Real Estate Information Archive

Is it the bottom or are we in the eye of the storm?  New listings decreased 12.2%, Pending sales were up 42.1%, Inventory levels shrank 16.7% and months’ supply of Inventory was down 27.8% to 10.7 months.  A healthy market is 6 months supply.   All of these indicators paint a pretty picture!  However; prices remain under pressure.  The medium price decreased 22.2%.  More importantly is the dark cloud looming in the distance - the “shadow inventory” waiting to be released as Foreclosures / short sales.  Roger Arnold with Real money wrote an article on May 11, 2012 titled “Housing cannot Recover” where he said the biggest 4 banks – Wells, JP Morgan, Bank Of America and Citibank have as high as 97% of their distressed properties still on their books to be released.  That’s scary!  Hopefully most of these properties are in Florida and Las Vegas!  That said, with inventory levels and interest rates this low, these properties may get gobbled up by anxious buyers who understand the market.    Eventually, the pendulum will start to swing the other way!  If you are a buyer or seller in this current market and you would like a current market analysis, please don’t hesitate to call me. I am here to help!

Buyers and Sellers in the Hilton Head Island Housing Market

Let’s face it; the real estate market has changed in so many ways.  If you are a realtor, you better like the word “change” because it is the “modus operandi” of our business today.  

We all know that pricing has changed, but technology has a big impact on real estate these days and that has changed the way Sellers and Buyers view real estate.  Sellers now realize they have to engage in 2 battles when it comes to selling their home, “the Beauty Battle & “the Price Battle”.  Now more than ever Sellers need to have to their homes looking their best from landscaping to the décor of the home. Availability is another big factor for Sellers because whoever makes it the most convenient for a realtor to show will WIN!!!  Sellers no longer want to know if you have a website, they want to know how many and where will their home be featured.

Just as technology has changed things for Sellers, it has also proven to be a big asset for Buyers because it now provides Buyers an avenue where they can educate themselves about pricing, sales, and other properties on the market.  Most of the time, Buyers give us a list of properties to see before we ever put them in our car to look at property here on Hilton Head.   Buyers can search tax records and know exactly what a Seller paid for their home.  The Buyers we are dealing with now are much more informed and have access to more data than ever before.

HOWEVER, our job as a Realtor is extremely important to both Buyers and Sellers.  I cannot tell you how many times a Buyer has tried to tell me the value of a property based on Trulia’s data.  Sometimes, it can be “dead wrong”.  Realtors are needed by both Sellers and Buyers so that we can advise, represent, educate, and present the true climate and conditions in today’s market.  

Hilton Head Island now has a zip line tour.  Broad Creek Marina Adventures is the island’s newest ecotourism attraction.  They offer  8 zip lines with heights to 75 ft including dual cable racing zipline, and 3 suspended sky bridges.  There are usually 8 people to a group with 2 professionally trained guides.  The tour takes approximately 2.5 hours.

If you are up for a shot of adrenaline and ready to catch some breath taking views at the Broad Creek Marina, you have got to give this tour a “whirl”, no pun intended.  This zip line is well designed because they preserved the trees and built platforms around our live oaks and pine trees so you can experience “tree hopping”.

Pam and Roger Freedman, the owners of Zip Line Hilton Head, wanted to offer families another alternative to the beach & all the other wonderful activities we have here on Hilton Head.  It is great that we have such a variety of things to do here on our island and what a thrill to now have a Zip Line added to the mix.   When taking the Zip Line tour, you will have a guide to tell you all about Hilton Head’s history, culture, and the nature surrounding you.

This is the beginning of the end!  Once we can get through these foreclosures, we should see upward pressure on our market prices, assuming the activity level remains strong.  Already we are up 23% in the first quarter of this year.  If the banks price these foreclosure properties to “move quickly”, our market will remain flat this year, (better that than market prices decreasing).  It’s a wait and see game, however there are many positive elements to our Hilton Head market.  See the article from The Packet....  http://www.islandpacket.com/2012/04/26/2050526/foreclosures-up-sharply-in-beaufort.html

In August of 2011, a real estate affiliate with “The Kroger Company” purchased the 300,000 sqft Mall at Shelter Cove and 42 acre property for $17.3 million, $7 million below it’s assessed value.  Now, the developer has now proposed a deal to the Town of Hilton Head which would include a “land swap” between the developer and the Town in which the developer would turn almost 5 acres of the waterfront property into a park with about 138 residential units.  The real estate would be 4 story residential units with  two-story carriage houses with parking.  Most of the mall will be torn down with exception to the Belk Department store.  The Kroger grocery store will serve as a secondary anchor to Belk to pull more traffic into this development.  The new plan includes more retail space, addition of residential units overlooking the creek, and a pier.  The developer would like to open up the property to views of the Broad Creek.  It is exciting for the community of Hilton Head to see this project starting to take form because it will be nice to have an area where there is shopping, dining, residential, and a park that takes in the beautiful Broad Creek Views that remind us that we live in a very special place called Hilton Head Island.

We KNOW that we have one of the best beaches in the country, but now everyone else knows thanks to the online travel guide, 10BEST.com.  Hilton Head came in #2 in this online travel guide’s readers’ choice award.  The East coast did extremely well with the vote because Outer Bank,NC  was voted NO.1, then Hilton Head, followed by Myrtle Beach, SC.  Hilton Head beat out the Sunshine state of Florida and even Hawaii.  I know that when I take people around and show them our beautiful beach, a lot of people are so surprised to see people walking, running, and biking.  I have clients tell me that the beaches in Florida are so soft; you could never exercise on them.  “Kudos” for Hilton Head is that our beaches are clean and cars are not allowed on our beaches.  We are happy to have dogs, but we do have the “clean up” after our dog rule and dogs are only allowed on the beach before 10am and after 5pm.  The rule regarding the time for the dogs really has to do with their safety because a dog can easily become “overheated” on our beaches during the summer.  Our community and the town of Hilton Head also have a beach renourishment program in place so that we make sure our beaches stay healthy.  Hilton Head’s 12 miles of beach is a wonderful place for fun and relaxation and those of us that live here full time completely understand why we are at the top of the list when it comes to the Best Beach List!!!  
 

The bees are buzzing and so is Real Estate!  I have barely had time to sit down and write this week’s blog!  Interest rates made a huge jump up ½ a percent last Friday, signaling a change in perception of the economy.   Is it too soon? We still have a year’s worth of foreclosures to get through, which could drag prices down, however if we keep up our demand and inventory begins to shrink, those who can find bargains may be happy they bought them now!   

This weekend on Hilton Head, not only are the buyers out, but there are some wonderful activities to take advantage of in this great weather.  Wing Fest kicks off tonight with a pre-party and continues the next day at 11am. You get a BIG BANG for your buck here! 5$ for 13 and older. Other fun activities include Corn Hole tournament at Captain Woody’s in Bluffton on Saturday at 11:30, The Deery family fundraiser Sunday 2-5 at Mellow Mushroom HHI,  Adopt a puppy at the Jasper county Rescue Mission Saturday 11am – 3 at Sheridan Park, and the Arts Center is offering a wonderful production of “Driving Miss Daisy”.  So weather you’re going to buy some property, invest in our local economy, just get out in the beautiful weather, ride a bike, go to the beach, get on your boat, paddleboard and have some fun!  I need to get out of the office!

POSSIBLE TAX BREAK FOR HOMEOWNERS IN SENATE

Under present laws, a townhome, condominium, or single-family home is considered a second home and assessed at a higher rate for tax purposes if the owner rents it for more than 14 days each year.  There is a proposed bill in the South Carolina Senate which would change the state law and allow such properties to be rented for up to 90 days and still avoid the higher rate if the bill passes.  About 60 percent of Beaufort County’s homes, excluding apartments, do not qualify as owner-occupied according to county assessor Ed Hughes.  Property taxes on those homes are based on 6% of their appraised value.  Properties which are owner occupied and not rented over 14 days each year are assessed on a 4% of their appraised value.  This difference can add up to hundreds or thousands of dollars on a tax bill, depending on the homes appraisal and location.  Since North Carolina and Georgia tax system doesn’t differentiate primary and secondary homes, the current law in South Carolina puts owners of property in South Carolina at a real disadvantage when a potential buyer is trying to decide between buying property in South Carolina or buying in Georgia or North Carolina.  Most Realtors in South Carolina feel that passage of this bill currently in the South Carolina Senate would bring more home buyers into South Carolina. 

If this bill were to pass, approximately 13,600 homes, mostly on Hilton Head, would move to the lower 4 percent ratio if the bill were to become law.  Property taxes collected on homes assessed at the 4% cannot be used for school operating costs so should the bill pass, it would make a difference in the budgets for the school systems in Beaufort Count.  Beaufort County’s state senator, Tom Davis, is in favor of the passage of the bill and feels that the way that schools are funded in South Carolina is flawed and that should be corrected separately.  

Living on Hilton Head Island is all about lifestyle and it is wonderful to have the choice of so many amenities and activities.  Mark your calendar for the inaugural Darius Rucker Intercollegiate Golf Tournament March 2-4 from 8am-2pm. The tournament will feature women’s golf teams from 15 colleges and universities.  Darius Rucker, USC, and Long Cove Club have agreed to host the tournament through 2016.  The tournament is sponsored by Hargray.  Some of you may know Darius Rucker from being the lead singer of Hootie and the Blowfish, but he is now making his mark in country music.  Darius is a South Carolinian and former Gamecock. This is great publicity for Long Cove Club and Hilton Head Island. For more information, go to www.longcoveclub.org  or call/email Parker Harrington at 843-686-1070 or email pharrington@longcoveclub.org.

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