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 really the tip of the iceberg. Not to trivialize finding a buyer, as that certainly is not the case.
Houses need to be in tip top shape, they need to be priced well, and they absolutely need to be ready and available for showing on a moments notice. There are fewer opportunities in this market then during the boomtime years, so making a good first impression may not happen too frequently. Showings in some cases can be quite sparse.
Once we are able to secure a buyer and a contract is ratified, the real work begins. You have to remember we are in a climate where the pendulum has completely swung in the opposite direction. It used to be that a buyer could literally walk into a mortgage lenders office, simply "fog a mirror" or "show them they had a pulse", and they were approved for mortgage with no questions asked. (a slight exaggeration, but no too far off)
Not to to over dramatize it, as some buyers don't have too difficult of the time obtaining a mortgage today, but the pendulum has certainly swung.
It's really the buyer client that has a significant portfolio that seems to have to overcome the most obstacles. As a recent example, I sold a 1.5million dollar home on Queen Street downtown. The buyer was putting down over $1 million, and was simply obtaining a mortgage in order to gain the tax benefits and not use up too much of his liquidity. This is one facet of the iceberg nobody saw from the boat. The buyer with $1 million, having to literally produce the empty Starbucks cup that they just used their debit card with the day before, so the closing to occur, was frustrating for this client (and rightfully so.)
Knowing the right questions to ask, and the advice to give, whether it be a buyer or seller, is very critical in today's market. Lenders have their hands full. They have their list of rules and regulations that continue to become more and more stringent. Buyers just want to buy, sellers want to move too. But the iceberg, the same iceberg that sank the Titanic, is still looming out there. The unforeseen challenges are bobbing out there, sometimes not too far from the boat.
This is where I can get really salesy and wrap it all up with a quippy statement like, "I can navigate your boat in this sea of uncertainty to a safe harbor", but I think we can both agree that that would be rather cheesy.
What I can say is if you do have questions about the process, or want to discuss buying and selling homes in Charleston South Carolina at any time, this is what I do. I am used to the cards I am dealt, and have been fortunate enough to have weathered a changing real estate market. I am seeing good signs of improvement, and am glad that they are here. Thank you for reading!
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Nat Wallen is a Realtor in Charleston SC specializing in residential property sales. He has been licensed since 1995 and is the top listing agent with Carolina One Real Estate. Carolina One Real Estate is the largest company in the Charleston SC area of 700 plus agents. NOTE: Nat Wallen never solicits consumers interacting with his blog unless requested. YOUR comments are encouraged and welcomed. Thanks!
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