In this short video I provide a few real estate tips for beginners explaining how to get real estate referrals. It’s a simple way to skills, and is great if you are just getting started in real estate.

One of the biggest questions I get from out of town buyers coming into Charleston have nothing to do with the actual house themselves, nor the neighborhood.

What about Alligators in Charleston?

Well, we are in the lowcountry, and there are swampy areas around and these age old dinosaur like reptiles do still exist in the world...so the quick answer is YES, we have them.

With that being said, I have lived here my entire life and the only person I have ever heard of that has been attacked by an alligator was my second grade teacher. Mrs. Stevens was golfing one day and was fishing her ball out of a pond and got bit in the leg pretty badly. She had a bunch of stitches, but she survived ...

(Part 3 in a Series of Multiple Posts About Investing in Charleston SC Real Estate)

I have had the opportunity to help many invest in Charleston SC real estate. In fact, most of them did not know they were investors at the time. They were just buying a house because they needed a place to live.

So why do I say I was helping them invest?

Well, housing has been an integral part of long term wealth building for many years. After the world wars, it sort of happened by default. There was a steady rise in house values, with a few dips and valleys along the way.

For many years real estate was viewed as a long term investment and the 2-3% rise each year was a great return on investment over t...

(Part 2 of a Multi Part Blog Series on Investing in real estate in Charleston SC)

Well, the real estate in Charleston SC has been quite the picture show since I have been involved. I remember being a young buck. The year was 1995. Fresh out of college. I was ready to  embark on a new career. The future; bright, shiny, full of wonder.  Investing my time in this new career in real estate in Charleston SC was an exciting prospect for me at the time.

But looking back, getting a license to sell real estate in Charleston SC might as well have been a license to get married, or go just fishing. I really did not know what I was doing. I just knew I liked meeting people, I love being creative, I have...

(Part 1 of a Series of Articles about Investing in Charleston SC Real Estate)

The Charleston SC realty market is a great investment. Would I have said this in 2008? Yes. Yes, I would have. In fact, I did.

Why? First let me say that it was never meant to be a short term investment. Between 1997 and 2000 we had moderate rises in value. Normal and healthy.

From 2000 to 2004, "Come on in, the water is great!." The short term investors jumped in and the market started to ignite.

From 2004 to 2006, "Total Insanity." Buyers were fighting. People were stressed. Everywhere people talked about real estate. I had to hush someone in a movie theater because they were talking about their latest p...

Have you ever heard the analogy that this is just the tip of the iceberg? Well this applies to many scenarios in the real estate market when selling homes in Charleston South Carolina.

To expand on one, and probably the most important, is the actual buying and selling process.

If you were in a boat in the middle of the Arctic Ocean, you would see the seascape in front of you filled with icebergs. Now if you can imagine, the tips of those icebergs are all houses. Homes for sale if you will, many being in the Mount Pleasant and Charleston South Carolina market.

Finding a buyer in this market is a challenge, but compared to the details that soon follow after a contract is delivered, that is re...

The market used to be so very different in Charleston South Carolina. When I started real estate in 1995, all I remember is how things always seem to sell, and sell quickly. The next decade proved to be a whirlwind of real estate activity and, looking back in time, 1997 to 2006 showed a dramatic rise in prices. From a day-to-day perspective this meant absolute craziness. I remember sitting in movie theaters listening to conversations before the movie started. The topics were always about real estate. It seemed like everyone was trying to buy, and excited about selling. It was as if that's the way it always was. This was normal for me.  If I didn't sell in the first month, I started to thi...

I just helped a really nice young couple purchase a property. It was a really great property in the Old Mount Pleasant area, and the process was fairly streamlined and trouble-free.


They were first-time buyers, and really didn't understand a lot about the process when we first met. I've done this so much in the past, I really don't give it too much thought. After the closing I pondered how much the order of things is really important when it comes to buying a home.

Most people know that putting the cart before the horse in any endeavor is never really a good idea, so having a good understanding of the entire process is something that I focus on early on. I start by laying out a blueprint fo...

Thank goodness the appraisal problem I had last week solved itself!

If you hadn't seen the last blog post, then you may not be aware that I had an appraisal issue. Appraisal issues are not fun. In fact, everything can be going along just swimmingly and the rug can get pulled out from under everyone's hard work.

In this particular case, I had sold a house to some really nice folks and we were going through the closing process. This was no inexpensive sale, as the house was in extremely good condition and priced accordingly. (Let's just say it was near the half-million mark.) So what was the problem?  The lenders appraiser thought it was worth below the half million mark, and like a hot p...

As a follow-up to my blog post about the importance of timing with regards to buying a home in Charleston, I thought it was only fair to also comment on the schedule with sellers.

Having had thousands of listing appointments in Charleston South Carolina, I've met with many sellers from all walks of life. It seems there are two categories. (Well, three categories actually.) There are the ones that are truly motivated, the ones that can take all the time in the world to sell, and the ones that say they can take all the time in the world to sell but really are motivated. I know this sounds confusing, so I'll explain.

Category number one is easy enough. The truly motivated home sellers in Chare...

"I love it when this happens!"... A mortgage lender sent me a really great referral one day. These were not first time buyers brand new to the idea of buying a home, they were seasoned veterans. They had been living on Daniel Island, renting a house, and by carefully watching the market for a few years, they decided the time was right to purchase real estate in Mount Pleasant SC.

We started the process very quickly. I call them one weekend, and by Tuesday of the next week we were already planning to meet. 

With today's savvy buyers, things are quite different than they used to be. I used to be the holder of all information. Buyers used to come to me looking for information on what was a...

I'm selling a home in the Mount Pleasant area and I am probably dealing with the most diligent sellers I've ever had the fortune of helping. Their closing is the perfect example of “no detail is too small”, especially when it comes to termite letters in Charleston South Carolina.

The homeowners are medical professionals that have relocated to Philadelphia. Their home is in the Old Village and I knew from day one that they would be completely ready, willing and able to take care of all obstacles since the moment I met them.

The house epitomizes what buyers look for in the Old Village. A large Victorian built in 1920 that sits on a large corner lot ,with a big wraparound porch. (It's a be...

There are so many things to consider when making this very important decision. I usually lump this decision into two different categories, the first is redecorating the home for yourself, and the second is redecorating to sell which can also be considered staging. I will briefly go over my thoughts on both using my experience in both the antiques market and high end furniture. 

If you are redecorating your home and going to continue to live there, think about the big picture as well as what your current tastes are. Trends will come and go so I tend to always use a neutral base and build from there. Next I use decor items and splashes of color to highlight the rooms features. I also stay ...

Charleston Foodies Unite!

A good friend noted when I announced I was moving to Charleston that it was going to be great living in a town with a five-star restaurant on every corner.  And the friend was from Asheville!  While that may be an exaggeration, certainly outstanding food abounds all across the Charleston region. 

One of my favorite tasks when meeting new clients or tourists in town is to share with them the many different restaurants and food styles in this city.  Italian, no problem -- do you want romantic, bustling, or just economical and quick.  Seafood, no problem -- do you want fried, broiled, locally fresh, or just something casual with a great view.  French, no problem -...

THE BEST WAY TO SELL YOUR HOME IS TO SELL IT FAST!

When your house isn’t in the best condition, it sits on the market for far too long and becomes stale. That’s when people begin to wonder what’s wrong with it...

You only have one defense against one stagnant showing after the next. You need to be absolutely certain your house is in the best condition possible. Marketing has everything to do with presentation. When you present a poor and flawed product, its negative aspects stand out and affect the entire experience.

When you put your home on the market, it needs to be immaculate. It needs to have all of the positive aspects that attract buyers. The market is full of people who spend ever...

If you're looking for homes for sale in Mt Pleasant SC, it's a great idea to really go through what's called a loan prequalification process. The reason that I say this is that the market is moving fairly quickly and knowing in advance all about the mortgage process and how much you qualify for will help you make the right decision.

There are many realtors that will not allow buyers in their car that haven't been pre-qualified. I personally find that strict "draw a line in the sand" mentality a little bit brash. Of course, I also feel that being prequalified is important, not for me, but for the client.

Let me explain… Early in my career I would take people out because I was excited to be a...

If you're searching for homes for sale in Charleston SC, ask yourself a simple question along the way… am I putting the cart before the horse?

Sure, moving can be stressful. With so many unknowns , it is not uncommon for people to jump the gun and do things in reverse. Find a home, then try to sell.

While this is a good way to avoid being homeless, there are some very good reasons to be careful not to put the cart before the horse. Not to buy and then sell.

Consider this:

• You think about wanting to move, and you decide to start looking.
• Your intention is to just get a feel for the market.
• You stumble across the perfect house.
• It is definitely the one, it has everything. Perfect price...

With the recent change in the Mount Pleasant SC real estate market, Labor Day takes on a completely new meaning. A few years ago the real estate market was tough. The sky was falling and nobody knew really what the future held. It's always easy to look back in time and really see what has happened, and with that being said I can safely say that the bottom of the real estate market in Charleston SC happened in the fourth quarter of 2011.

One of the biggest changes that I've seen since then has been the construction of new homes. It's wonderful to see contractors working on their projects, rather than the tumbleweeds rolling by like they were in 2009. It seems like every day in Mount Pleas...

Charleston SC Houses (or poultry farms)?

I sell homes for a living and have been doing so since 1995. Of course I have seen many trends occur along the way. Some very obvious, and many that happen slowly and gradually.

Sure, house styles in Charleston SC have changed over time, and the change from the 1960’s rancher, to the 1970’s retro feel, into the 1980 contemporaries and on up until present day are the easiest to see as you are driving through an area, but what about things that happen in people’s back yards?

Let me back up. I live in an older subdivision in West Ashley. I was looking for the covenants of the area for a friend the other day. After exhausting my search on the county we...