The Skinny on the Charleston-area residential real estate market during the first quarter of 2010

MEET THE CANDIDATES

Join us on Thursday, April 29 from 6-9 p.m. at the renovated Founders Hall at Charlestowne Landing for a special evening of networking, music and fun!

This event is now offered at no cost, as a benefit of membership for CTAR members.
Non-member tickets are available for $30.

Come rub elbows with candidates running for office in 2010 and enjoy beer, wine, hors d'ouevres and live music with Calvin Taylor.

There is no cost to attend, but space is limited, so registration is required.
Walk ups will not be admitted and no-shows will be charged the non-member ticket price.

The following candidates have confirmed their attendance:


Governor
Morgan Reeves

Lieutenant Governor Candidates
Ashley Cooper, Ken Ard and Larry Richter
Treasurer
Converse Chellis and Curtis Loftis

Congressional Candidates
Robert Burton, Mark Lutz, Tim Scott, Paul Thurmond, Mac McCullough and Carroll Campbell

State House of Representatives Candidates
Mike Sottile, Anne Peterson Hutto, Jenny Horne, Joe Bustos, Peter McCoy, Leon Stravrinakis and Lee Edwards

Presented By:









NO COST for CTAR Members $30 Non-Members

For Ticket Information please call (843) 760-9400

HUGE PRICE REDUCTION

REDUCED TO $295,000!

Tons of square footage just over the Ashley River Bridge.

It's time, and it's Charleston's most magical night, Upper King Design District Spring Design Walk. Here's a rundown of some of the activities, coming up this Thursday, April 15.

- Mayor Riley will open Design Walk at the corner of Radcliffe and King at around 5:00 PM
- Grand Opening of Macaroon Boutique, 45 John Street. You are in for sweet treats, great breads and a long awaited fantastic patisserie
- Tommy Dew and the guys from Charleston City Slicker will preview their new iPad application, a GPS tour of Upper King
- At King Street Kitchen Company, Sea Island Habitat for Humanity will present their great Deconstruction Program. KSKC will serve cookies by Charleston Cookie Company, show off some beautiful flowers by Stems, and exhibit some cool cars from Baker Motor Company.
- Haute Design will host local artisan Justin Walling, an expert in stained and leaded glass, antique mirrors and general restoration know-how according to the Robb Report.
- LESESNE will host furniture designer Neal Van Dalen and preview Charleston's own Sideshow Press with their Spring collection of letterpress cards.
- Ellington will host artist Ani Lees
- Jewelry designers Heather Key Tiller and Felice Killian will welcome guests at their respective studios, Filigree and Felice Designs, with special appearances by Mary Porter House of Couture, and Bob Ellis Shoes
- Acclaimed food writer Holly Herrick will sign her latest cookbook, The Charleston Chef's Table: Extraordinary Recipes from the Heart of the Old South, at SieMatic
- At Seeking Indigo, Franklyn Smith will do Intuitive Guidance Readings; you'll see pieces from their Charleston Fashion Week runway show and tour the beautiful, serene Wellness Center. Enjoy a migun massage while you're there!
- Dwelling booked DJ Sonar, and will have Charleston fave Christophe Chocolatier on site with some beautiful designer furnishings
- At Merch Underground, check out their on-demand garment printing and sea glass & shark tooth local artisan charms, along with some yummy pineapple upside-down cake beverages
- Berenice's Salon will show off their new location at 441 1/2 King
- Rachel Gordon's studio will be open at 478 King
- At Butterfly Consignment Boutique, beautiful new straight-from-the-designer jewelry by Shlomit Ofir and an evening of fun fashion shopping with their personal touch
- At Gallery Chuma, visual delights by Jonathan Green
- At Blue Bicycle Books, a debut book signing for Charleston Bouquets by Melissa Bigner and Heather Barrie

At Re-Nude, art at 501 King Street. Novel, our favorite Pop-Up Shop will be open at 438 King. Charleston Magazine, Charleston Home and Charleston Weddings will be there. It's a City Pick by Charleston City Paper. Too-too much! Perhaps an appearance by the Mercury? After a great evening of shop, showroom and gallery hopping, join us for fantastic food and special drinks at Shine, O-Ku, Fish, Halls Chophouse, La Fourchette, Pane E Vino, the Swamp Fox, Cupcake, Juanita Greenberg's (oh! the Margaritas), Monza, and Closed for Business, all our favorite eateries!

Lots more! Go to www.upperkingdesigndistrict.com for updates.

It's Design Walk. Join us.

Susan Lucas
King Street Marketing Group

Ashley River Historic District Passes First Hurdle

The proposed expansion to the Ashley River Historic District has passed its first hurdle on its way to listing in the National Register of Historic Places. The State Review Board gave the expanded district unanimous approval on March 26 at its quarterly meeting at the SC Department of Archives and History in Columbia.

Historic Charleston Foundation began pursuing an expanded historic district designation for the Ashley river region several years ago. In 2007, the foundation received a generous grant from the Donnelley family that enabled HCF to hire a talented group of consultants to move forward with this large research and survey effort.

A district of approximately 7,000 acres was first designated as a National Register District in 2004. This area encompassed historic and cultural properties between Ashley River Road and the Ashley River itself and included the well known plantation properties of Drayton Hall, Magnolia Plantation and Middleton Place. The expanded district now encompasses more than 23,000 acres. Much of the increase is associated with the rice culture that dominated the landscape, economy, and society of the Lowcountry in the 18th and early 19th centuries and with the phosphate mining that helped the region recover from the agricultural and economic upheaval of the Civil War and Reconstruction era.

1994 district in orange; 2010 expansion area in yellow

In order to fully tell these stories, large tracts to the south and west of the Ashley River Road were surveyed using a pioneering combination of computer mapping with overlays of historic maps and targeted field survey. Additionally, new sites such as the Lord Ashley archaeology site have been investigated and incorporated into the expanded district. The brickwork found at Lord Ashley's plantation site (1675-1685) at the upper reaches of the Ashley River seems to be the oldest brickwork yet found in South Carolina and the site is the only one directly associated with one of the original Lords Proprietors of Carolina.

The nomination for the Ashley River District will be sent to Washington, DC, in a few weeks for review by the National Park Service and listing in the National Register of Historic Places is expected sometime this summer.

Information courtesy of the Historic Charleston Foundation

RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE SALES UP 22%, HOME PRICES CONTINUE STEADY GROWTH AT THE START OF SPRING SEASON

CHARLESTON, SC—(March 10, 2010) Preliminary data from the Charleston Trident Association of REALTORS® shows 691 homes sold at a median price of $185,000 in March. This represents a 22% increase in sales and maintenance of the median price from March 2009, when 568 homes sold at a median price of $185,000.

Year-to-date, 23% more homes have sold at prices 3% higher than this time last year. Thus far in 2010, 1,670 homes have sold at an average median price of $185,501. At this time last year, 1,357 homes had sold at an average median price of $180,473.


This suggests a strong beginning to the typically busy spring and summer seasons, which got off to a slow start in 2009. “The activity in the early months of 2010 is incredibly encouraging—every month, we’re seeing sustainable growth in home sales and prices are holding steady” said Jeremy Willits, 2010 CTAR President. “We didn’t have sales numbers in this range until May or June in 2009” said Willits.


Though no one is sure what the months following the expiration of the tax credit will look like, Willits concurs that the homebuyer tax credit appears to have done what it was supposed to do. “The tax credit was not intended to be a long-term initiative. It incentivized the purchase of a home, following a year of uncertainty and volatile market activity. It was designed to help stabilize the market and that’s exactly what we’ve seen it do in Charleston” said Willits.

Rising mortgage rates and the uptick in buyer activity could encourage potential buyers looking to make an investment in real estate before they are priced out of the market. Following last week’s rise in mortgage rates, from 5.03% to more than 5.20% last Wednesday, some potential buyers realize that low rates and market affordability won’t last forever. For every 1 percentage point rise in rates, 300,000 to 400,000 would-be buyers are priced out of the market in a given year, according to the National Association of REALTORS®.


There were 9,849 active listings on the market as of March 31, 2010. March represents the third consecutive month with less than 10,000 properties on the market.

FEBRUARY 2010 ADJUSTMENT
Preliminary numbers reported for February 2010 indicated 509 properties had sold at a median price of $179,900. Adjusted numbers now show that 541 properties sold at a median price of $179,755.

BERKELEY COUNTY
In March, 145 homes sold at a median price of $163,343 in Berkeley County reflecting a 6% increase in sales volume and a 1% change in median prices when compared to last March, when 137 homes sold at a median price of $165,000.


CHARLESTON COUNTY
378 residential properties changed hands in March in Charleston County, increasing by 31% when compared to March 2009’s 288 sales. Median prices have risen 9% since last year, settling at $246,000 this month.

DORCHESTER COUNTY
142 homes sold in Dorchester County in March at a median price of $148,400. Sales activity has increased by 27% when compared to March of last year, when 112 homes sold. Median prices have dipped 8% to $148,400 as compared to March 2009, when the median home price was $161,000.

Please note: “Preliminary number” indicates all sales and values for closings posted within 10 days following the close of the month. “Adjusted number” indicates the value after all sales have been posted.

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With approximately 4,000 members, CTAR’s mission is to promote the highest standards of professionalism, ethics, education and technology, and to ensure that its members are the primary source for real estate services in the South Carolina Lowcountry. Only those who are members of the Association of REALTORS® and its parent organizations are called REALTORS®. To learn more, visit www.CharlestonRealtors.com

DOWNTOWN CHARLESTON

Owen Tyler | Carolina One Real Estate | owen@owentyler.com | 843-224-5398 212 Coming St, Charleston, SC Historic Downtown Charleston 3BR/2+1BA Single Family House offered at $530,000 Year Built 2007 Sq Footage 2,072 Bedrooms 3 Bathrooms 2 full, 1 partial Floors 3 Parking 2 Uncovered spaces Lot Size 1,742 sqft HOA/Maint $81 per month DESCRIPTION Contemporary elegance exudes in this single family home at the corner of Coming Street and Brewster Court. Nearly new construction with 4 porches, 2 balconies, and a fantastic roof top terrace and off street parking for two make this property a rarity in Charleston. The stylish first floor is an open living-dining room and kitchen floor plan. The well equipped kitchen with stainless appliances, wood floors, large island with cook top, granite counters with stainless backsplash, and butler's pantry are an entertainer's dream. A stunning insulated fiber glass wall that provides natural light and privacy on the first and second floors adds to the Zen like feel. A private 2nd floor with two large bedrooms, ample closet space and shared bath with designer touches as well as two separate porches and French styled balcony overlooking Coming Street. Continuing to the 3rd floor the large master suite opens to roof top views, vaulted ceilings, two large walk-in closets, and a roof top deck to enjoy the views of the city below. The master bath is complete with slate floors, double sinks, oversized shower with glass surround and luxurious soaking tub. Located in Midtown this property is not to be missed. If square footage is important - MEASURE!! see additional photos below PROPERTY FEATURES - Central A/C - Central heat - High/Vaulted ceiling - Walk-in closet - Hardwood floor - Tile floor - Living room - Dining room - Dishwasher - Refrigerator - Stove/Oven - Microwave - Granite countertop - Stainless steel appliances - Laundry area - inside - Balcony, Deck, or Patio ADDITIONAL PHOTOS Photo 1 Photo 4 Photo 2 Photo 3 Photo 5 Photo 6 Contact info: Owen Tyler Carolina One Real Estate owen@owentyler.com 843-224-5398 For sale by agent/broker Equal Opportunity Housing Posted: Apr 2, 2010, 12:42pm PDT