Greetings from the Grand Strand!
We are moving into the busiest real estate sales season of the year right now, especially for resort and oceanfront properties. It's a great time to sell with all these potential buyers in action mode. It's also a good time to buy, with the spring and summer right around the corner.
As I have stated numerous times in these newsletters, there aren't many "steals" out there in the present "stable" market but I have seen some very well-priced listings in recent weeks. I've sent out email notifications for several of these. Most of the listings for which these notifications were sent were sold within days so if you should receive one of these emails and if you are interested, please contact me immediately.
After last month's massive information piece on the 2014 oceanfront condo sales, I'm going easy on the statistics this month. All the usual reports are included of course.
Instead, I will focus on the exciting direction the Grand Strand seems to be heading. The sheer amount of activity this spring in our area is the highest I've seen in 10 years - and I'm not just referring to tourism. Single family home sales are setting records. There's commercial construction everywhere - new shopping centers, restaurants and other attractions. New roads, airport additions and other enhancements to our transportation system are underway. Two large new sports complexes have opened this year. Foreign investment is pouring in with the promise of new tourism markets to follow. A huge new festival is coming in June. A local attraction won the state's high's tourism order. Here's a brief recap of some of the highlights with links to related articles.
Strong Home Sales: 2014 was a record year for sales of single-family residences on the Grand Strand. Spring 2015 sales have been off the charts.
MB Home Sales Set Record in 2014
Spring Real Estate Sales Seeing Spike
The Myrtle Beach Boardwalk: This relatively new attraction (opened in 2010) was awarded the Governor's Cup which is given to the top tourist attraction in the state.
MB Boardwalk wins Governor's Cup
New and Improved Roads: Back in the 90's, RIDE (Road Improvement and Development Effort) produced $1.1B in new roads and improvements on the Grand Strand including Highway 31, Highway 22, and Grissom Parkway. For RIDE II, the Back Gate/Market Common overpass has been completed, Highway 31 is being extended, and numerous other projects are underway. The next strategic road improvement project, the $550M RIDE III, is currently in the active planning stages.
RIDE III Road Project Study
RIDE III Committee Learns of Future Growth
Myrtle Beach International Airport: Numerous nonstop flight destinations are being added and many of the seasonal flight destination schedules are being extended. A $20 million runway project was completed over the winter, which will allow larger planes to fly into the airport on a regular basis. The old terminal, which is next to the new terminal, is being renovated to add additional capacity.
MBIA Runway Rehab Starts on Time
Airport Face-Lift to Top $10M
MBIA Upgrades Aim to Increase Capacity
MBIA Prepping for Busy Season
Two Large New Sports Facilities opened in Myrtle Beach and North Myrtle Beach: The $15M North Myrtle Beach Park and Sports Complex, featuring 6 baseball fields and 8 soccer/lacrosse fields, is doing great in its first year of operation. The new $14M Myrtle Beach Sports Center opened in March and is already booked solid for just about every weekend this year. This indoor sports facility contains 8 basketball courts which can also be utilized as 16 volleyball courts. These new facilities further enhance the Grand Strand's standing in the growing sports tourism industry. Large sports centers already in operation include the Myrtle Beach Grand Sports Complex in Market Common, with 9 multi-use athletic fields, and The Ripken Experience in Myrtle Beach with 9 baseball fields.
3 Weeks to NMB Sports Complex Debut
Sports Tourism Big Part of Grand Strand's Future
MB Sports Center Taking Bookings
City Council Tours MB Sports Center
Carolina Country Music Fest: More than 35 local, regional and national acts including Lady Antebellum, Eric Church, Big and Rich, and Colt Ford will be performing at this inaugural event June 5-7 on the old Pavilion site in Myrtle Beach. More than 15,000 people per night are expected.
Country Music Festival Announces Headliners
Chinese Investment Paving the Way for International Tourism: Investors from China have acquired 13 golf courses on the grand Strand in the last 20 months in addition to several large commercial and development properties. Local tourism officials as well as the investors themselves are working to attract the attention of Chinese tourists, the world's highest-spending travelers per capita.
Chinese Investors Have Plans in MB
Chinese Investors Scooping Up Area Properties
Strand Tourism Courting International Visitors
Chinese Investors Looking at Hotels
Coastal North Town Center in North Myrtle Beach Leads Retail Resurgence: This brand new 368,000 SF shopping center contains a number of stores that are new to the area. There are numerous other new stores and expansions of existing retail centers all along the Grand Strand with more on the way.
Shopping Center Work in Full Swing
Retail Construction Sees Resurgence
New Shopping Center to open in NMB
New NMB Stores Opening Soon
All of these articles (and more) were included in the Press Releases section of my website (under the News/Useful Info tab). If you want to keep up with local events, check it out on a regular basis. Here it is....
Press Releases
Read on for the latest monthly reports and my Best Buys.
Come see me at the beach!