Consolidation in the Charleston Real Estate Market

I noticed this fom PRNewswire. Basically Coldwell Banker United, Realtors swallowed Century 21 Southern Homes. Coldwell has 4 offices in the Charleston area, and now the company will have more than 145 agents in the Greater Charleston area.

Median Sale Price Skyrockets in 29401

Interesting data from the 29401 zip code. The volume of sales are down, which is to be expected. But the interesting thing is that the median sales price, which has been hovering around $800k in recent years, shot way up to over $1.8 million in the first quarter of 2009 according to city data. So while sales for the more modesly priced properties are slowing it appears, there are still a good amount of luxury properties being sold. The data also shows that there are 1,352 houses in the 29401 zip code that are estimated to be worth $1 million or more, and 843 that are estimated to be worth between $500k and $1 million.

Streets in 29401

This is a listing of streets in the 29401 zip code south of Broad Street:

Murray Blvd.
King St.
E Battery St.
S Battery St.
Church St
White Point Gardens is between King St., S. Battery St., E. Battery St., and Murray Blvd.
Battery Pl.
Rutledge Blvd.
Gibbes St.
Council St.
Lowndes St.
Greenhill St.
Limehouse St.
Lenwood Blvd.
Legare St.
Lamboll St.
Ladson St
Weims Ct.
Prices Alley
Meeting St.
Water St.
Atlantic St.
Ashley Blvd.
Tradd St.
Council St.
St. Michaels Alley
Elliot St.
E. Bay St.
Fort Ct.
Longitude Ln.
S. Adgers Wharf
Exchange St.
King St.
Orange St.
Logan St.
New St.
Savage St.
Broad St.
Charleston Coast Guard Station is bordered by Broad St., Murray Blvd., and S. battery St.
Zig Zag Alley
Stolls Alley

Charleston Real Estate Investors Meeting

Thursday, May 21, 2009 REAL ESTATE INVESTORS: The Charleston Real Estate Investors Association meets. 5:50 p.m. Shoney's, 6328 Rivers Ave., North Charleston. To register, go to www.charlestonrei.com or call 843-200-5617.

Charleston SC Real Estate Sales Drop 35% From January 2008

More bad news about the Charleston real estate market just emerged here:

The number of homes sold in January dropped 35 percent from 2008 to 372 transactions, a figure so low that the Charleston Trident Association of Realtors could not find a lower monthly number in its sales database, which dates to 2003. The median price skidded to $176,750 from $191,600 in December.

It's not clear whether this data is across the board in Charleston, or whether it is mostly concentrated in lower-value neighborhoods, i.e. not the 29401 zip code. Good time for buyers though!

Lower Berkeley Condo Will Offer Leases

In another sign of the deteriorating housing market in the Charleston area, there is this report that a local condo is going to offer "more choices" for customers this year, including leasing options because "[t]hese are the things we see the market demanding." The article provides the following details on the offers:

“It’s three miles from I-526, 10-15 minutes from anywhere,” she says.

Allison McQueen, project manager with The Berry Co., oversees the property. Leases are for six months and up and come with a $50 application fee, $300 refundable deposit and $100-$150 nonrefundable fee. Pets are allowed with a $400 nonrefundable fee.

Currently, half of the residents are renters and half buyers, Layton says. But of the leasing group, 85 percent are interested in rent-to-own. “We have a lot of options for people when they walk through the door,” Layton says.

To get to Palmetto Place condominiums from downtown Charleston, cross the Ravenel Bridge to Mount Pleasant in the left two lanes onto U.S. Highway 17. Continue to the North Charleston exit onto Interstate 526. Follow I-526 to the Clements Ferry Road exit. Take Clements Ferry for about four miles. Turn left at the traffic light at Jack Primus Road. Palmetto Place is on the right. An alternate route is to stay on Highway 17 before turning left onto S.C. Highway 41. Take Highway 41 across the Wando River, taking the left fork onto Clements Ferry. Turn right after four miles onto Jack Primus. The complex is on the right.

This is a bad sign for condos in the Charleston area.

SC Real Estate Investor Awarded $4m

The Los Angeles Times reports that real estate broker from Charleston, Richard C. Davis, and others from his firm, Trademark Properties, won a $4 million jury verdict for their role in helping to create the A&E show "Flip this house". The trial was in federal court in South Carolina, not sure if Davis would have been so successful if the case had been in federal court in Los Angeles.