Blog | Myrtle Beach Homes | Carolina Forest Homes

Dec 19 2018

Myrtle Beach Real Estate- What is A CL100?

When buying a home in Myrtle Beach, one of the more typical inspections that needs to be done is called a CL100 or Termite inspection, or wood infestation report on the home. These inspections need to be done within 30 days of closing to be valid and most lenders are going to require one to be done on most structures.

Here in Myrtle Beach, a CL100 is a very common component in the home buying/selling process. In fact, this report is done so often that it is actually an entire section in the Agreement To Buy And Sell Real Estate. Section 11 of the contract states:

Usually the CL100 is performed a few days prior to closing and never earlier than 30 days prior to closing to remain valid. These inspections are done by a licensed/insured/bonded pest control company and they provide a copy of the report to all parties and it gets signed by all parties at closing.

What If There Are Problems?

It is not uncommon for the report to come back with either active termite infestations or some other sort of wood destroying organisms to be present. We live in the south where the climate is warm and moist and it is just a delicacy to wood destroying organisms.

That being said, I would say that about 3 out of every 10 homes I sell come back with some sort of infestation or wood rot issues that need to be handled.

When the reports come back clean, normally the sellers will simply have the home treated and any rotten wood replaced and we move forward towards closing with no big deal. The expense, depending on how much damage is normally around two to three thousand or less in most cases. I’ve only ever seen one major case where an entire wall in a garage needed to be repaired that ended up costing more money and of course it delayed the closing because it took around 2 weeks to complete all the work needed.

Don’t Sweat It

In closing, I want to leave you with this final thought. If the property you are purchasing comes back with issues in the CL100 report, do not let it stop you from buying the home in Myrtle Beach. We deal with this issue on a somewhat regular basis and honestly, it is not that big of a deal.

The pest control company will simply treat the home for the issue, a handyman will replace any wood or drywall that needs to be done and everything moves forward. The one major benefit after the fact is that if you do have a home that has been treated, you normally will end up with some sort of termite bond on the home that you will be able to renew after the fact and never have to worry about this issue again in your home here in Myrtle Beach!

Oct 16 2018

How To Have A Luscious Lawn When Selling a Myrtle Beach Home

Curb appeal is essential when trying to sell your home to the right buyer. Making sure that your lawn is in excellent condition is a huge part of setting the stage when a potential buyer comes to preview your home. Make sure that your lawn shows prospective buyers that you care for your home and that more beauty awaits them once they step through the front door. Learn more about how to have a luscious lawn for your next showing with these tips:

Apply A Quick Release Fertilizer

Choosing to apply a quick release fertilizer to your lawn is a great way to instantly green up the grass as well as boost the overall growth. Many quick release fertilizers come in spray form to be easy for the soil to absorb. Make sure to read the directions on the fertilizer, as well as know the size of your total lawn area, in order to keep from adding too much fertilizer in one spot. Doing so could easily burn the grass and create a counterintuitive dead spot. Make sure to check the weather and apply the fertilizer after one of Myrtle Beach’s recent rainstorms to prevent runoff as well.

Mow Regularly

Choosing to mow your lawn the day before a showing is essential to providing the best curb appeal. Keeping an eye on your grass, and the recent weather patterns will help in making sure that your lawn is perfectly mowed before any showing. The Myrtle Beach area receives an average of 50 inches of rain per year which can make area lawns grow quickly. Consider mowing the lawn at an angle to create a polished and professional look. Never mow more than 1/3 of the total grass height during a mow to protect the root system. Busier homeowners may choose to hire a lawn care company when trying to sell their home in an effort to relieve stress and make sure that the lawn is well taken care of at any point during the week. The average price for a single lawn service is only $47 – a small amount compared to your home’s sale price.

Skip the Bag

While mowing you Myrtle Beach area lawn, consider doing so without the bag to allow grass clippings to fall back into the lawn. Doing so can be a great way to add an extra boost of natural energy to the lawn and encourage strong growth. Grass clippings break down easily and provide nitrogen to the lawn without the need for any other added chemicals. Make sure to blow any clippings from walkways or driveways, though, in an effort to keep the lawn looking tidy before a showing.

Keep Weeds in Check

With all of that annual rainfall, the weeds in the Myrtle Beach area can grow just as fast as the grass. Make sure to keep those weeds in check by regularly surveying your lawn and picking any weeds that pop up. The earlier you pick the weeds the better off your lawn will be when it comes to adding curb appeal during a showing. Applying weed control to the lawn can also be beneficial to keep weed growth down in the warmer beach climate of the area. Plucking weeds from the lawn is a great way to subtly show potential buyers that you care for your home.

Consider Your Grass Type

Many Myrtle Beach homes have lawns made up of warm season grasses. Bermudagrass is very popular in the area as well as Centipedegrass that does particularly well along the coast of South Carolina. As a warm season grass, both of these varieties will turn brown during the winter. Bermudagrass naturally turns brown in the fall to protect it from winter temperatures while Centipedegrass doesn’t go dormant but is known for dying during the winter due to lack of water.

Potential buyers want to see green grass in the lawn no matter what season they view your property. Consider overseeding your lawn with cool season grasses, like Kentucky Bluegrass or Tall Fescue, in order to provide a green lawn all year long. If you are sure that you have Centipedegrass, you can probably get away with not overseeding as long as you are diligent about watering all winter long.

Creating and maintain a beautiful lawn is important when your home is on the market. Make sure to continue to mow regularly as well as apply a quick release fertilizer to instantly green up your lawn. Consider mulching the grass back to the soil and control weeds as well. Knowing your grass type and how to combat a brown lawn over winter is also important. Choose any or all of these tips on how to have a luscious lawn for your next showing.

Tony Steine is a garden and landscaping writer at Lawnstarter.com. Tony prides himself on finding the easiest way to do anything he can, you can bet he’s tried to make his entire garden self-watering. Of course, he isn’t just about convenience either, adding a unique design flair to everything he does.

Oct 12 2018

What Type Of Lockbox Should Be On Your Myrtle Beach Home?

Yesterday afternoon I was out showing properties to a first time home buyer here in Myrtle Beach and as we approached the door of the property, she asked how we were going to get into the home since nobody was home to let us into the property. I explained to her that the key was secured in a lockbox that holds the key and gives easy access to REALTORS® to enter the property. As we got closer to the door, we noticed a combination lockbox on the door she mentioned how she would never want one of those on her home and she would feel unsafe having it hang there giving others access into her home at any time of the day.

It reminded me of a recent Two Minute Tuesday video I recently did on this exact subject. Check out the video below:

Whenever a home is occupied or holding the belongings of my seller, I am never going to install a lockbox like the one pictured above. While these combination style lockboxes have a level of security with the code, they also leave people selling their Myrtle Beach home at a great level of vulnerability.

See, most the time when a lockbox is installed on the property, the listing agent does not go back to the home again unless they are showing the home to a potential buyer, holding an open house, or to remove the lockbox from the property. That means, if a lockbox like the one above is being used, that code is not being reset from the day it is installed. While agents are supposed to be the people keeping the codes safe for homes, sometimes the buyers are nosey and see that code and could access at a later time. Unfortunately I’ve seen/heard people giving the codes to others and then they have access into your home at any time they please.

Also, when a lockbox like the one above is in use, the listing agent has no way to know when the lockbox is being opened or limiting the times it is accessed. Instead of using a combo lockbox, I feel agents should spend the extra money to get a MLS approved electronic lockbox like the one below.

The reasons I am a big fan of using these types of lockboxes is pretty obvious. First, these lockboxes are virtually indestructible and almost impossible to break into without the proper access codes. In comparison, the cheaper combo lockboxes have several videos on YouTube teaching people how to hack them open. I’ve actually used these videos to open one of my own that I had forgotten the code to in the past. It only took me about 15 minutes and I was in. MLS approved lockboxes are only accessible electronically and unless you have the application on your smart phone and have the 20+ digit alphanumeric code, you cannot access these boxes.

The second reason I prefer using these types of lockboxes on properties that are occupied is that they limit the times in which the lockbox can be accessed. Most of the time they are set from 8 AM-9PM. This means that the sellers can rest peacefully at night knowing that someone will not be coming in their front door while they are sleeping or showing up early in the morning while they are in the shower getting ready for work. With a combination lockbox, anyone with the code can access at any time of the day.

The third reason why using the digital lockboxes is that it keeps track of every time the lockbox gets opened and by whom it was opened. I went back into the system a pulled a screenshot below of activity on my listings from over 2 months ago. This way if something were to happen where my sellers had an issue in their home I could immediately check and see what agent was in their home that day and reach out to them. In the past I’ve had things get broken in a home during a showing, doors left unlocked, lights left on, an inspector accidentally leave the oven on, and much more. Since I had an activity log on the home, I could immediately check and know who was the person responsible for that happening.

After sharing these reasons, you may be asking yourself, why would any agent ever use one of the less secure lockboxes on a property? Well, there are a few reasons where I do use those type of lockboxes and they come in handy. Many times when a property I will place one of these types of lockboxes on the home. These lockboxes are usually about 1/4 the cost of the electronic loxkboxes.

I will also use a combo lockbox on properties where we might need a contractor to access the property. Many times I am helping my my clients get their home for sale in Myrtle Beach by assisting them with getting the home painted, carpets cleaned, and other items fixed throughout the home to make it show ready. I could go meet each of these people individually each time they need to get into the home and let them in, but most of the time, they are going to want to visit several times over a time period to do the work needed and I cannot be there. Because you need to join our local REALTOR® Association in order to access the electronic lockboxes and it is an extra expense, many contractors do not have the ability to access electronic lockboxes. I can simply give them the code and they can then go do what is needed on their schedule.

So, in closing, when you are selling your home in Myrtle Beach, do you want an agent that is using the cheap combination lockboxes on your home, or do you want an agent that takes your safety seriously and will spend the extra money to keep you, your family, and all your valuables safer?

Jul 17 2018

Are Sellers Listening To You During The Showing?

Today is Amazon Prime Day and while I have spent most of the afternoon fighting the website to order a few items, one of the things I realized pretty quickly was that smart home technology is growing at a rapid rate. This was made evident to me by the enormous amount of smart home tech deals that were being featured in the sale this year. Everything from Amazon Alexa devices to smart outlets, thermostats, lights, doorbells, keys, and so much more. That being said, are sellers listening to you during the showing?

As I began to think about this more, it made me realize how important it is to educate my buyers better before going out to show properties to them. With the increase in these devices, it also means there’s an increased chance that sellers are going to be listening in to our conversations as we walk through the home. Devices like the Ring Doorbell, Nest Cameras, and so many other smart cameras make it super easy for you to now keep an eye and ear on your home from your smartphone while you are away from it.

These devices will alert you when motion or sounds are detected at your home and allow you the opportunity to immediately grab your phone to watch & listen in. Heck, if you wanted to, you could even talk to the people who enter your home and have a conversation with them while they are still there. (I wouldn’t recommend it if you are selling though, bad bad idea.)

In the past while we would walk through the home I would try & ask my buyer clients qualifying questions to see if this might be the right home for them to purchase and wouldn’t think twice to make comments like “this home fits perfectly in your range if you wanted to do a cash purchase” or something like “your lender said we are pre-approved for $250,000 so if we needed to go to full list price, we have the ability to do so and still be within your budget.”

Nowadays though, these types of conversations are not being held in the home with my buyers because when we do that, we could be giving away valuable negotiation power to the sellers. The client level information that we used to be able to talk about freely while viewing homes can now be easily picked up on by sellers and backfire against us in the negotiation process.

What To Do?

So, what should you do these days when viewing homes? First off, I’d keep all my comments positive about the home while inside. If the wallpaper is hideous and you don’t like the color of the bathroom, keep that information to yourself. If you talk negatively about the home you want to place an offer on, you might offend the seller to where they don’t want to sell the home to you, or they become unwilling to negotiate rationally.

Next, if there are things you like about the home, don’t show your hand on this either. If the seller sees you on video jumping up and down and hugging your spouse because you just saw the master bathroom and it has the walk in shower of your dreams, they will know that you are obsessed with the home and less likely to walk away over a little more money and it could cost you more in the long run.

Instead, try to keep your emotions in check, both the good and bad when walking through a home. Obviously, if you have questions about something in the property, make sure to always ask those to your REALTOR® while walking through the home. If you wait until later to try & do so, you might forget them. Next, try & keep any remarks towards anything related to your financial position till after you leave the home. Once you are back in the car with the agent, you can then have that open and free conversation again.

So next time you are out looking at property, keep this in mind to help your agent negotiate for you in a better manner!

Jun 29 2018

Where to See Fireworks in Myrtle Beach-2018

It’s almost 4th of July here in Myrtle Beach, SC and one of the top questions people from out of town are asking, is where should I go to see fireworks in Myrtle Beach. There are tons of places where you can go to see the skies light up, but in my opinion as someone who has lived here for almost 20 years, some displays are better than others. Now, the reasons that some are better than others isn’t because it has more fireworks, or they go longer, or use better equipment, but as a father of three, I look at other things when picking where we are going to go see fireworks.

My comments below are made primarily based on these criteria:

How easy is it to get a good spot for my family to view the fireworks display for the family.
Can I find parking easily in an area that is safe for us to walk down together as a family.
How much will it cost me to park?
How easy will it be to keep an eye on my kids before, during, & after.

That’s basically the main things our family considers when watching a show. Our kids will be happy seeing fireworks anywhere they go. In fact last year because of some family issues, we simply went in the back yard & watched our neighbors set off a rather fantastic display. Our kids were beyond delighted by those.

Where to see fireworks in North Myrtle Beach

If you are on the northern end of the beach, you can see great shows at two places. Barefoot Landing starts their show at 10:00PM. There are plenty of places to find a good spot to watch from around the lake the awesome display they do. What I would suggest is making an evening out of it by showing up early evening, picking a restaurant to eat and then do some shopping around the area. If you wait till 9PM and then try to show up here, you are going to have a hard time finding a place to park and a really hard time finding somewhere to stand with your family to watch. There are plenty of places to go eat, one of my favorites is of course Wild Wing Cafe. (Try The Boss Flavor, my favorite!) In fact, you can catch fireworks here every Monday evening if you would like during the summer.

Another good spot on the northern end is the Cherry Grove Fishing Pier. This show begins at 9:30PM and will be right on the beach. So dip your toes in the sand and watch a great show. Since I live down on the southern end of the beach, I’ve never been to this one, but I know a lot of people who have gone and really liked this spectacle.

Where to see fireworks in Myrtle Beach

In Myrtle Beach, there are a couple of places to catch some great fireworks displays. I’ve been to all of these over the past few years and I have to admit, they all put on a great show. The first place you can see a show is at the Myrtle Beach Pelicans game. The show will directly follow the game. Obviously, to see these fireworks, you would need to purchase a ticket to the game, but you can also see our champion Myrtle Beach Pelicans play. Honestly, there’s not a bad seat at all in the entire building.

The next place where you can go see fireworks in Myrtle Beach is at the Second Avenue Pier. The show here starts around 10pm. I will share from experience, this show can become rather chaotic. It’s an awesome show out over the ocean, but it’s pretty crazy down on the beach. I remember trying to find a place to park a few years back and finally finding a space at a local business. We pulled in and were told that if we wanted to park there, we needed to come in and use the business. So, I went into the bar to purchase a soda, but didn’t have any cash on me. Their minimum purchase for using a card was $20.00. Yeah, I paid $20 that day for a soda, but it was worth it to finally have a parking space and not have to keep searching after already spending 30 minutes driving up and down every street within a mile of each side of the pier.

The third place inside Myrtle Beach that is a great spot to see fireworks is over at Broadway at the Beach. They put on a tremendous show over the lake that will start at 10PM. During the summer you can see fireworks every Tuesday evening here. With the way Broadway is laid out, you honestly can see the show nicely from anywhere on site. There are bunches of great things to do here throughout the day/evening, so plan on making it an all day affair.

As I mentioned before, my personal favorite spot for watching the show at Broadway is from Ripley’s Aquarium outside deck. There are plenty of tables/chairs for you to relax, it’s fenced in and normally isn’t that full. If you wonder what the show looks like from there, here is a clip from last year’s show. If you can’t tell by the jumping, my son really liked the show.

Where to see fireworks south of Myrtle Beach

Down in Murrells Inlet, there is a great show that takes place as well along the Marshwalk. This show will start at 10 and is located at the end of Veterans Pier in Murrells Inlet. I’ve gone to this show before and while it was very nice, it was once again very difficult to find a place to park and I remember walking along side of the road in the dark being extra careful of drivers coming by.

Where else to see fireworks in Grand Strand & Pee Dee

If you are wanting to find some fireworks displays in areas that might not be right along the coast, there are plenty of those options out there as well. Our local news has given a complete list of places all along the Grand Strand & Pee Dee where you can see shows. Click here for the full list of places to see fireworks along The Grand Strand.

Please remember, if you are going to be enjoying the Fourth of July at home and setting off your own, please do so responsibly and safely. Fireworks are nothing to play around with. They could cause serious injury.

Happy Fourth!

photo by:

EpicFireworks

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