Myrtle Beach Mortgage Brokers Report Bright Spots Within Slow Market

Amid a slower, somewhat stagnant real estate market, some bright spots have emerged, reports The Myrtle Beach Sun-News.

Some real estate brokers are reporting an increase in sales in November from October, while a handful of builders are saying they’ve noticed an upswing of calls. South Carolina mortgage activity appears to be returning to the area.

Statistics from the Multiple Listing Service don’t show an overall sales increase between these months. But with several good signs emerging - inventory is dropping, buyers are calling - real estate agents expect that buyers will return to the South Carolina housing market in 2007.

“The agents seem optimistic about it picking up. A lot of people are thinking or hoping that it’s kind of bottomed out and it will be stagnant or stale for a few months and then pick up,” said Rod Smith, director of general brokerage at Coldwell Banker.

Smith said that’s likely because the Carolina Forest office sells mostly single-family homes - not condominiums, where the market has been hit the hardest.

It’s busier at Classic Home Building & Design Inc., too.

“We’re seeing an increase in inquiries in the last 60 days and increased traffic in our model homes,” said Berkley White, the company’s president.

But there’s no doubt things have been slow for real estate in the final months of 2006. Single-family home sales fell 28 percent in November from last year and 8 percent from the month before.

Condo sales fell 27 percent from last year, but increased 6.5 percent from October.

Smith says he hears most often that buyers are waiting for their homes in the Northeast to sell - delaying a purchase on the Strand. Other buyers are saying they’re waiting until after the holidays to look around for the right home mortgage loans.

The market showed its first year-over-year median price decline in condos in November to $189,900 from $194,000 last year, said Tom Maeser, market analyst and president of the Fortune Academy of Real Estate.

But Maeser said agents are seeing a pickup in activity, and inventory is dropping. This is mostly due to sellers taking their homes off the market - realizing that it won’t sell unless they lower the price perhaps more than they’re willing.

Sellers are now adjusting prices accordingly if they want to sell - a shift from earlier in the year when many still thought they could get 2005 prices. This simply emphasizes the buyer’s market and the low price you could find on a piece of property.

With that in mind: why wait to apply for a mortgage?