The North Myrtle Beach City Council has signed off on the Planned Unit Development for Towers on the Grove, paving the way for construction of the 3.5-acre waterfront condominium project in South Carolina… the property will ultimately feature over 650 residences with an estimated sell out of $150 million.

Towers on the Grove will occupy a 3.5-acre stretch along the beach between 21st Avenue North and 23rd Avenue North, the location of the former Cherry Grove Manor.

The first phase of the project, Grove South Tower, is scheduled to get underway in February 2007. The 18-story building will feature 221 condominiums, and the second phase will feature an additional 221 units; the third leg of the project will have approximately 221 residences or slightly less.

Approximately 80 percent of Towers on the Grove’s first phase have already been sold. Phase one of Towers on the Grove is on target to reach completion in July 2008.

By Barbra Murray, Commercial Property News

For more information on “Towers on the Grove”, contact Barbara Chartier at 843-902-0204.

Air travelers wanting information about the status of flights at Myrtle Beach International Airport can jump online and look in one place on a new web site flymyrtlebeach.com .

For the first time, travelers will be able to check the site for real-time status of their flights, including delays. Previously, travelers had to get that information from the airlines directly or call the airport.

There’s also information online about rental car options at the airport and the planned 14-gate terminal.

Source: Dawn Bryant, The Sun News, Myrtle Beach, SC

AirTran Airways will not return to Myrtle Beach come spring, taking away a vital, low-cost link to Atlanta.

• The airline, which ended its seasonal service Nov. 6, couldn’t draw enough passengers, especially higher-paying business travelers, AirTran spokeswoman Judy Graham-Weaver said.

Fliers from Myrtle Beach liked the AirTran service because the airline has a hub in Atlanta, allowing travelers to pick up connecting flights to about 50 destinations, including Tampa, Fla.; New York; Denver; Kansas City, Mo.; and Washington, D.C.

• The fares also were low, leaving some speculating that AirTran’s departure could cause prices to rise.

Already, Delta is stepping up to fill the void. The airline announced this week that it will use bigger planes to fly the Myrtle Beach-Atlanta route starting this summer, offering more seats.

• Myrtle Beach’s seasonal nature makes it tricky for airlines. Most pull out or cut back in the winter and return along with the tourists in the spring.

Myrtle Beach Direct plans to fly to Pittsburgh, Newark, N.J., and Niagara Falls, N.Y., while Southern Skyways will fly to Charleston, W.Va., Allentown, Pa., and Cincinnati.

• “We believe the recent new service announcements by low-cost operators Myrtle Beach Direct Air and Southern Skyways who, combined, will provide nonstop service to six markets, will more than offset any affect from AirTran’s current decisions,” Bourcier said in an e-mail.

This year traffic is down at the airport, which officials have blamed on having fewer seats to fill. Through November, the number of passengers leaving the beach is off last year’s numbers by 8.8 percent, while incoming traffic is down 9.49 percent, according to Horry County statistics.

Source: By Dawn Bryant, The Sun News, Myrtle Beach, SC

Allstate Corp. said Wednesday that it’s dropping property insurance coverage for about 12,000 homeowners in coastal South Carolina and 4,000 in coastal North Carolina.

Allstate says the reason for non-renewal is the increased hurricane risk and increased cost of reinsurance.

The second largest home insurer in South Carolina said it will stop renewing policies today in the Carolinas, said Renita Ward, Allstate spokeswoman for the Southeast region.

The non-renewals cover all property coverage - homeowner, condo, renter, mobile home or landlord’s package policy - and customers who have only property insurance with Allstate. Those with dual policies, such as automobile insurance and a homeowners policy, will not be dropped.

Community leaders said legislators and regulators need to step into action.

• “It certainly points to the need for our delegation and Department of Insurance to take this very, very seriously. The [real estate] market has slowed down on its own and you add something like this and it can have a devastating effect on a marketplace,” said Tom Maeser, analyst and president of the Fortune Academy of Real Estate.

• “I think the governor should make this a high priority,” Maeser said.

Affected by drops?

• In North Carolina, Allstate says the 4,000 customers can get wind coverage through the N.C. Insurance Underwriting Association - North Carolina’s beach plan.

• In South Carolina, the 12,000 customers can get wind coverage through their Allstate agent through a third party carrier called the Kimbrell Group, Allstate said.

• The Kimbrell Group is a non-admitted carrier, meaning it is not regulated by the state, according to the insurance department.

Source: Jenny Burns, The Sun News, Myrtle Beach, SC

SLOWING MARKET HITS HOME SELLERS

Although few experts predict that home values will fall dramatically in 2007, many economists say that prices won’t improve for 12 to 18 months.

Ambitious building booms in many markets in the past five years, combined with mortgage interest rates that have increased about 1 percent in the past year, have resulted in residential real estate stagnation. The gridlock defies conventional wisdom, stubbornly remaining neither a buyer’s nor a seller’s market.

• “We are currently experiencing the worst of the market freeze, which is being exacerbated by the gap between the buyer’s desire for bargains and the seller’s fantasy of what they once thought their homes would be worth,” said Diane Swonk, chief economist for Chicago-based Mesirow Financial, who forecasts a rebound in early 2008.

• “The good news is that there are some signs of stabilization. The bad news is that a substantial backlog of unsold homes still exists.”

In expensive coastal cities, economists say, price appreciation hit a wall. San Francisco and Boston - where many investors enjoyed double-digit property gains in the late 1990s and the first half of this decade - have simply become unaffordable.

• “Areas along the coast of the nation and the large urban areas tend to see stronger price gains in housing upturns, and stronger declines in downturns,” said Celia Chen, a housing economist with Moody’s Economy.com.

• In Sun Belt havens such as Las Vegas and Phoenix, overzealous construction resulted in a glut of new homes and condos. Real estate experts say sellers and developers there will struggle throughout 2007.

Source: Rachel Konrad, AP Business Writer

Excerpted from article by Robert J. Bruss, Inman News

Consider yourself fortunate if you are in the market to buy a home now. Mortgage interest rates are still quite affordable at around 6 percent interest. Anyone with a new or resale house or condo on the market to sell at this time of the year is probably very eager to negotiate.

NEGOTIATE WITH SERIOUS HOME SELLERS. In most home sales markets there is an oversupply of new and resale residences available. The supply inventory of unsold homes is higher than buyer demand. The result is “the buyer is king.”

To successfully negotiate a home purchase in the current buyer’s market, here are the five top negotiation tips for today’s home buyers:

1. DISCOVER WHY THE SELLER IS SELLING. If the seller asks, “Why do you want to know why I’m selling?” the best answer is “Because I want to make you a purchase offer that will meet your needs.”

Negotiate with sellers who really want to sell. Signals of serious motivation to sell include job transfer, unemployment, pending foreclosure, divorce, birth or death in the family, financial problems, purchase of another home, and retirement.

When a seller has the attitude, “If I can get my price, I’ll sell; if not, I won’t sell,” it’s usually a waste of the buyer’s and agent’s time to negotiate with that seller unless the asking price is very reasonable.

However, just to be sure, if you want to buy a particular house, make a realistic written purchase offer anyway and see what happens.

2. FIND OUT THE SELLER’S PURCHASE PRICE. Buyer’s agents can usually determine the purchase price and date from public records. If it was bought last year at the top of the market, there is probably zero room for negotiation unless the seller has a very high motivation to sell.

However, if the home was bought more than 10 years ago, there is probably lots of seller equity with which to negotiate.

3. FIND OUT THE SELLER’S DEADLINE TO SELL. When a seller is motivated by a deadline, such as a job transfer date or the scheduled closing date on another home, such a deadline can be powerful motivator. If the listing expires in the next few weeks, the listing agent will usually be extremely cooperative and motivated to get the home sold fast.

However, if the seller has no specific deadline to sell, negotiation with that unmotivated seller can be very difficult.

4. ASK WHAT INSPECTIONS THE SELLER HAS COMPLETED. There are two primary advantages of pre-listing inspections for sellers: (a) unexpected problems, such as a leaky roof or termite damage, can be repaired by the seller, and (b) costly surprises are avoided for sellers when the buyer’s inspections must reveal unexpected serious damage.

However, smart buyers include a contingency clause in their purchase offer making the offer contingent on the their approval of their own inspectors’ reports.

After the buyer’s purchase offer is accepted by the seller, if the buyer’s inspections reveal undisclosed defects, the buyer then can (a) disapprove the reports and obtain a full refund of the good faith deposit, (b) re-open negotiations on price and terms, or (c) ask for repair credits as part of the closing settlement.

5. BEFORE MAKING A PURCHASE OFFER, ASK YOUR BUYER’S AGENT TO PREPARE A COMPARATIVE MARKET ANALYSIS (CMA). The most important reason home buyers need their own buyer’s agent is to prepare a CMA.

This CMA form shows (a) recent sales prices of comparable nearby homes, (b) asking prices of similar neighborhood homes currently listed for sale, and (c) even asking prices of recently expired competitive listings (usually overpriced).

Using the pros and cons of each home shown on the CMA, with the agent’s help the buyer can then arrive at a fair purchase offer price. The buyer’s agent will then show that CMA to the seller when the buyer’s purchase offer is presented.

CONTACT BARBARA CHARTIERat 843-902-0204 to find motivated sellers and bests buys in Myrtle Beach.

Myrtle Beach is still the most expensive city in South Carolina for renters - a ranking the Grand Strand reached in 2005, a report released Tuesday says.

Renters must make $13.69 an hour to afford a two-bedroom apartment at the Myrtle Beach-Conway-North Myrtle Beach metropolitan area’s fair market rent of $712 in 2006 - up from $684 last year, according to the National Low Income Housing Coalition.

• That’s higher than the $690 fair market rent for a two-bedroom in Charleston and $707 monthly rent in Charlotte.

• Yet wages in Myrtle Beach are much lower. The mean renter wage is $8.94, while it’s $9.89 in Columbia, $10.25 in Charlotte and $10.57 in Charleston.

“The bottom line is that this problem still exists. It’s been a year and the report still shows [the same ranking]. The problem needs to be addressed by the county and local governments,” said Tom Maeser, market analyst and president of the Fortune Academy of Real Estate.

• On the Grand Strand, a host of apartment conversions took two complexes off the rental market, creating higher demand for apartments and raising rental rates.

But even a slower housing market won’t lower rates, experts say, mostly because owners will be passing along the increases they’re seeing from their insurance premiums onto renters.

“As we keep increasing the price to the renter because of insurance and the cost of building, we’re causing the marketplace to be out of proportion because our incomes are not going up in direct relationship to what our rents are going up,” Maeser said.

Source: Jenny Burns, The Sun News, Myrtle Beach, SC

Century 21 Coastal Lifestyles has partnered with Brentwood Homes, Inc. to market eight luxury homes which are currently being constructed in Myrtle Beach area neighborhoods.

Neighborhoods included are Tidewater Plantation, Washington Walk, Willow Springs and Plantation Lakes. Innovative designs showcase upgrades in cabinets, counter tops, flooring and porches along with relationships committed to developing family neighborhoods.

Brentwood Homes, Inc., the largest private builder in Charleston, recently received the “Sustainable Charleston” award for small business in recognition of its commitment to green building standards as certified by EarthCraft. Brentwood is the largest green builder in SC and among the top in the country.

EarthCraft certified homes are not only healthier to live in, but overall more comfortable, sustainable, and more energy efficient than standard constructed homes. In addition to the money saving features, the homes are built with high quality building practices to retain their value.

Edward L. Terry, president of Brentwood, builds neighborhoods in Atlanta, Jackson Hole and Sarasota and has been in the business for 35 years.

Century 21 Coastal Lifestyles is available to assist with relocation planning for families seeking new homes, for Baby Boomers rethinking their lives and for investors interested in learning about the market.

For more information contact Barbara Chartier at Century21 Coastal Lifestyles by phone: 843-902-0204, or email: Barbara.Chartier@century21.com .

The Grand Strand housing market is showing its first sign of quarter-over-quarter price declines, and one economist says insurance increases are largely to blame.

• “The condo market will see continued price declines that is going to get worse, unless we find a solution to the insurance problem” said Al Parish, economist at Charleston Southern University.

• Skyrocketing insurance premiums have hit the condo market harder than the single-family market.

• He cited up to 100 percent increases in single-family premiums and up to 700 percent increases in condos.

RE-SALE PRICES DOWN IN THIRD QUARTER

• Condos: median price fell to $169,500 in the third quarter from $173,900 in the second quarter.

• Single Family Homes: median price dropped from $197,000 in the second quarter to $193,300 in the third quarter.

NEW HOUSING MIXED IN THIRD QUARTER

• Condos showed a slight decrease, from $201,820 to $199,900.

• Single-family homes - are seeing price increases.

HOWEVER - PRICES HAVE INCREASED, YEAR OVER YEAR

• Resales: Condos up 1% and Single-Family Homes up 7%.

• New Housing: Condos up 29% and Single-Family Homes jumped 23%

Source: Jenny Burns, The Sun News, Myrtle Beach, SC

New homes are selling better than resale homes on the Grand Strand - as builders advertise nationally and offer incentives that individual sellers can’t.

• Builder incentives include such things as low interest rates, free homeowners association dues and home upgrades.

• Builders can advertise through national Web sites and developers use target marketing and invitation-only events to sell homes in certain areas of the Northeast.

• Real estate agents list their properties on their company’s Web sites, but analysts say that’s not as visible as the builders’ advertising reach.

• It’s also more complicated to buy a resale home because builders have financing on-site at the sales office. Plus, 60 percent of customers want a new home.

Mark Vitner, economist with Wachovia in Charlotte, N.C., said builders are discounting because of the volume of buyers walking away from contracts.

• Because builders can easily cut prices, new home prices are falling more in line with resale prices throughout the country, he said.

• “Existing homeowners are more reluctant to cut asking prices,” he said.

And for sellers, that means putting their home on the market at the right price - and fixing up their home to be attractive to buyers.

• The biggest thing is to make sure when you put your property on the market, you are at the lowest level in your area.

Overall Statistics: Sales Down over last year

• New Condo Sales - dropped 2%
• Condo Re-Sales – dropped 105%

• New Home Sales – dropped 8%
• Home Re-Sales – dropped 24%

Source: Jenny Burns, The Sun News, Myrtle Beach, SC

For more information on New Home Incentives, contact Barbara Chartier at 843-902-0204.