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December 2006 - Posts

Saturday, December 30, 2006 10:03 AM

2007 Market trends

I couldn't say it better than Christine Forgione from NY Houses 4 Sale when she writes about 2007 the year of the transition . Simply great advice for sellers and buyers no matter where in the country you happen to live. Whether you live in New York
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 2 Comments
Thursday, December 21, 2006 9:02 AM

Is this any way to price a house

High inventory is a problem with real estate across the country as well as in Charleston but some homes still sell quickly while others sit unsold forever. A few weeks ago I pointed out a house that went on the market in Mount Pleasant and went under
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
Thursday, December 21, 2006 8:49 AM

Bubble, not

An interesting article from Marketwatch on the housing bubble or lack thereof and perspective for 2007. The Charleston real estate market did not experience the huge increases of some of the really "hot" markets, unit sales will likely be off
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
Wednesday, December 20, 2006 1:56 PM

And the bloggy goes to...

I spent lots of time in the blogosphere yesterday during the Yankee Blog Swap and learned a great deal from the many participants who put forth such a tremendous effort. Every single one was outstanding, and I discovered several new writers I want to
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 2 Comments
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Tuesday, December 19, 2006 9:29 AM

Real estate blog swap

The brightest and best bloggers in the real estate blogosphere have gotten together today for a Yankee blog swap. The concept comes from the cold of wintry New England (not just Yankee realtors) where each guest arrives with a gift and takes a number
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 1 Comments
Monday, December 18, 2006 9:50 AM

Holiday Festival of Lights

One of the great events in Charleston South Carolina is the Holiday Festival of Lights held at the James Island County Park. The Sandlapper Xmas party was held at the Edisto Shelter last Thursday evening and we had the opportunity to not only enjoy the
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
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Friday, December 15, 2006 9:40 AM

Zillow customer service replies

I entered my home on Zillow using the cute "Make Me Move" feature. But I was surprised when Zillow had no info on my home built in 2004 or my neighborhood. I wrote to Zillow: I am a realtor, however, accuracy is paramount. Construction started
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
Thursday, December 14, 2006 1:18 PM

Shackprices

Once again from the great Pacific Northwest and right on the heels of Zillow, here is an introduction to Shackprices.com with a different take. A great name and a very clean looking site! Read more at sellsius° with Shack Attack: Shackprices.com and
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
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Wednesday, December 13, 2006 5:16 PM

Real Estate Transparency - Agent pay

There's a lot of talk about real estate agents making too much money. As far as Charleston real estate agents and I'm sure around most of the country, some do, most don't. All make less than most people think. I just read a post somewhere
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
Tuesday, December 12, 2006 2:50 PM

Pricing to sell...it will...and it does

I have been looking at properties in Mount Pleasant for an out of town client and notice many that have been on the market for quite a while and are sitting unsold. That doesn't have to be the case when you price your home to sell. An example: This
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 3 Comments
Monday, December 11, 2006 1:14 PM

From website hit to a happy home

A wonderful tale of relocation to Charleston. I got a hit on my website back in January from Rose Thompson. Due to her husband Tom's job transfer, they would be relocating to Charleston. She wanted to have auto notifications sent by email for all
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
Thursday, December 07, 2006 2:01 PM

An old Zillow poll and looking into the future

Just below is an informal poll at sellsius° from Labor Day, as of today, I suspect the trust of Zillow will increase significantly but remember, it is just an ( Z )estimate. 1 . As a Seller, do you Trust Zillow’s Zestimate? Votes: 67 Yes: 25%
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 2 Comments
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Thursday, December 07, 2006 1:23 PM

Zillow makes a big move

The biggest real estate news of the last few days is Zillow, first the Zillow announcement and then commentary by Greg Swann from the Bloodhound Blog in Phoenix (no one I've seen writes better). Here is his fantastic take on what is happening. Very
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
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Thursday, December 07, 2006 1:05 PM

Mortgage rates at 06 lows

With all the talk about rising interest rates, you might be surprised to find mortgage rates at the low for all of 2006. While the article indicates a rate of 6.11%, that is the average rate and one of my preferred lenders is offering a 5.75% rate for
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
Wednesday, December 06, 2006 4:42 PM

Sandlapper is coming to Mount Pleasant

This Sunday, Sandlapper Real Estate Group will be in the Mount Pleasant Xmas Parade. But that's not all, Sandlapper will be opening their new Mount Pleasant office in Belle Hall in January 2007. Watch for more details.
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
Tuesday, December 05, 2006 2:47 PM

Sellers are not stupid

A fabulously well written blog by "Broker Bryant" (Bryant Tutas) from Florida. Please ignore the concept of range pricing, it is not a feature available in all MLS markets and is not used in the Charleston MLS, however, when I prepare a CMA,
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
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Tuesday, December 05, 2006 10:44 AM

Bubble blogs

There is some very interesting blogging going on around the country regarding the housing bubble. You'll find links to 3 articles below, the first article is quite lengthy but important to read and you'll have to click on the read the entire article
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
Monday, December 04, 2006 2:27 PM

November real estate sales

The November sales numbers are now available and they aren't pretty. It makes 2 consecutive months with big drops in unit sales and greatly increasing inventory. I'll post the charts first and make some comments after. Month 2005 Monthly Sales
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
Monday, December 04, 2006 1:20 PM

Sandlapper Xmas

Sandlapper Real Estate Group will be holding their annual company Xmas party Thursday December 14. In the spirit of giving back to the community, the party will be a Mission Project for the local Crisis Ministeries and all employees and agents of the
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
Friday, December 01, 2006 2:58 PM

The real Charleston real estate market - in a new and better format

Thanks to some excellent feedback, here is another view of this valuable information on the market trends in Charleston. I previously used the mls format but looking at the information by month year to year really shows the trends very nicely. Month Monthly
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments