Greetings from Myrtle Beach,
Well, it's that time of year when I take a look at how my business has been so far. Here's a statistic that might surprise you. When I analyzed my personal year-to-date sales this past week I found that over half (19 of 35) of my buyer clients (closed sales) were already current owners of other properties on the Grand Strand. A number of these buyers also sold properties during this same time period. Most were savvy investors and but some were true second home owners. In all cases, the decisions they made resulted in ownership scenarios more favorable to their individual needs and goals.
These individuals have been taking advantage of the market conditions to advance their positions. By contrast, the typical mindset of most of the current owners I've spoken with is this: He is going to wait until his property value increases to a particular price level before he makes any buying or selling decisions - no matter how long it takes, no matter how much he has to pay in carrying costs in the meantime, no matter how many more favorable ownership opportunities he has to pass up. The fact is that there are often better options available. Our local real estate market is changing rapidly and there are many opportunities for current owners to trade up, shuffle properties to improve cash flow, consolidate, defer tax payments by utilizing a 1031 tax-deferred exchange or to simply cash out. Check out "Buy? Sell? Both?" for my take on this topic and please contact me if you would like to discuss your individual situation.
Along these same lines, if you own on the Grand Strand or have your sights set on certain developments, visit www.myrtlebeachclosedsaleslist.com to sign up for access to spreadsheets showing all closed sales since 2009 in over 60 resorts. Click here to view a sample. If you are an owner, you might be surprised at recent prices. Again, please contact me if you want to go over any of these.
Last week I sent out a broadcast email to my client database about a great non-MLS deal on a 3BR oceanfront condo at The Caribbean Resort and received a number of responses. I'm happy to report that one of my clients was able to win the race to this one just hours ahead of an offer from another agent - and less than 48 hours after the listing became available.
Many homeowner associations schedule their yearly homeowner meetings in the fall. If you are in town and would like to get together, please contact me. Also, if you like my "Real Estate News" and the other services we offer, please pass the word to other homeowners. Thank you!
Finally, I'm including something out of the ordinary this month. I got married on the beach on September 30, 2000. The wedding pictures captured the most beautiful sunset I had ever seen. This September 30, I was on the dock overlooking the waterway behind Greg Norman's Restaurant at sunset and took a few pictures with my cell phone as the colors changed. Amazing! Click to view all of the pictures. I can't promise you a sunset like this every Sept. 30 but I can promise that fall on the Grand Strand will be spectacular.

My Best Buy picks this month include oceanfront and ocean view houses as well as condos in
Anderson Ocean Club, Atlantica III, Avista, Barefoot Resort - Edgewater, Greenbriar, Ironwood and The Dye, Bay View, Beach Club III, Beach Colony, Beach Cove, Breakers Boutique, Breakers Resort, Brighton, Camelot, Caravelle, Caribbean Resort, Carolinian, Chelsea House, Compass Cove, Coral Beach, Cottages at 7th, Crescent Keyes, Crescent Shores, Dunes Village, Grand Atlantic, Grande Dunes-Marina Inn, Grande Shores, Harbour Cove, Island Vista, Laguna Keyes, Lauderdale Bay, Long Bay Resort, Magnolia Pointe, Malibu Pointe, Mar Vista Grande, Margate Tower, Market Common, Monterey Bay, North Beach Towers, North Beach Plantation-Spa Villas, Ocean Blue, Ocean Creek, Ocean Keyes, Ocean Reef, Oceans One, Paradise Resort, Pinnacle, Prince Resort, Roxanne, Sandy Beach, Seaside Inn, Sea Watch, South Shore Villas, South Wind, Sunrise Pointe, The Horizon, The Pointe, Tilghman Beach & Golf, Willow Bend, Windy Hill Dune and Yacht Club Villas.
Come see me at the beach!