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December 2009 - Posts

Thursday, December 31, 2009 6:44 AM

How to sell your home in Charleston

Happy New Year. As a follow up to yesterday's post on how to buy a home for sale in Charleston , here is a guide to successfully selling your home in Charleston. And when you consider that over 50 percent of all homes that are listed for sale do not
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
Wednesday, December 30, 2009 8:17 AM

How to buy a home for sale in Charleston

Happy New Year! Since we're just days away from the rush of Charleston home buyers seriously beginning their search for homes for sale in Charleston immediately after the first of the year, here is a brief recap of the process that home buyers should
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 3 Comments
Tuesday, December 29, 2009 7:58 AM

A home listed for sale that doesn't sell is a #FAIL

It seems that I always write about homes that sell but there are a lot of homes listed for sale in the Charleston real estate market that don't sell. The listing either expires unsold after an agreed upon listing period or is withdrawn from the market.
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
Monday, December 28, 2009 7:56 AM

Charleston absorption rate by location

As a follow up to yesterday's post of Charleston absorption rate by price range , let's look at the absorption rate by location within the Charleston real estate market. And as you might expect, those areas in Charleston that have more entry level
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
Sunday, December 27, 2009 9:37 AM

Charleston absorption rate by price range

The absorption rate measures how many months it would take to sell out of inventory at the current sales rate if no new inventory came on the market. Think about paper towels for a moment. If you spilled something in your home, depending on how much you
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 1 Comments
Thursday, December 24, 2009 1:57 PM

Happy Holidays 2009

Merry Christmas Happy Hanukkah Joyous Kwanzaa Season's Greetings and Happy Holidays
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
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Wednesday, December 23, 2009 1:36 PM

Are Charleston mortgage rates headed higher in 2010

Probably, but how high might they go since they have edged up in recent weeks. In an article on CNBC , Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody's says: "If you told me by the end of 2010 a 30-year rate was at 6 percent, that sounds about right. I
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 2 Comments
Tuesday, December 22, 2009 3:53 PM

More on the November 09 existing home sales report

There was better than expected news on existing home sales in November in large part due to the rush by first time home buyers to qualify for the $8k tax credit (since extended and expanded to existing home owners). Bloomberg reports "sales of existing
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
Tuesday, December 22, 2009 7:55 AM

Getting to Charleston is [isn't] easy

My wife finally got back home to Charleston after being stuck in New York City for the past several days after the Blizzard of 2009. Her flight on Delta, originally scheduled for Saturday and rescheduled for noon yesterday finally departed at 6:30PM and
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 2 Comments
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Monday, December 21, 2009 8:41 AM

The first day of winter 2009

... and my roses are still blooming.
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
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Monday, December 21, 2009 8:34 AM

Candelarias in White Gables [a time for giving]

Every year, the residents of White Gables in Summerville put out candelarias just before Christmas. The proceeds from the sale are always donated to a good cause and the neighborhood always looks festive.
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
Sunday, December 20, 2009 8:05 AM

It's that time of year [HOA fees are due]

Since the Northeast is buried under a foot of snow or more, this picture of a neighborhood swimming pool is meant to warm you up a little bit. And while it's a little too cold to think about swimming today in Charleston, it won't be long until
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 2 Comments
Friday, December 18, 2009 7:46 AM

Finding a home on syndicated listing sites

Zillow made news earlier this week by adding rental listings and search and charging $9.95 for a 180 day period and followed up by announcing a similar charge if the listing was not submitted via bulk feed (or syndication). According to Inman News : "The
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
Thursday, December 17, 2009 7:11 AM

Is interest in buying a foreclosure waning

In the Charleston real estate market, I would say not at all. But a recent poll from Harris Interactive says otherwise. The poll shows the percentage of buyers "somewhat likely" to consider buying a foreclosed property fell from 55% in May to
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 1 Comments
Tuesday, December 15, 2009 8:10 AM

Zillow announces rental listings and search

Zillow.com announces that rental listings will now be available on their website. Anyone who has been frustrated by searching Craigslist with their clunky technology from decades long past and the proliferation of scams found there ( such as the one I
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
Monday, December 14, 2009 8:02 AM

That home is for sale, not for rent

... but it was advertised for rent on Craigslist (and not by me). I got a call from someone who was interested in renting a home that I have listed for sale. Now, that might be OK if they were simply inquiring as to whether the seller might consider renting
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 3 Comments
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Saturday, December 12, 2009 8:10 AM

Charleston mortgage rate outlook [Higher]

Mortgage rates have been nothing short of unbelievable lately, solidly under 5% and that means a lot to home affordability. But there are several reasons that rates will be higher in the near future. The first reason is that the economy has been strengthening
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 2 Comments
Friday, December 11, 2009 9:39 AM

Charleston November home sales are sharply higher

Home sales in November throughout the Charleston area were even better than expected with 799 sales recorded as of this morning compared to 507 in November 2008. The median price declined from $185,000 last year to $170,473 this year. Charleston County
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
Thursday, December 10, 2009 7:29 AM

One more reason to live in Charleston

There are so many reasons to want to live in Charleston. Yesterday as a big winter storm with snow, high winds and cold hit the Northern States, temperatures in the Charleston area were in the 70's. It will be a little cooler today ... but probably
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
Wednesday, December 09, 2009 7:44 AM

House flipping making a comeback [Really]

James R. Hagerty has two interesting stories in the WSJ on the comeback of house flipping. His focus is on Phoenix and real estate investors who are buying at foreclosure auctions, fixing them up and turning a profit. But it's a risky business buying
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 1 Comments
Tuesday, December 08, 2009 9:35 AM

[Buyer beware] Not all Charleston MLS listings are for real

... but how can that be if you read it on the Internet. The Charleston MLS serves many purposes, one of which is for Charleston real estate agents to market their listings to not only other agents but to the consumer public. And of course, marketing can
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
Monday, December 07, 2009 7:54 AM

Getting a deal on Charleston foreclosures for sale

In today's market, everyone wants a deal and there is no better place to look for a deal in Charleston today than the many foreclosures that are available. And I've noticed some really nice foreclosures recently coming on the market. Many of my
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 1 Comments
Saturday, December 05, 2009 8:19 AM

What new FHA mortgage guidelines will mean to you

In a phrase, you'll have ... more skin in the game. Borrowers have been flocking to FHA mortgages for the past several years as the best and only way to finance the purchase of a home. Low down payments and lower credit scores have allowed more people
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 1 Comments
Thursday, December 03, 2009 12:02 PM

Proposed short sale changes [and will it matter]

There is a lot of buzz that the Obama Administration has finally stepped in with a program to help reduce foreclosures. One focus of the Treasury Department is to help streamline short sales (which are never short in the time it takes and don't always
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 3 Comments
Thursday, December 03, 2009 6:28 AM

[Still] Fabulous at Fifty, Happy Birthday Polly

I met my wife Polly shortly after her 40th birthday and she was of course, forty and fabulous. And while she is dreading turning 50 today, she is still fabulous. Happy Birthday, I love you. A picture of Polly with her mother just before her first birthday
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
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Wednesday, December 02, 2009 6:15 AM

Charleston real estate market report, home prices, Dec 2, 2009

As you noticed in the Charleston real estate market report on sales and inventory , home sales in the Charleston area have been very strong in the past few months. So what's up (or down) with home prices. The short answer, they are under pressure
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 0 Comments
Tuesday, December 01, 2009 1:30 PM

Charleston real estate market report, sales and inventory, Dec 1, 2009

If anyone doubted the controversial first time home buyers tax credit didn't have an impact on Charleston home sales, a look at today's report (and an early preview of November sales results) should confirm it. Home sales in October were up over
Posted by Howard Arnoff | 1 Comments