in the Charleston real estate market for the first 26 days of 2009.
Housing market forecast lists Charleston in top 25
By Katy Stech
The Post and Courier Monday, January 26, 2009
We're certainly not a Las Vegas, Detroit or Miami.
That's what local home- owners and real estate industry players can take comfort in when lamenting Charleston's weakened housing market. Comparing market conditions with cities in far worse positions, in fact, makes our local problems seem much smaller.
To that effect, Charleston recently was cited as one of the top 25 Strongest Housing Markets by Forbes magazine, which asked Moody's Economy.com to create a list of areas that are nearest to recovery. The group looked at metro areas with populations higher than 500,000.
The analysis forecast that the Lowcountry housing market will hit the bottom in late 2009 and that prices will fall by a margin of 1.1 percent before that time. (That prediction doesn't jibe with data from the Charleston Trident Association of Realtors, which suggests that, at least since 2007, home sales prices have fallen by roughly 3 percent.)
Charleston shared the honor with other Southern cities, including Columbia, Birmingham and Augusta. Clusters of real estate stability were found in Upstate New York in cities such as Rochester, Albany and Buffalo and throughout Texas in cities including San Antonio, Austin, Fort Worth and El Paso.
The analysis emphasized that the listed markets aren't immune from the current downturn. None of the cities is likely to see prices increase by the end of the year.
If you have any questions or would like to discuss the possibility of having me represent you on the sale of your home or the purchase of a home, you can contact me directly at 843-224-5398 Owen Tyler Realtor® Carolina One Real Estate.
Housing market forecast lists Charleston in top 25
By Katy Stech
The Post and Courier Monday, January 26, 2009
We're certainly not a Las Vegas, Detroit or Miami.
That's what local home- owners and real estate industry players can take comfort in when lamenting Charleston's weakened housing market. Comparing market conditions with cities in far worse positions, in fact, makes our local problems seem much smaller.
To that effect, Charleston recently was cited as one of the top 25 Strongest Housing Markets by Forbes magazine, which asked Moody's Economy.com to create a list of areas that are nearest to recovery. The group looked at metro areas with populations higher than 500,000.
The analysis forecast that the Lowcountry housing market will hit the bottom in late 2009 and that prices will fall by a margin of 1.1 percent before that time. (That prediction doesn't jibe with data from the Charleston Trident Association of Realtors, which suggests that, at least since 2007, home sales prices have fallen by roughly 3 percent.)
Charleston shared the honor with other Southern cities, including Columbia, Birmingham and Augusta. Clusters of real estate stability were found in Upstate New York in cities such as Rochester, Albany and Buffalo and throughout Texas in cities including San Antonio, Austin, Fort Worth and El Paso.
The analysis emphasized that the listed markets aren't immune from the current downturn. None of the cities is likely to see prices increase by the end of the year.
If you have any questions or would like to discuss the possibility of having me represent you on the sale of your home or the purchase of a home, you can contact me directly at 843-224-5398 Owen Tyler Realtor® Carolina One Real Estate.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
List Price...Does It Really Matter?
Well if you are planning to sell your house in today's market the answer is simple, YES! If your house is not well priced then the buyers will never get in the door. They will pass you up regardless of how many Web sites you are featured on, regardless of how many Open Houses that your Realtor holds, and all those brochures that disappear from your brochure boxes, they just end up in the trash.There are two types of sellers: those that want and need to sell and those that are just testing the market. If you want and need to sell, then your house must be priced right to begin with. With the market changing weekly, the seller and the Realtor must stay on top of the price, it really is a joint effort in today's world to sell a house.
Long gone are the days where a buyer had to look at your home because selection was so limited. Today's buyer has many homes to choose from and to get your house shown you must be priced right.
Pricing homes in today's market can be tricky and often times price adjustments must made during the course of the listing. Sellers need to be concerned not only with recent sales in the area, but also with properties that are currently on the market - how does your home stack up in price and upgrades to the one two streets over or in many cases right next door. And don't forget, just because you are well priced today does not mean that you will be well priced tomorrow.
If you have any questions or would like to discuss the possibility of having me represent you on the sale of your home or the purchase of a home, you can contact me directly at 843-224-5398
Owen Tyler Realtor® Carolina One Real Estate.
Owen Tyler Realtor® Carolina One Real Estate.
Monday, January 19, 2009
Foreclosures...Always a Good Buy?
Everyday I get at least one phone call from someone looking for a good deal and the word foreclosure always follows. Why is it that our culture always believes that sales and discounts and foreclosures must mean we are getting the best deal?Sure some sales and foreclosures are great deals, but one has to look at the context of the situation. The majority of foreclosures are sold without repairs and have been vacant for extended periods of time before they hit the market. Many of the foreclosures on today's market would not even qualify for an FHA loan due to the condition of the property. And lets face it, banks aren't exactly willing to just give the property away.
In today's market many sellers that are not in financial trouble are ready to wheel and deal. These are houses that are well cared for with sellers that will generally make repairs and negotiate. A good deal doesn't have to be a distress sale!
The foreclosure market is not for the faint at heart, expect longer waiting periods and lag times to have agreements signed and at times odd requests from the selling bank. And remember that in a foreclosure, an inspection becomes key and you should take a long hard look at the property prior to making your offer.
And if you are a property owner that is facing forclosure you can get advice on how to handle the situation from Family Services - The Home Ownership Resourse Center.
http://www.familyserviceschassc.com/home_ownership_resource_center.asp
Below are some foreclosure numbers from the staff at SCBIZ Daily --
Year-end foreclosures top 2.3 million across U.S.
Monday, 19 January 2009
SCBIZ Daily Staff CHARLESTON -- More than 15,000 properties across South Carolina went into foreclosure in 2008, according to RealtyTrac, a national real estate tracking firm. Of those properties, 4,333 were in the Greenville-Spartanburg-Anderson area, followed by the Charleston-Dorchester-Berkeley region with 3,501 homes that went into foreclosure.The rate of foreclosures might be contributing to the glut of homes on the real estate market, slowing sales in the region and creating an extreme buyer's market, real estate agents say. Foreclosures in the Lowcountry, however, did fall between November and December from 678 to 378, a positive downward trend. In its annual and monthly foreclosure reports released this week, RealtyTrac said filings were reported on 303,410 properties nationwide in December, up 17% from the previous month and up nearly 41% from December 2007. To end the year, more than 2.3 million properties across the U.S. were in some state of foreclosure, an increase of 81% from the previous year. Greenville County posted the largest number of foreclosures for December, with 590, and the most in 2008, with more than 2,500 foreclosures last year. Five counties posted more than 1,000 properties in foreclosure, including Charleston, Berkeley and Dorchester. By contrast, in 2007, Lexington County had the largest number of foreclosures in the state at 499. Nationally, the majority of foreclosures were in Nevada, Florida and Arizona. For example, one out of every 14 homes in Nevada was in some state of foreclosure in 2008.
Year-end foreclosure numbers
County 2008
Greenville 2,540
Spartanburg 1,053
Anderson 740
Richland 1,305
Lexington 1,200
Berkeley 906
Charleston 1,716
Dorchester 879
If you have any questions or would like to discuss the possibility of having me represent you on the sale of your home or the purchase of a home, you can contact me directly at 843-224-5398 Owen Tyler, Realtor®, Carolina One Real Estate.
Sunday, January 18, 2009
The Expert
How often have you flipped through those real estate books or been handed a business card of a self proclaimed expert; maybe the person is an expert in historic homes or waterfront properties or maybe an expert in relocation or in today's environment maybe a short sale expert. Many times I am asked the question, "Owen what does it take to be an expert?" And each time I have to answer, "it just depends on how much expert advice you the buyer or seller needs." Before you choose to rely on that expert ask a few questions, after all for many, whether buying or selling a home, it is the largest transaction one will make.
Experts come in all shapes and forms, maybe your expert has cut his or her Realtor teeth on numerous transaction, some successful and some not so successful or maybe your expert holds a designation and has attended classes and training or maybe your expert has a combination of both or still maybe your expert has simply given him or herself the title of expert. All to often today I am seeing desperate sellers place there financial health in the hands of a experts without asking any questions and buyers willing to gamble everything to grab the perceived best deal without taking a long hard look at the important facts.
Before you hire that expert to work for you ask him or her a few questions like: how many transactions of this type have you handled, how many successful and how many unsuccessfully, what type of hurdles should I expect, have any complaints been filed against you, when was your last educational course taken, and most importantly make certain you are working with a Realtor. Realtors are held accountable not only to state and federal laws but also adhere to a code of ethics based on professionalism and protecting the public.
If you have any questions or would like to discuss the possibility of having me represent you on the sale of your home or the purchase of a home, you can contact me directly at 843-224-5398 Owen Tyler, Realtor®, Carolina One Real Estate.
Experts come in all shapes and forms, maybe your expert has cut his or her Realtor teeth on numerous transaction, some successful and some not so successful or maybe your expert holds a designation and has attended classes and training or maybe your expert has a combination of both or still maybe your expert has simply given him or herself the title of expert. All to often today I am seeing desperate sellers place there financial health in the hands of a experts without asking any questions and buyers willing to gamble everything to grab the perceived best deal without taking a long hard look at the important facts.
Before you hire that expert to work for you ask him or her a few questions like: how many transactions of this type have you handled, how many successful and how many unsuccessfully, what type of hurdles should I expect, have any complaints been filed against you, when was your last educational course taken, and most importantly make certain you are working with a Realtor. Realtors are held accountable not only to state and federal laws but also adhere to a code of ethics based on professionalism and protecting the public.
If you have any questions or would like to discuss the possibility of having me represent you on the sale of your home or the purchase of a home, you can contact me directly at 843-224-5398 Owen Tyler, Realtor®, Carolina One Real Estate.
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