Wearable Art Luncheon, September 19, 2013

A strolling fashion show at Tommy Bahama at The Market Common benefiting the Pawleys Island Festival of Music & Art.  Thursday, 11 am to 1:30 pm; $30.  

Unique pieces from local artists, a silent auction and more.

For more information call: 843-626-8911 or go to www.pawleysmusic.com

SiteTech Systems has released their Grand Strand Economic Quarterly Report for the 2^nd Quarter of 2013 showing general improvement in the local economy.  Employment is up, unemployment is down, tourism is up, and the number of single family houses sold is up as is the median selling price while condos haven’t fared so well.  They state: “Overall, the region continues on a path of modest recovery.”

Read the full report at: http://www.sitetechsystems.com/Grand_Strand_EQR.pdf

In the Surside Beach market,

48 single family homes were sold in July 2013, a 140% increase from July last year; up 17% year to date with 224 sold.  The median sales price in July was $176,000, down 25% from last year. Year to date the median sales price was $186,845, down 11% year to date. 

27 condos were sold in July 2013, a 107% increase from July last year and with 155 sold up almost 26% year to date.  The median sales price in July was $68,000, up 19.3% from last year. Year to date the median sales price was $67,800 down 0.3%. 

Read the full report from SiteTech Systems at:http://ccarimages.fnistools.com/Uploads/RECos/1207/ContentFiles/surfsidebeachjuly.pdf

Garden City Real Estate Market for July 2013

In the combined Garden City/Murrells Inlet market, 33 single family homes were sold in July 2013, a 27% increase from July last year and up almost 17% year to date.  The median sales price in July was $259,000, up 10% from last year and up almost 4% year to date. 

10 condos were sold at a median price of $122,000, down 5.7% from last July, but up sales were  up 43% year to date. The median sales price was $122,500, down 5.7% from last July and down 25% year to date.

Read the full report from SiteTech Systems at: http://ccarimages.fnistools.com/Uploads/RECos/1207/ContentFiles/gardencitymurrellsinletjuly.pdf

Myrtle Beach Real Estate Market Report for July 2013

Good news for the Grand Strand Real Estate Market

In July, Single Family Residential Sales were up 12.5% compared to 2012; year to date, SFR sales are up 20.1% from 2012. In addition to these strong sales numbers, prices are up as well, the median sales price was $177,836 up 4.94% over last July and 4.77% year to date.  Inventories of homes for sale continued to decline, but are still up 4.45% from last year, but the good news for sellers is the distressed inventory (houses in foreclosure) is down 32.6% below last year—taking some downward pressure off prices.

Condos sales are up 17% compared to last July and 7.6% year to date. The median condo sale price is $110,000, up 16.4% over last July and up 2.6% year to date.  Condo inventory is down 8.43% and the distressed inventory down a whopping 43.7%.

What do all these numbers mean to the average seller or buyer?  For sellers, it’s looking better and if you’ve priced your house with the market, stick with your price.  For buyers, it’s no longer the time to make unrealistically low offers as sellers are seeing multiple offers for well-priced homes.

This data is based on research by Site Tech Systems; read their full report at: 

http://www.sitetechsystems.com/Grand_Strand_Market_Report.pdf

Mortgage Rate for Surfside Beach for August 12, 2013

Mortgage Rates for August 12, 2013 by one Grand Strand Lender:

30 yr fixed 4.50% purchase;   4.50% refinance

20 yr fixed 4.125% purchase; 4.25% refinance

15 yr fixed 3.50% purchase;   3.625% refinance

10 yr fixed 3.375% purchase; 3.50% refinance  

While up a little from months past, they still represent a historic opportunity to lock in a low rate.