Blog | Myrtle Beach Homes | Carolina Forest Homes

Mar 13 2017

We Do More Than Just Sell A Home #MoreThanHouses

As a REALTOR® many think that my only job is to help someone buy or sell a house, but we do much more. As I began my crazy day today, I thought I would give everyone a quick glimpse into what all a REALTOR® does which is beyond just helping someone buy or sell a home. This is all what happened this morning by 9:30 AM.

I started my morning today by discussing with someone how we are active in our community helping preserve the right to home ownership with both local and state governments to make sure your rights to own a home stays affordable and safe. For example, over the past few months we have lobbied with local government in Horry County to not pass any sort of impact fees on property.

The government thought that by adding some sort of impact fee onto the purchase or sale of property it would help to stimulate economy and increase revenues to fund other items in the county. While yes, it would increase the amount of money the county has, the fees that it would impose would make it virtually impossible for many consumers to purchase or sell their homes as the fees could be several thousands of dollars. I shared this on my first call of the morning while speaking with a buyer client.

As I hung up my phone, I was greeted by an email from our state director on government affairs, Lindsay Jackson on another issue we are currently battling here in South Carolina. This issue is SC Bill 3886 which is a bill regarding Homeowners Association Legislation. Here are the main points of the bill.

Clarity on disclosure of governing documents ensuring the seller must disclose documents to potential buyers.
Clarity on the obligations of the HOA confirming that the HOA will provide printed copies of the documents for actual cost and electronic copies at no charge.
48-hour notice to homeowners from the HOA before taking any action to add or increase fees.
Creating of an online training course for HOA board members at no cost to the consumer.
Allow magistrate courts to have concurrent civil jurisdiction over certain disputes between associations and homeowners.
Create a Homeowners Association Ombudsman within the Department of Consumer Affairs to assist in dispute resolution and helping homeowners understand their rights and responsibilities.

If you would like to read the entire bill in detail, I’ve uploaded a copy SC Bill 3886 here. Also, I’ve attached a screenshot of my letter to my local state representative that was submitted digitally to her this morning below.

The original laws were put into place back in 1976 and have many amendments over the years. The one area though that has not had a lot of changes over the years is the governing of Homeowners Associations. They have been able to raise fees as they wish, make changes, and do as they wish without really any type of regulation. This new law would help to change that and add a very much needed level of governance to help protect homeowner rights. You can send a letter to SC representatives here.

As you can see, the job of a REALTOR® is more than just selling a home I also like making sure the rights of homeownership are protected and safe for generations to come. Feel free to reach out to me if you would like to learn more about homeownership in Myrtle Beach or more about this upcoming bill.

Jan 06 2017

Most Expensive Homes Sold On The Grand Strand In 2016

The year 2016 has flown by and we are once again at the annual Most Expensive Homes Sold along The Grand Strand. This is my third installment of the most expensive homes sold in Myrtle Beach. If you want, you can check out 2014 here and 2015 here. Below you will find listed the 10 most expensive homes to sell during 2016 along The Grand Strand from least expensive to most expensive.

10. 110 Parker Drive Pawleys Island, SC 29585- $1,825,000 This 5BR/4BA oceanfront beauty in the southern end of the beach was said to be on one of the largest lots in North Litchfield Beach measuring 85′ x 397′. It also featured a Viking stainless steel appliances and has potential for over $120,000 in gross rental income per year. This home sold for list price in only 64 days.

9. 1210 Parker Drive Pawleys Island, SC 29585- $1,875,000 Staying on the same street, this 5BR/5BA home sold for the same price. This oceanfront home was built in 1998 and had over 8,500 square feet under roof with all of the porches & decks it possessed.

8. 95 Inlet Creek Ln Georgetown, SC 29440- $2,000,000 This 4 BR/4.5 BA home was located in DeBordieu Colony featured 270 degrees of marsh views from this almost 7,000 square foot home with copper roof, and garage for your golf cart as well.

7. 4803 S. Ocean Blvd Myrtle Beach, SC 29575- $2,000,000 Located in Myrtle Beach was this 8 BR/ 8.5 BA oceanfront home that was built in 2013. Some of the highlights of this home include three oceanfront master suites and a private heated pool.

6. 5003 S. Ocean Blvd Myrtle Beach, SC 29575- $2,000,000 Staying oceanfront in Myrtle Beach is our next home, a 7 BR/ 7.5 BA home with close to 6,000 heat square feet. This home was a rental machine bringing in excess of $225,000 annually.

5. 178 Sea Oats Circle Pawleys Island, SC 29585- $2,010,000 This 4BR/ 4.5 BA home located in Litchfield By The Sea’s Charlestowne Grant offered large living rooms, and an oceanfront master suite. This home also features a spiral staircase leading to a rooftop deck overlooking the ocean.

4. 2602 N Ocean Blvd North Myrtle Beach, SC 29582- $2,140,000 Our only home making the list this year from the northern end of the beach is this oceanfront 8 BR/ 8.5 BA property. This home built in 2012 features three living levels and can sleep 26.

3. 1701 S. Waccamaw Drive Garden City Beach, SC 29576 $2,195,000 An oceanfront entertainers delight is probably the best way to describe this home wth it’s over 5,000 square feet of entertainment area inside. Features outdoor pool & hot tub.

2. 1065 Norris Drive Pawleys Island, SC 29585 $3,000,000 Get the best of Both worlds at this 6 bedroom home in The Penninsula at Inlet Point featuring creek and marsh views on one side of the house while the other side features phenomenal oceanfront views.

1. 500 Myrtle Avenue Pawleys Island, SC 29585 $3,000,000 There were two homes this year that tied for the most expensive properties sold in Myrtle Beach at 3 million. This beauty has over 145 feet of Atlantic Ocean frontage and 50 feet of wraparound covered porches. There’s no wonder this home was one of the most expensive homes sold in Myrtle Beach during 2016.

So now that I’ve share the most expensive homes sold, what does this mean for the Myrtle Beach Luxury Homes market in 2017?

Myrtle Beach Luxury Market Stronger Than Ever

In 2016, more homes over one million dollars have sold in Myrtle Beach than in 2014 and 2015. In 2014, there were 49 Million dollar homes that sold for a total of $77 million in inventory. In 2015, there were 64 million dollar properties that sold for a total inventory of over 95 million. While these numbers are impressive, 2016 was even more. 2016 saw 72 luxury homes in Myrtle Beach sell, setting the highest number sold at 72 homes. This equated to over 101 million dollars in inventory sold, marking the highest amount in the past several years.

While the number of Myrtle Beach Luxury homes being sold is trending up, the property prices seem to be trending down. Both of the highest priced homes sold in 2014 & 2015 had a 4 million+ price whereas the highest price home in 2016 was much less money at an even 3 million. The most expensive home sold in 2016 was over 25% less money that the two previous years. While price is less, the size and quality of home remained the same. What this means to me is that the luxury market here in Myrtle Beach is becoming even more affordable than in previous years. What my research also showed me is that more and and more people are realizing just how affordable real estate is in Myrtle Beach compared to other parts of the country.

Breaking the Sales Down

When you break down the 72 sales of homes over 1 million dollars in Myrtle Beach, you can do it in several ways. The first way I like to look at these is how these properties were sold. Thirty-Four of the sales were made by cash while thirty-six were financed. It’s interesting to see that almost half of this big purchases were made by cash.

When you break down the sections of the beach, more luxury homes were sold in Pawleys Island than any other section of the beach with 29 homes. Myrtle Beach zip codes came in second with 21 properties sold, Garden City with 12, North Myrtle Beach with 7, and Little River had one home sell for over a million dollars. So, if you are looking for a luxury property, your best bet is to look either in Pawleys Island or Myrtle Beach it would seem.

What’s Available For Sale Now?

Below you will find all current luxury homes for sale in Myrtle Beach that are over one million.

Here are the Million dollar properties in Pawleys Island.

If you are interested in learning more about our luxury home market on The Grand Strand, give me a call at 843-222-9402 or contact me today.

Jan 03 2017

Owning A Home To Build Wealth

I just finished reading thought provoking article on CNBC where they did an interview of self made millionaire David Bach on how to build wealth. In this article, he states that for a millennial to start building wealth for their future, they need to invest in real estate.

Watch the video below of an interview with millionaire David Bach where he discusses the best way to generate wealth.

Money Trap or Wise Investment?

He states that the average homeowner is 38 times wealthier than a renter which makes complete sense to me. Just think, if you rent a home in Myrtle Beach for the next 30 years at simply a rental rate of $1,300, and the market does not increase during that time, you will have thrown away $468,000 on rent in which you have not accumulated a penny of equity. On the other hand if you were to purchase a home and take the next 30 years to pay off the mortgage, you would have own your home free and clear and have all that equity wealth.

Take a look at the mortgage calculations below:

While yes, you are paying a bunch of interest over the life of your loan, you are still going to save an additional $42,467 in what you would pay in rent. Meanwhile, during the 30 years that you are paying off the loan, your home should continue to increase in price. Historically, home values had seen a steady incline (other than the bursted bubble of 2006-2012) in prices. At the end of the same time period you will have $250,000+ in equity save into your portfolio as well as saving the difference between renting vs owning.

You Gotta Live

Unless you plan on living the rest of your life in your vehicle, you have to live somewhere. The question is, are you planning on spending those years paying rent and throwing away money, or are you planning on spending that time investing into your future by paying on a mortgage and increasing your wealth by owning the property. At the end of the day, you still gotta live somewhere, you should at least try to have something of value at the end of the time.

What I would suggest doing is talking with a real estate professional to at least find out some details on what type of costs you can incur by owning a home. Learn about what types of closing costs you can expect and start to save up ahead of time for them. Ask the lender what you can expect your monthly payments will be and that will give you a good idea of what you can afford. Try to keep your mortgage payment within 30% of your take-home pay.

Be Prepared To Sacrifice

Just because a lender says you can afford the home doesn’t always mean you really can. The lender doesn’t always know how you like to live life. They don’t know that you like to take the family every year on a week long vacation to Disneyworld and that it normally costs you around $4,500 to do so. The lender also doesn’t know that you like to go out to eat once a week and take your spouse out on a date once a week for another $500. They only look at an equation to see if you can fit in, but doesn’t take any variables in like this. In short, you might need to sacrifice.

For a while you might need to do dates in, and family movie nights with a Redbox instead of trips to the movie theater to save up money. You might need to skip this year’s family vacation to Disney and instead do a staycation to allow you to save up enough money for a down payment. Bach suggests and I agree to at least try and save up 10% for a down payment. This way you own your home with a little equity to start and do not have to fret if the market slows down, or dips downward for a year or two. Also, if you can swing 20% down, you can then save of primary mortgage insurance which can be a hefty expense each month.

Reap The Rewards

At the end of the day, while buying a home can be a major expense, it can also be a major reward. Just like Bach stated, “The fact is, you aren’t really in the game of building wealth until you own some real estate.” If you are like my brother-in-law who recently bought a home in Portland Oregon and didn’t do it to make money, or you are making improvements not because you want to increase the value of your home, you are ultimately making a wise investment into your overall wealth by owning your home.

Contact me to learn more on the benefits of owning a home.

Dec 16 2016

The Best Home For Christmas Lights In Myrtle Beach

As you all know, I have three children, all under 10 years of age. One of their favorite things to do this time of year is to hop in the car and go for a ride around Myrtle Beach looking at Christmas lights. We could spend hours driving up and down the streets and neighborhoods looking at them.

Last night however, I found the ultimate display on Foster Avenue in Myrtle Beach. This is right off of Highway 707 in the southern end of the beach. I had Miriam along in the car and she loved seeing their display. The owners actually have signs out to direct traffic down the one way road as well as hours of operation which is from 5:30-10 each night. Check out the video below and if you get a chance, take a drive by over the next week and enjoy their amazing display in person.

Dec 12 2016

Does It Cost More To Use A REALTOR® To Buy A Myrtle Beach Home?

Today I want to share a story of something that recently happened to me with some of my good friends. Now, before I begin, this is not a story about me complaining about losing money, but more so a story I share to try & help others who are looking to buy a home in Myrtle Beach, SC or basically anywhere else in South Carolina. I cannot speak that this is the same case for anywhere else in the country as I am only licensed for this state.

About two years ago, one of my good friends came to me & stated that he & his wife were thinking about buying a home and putting down some roots here in Myrtle Beach. We began the process of looking at homes online, emailing back and forth questions about the properties and even taking a few trips out to view some of the properties. In fact, we found a property that we loved and wrote up an offer at that time. Unfortunately, that offer didn’t work out and so we went back to searching for more homes. We had found another home, but they required us to show a pre-approval before submitting an offer. So, we called one of my local lenders and he began the process of obtaining a mortgage.

As we began the mortgage process, we quickly learned that some items that had been on his credit needed to be taken care of before he could go about trying to buy a home. We got connected up with a credit service to assist him in the process of repairing his credit to a good standing. The service told me it could take a good 6-9 months to get everything handled and get them in a position to be able to buy a house. I left our buyers agency agreement expire and continued to keep in touch with them over the next 2 years answering questions they had & helping with whatever I could.

Fast forward to this past week when I saw my friends again and he mentioned to me that he had found a house. I told him that was great and to let me know when they wanted to go and see the home. He said “No, we already have a house under contract.” My heart sunk as I asked who did he contact to do so. He explained to me that they represented themself as customers to purchase a home because they didn’t want to have to pay more for the house if I represented them.

A “friend” of theirs had told them that if they used an agent to buy a home, it would cost them an additional $7,000+ that gets used to pay the agent. I’m not really sure where they got that information, but it’s the main reason they never called me this time to buy a house. They thought it would cost them much more money to do so. When in actuality, they probably lost more money by not having an agent work on their behalf that would do a full market analysis and negotiate on their behalf with the selling agent. We do this stuff every day and know what the laws are.

Below I’ve placed a portion of the South Carolina Buyer Agency Contract that goes through how an agent get paid.

As you can see, while there are several options out there where you might have to pay an agent, there are also options that gets an agent working on your behalf without you having to pay. I could work with people buying a home in Myrtle Beach on a retainer fee. In this situation, you pay an agent a non refundable amount of money that they will or will not credit against a brokerage fee at the time of closing depending on what the agent decides. This money you pay whether you buy a home or don’t.

The second option would be to hire an agent on a Service fee. In this instance, you pay a predetermined amount of money to the agency on a specific date whether you have found a home or not. You can still end up having the agent collect a brokerage fee at a later time, but that service fee comes out of your pocket on a specific date determined by the agent when buying a home no matter what else happens.

The third & fourth options are the ways that most agents here in Horry County run their businesses. In option 3, the agent gets paid out of the brokerage fee. When someone lists their home for sale, they have agreed to allow the listing agent to give a portion of the commission to the agent that brings the buyer to the property. The buyers do not pay out of their pocket to have an agent work on their behalf in the buying process and the buyers agent gets paid by the seller.

The only exception to the rule is when the buyer purchases a For Sale By Owner and the seller will not pay the agent a commission for assisting with the sale. In this situation, you the buyer would be responsible for payment to the agent. But the amount of times this happens is virtually never. I’ve been in this business now for over 15 years and never once ran into this situation. Usually the sellers are willing to work with an agent if they can get their home sold. Option D, Brokerage Fee works almost exactly the same.

So as you can see, the cost to have a REALTOR® assist you in buying a home in Myrtle Beach is zero. It doesn’t cost any more to have someone represent you and help you through the process. I highly recommend that wherever you are buying a property, you get an agent to work on your behalf. We do this every day and have much more experience handling all the things that come up in the buying process. It will definitely save you time, money, and headaches having a REALTOR® represent you when buying a home.