Charleston Real Estate Blog

Congratulations! You’ve found a Charleston SC home to buy and have applied for a mortgage! You’re undoubtedly excited about the opportunity to decorate your new home, but before you make any large purchases, move your money around, or make any big-time life changes, consult your loan officer – someone who will be able to tell you how your decisions will impact your home loan.

Below is a list of Things You Shouldn’t Do After Applying for a Mortgage. Some may seem obvious, but some may not.

1. Don’t Change Jobs or the Way You Are Paid at Your Job. Your loan officer must be able to track the source and amount of your annual income. If possible, you’ll want to avoid changing from salary...

Existing Charleston Home Sales Point Toward a Good Time to Sell!

Some Highlights:

• Existing Home Sales dropped 1.7% from May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.27 million in June.
• Low inventory levels are still a factor in the market. The current supply of homes for sale is at 4.4 months, which is less than the optimal 6-month supply.
• Median home prices were up 4.3% from June 2018, hitting $285,700. This marked the 88th consecutive month with year-over-year price gains.

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147 Stono Drive
Charleston, SC

MLS# 19020222 - Residential

LOCATION-LOCATION-LOCATION!! LUXURY WATERFRONT LESS THAN 5 MI...

 

Rising Charleston home prices coupled with a lack of inventory in today’s market may cause some homeowners to consider selling their home on their own (known in the industry as a For Sale By Owner). However, a FSBO might not be a good idea for the vast majority of sellers.

The top 5 reasons are listed below:

1. Online Strategy for Prospective Purchasers

Recent studies have shown that 95% of buyers search online for a home. In comparison, only 13% use print newspaper ads. Most real estate agents have an Internet strategy to promote the sale of your home. Do you?

2. Results Come from the Internet

Where did buyers find the home they actually purchased?

50% on the Internet
28% from a Re...

What's the cost of waiting?

Interest rates have dropped again!!

Call the experts at ChuckTown Homes Real Estate and take advantage of this prime time to buy a house in Charleston SC.

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17 Lindendale Avenue
Charleston, SC

MLS# 19009689 - Residential

Totally renovated custom brick home within walking distance to the shops and nightlife of Avondale. Just a few of the many features of this gorgeous home include: Gleaming hardwood floors throughout main level; Large family room with coffered ceiling and wood burning fireplace; Stunning kitchen with stainless steel appliances, granite counters, coffered ceiling and center island with ...

In today’s real estate market, low inventory dominates the conversation in many areas of the country. It can often be frustrating to be a first-time homebuyer if you aren’t prepared.

In a realtor.com article entitled, “How to Find Your Dream Home—Without Losing Your Mind,” the author highlights some steps that first-time homebuyers can take to help carry their excitement of buying a home throughout the whole process.

1. Get Pre-Approved for a Mortgage Before You Start Your Search
One way to show you are serious about buying your dream home is to get pre-qualified or pre-approved for a mortgage before starting your search. Even if you are in a market that is not as competitive, understa...

Come see us this Saturday at Hunt Club!!!!

1460 Brockenfelt Drive
Charleston, SC

MLS# 19006311 - Residential

The Harbor Oak is a beautiful home with all the upgrades! Hardwood floors throughout - EVEN UPSTAIRS! Crown molding, tile backsplash, upgraded stainless steel appliances include gas range with down draft technology. HUGE butler's pantry and walk-in pantry. Downstairs boasts two story foyer, formal dining room (or living room/office), open concept kitchen, eat-in, family room with gas fire place, large guest bedroom and full bath. Upstairs offers a loft, two additional guest bedrooms and dreamy owner's suite with a tile shower, double vanity, and a spacious walk-in...

Perfect credit and a large down payment needed to buy a house in Charleston? Not so much!

Call the experts at ChuckTown Homes Real Estate- we can walk you thru it with no drama!

8644 Scottish Troon Court
North Charleston, SC

MLS# 18001036 - Residential

Gorgeous custom estate on the golf course in Coosaw Creek Country Club! No expense spared on this one year old executive home. Be sure to watch the YouTube video! Random width walnut floors greet you behind the custom mahogany and iron front door. Beyond the foyer lies a generous home office and powder room with custom live edge slab vanity. Around the corner is the wine room- with custom wine cellar, built in beer coole...

How to Take 'The Notebook' Tour of Charleston
 
Trace the steps of Noah and Allie’s iconic love story by visiting these 7 Charleston landmarks.
 

Thanks to its charming historic downtown, antebellum homes, and idyllic waterfront vistas, it’s no surprise that Charleston is a popular location for TV shows and movies to film. But one of the most iconic films to use Charleston as its backdrop is undoubtedly The Notebook. While Nicholas Sparks originally set the book in New Bern, North Carolina, the movie places Noah and Allie in Seabrook, South Carolina, a small town about an hour south of Charleston. Most of the movie was filmed in Charleston, however, with Mount Pleasant’s Old Village and par...

Is Your House Priced To Sell Immediately (PTSI)?

In today’s real estate market, with more houses coming to market every day and eager buyers searching for their dream home, setting the right price for your house is one of the most important things you can do.

According to CoreLogic’s latest Home Price Index, home values have risen at over 6% a year over the past two years, but have started to slow to 4.4% over the last 12 months. By this time next year, CoreLogic predicts that home values will be 4.6% higher.

With prices slowing from their previous pace, homeowners must realize that pricing their homes a little OVER market value to leave room for negotiation will actually dramaticall...

Some Highlights:

• Interest Rates for a 30-year fixed rate mortgage have dropped to 4.41% from near 5% in 2018.
  Take advantage of more inventory coming to market in the spring to find your dream home!
  Buying now will allow you to start earning equity today!

Great 2019 Real Estate Appreciation across the country:

Analysis of residential properties going under contract(contingent) in Charleston SC during week of 2/22/19-2/28/19

 397 residential properties under contract past wk. Starting to kick into high gear.
 302 single family homes under contract past wk. Median LIST price $295k,$147/sqft. 4 under $100k. 24 over $1M, 5 of
those over $2M. Median 21 CDOM. Median Yr Blt 1998
 6(2%) of 302 single family homes under contract past wk BANK OWNED FORECLOSURES or SHORT SALES. Another 9% new
construction. 1 of 2 short sales in areas 31/32, 61-76
 49 island single family homes under contract past wk. James-16,Folly-5($200k,$525k,$745k,$895k,$1.95M...

One of the most common loans you can get to buy a home in Charleston is a 30-year fixed rate mortgage. If the thought of paying for your home over the course of 30-years seems daunting, here are some easy ways to shorten that term which will actually end up saving you money over the life of your loan.

Any additional payments to the principal amount (the original sum of money borrowed in a loan), helps to cut down the amount of interest that you will pay over the life of your loan and can also help to shave years off the loan as well.

When you make ‘extra’ payments toward your loan, the key is to let your lender/bank know that you want the extra funds to go toward your principal bala...

Charleston SC Real Estate- A Tale of Two Markets

Our Takeaways:

• 
  An emerging trend for some time now has been the difference between available inventory and demand in the premium and luxury markets and that in the starter and trade-up markets and what those differences are doing to prices!
• 
  Inventory continues to rise in the luxury and premium home markets which is causing prices to cool.
• 
  Demand continues to rise with lower-than-normal inventory levels in the starter and trade-up home markets, causing prices to rise on a year-over-year basis for 80 consecutive months.
• It's a great time to shop for Premium real estate in Charleston!

Further Proof It’s NOT 2008 All Over Again in Charleston

Home sales numbers are leveling off, the rate of price appreciation has slowed to more historically normal averages, and inventory is finally increasing. We are headed into a more normal housing market.

However, some are seeing these adjustments as red flags and are suggesting that we are headed back to the same challenges we experienced in 2008. Today, let’s look at one set of statistics that prove the current market is nothing like the one that preceded the housing crash last decade.

The previous bubble was partially caused by unhealthy levels of mortgage debt. New purchasers were putting down the minimum down payment, resultin...

 

There are many unsubstantiated theories about what is happening with Charleston home prices. From those who are worried that prices are falling (data shows this is untrue), to those who are concerned that prices are again approaching boom peaks because of “irrational exuberance” (this is also untrue as prices are not at peak levels when they are adjusted for inflation), there seems to be no shortage of opinion.

However, the increase in prices is easily explained by the theory of supply & demand. Whenever there is a limited supply of an item that is in high demand, prices increase. It is that simple. In real estate, it takes a six-month supply of existing salable inventory to maintain pr...

Charleston Housing Market: Another Gigantic Difference Between 2008 and 2018


Some are attempting to compare the current housing market to the market leading up to the “boom and bust” that we experienced a decade ago. They look at price appreciation and conclude that we are on a similar trajectory, speeding toward another housing crisis.

However, there is a major difference between the two markets. Last decade, while demand was being artificially created by extremely loose lending standards, a tremendous amount of inventory was coming to the market to satisfy that demand. Below is a graph of the inventory of homes available for sale leading up to the 2008 crash.

A normal Charleston ma...

With interest rates still around 4.5%, now is a great time to look back at where rates have been over the last 40 years.
Rates are projected to climb to 5.1% by this time next year according to Freddie Mac.
The impact your interest rate makes on your monthly mortgage cost is significant!
Lock in a low rate now while you can!

Ready to find out how to make it happen? Speak with the Charleston real Estate Experts at ChuckTown Homes Real Estate today!

On the real estate front, the number of transactions year to date is almost the exact same as last year. However, the median sales price is up 7.2% over the same period to an all time high of $265k. That’s a pretty heady number. The last couple of years have seen more modest gains of around 4%. Many people are asking if this is the warning of another bubble. But remember, real estate doesn’t ever really go down.

Well it did once, in 2008. But that was an anomaly. There was a good reason for that and it was nationwide. Don’t expect prices to go down again. Economies go into recession and this causes real estate to go flat. Sometimes you may see your real estate value stay co...

We hear many crazy excuses from buyers about why they are putting off buying a home in Mount Pleasant, Summerville, James Island, or West Ashley all the time.

Well- a lot of them are myths!