Shem Creek, SC » real estate

Charleston County foreclosure numbers top the state

Charleston Native — Fri, 20 Feb 2009 23:25:08 +0000

“This plan will not save every home, but it will give millions of families resigned to financial ruin a chance to rebuild. It will prevent the worst consequences of this crisis from wreaking even greater havoc on the economy. And by bringing down the foreclosure rate, it will help to shore up housing prices for everyone.” – Pres. Obama.

LOWCOUNTRY	JAN. ’09	DEC. ’08
Charleston	515	142
Dorchester	165	129
Berkeley	177	107

MIDLANDS	JAN. ’09	DEC. ’08
Richland	121	65
Lexington	25	34
Kershaw	24	28
Fairfield	19	3
Newberry	12	14

UPSTATE	JAN. ’09	DEC. ’08
Greenville	394	590
Spartanburg	54	66
Anderson	34	36

As bad as we did here, at least Charleston County didn’t do as bad as Greenville County did Upstate for two months in a row – small consolation for all the homeowners in trouble right now, but with President Obama’s foreclosure plan coming online to help many homeowners, many banks have started to cease foreclosures until a concrete plan can be put into action across the country.

Stimulis package should boost Charleston real estate market

Charleston Native — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 13:30:27 +0000

The local Association of Realtors is optimistic about provisions available thanks to President Obama’s newly signed American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (H.R. 1). It included a number of important housing provisions, including remedies for the housing crisis long supported by the National Association of REALTORS® (NAR).

Homebuyer Tax Credit

An $8000 tax credit will be available for qualified purchases of a principal residence by first-time home buyers between January 1, 2009 and December 1, 2009. The credit does not require repayment. Individuals who purchase in 2009 using financing assistance from state and local mortgage bonds will be permitted to use the credit as well. NAR estimates that the home buyer tax provisions could stimulate up to 300,000 additional home sales, helping stabilize home values and potentially preventing some homeowners from falling into foreclosure.

FHA, Fannie and Freddie Loan Limits

Revised loan limits for FHA, Freddie Mac, and Fannie Mae to 2008 levels.

Foreclosure Mitigation & Neighborhood Stabilization

Funding for states and local communities to be used for neighborhood stabilization activities for the redevelopment of abandoned and foreclosed homes are authorized.

“This hopefully will get buyers off the fence and into the marketplace. First-time home buyers not only stimulate the housing economy and therefore the economy as a whole, but since first-time buyers don’t have to wait for their home to sell, it moves the stabilization and revitalization of the housing economy along quicker.” – Herb Koger, legislative chairman of the Charleston Trident Association of REALTORS®.

Shem Creek appraisal: $3M – after a $6M buyout!

Charleston Native — Mon, 09 Feb 2009 10:55:11 +0000

Shem Creek aerial view
Credit: Post and Courier

According to an Oct. 31, 2008 Shem Creek appraisal from Atlantic Appraisals, the acreage Mt. Pleasant bought from the previous Ok Tire owners, Mark Mason and Phillip Smith, for $6 million is now worth only half that.

Originally asking $7.6 million for the property, the owners settled for $6 million when Mt. Pleasant threatened eminent domain foreclosure on the property early last year.

Even with proposed enhancements on the property to repair aged docks, etc., the value only gets as high as $4,138,000 based on today’s declined real estate market and economic downturn.

While Mark Mason and Phillip Smith obviously made out, higher property taxes are going to have to pay back the bonds that were used to buy the property.

“We’re not going to do anything with it. We’re not moving forward at this point in time. We’re looking at some other possibilities in Mount Pleasant,” – PRC Commissioner Mark Kearns.

Mt. Pleasant intends to use the location for a park and public space, so everybody is interested in how this will turn out. Local firm Thomas and Hutton Engineering is surveying the property now to come up with a master plan.

Input from several parties will be noted:

shrimpers,
the U.S. Coast Guard,
the sailing community,
adjacent neighborhoods,
the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Shem Creek restaurants and businesses,
the Parks and Recreation Commission (PRC), and
the state Office of Ocean and Coastal Resource Management.

Mt. Pleasant will be announcing when the meeting for public input is going to take place; until then, stay tuned.

Charleston’s strong real estate market impresses Forbes

Charleston Native — Sun, 25 Jan 2009 17:52:15 +0000

Congratulations Charleston, we’ve made another Forbes cream-of-the-crop list!

We came in #8 on the ‘America’s 25 Strongest Housing Markets’ list this year.

For all the flippers and investors out there, don’t jump in yet though; according to Forbes, you should wait until the end of ’09 – maybe so they can buy everything up first. Of course, I don’t think the ‘blue blood’ S.O.B.* residents on the Charleston Battery will be going anywhere anytime soon!

Charleston stats qualifying it for the Forbes list this year

Metro Area:		Charleston, SC
Population:		666,900
Bottom expected:		late 2009
Forecast price change to bottom:		-1.1%

Now we can look forward to more development & traffic, and even less green spaces.

For the current real estate market around Shem Creek and surrounding Charleston areas, just check the Charleston Real Estate page.

Data was provided by Moody’s Economy.com. It looked at metro areas with populations over 500,000 to find those closest to recovery. The firm prepared forecasts through 2011 and compared them to prices in the second quarter of 2008, which are the latest figures available, to calculate how far prices will likely fall before reaching bottom. The percent figures are price drops between second quarter 2008 and the projected bottom. Cities are listed by their percent change to bottom.

* For those unfamiliar, no harm intended. S.O.B. is a common term here in Charleston – it stands for South of Broad, the main street through downtown Charleston that separates the wealthy from the very wealthy, i.e. prime property – including the Charleston Battery on the waterfront.

S.C. enjoys construction boom, loathes job losses

Charleston Native — Tue, 22 Apr 2008 21:55:31 +0000

Locals, and even those that have been here for 15 years or so, can remember times before the Mark Clark, before Park West, McDonald’s on Coleman, Bee’s Knees, the old water slide, and so many other landmarks that made us happy to be here.

A’las, those good ol’ days are history now, but the same people that came rushing in on the construction boom are a lot of the same ones suffering through the nation’s mortgage crisis right now. Checkout this infograph the NYT’s did illustrating the nation’s foreclosure market.

No doubt it’s tough out there for many, and it looks to get worse over the next year at least going forward. There are good finds for those looking in the right spots though. Sure, it’s all about location, location, location, but Charleston real estate will always be a hot commodity.

Anyway, I think the lesson learned here is to not live outside your means, and always protect yourself financially against the worst of times. Those with safe, secure jobs, are fortunate and should do whatever necessary to make sure it stays that way. Helping out others in need along the way isn’t such a bad idea either, you’ll be glad you did. G/L out there.

Mt. Pleasant says it will do OK Tire right, $6M right!

Charleston Native — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 18:39:56 +0000

In a strategic move to insure Mt. Pleasant town council members keep their seats and at the same time extend their terms by 14 months, they have finally made the right choice for OK Tire property owners Mark Mason and Phillip Smith by authorizing Mayor Hallman to sign a $6M agreement with them.

Not to count one’s chickens before they hatch, Dec. 18th could be a very happy day for the two gentlemen, because that’s when the agreement is scheduled to be closed. ~~Hopefully I will be posting just one more time on this heated topic of discussion!~~

* Update: looks like the good news for the OK Tire property owners I was waiting on!

Mt Pleasant’s OK Tire and it’s eminent domain crisis

Charleston Native — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 08:42:08 +0000

OK Tire’s dilemma with Mt. Pleasant’s Town Council has brought the term “eminent domain” to the forefront for residents and business owners alike all over town. In situations like this, it’s always a good idea to look at the facts first, and then make any judgments or decisions afterward based on solid research.

As a matter of public record, the OK Tire property time line is as follows:

* Sept. 11: Town Administrator Mac Burdette said that council authorized Town Attorney Allen Young to request issuance of the check pursuant to discussions it held in an executive session.
* Sept. 25: The $2,285,000 check was based on an appraisal of the OK Tire property by Hartnett Realty Co. Inc. on this date.
* Oct. 3: Young requests a check for $2,285,000 to be issued on or before Oct. 10 payable to Charleston County Clerk of Court. The funds will be posted with the clerk as part of a condemnation action to be filed relative to the OK Tire property.
* Oct. 4: A requisition form for $2,285,000 states that the money is for “Mark Mason/OK Tire property condemnation.”
* Oct. 9: Council votes to “authorize a final offer and, if not accepted, pursue final legal action as discussed” after an executive session to discuss Shem Creek contractual and legal matters. Young declines to name the specific piece of property that the council wants to buy because of ongoing negotiations. Council does not name an amount it is offering for the unspecified piece of property.
* Oct. 10: Young issues a statement that the town is condemning the OK Tire property after owner Mark Mason rejects an offer of $2,285,000. Mason has an appraisal of $4.6 million for the land.
* Nov. 16: OK Tire property owners Mason and Phillip Smith file suit against the town, asking for the condemnation to be dismissed. Among the grounds for their countersuit are alleged town violations of the state Freedom of Information Act, including a violation Oct. 9 when Town Council approved the condemnation.
Young said in response to the FOIA request from Mason that the $2,285,000 was appropriated as part of the budget approved by council back in June. According to documents the town provided Mason, the money for condemnation of his land comes from the town’s tax increment financing fund. One of the documents lists $3 million for “water access acquisition” but does not specify the OK Tire property.

An appraisal done for SunTrust bank by Paul K. Moore & Associates values the OK Tire property at $4.5 million, which Mason says more accurately reflects the value of the tract.

Will this have any affect on your next Town Council voting decision? Inquiring minds want to know.

Shem Creek, SC » real estate

Charleston County foreclosure numbers top the state

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