Who Wouldn't Love Charleston?

Thinking about moving to the Charleston area?
Are you Curious to know more about where you live? 

Charleston (as a metro area) contains a population of 575,488; making up just about 14% of the state’s total population. Seemingly growing younger every few years the current median age is 33 and females outrank the males with 51.8% of the population. Property and Violent crime percentage falls slightly higher than the state average at 5.8% and 6.2%, respectfully, but remains much lower than the national rates.

Charleston is a well educated area with a higher percentage than the state with adults having 4-year college degrees and graduate degrees. Gratefully, our employment rates have grown 4.6% in our area compared to an average of 2.9% overall in the state. And who says Florida is the sunshine state?!  Our average low temperature is a mild 37.9F and our average high is 90.7F; not to mention we have an average of 211 days of sunshine annually. 

The average cost of homes is $130,300, with an average age of 19 years and an appreciation rate of 8.3%. Most residents in the area do own their homes while about 21% are currently renting. Charleston is an amazing place whether you want great shopping, cultural inspiration, historic sights, delicious food, beautiful beaches or just a comfortable place to call home.

Once you've decided to make the move to Charleston where do you look? As small as Charleston may seem on the large scale it’s divided into many areas that all have their own distinct characteristics. Which is my favorite? Daniel Island, of course.  Centrally located between downtown and the North Charleston areas, Daniel Island is a home grown community five miles long and three miles wide including 23 miles of waterfront landscape. Compiled of six residential areas, shops, restaurants and businesses make the Island a place you can live, work and play. 

Currently condos and single family homes range from $175,000-3M with the price of land ranging from $230,000-5.7M. According to trulia.com, inventory of homes averages a little over 150 and homes are staying on the market around 200 days. Compared to this time last year prices have increased a slight amount and the number of sales has slightly decreased. However, the trends have steadied over the last few months with little to no change. 

Daniel Island has one of the lowest crime rates in the state at 4.2% property crime and .77% violent crime.  Also, the schools on the island are some of the best in Charleston.  The island is becoming one of the most desired places to live in the area for new residents as well as locals. If you've been in the area a while, but are looking for a new place to call home check out Daniel Island, you may be surprised at all it has to offer.

Continually growing, but giving you that close-knit community feel, Daniel Island is my first choice in the Charleston area. Want to know more? Interested in homes for sale? Feel free to contact me for any questions! 

*Statistics provided by MLS.com

Spruce Up Your Home To Sell

In a recent blog for the Wall Street Journal some promising news made headlines, "Home sellers are having a far easier time attracting buyers this year and as a result, sellers’ asking prices are on the rise, according to two reports released Wednesday.

The National Association of Realtors reported on the median amount of time homes were listed for sale, a number that fell to 69 days for sales that closed in July, down from 98 days a year earlier. And a good portion of the market is selling faster: A third of homes sold in July were on the market for less than a month, the group said.

The data are compiled from a monthly survey of more than 3,000 of the trade group’s members. The survey asks real-estate agents how long their most recent transaction was listed before selling. Going forward, the Realtors’ group plans to publish this data along with its monthly report on existing-home sales.

With buyers acting more quickly, sellers have been able to boost their listing prices. Asking prices were up by 2.3% in August compared with the same month last year, according to real-estate website Trulia. It was the seventh straight month in which sellers hiked their asking prices, and 68 out of the 100 largest U.S. metropolitan areas reported asking price increases." 

So with the movement happening for both buyers and sellers, what are some of the easy things you can do around your house to get it ready to put on the market? Here's a few ideas: 

- Change out old or tarnished doorknobs, sink fixtures and drawer pulls - head to your local hardware store where you can find up to date hardware affordably. 

- Clean out your gutters. With our recent rains, they may be filled with pine straw and debris. If a potential buyer heads to your home during a storm, you don't want them to see your gutters overflowing! 

- Spruce up the outdoor living area with plants and flowers. These easily up the wow factor. And don't forget to weed the flower beds. 

- Buy a new mailbox if yours is tattered.  Same with your welcome mat. 

- Replace those old curtains, valances and more with lightweight, sheer curtains to allow light to brighten your rooms. 

- Replace house numbers if needed. If the numbers on your house have seen better days, pop right back to that local hardware store and purchase new ones that compliment the colors of your home. 

Remember, to add other little touches to your home to make it smell and look fresh. 

Have questions about selling your home? Contact me! 

Thanks for reading, 
Brenda