MORE BUYERS are coming to Myrtle Beach looking for a deal… and they’re finding them. I see it in my business… and other agents in town confirm it.

Realtor.com is also showing an increase in web traffic for Myrtle Beach… with a 24.6% increase in search activity, year over year. Myrtle Beach now ranks 42nd in the list of 135 national markets with the biggest growth in web traffic. Realtor.com is the national home search website of the National Association of Realtors.

Home and condo prices continue to decline… driven by bank foreclosures and short sales. Other motivated sellers want to cut their losses and move on. Expect more market weakness this fall as monthly carrying costs begin to take their toll on owners.

MLS data shows that Grand Strand home prices are down 7% and Grand Strand condo prices are down 20%, year over year. It’s been a tough year for sellers… but a great year for buyers.

We’ve got some units here that are back to their original selling prices, said Coastal Carolina Association of Realtor’s market analyst Tom Maeser. In some cases with new homes, they’re selling below what they were selling for when they were first built.

There are still “hurdles to overcome” said Maeser including tight credit markets, and the uncertainty surrounding the presidential election.

Investment opportunities abound in Myrtle Beach for buyers with cash or great credit… who are willing to take a long term (3-5 year) perspective. Some of my clients have picked up amazing bargains.

For more information on “Best Buys” and to order my Special Report on “How to Maximize Your Investment in a Buyer’s Market”… go to my website BarbaraChartier.com , or call me toll-free at 1-888-494-8654.

Data Resource: Jessica Foster, The Sun News, Myrtle Beach

Looking for some fun over Labor Day weekend? Here are a cvouple things to check out.

Beach, Boogie and BBQ Festival at Grand Park in Myrtle Beach ~ click on this link for details.

The festival begins with Carolina Beach Music, Friday Night at 5:30 pm and ends with Fireworks, Saturday Night at 9:30 pm.

In between, there’ll be a “whole lot of eating going on.”

 Myrtle Beach World BBQ Sandwich Eating Championship Aug. 30 (2pm – 3pm) featuring Joey Chestnut – the winner of this year’s Nathan’s Fourth of July International Hot Dog Eating Contest. Joey will defend his world record of 45 pulled pork BBQ sandwiches in 10 minutes.

 South Carolina’s official BBQ cooking competition, a 5K run/walk, free celebrity meet and greets, a free John Michael Montgomery concert, children’s rides and games, boat rides, beach music and a 2008 Sun Fun Ford Focus Giveaway round out the fun.

Broadway at the Beach local discounts start Sept. 2

Broadway at the Beach has released its list of 2008-09 local discounts valid (with a local ID) Sept. 2 through May 24. Click on this link for details.

Discounts typically range from 10-15% and include shops, food, and entertainment venues.

Beijing Games: Local Myrtle Beach Realtor - Barbara Chartier of Century21 Coastal Lifestyles - finally realized her childhood dream. After years of training and hard work, Barbara made Team USA’s Women’s Weightlifting Team in Beijing.

Chartier’s Olympic trials nearly ended however when an equipment failure threatened disqualification on her final lift. Barbara, nevertheless, pressed on to finish in heroic fashion. See video rewind.

Further controversy surrounded Chartier’s claim that she was the oldest woman ever in Olympic competition. After a review of Chartier’s passport, IOC officials denied her claim, observing that her passport showed an age of 35. Chartier’s response, “You can’t trust passports.”

Now back at work in Myrtle Beach - When it comes to “heavy lifting”, you can always trust Barbara Chartier - Your Realtor in Myrtle Beach

The City of North Myrtle Beach is tackling two tough problems – parking and transportation.

The consultant will determine the approximate parking capacity of all City-owned off-street parking lots in the study area.

• Handicapped spaces and golf cart designated spaces will be noted in the capacity.

• They will also determine the approximate on-street parking capacity in the northern portion of the study area (from 54th Avenue North to 62nd Avenue North) and along Main Street in Ocean Drive.

• Turnover and occupancy data will be determined by taking photographs of the vehicles and comparing them to the previous visit.

• For comparison, Kimley-Horn will survey parking practices in eight similar coastal communities to determine whether they charge for parking, if so the rate and collection procedures, the number of parking spaces and enforcement procedures.

A customized parking demand model for the City of North Myrtle Beach will be created from their study.

• The model is predicated on land use mix and development intensities, existing parking inventories, travel mode split, potential shared-use parking strategies, and parking generation rates published by either the Urban Land Institute or the Institute of Transportation Engineers.

• The model will serve as a tool the City can use to evaluate land use decisions and/or policy implications. Potential applications for the parking demand model include tracking cumulative impacts of committed development, evaluating redevelopment initiatives, and reviewing parking management considerations.

• Based on the results of the parking demand model, the Consultant will recommend new parking facilities to accommodate existing parking demand.

The City and County are also teaming up to complete a Thoroughfare Plan.

• The Thoroughfare Plan study area is comprised of mostly undeveloped and underdeveloped land in the Northeastern portion of Horry County and fully developed portions of the city of North Myrtle Beach.

• The city of North Myrtle Beach is a thriving resort community that will in time expand further west of the ICWW, annexing much of the area of study by the specified build-out year of 2035.

• The study area extends from U.S. Highway 17 in the city of North Myrtle Beach, SC, to S.C. Highways 57 and 90; from S.C. Route 22 to Route 9 in the unincorporated areas of Horry County, as well as incorporated portions of the city of North Myrtle Beach.

• The study area also includes the area located south of the existing (future I-73/I-74) interchange of S.C. Route 22 and S.C. Route 31, from the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway (ICWW) to the corporate limits of the City of Myrtle Beach.

The Plan will help to guide future development of a comprehensive countywide thoroughfare system… focusing on the preservation of rights-of-way needed for future development of long-range transportation improvements.

• The Plan has far-reaching implications on the growth and development of urban and rural areas.

• The Plan may influence the pattern of movement and the desirability of areas for development.

Source: Jim Hulen – NorthMyrtleBeachONLINE.com

Developers of the failed Bahama Island Resort and Marina say a man who promised to finance the project took off with $5.1 million in condominium deposits and may have left the country.

Developers blame financier

Duwayne Woods, the purported financier, is nowhere to be found.

• “We’ve chased him all over the country,” said Tommy Brittain, a lawyer representing developers Jeff Shoup and Tommy Hix, whose T&J Development of North Myrtle Beach was supposed to build Bahama Island.

• One of Woods’ former business partners said he heard recently that Woods had moved to Switzerland, and Brittain said “there’s some indication he might be out of the country.”

• Woods did not return messages left at his last known telephone number.

Buyers blame developers

Wherever Woods has gone, some buyers say he is not the culprit in the Bahama Island debacle.

• They say Shoup and Hix are to blame for their financial losses because the two men took all of the deposit money out of an escrow account at Bank of America last year and gave it to Woods based on his promise to finance the project.

• Shoup said he is “doing everything I can to assist the buyers,” but referred all questions to Brittain. Hix did not return telephone calls seeking comment.

Attorneys follow the money

Randall Mullins, a lawyer with the Mullins Law Firm in North Myrtle Beach, said he doesn’t buy the story about Woods and disappearing money.

• “I see no evidence of any money being transferred to Mr. Woods,” Mullins said.

• Some of that money might have found its way into one or more of at least 59 corporations Shoup and Hix have formed over the years, according to lawsuits Mullins and lawyer Jarrod Ownbey have filed on behalf of Bahama Island buyers.

• Those lawsuits say the condo developers “intended to defraud the [buyers]” because Shoup and Hix knew Bahama Island would never get built.

• Mullins said in court documents that he believes Shoup and Hix “have withdrawn deposits from the escrow agent and kept those funds for their own benefit.”

Defaults go to court

Shoup, Hix and T&J Development have defaulted on a combined $13.7 million worth of loans taken out since July 2004, according to court documents. Shoup and Hix are contesting the defaults in court.

• Those defaults are in addition to the $5.1 million in missing condo deposits. It is not clear whether any of those deposits will be returned to buyers because the National Bank of South Carolina has filed a foreclosure lawsuit against the Bahama Island property.

• That lawsuit, filed in September, says Shoup and Hix have not paid $7.7 million in loans they took out in 2004 as partners in Ship Ahoy LLC, the corporation that owns the land.

• The bank wants to sell the land to recover its $7.7 million.

Foreclosure – good or bad news?

Brittain said the foreclosure might be good news for buyers, because any sale price greater than $7.7 million could generate money for deposit refunds.

• Brittain said the 22.2-acre Bahama Island property is worth about $15 million.

• “The bank would get its $8 million or so, and there should be enough money left for the $5 million or so we need to collect for the depositors,” he said. “That’s what I’m hoping will happen.”

• Mullins said a $15 million price tag - roughly $675,067 per acre - might be overpriced in the slumping Grand Strand real estate market.

• Horry County property records show a similar piece of property located adjacent to the Bahama Island site sold for $298,786 per acre a little more than a year ago.

Market sours, suits emerge

Hix and Shoup’s fortunes started to turn sour last year as this area’s condo market tanked, according to court records.

• Three lenders have filed lawsuits since November against Shoup and Hix, accusing the men of defaulting on a combined $6 million in loans, including $1.75 million that was supposed to help build Tilghman Beach Villas in North Myrtle Beach.

• Shoup and Hix deny they have defaulted on the loans, according to court filings, and no court dates have been set.

Another lawsuit says Oceanfront Real Estate Co., which was formed by Shoup and Hix to market their condo projects, abandoned an office it leased at the Gator Hole Plaza shopping center in North Myrtle Beach.

• THF Gator Hole Development LLC, which filed the lawsuit in September, wants unspecified back rent and damages. Shoup and Hix have not filed an answer to that lawsuit and no court date is set.

The men were dealt another setback in late September when another company they formed, Smith Bay Developers LLC, couldn’t get a permit to build a 214-unit condo project in St. Thomas, Virgin Islands.

• A government committee denied the permit because the developers failed to address concerns about traffic, building height and public beach access.

• Smith Bay Developers bought the 8.6-acre St. Thomas property for $2.75 million in February 2006, a few months before Shoup and Hix say they made their Bahama Island deal with Woods.

• Smith Bay Developers still owes $1.8 million on the Virgin Island property, according to mortgage documents.

Buyers frustrated

Some buyers now say they aren’t concerned with how their money disappeared but whether they will get it back.

• Many of the condos were sold to out-of-state buyers, making it more difficult for them to get in touch with the developers.

Shoup and Hix added to buyers’ frustrations, Mullins said, when their Oceanfront Real Estate company filed a $5.1 million lien against the Bahama Island property in July.

• Oceanfront Real Estate sent the project’s buyers a letter saying the lien was supposed to protect their interests in the property in case developers tried to sell it.

• “The property can not be transferred to another party or a new construction loan closed until the lien is satisfied” and buyers’ deposits are returned, according to the letter.

Mullins said the lien “is just a stall” to keep buyers from getting their money back.

• “There was no purpose in filing that lien because they [Shoup and Hix] are the only ones who could have sold the property anyway,” Mullins said.

• Now that a bank is foreclosing on the land, the lien will take a back seat to the $7.7 million mortgage on the land.

The Bahama Island project was supposed to have 320 condos, views of the Intracoastal Waterway, a pool, marina and dry dock storage building. Only the storage building has been built.

Source: David Wren with Jenny Burns, The Sun News, Myrtle Beach, SC

Several major developers are collaborating in a way never before seen in Myrtle Beach to bring new life to more than 1,000 acres on the former Air Force Base, which has sat mostly undeveloped since the base closed nearly 15 years ago.

Now, workers are busy connecting the pieces of the massive developments - thousands of single-family houses, townhouses and condominiums; nearly 400,000 square feet of stores and amenities such as foot paths and recreation fields that developers have worked with Myrtle Beach officials to plan.

Portions of the base are set to open at different times, though development will continue for years to come.

• The retail portion of the site, on The Market Common, will open in April and the residential in June.

Developers and builders on the air base have worked together - thanks to city help - and met regularly to coordinate development.

• Competing developers working together is unusual, but will help provide a sense of a linked community, instead of separate neighborhoods, builders say.

• The group talked about foot paths connected to the retail center of the community, developed-shared amenity centers and home styles.

• All the builders have made sure the design of all the details, like the signs, are consistent.

• They have also met bi-weekly with the city to make sure all permits are in place and all infrastructure is being put in place as efficiently as possible.

Several developers are talking about creating a master homeowners association to govern all of their various parcels, with a shared clubhouse and fitness center.

• The neighborhoods likely would also have smaller homeowners associations that would report to the master association.

Source: Lisa Fleisher and Jenny Burns, The Sun News, Myrtle Beach

A Charlotte, N.C., developer plans to start construction in a month on a small condominium project in Atlantic Beach that will be the historically black town’s first redevelopment in decades.

• The project, at 400 S. 31st St., will build retail on the bottom and six condos on the top - small by development standards, but the ripples could be huge for a town that has struggled to attract significant development for years.

• The two bedroom condos will be second homes or permanent homes with gated parking, oceanviews, large storage space, elevators, a pool and Jacuzzi… and will start at $325,000.

Town officials have spent a year developing a master plan for the four-block community, and they’re ready to see construction start and demolition of derelict structures happen. They want to create a vibrant Main Street with retail, nightclubs and a livable, walkable town.

• Property has been bought in Atlantic Beach in the last couple years, and developers have talked about projects, but many have been waiting for someone to make the first move.

Town officials welcome the change.

Their master plan calls for a walkable shopping community along the main streets with living space above.

• They want a village feel and lower-density oceanfront development that won’t create a wall effect, leaving the ocean view open at the end of the main streets.

• They’ve also set 16 properties in the town for demolition, said Marcia Conner, town manager.

The town’s master plan was designed to reflect the town’s heritage as a recreation haven for black people in the time of segregation, and its uniqueness as one of only two black-owned and black-governed oceanfront towns on the East Coast today.

Since desegregation, the town has struggled to reinvent itself and attract development.

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

If you’re buying a home this year, you’re going to pay more in property taxes than the previous owner - double in some cases - because of what some are calling an unintended consequence of a tax reform bill passed this year.

• Taxes on homes in Horry County have been calculated based on their 2003 values, but tax bills for homes sold in 2007 and beyond will be based on the current market value - an average increase of about 50 percent in value, but more in some areas. The bigger bills will start going out in October 2008.

• That means your neighbors living in an identical home might be paying $1,884.41 in taxes for their home, but you would pay $2,760.81 if you just bought your home, according to the Horry County assessor’s office. That’s based on two homes valued at about $113,000 in 2003.

• The 2003 values were implemented in 2005, said Rendel Mincey, Horry County assessor.

The tax reform passed this year was focused on helping the permanent homeowner who stays in their home, and keep rising values from taxing them out of their home. It achieved that, by capping increases to 15 percent over five-year periods for permanent owners and by giving permanent residents significant reductions in the school millage part of their tax bill.

• So, if you stay in your home, you’ll see a healthy decrease between about 25 and 48 percent, depending on the value.

• But if you plan to buy, get ready for an increase.

Real estate experts say this is one more burden that will hurt Grand Strand investment purchases, on top of insurance spikes, a tightening mortgage market and a slow real estate market.

Informing the public

Mincey, the county assessor, has just finished learning how to figure these reassessments from the state. He said South Carolina has never before taxed homes based on a current market value. Taxpayers won’t see the big bill until October 2008 for properties sold this year, he said.

• In 2009, the entire county will be reappraised, but current homeowners are protected under the 15 percent cap, Mincey said.

• The Assessor’s Office will start putting examples of the increases on its Web site, www.horrycounty.org, to inform residents about the change, he said, but didn’t say when the examples will be added.

Effect on investors

Realtors are concerned this will discourage people from moving to a new home to upsize or downsize and discourage second-home purchasers.

• “The investors don’t need to be zapped again after the insurance debacle,” Maeser said, adding that investment buyers make up about 60 percent of the Grand Strand market.

• “If Myrtle Beach didn’t have a 60 percent investment market, it wouldn’t be a big deal,” said Steven Neeves, government affairs director for the Coastal Carolinas Association of Realtors. “It has to affect it somehow and whether that is small or large, we don’t know.”

• Neeves also expects rents to rise after investors who bought properties get their tax bills. CCAR is planning a summit in October to bring brokers and lawmakers together to talk about the issue.

• At a home closing, taxes are usually calculated based on last year, but because that’s no longer the case, Neeves said CCAR is encouraging agents to have their clients call the Assessor’s Office directly to get the exact figure.

What to do now

Clemmons said the full effect of the tax relief isn’t really known yet - as far as how much permanent homeowners will save and how much new buyers will pay extra.

• “We don’t have all the answers yet because we don’t have all the questions yet. We haven’t yet experienced the tax relief. I think there’s likely to be more issues on the table than what we are even aware of now,” he said.

• Clemmons also is concerned about the impact on the investor buyers. “We want South Carolina to be the first place people think of when thinking of buying investment property. We need to keep that in mind as we take a look at changes in tax structure,” he said.

• As Clemmons has started to talk with lawmakers around the state, many didn’t realize the impact that part of the new law would have. “Horry County is on the front end. It’s something that has not yet come to their attention,” he said.

• Kremydas said the state Realtors are keeping close watch.

• “If we see that it’s blocking deals, we have to take action immediately,” he said. “Our markets need all the help they can get, and we don’t need to hurt it.”

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

A new Myrtle Beach, a new South Carolina, a new South.

That’s how officials are pitching the Grand Strand to decision-makers in Washington, hoping the message will resonate with those looking toward a new America.

The city is thick in a race for two presidential primary debates, likely to be held in January 2008, and on Thursday the Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce held a strategy meeting.

“What we want to do is show the great Southern hospitality and show the new Myrtle Beach to the world,” said Wayne Gray, a city councilman and a former chamber chairman.

Myrtle Beach has to overcome a number of obstacles in selectors’ minds: It has the wrong image for a presidential debate; it is not a major media market; there is not a huge political base here; and there are not many large corporations that could be sponsors.

City and county officials have been heavily lobbying the state Republican party, which said it will hold another debate but has not announced where.

The Congressional Black Caucus Institute, a nonpartisan Washington group, will sponsor an S.C. debate for the Democratic Party.

The benefits to the city are immeasurable, officials say. Myrtle Beach will be a part of history at a critical time and will be exposed to a national and international audience.

“This is not about whether you’re a Democrat or Republican,” Myrtle Beach Mayor John Rhodes said. “This is about what is the best thing for Myrtle Beach and Horry County.”

Source: Lisa Fleisher, The Sun News, Myrtle Beach, SC

The City of North Myrtle Beach is improving beach services by offering chair and umbrella rentals, as well as roving concession carts for beachgoers.

• The rental rates are $10 for chairs and $15 for umbrellas per full day. Other rental rates and combinations were available.

Providing these services frees lifeguards to do the one job that is most important to anyone on the NMB beaches – keeping the visitors safe and saving lives.

• The intent is for the lifeguards to be strictly responsible for the safety of our citizens from now on. They no longer will have to think about renting beach chairs.

• Lifeguards hired for this program have completed rigorous training in lifesaving, first aid and public safety. A full staff of qualified lifeguards will be protecting swimmers this summer, with approximately ninety percent being hired from the local population.

Also newly available to those visiting NMB beaches will be concession vehicles that will cruise the sand during the season. This ATV-type vehicles look much like a beverage cart as found on golf courses.

• They will offer a variety of sandwiches, beverages, candy, sunscreen and frozen lemonade. The City has strived to keep the prices of items reasonable, with no items costing over $3.

By Angela Barwick- NorthMyrtleBeachOnline.com

Homeowners in South Carolina, especially the hurricane-prone coast, can now receive grants and tax credits for making their homes more wind resistant, thanks to a bill signed into law Monday.

Website:

How to take advantage of these credits will be outlined in a new Web site - www.scsafehome.com - that the Department of Insurance should have online by Wednesday, said Ann Roberson, insurance department spokeswoman.

The first applications to apply for grant money will be available August 15, she said.

Workshop:

On June 27, the insurance department will be offering two workshops on how to retrofit your home at the Home Depot on Oak Forest Lane in Myrtle Beach. The Federal Alliance for Safe Homes will explain how to install shutters, roof tie-downs and garage door track reinforcements at free afternoon and evening workshops. The times haven’t been set yet.

The state’s insurance department has $2.3 million in grant money and hopes to look for more through federal matches, Insurance Director Scott Richardson said.

Some of the bill’s details:

• Offers homeowners tax credits of up to $1,000 for the cost of making their home more wind resistant.

• Offers tax credits of up to $1,250 for low income property owners who pay more than 5 percent of their income toward insurance premiums.

• Reduces sales tax by 3 percent for building supplies used to make homes more wind resistant.

• Requires insurers to give consumers a list of all discounts they can get for retrofitting their property and requires them to offer such discounts.

• Requires insurers to give 90 days notice for cancellation in hurricane season and 60 days notice for the rest of the year.

• Provides matching grants for single family, modular or manufactured homeowners to retrofit their properties. Homes must be owner occupied and be valued at $300,000 or less, and have undergone a wind certification and hurricane mitigation inspection.

The bill offers incentives to insurance companies for covering property in the wind pool, the state’s insurer of last resort. They get a credit of 25 percent against the premium tax.

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

S.C. Insurance Director Scott Richardson expanded the wind pool to the Intracoastal Waterway - and beyond in some areas - on Wednesday, the second expansion in three months aiming to ease the coast’s insurance crisis.

• Homeowners can go to the wind pool Web site at www.scwind.com and put in their address to see if they are now in the wind pool.

• The new line expands the wind pool past the Intracoastal Waterway following S.C. 31 to River Oaks Drive and then follows the waterway into Georgetown County.

• The expansion now includes all of the Waccamaw Neck and parts of the city of Georgetown including the historic district, where Richardson said he learned there was “significant trouble” getting coverage.

• He expanded the wind pool, the state’s insurer of last resort, in March to U.S. 17 Bypass.

The wind pool was also expanded in Charleston County, but the change will be most helpful in Horry and Georgetown counties, he said.

The news came as a surprise to insurance agents and Grand Strand homeowners.

• Richardson said consumers who currently have a policy with a surplus lines carrier should see a reduction in their insurance costs if they obtain coverage through the wind pool.

• But the cost of coverage may increase for those who already have a standard carrier and the wind coverage is excluded.

The expanded wind pool will offer two rates - one in Zone 1, which includes the original expansion, and the other in Zone 2.

• Owners in the second tier, Zone 2, will pay about 20 to 25 percent less than those in Zone 1. This addresses the complaint that people two or three miles back from the beach would be charged the same rates as oceanfront property, he said. People in the new area can buy coverage at current rates after it takes effect June 1, he said.

But in September, the wind pool rates will increase significantly, about 30 percent. The rate increase has been expected - because additional amounts of exposure require new rates.

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

Withers Preserve, a walkable community coming to the former Myrtle Beach Air Force Base, will be the first in the nation to use General Electric’s new Ecomagination products - a line of appliances that save water and energy.

• Each home will save at least 20 percent on energy costs and on indoor water consumption. A control panel on the wall will let homeowners monitor how much water and energy they’re using.

• The eco-friendly appliances - including dishwashers, refrigerators and washers and dryers - come standard in the houses, and at least half of the indoor and outdoor lights will use lamps that use up to 75 percent less electricity than standard incandescent lighting.

• Solar panels will be an option in the homes, and homeowners can get financial incentives from GE Mortgage for purchasing a green home. The first phase of 60 single-family homes at Withers Preserve are selling for $500,000 to $600,000.

The 900-acre neighborhood of single-family homes, townhomes and condos will be within walking distance of shops and restaurants at The Market Common. Model houses are under construction.

Developer Robert O’Neel will join GE officials and California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger in Los Angeles on Thursday to announce the deal. The event will broadcast live in Myrtle Beach at the Withers Preserve sales center at 2 p.m.

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

For more information on Withers Preserve – prices, availability, timing – contact Barbara Chartier by phone: 843-902-0204, or email: Barbara.Chartier@century21.com.

The launch of Myrtle Beach Direct Air and an earlier-than-usual spring return by Delta boosted passenger traffic in March at Myrtle Beach International Airport.

• About 68,446 people flew out of Myrtle Beach last month, a 23 percent increase over the same month a year ago, according to airport statistics.

• March was the seventh consecutive month of passenger increases over the previous year, a trend airport officials predict will continue as airlines add more flights and capacity.

• So far this calendar year, 148,001 travelers have flown out of Myrtle Beach.

Since last April, Myrtle Beach has added two additional destinations, Fort Lauderdale, Fla., on Spirit and Niagara Falls, N.Y., on Myrtle Beach Direct Air.

• Direct Air, during its first month in March, carried 4,052 passengers into and out of Myrtle Beach. The charter carrier flies to Newark, N.J.; Pittsburgh and Niagara Falls.

• Delta’s earlier-than-usual spring return also helped. The airline added another route to Atlanta to fill the void left by AirTran. About 3,293 people traveling in and out of Myrtle Beach flew on Delta in March.

• Spirit, which recently added a flight to Boston, carried the most outbound passengers, 26,858. US Airways was second, with 19,667 outbound passengers.

Airport officials point to passenger growth as a reason for building a new 14-gate terminal, a $226 million project that has limped along under stiff criticism for the past few years.

The Myrtle Beach Community Appearance Board, which must OK the project, will decide April 26 whether it can be built.

Source: Dawn Bryant, The Sun News, Myrtle Beach

Three Intracoastal Waterway lots in Carolina Forest will go on the auction block on Thursday - a form of marketing that real estate agents say is becoming more popular for residential properties in a slow market.

• Auctioning is becoming more popular for residential properties, analysts say, because of high inventories and a buyer’s market.

• The benefits of auctions are better marketing, a date of sale and perhaps a better price - owners can put minimums on their property so it won’t be sold for less than they want.

• If it doesn’t sell, the company then has a list of all the potential people who were interested in buying and the owner has an idea what that group of buyers thought the property was worth on that given day.

Three owners will find out what price their lots are worth Thursday.

• The auction for lots 31, 32 and 50 in Carolina Waterway Plantation will start at 6 p.m. at the Comfort Suites at the intersection of U.S. 501 and U.S. 17 Bypass.

• Bidders should arrive early to register.

Tom Maeser, president of the Fortune Academy of Real Estate, said auctioning residential properties is certainly becoming more popular, but it’s important the consumer gets a reputable auctioneer.

• “I see more and more of it. It used to mean distressed sales, but it doesn’t mean that now. People are more receptive to it. When people get frustrated with the existing scenario, an auction becomes another method,” he said.

The owners of the three lots in Carolina Waterway Plantation could be frustrated because there are a good number of lots already on the market in that development - 66 lots out of 364.

• And only two lots have sold since the first of the year, according to the Multiple Listing Service.

• Similar waterway lots are on the market for $421,900 at lot 49 and $427,435 at lot 39. And the waterway lot that sold most recently went for $355,000, down from an asking price of $380,000.

Source: Jenny Burns, The Sun News, Myrtle Beach