PHOTOS BY LEROY BURNELL/STAFF
This house on Ion Avenue in Sullivan’s Island sold last year.
The Boeing delivery center opened in late 2011 at the commercial jet maker’s North Charleston operations.
ket,” he says. “We are very, very lucky here in Charleston to have captured Boeing,” Dix says. While the home-buying market remains in rebound mode, the rental trade has fully bounced back. According to the yearend Charleston Rental Market snapshot, new listings in the area’s Multiple Listing Service rose 5 percent from 2010 to a record 5,874 units. The median rental rate was $1,200 a month, the report notes. Carolina One Real Estate director-broker Eric Wetherington, who oversees the company’s property management, maintenance and closing services division, compiles the snapshot. Unlike most places around the country, the Charleston area benefits from recent job growth, the report finds. “With the addition of major employers like Boeing and the pending Clemson University turbine research facility there are many folks moving here to take advantage of these new jobs,” he says.
pers, since leases are winding up pricier than mortgage payments for comparably sized properties. A few signs that the real estate market is healing have already started to show up. For instance, the Charleston area’s home inventory — the volume of properties for sale at any given time — was 9,000 in 2009. It has tumbled since then to about 6,000 houses today. One reason for the decline: “A lot more short sales and foreclosures were cleaned out,” Koger says. “With that all said, it could be worse.” Still, foreclosures, which account for one in four sales in the Charleston area, remain a thorny problem. They can drag down prices throughout a community. “It’s hurting comps (comparable sales prices in neighborhoods),” he says. “Unfortunately, appraisers have to use some of these.” Another fly in the ointment is the oftheard rumor that another wave of foreclosures will threaten the market, Koger says, noting that he’s been unable to validate it. “If we just look at (housing) statistics, the
At the same time, a sizable share of residents lost their home in a short sale or foreclosure, making them legally unable to qualify to buy another house for several years. “They often make great tenants as they are used to taking care of a home and they desire to live in a similar neighborhood to the one they left behind,” Wetherington says. Another factor: the Y generation “is more care-free and longs to be more mobile. They don’t want to be tied down to a house, job or community until later in life,” he says. That’s increased demand for high-end rentals in the Charleston area and elsewhere. Wetherington believes the median rent will increase in early summer— as in 2011 — as supply tightens during the peak months and demand continues to rise. “We expect 2012 to be another strong year for the Charleston rental market,” he says. Dix, for one, contends the surging rental market is actually a boon to home shop-
market improving, yeah it really looks good. If we get foreclosures dumped on us, it will slow down things.” A doubtful Dix says, “They’ve been talking about this (second surge in foreclosures) since last year. Really? Are they (coming)?” he questioned. Koger says home sellers and buyers still are having trouble coming to grips with the startlingly low prices proffered today as opposed to 2007-08. “It’s hard to get clients to understand, property is not worth the same as four years ago,” he says. His advice: “If you are buying, now is the time to buy if you’ve got the money,” he says. Yet bargain-hunters should be careful. Young people see a foreclosed property and figure the price will be $50,000 to $60,000 less, he says. But the process from contract to closing can be very drawn out, he says. Reach Jim Parker at 937-5542 or jparker@postandcourier.com
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Jay Law Summerville Office 810 N. Main Street Summerville, SC 29483 843-875-5525
Facts:
Awendaw is located in the Cape Romain community, surrounded by the 350,000 acres of the Cape Romain Wildlife Refuge, Francis Marion National Forest and Santee Coastal Reserve. It is named for a Sewee Indian village. Awendaw has grown slowly over the years, beginning in 1709 with the Sewee Barony, later renamed Awendaw Barony. Today, homes are spread along Highway 17 with new subdivisions emerging along the Intracoastal Waterway. Rice planters established McClellanville after their summer colony at the mouth of the Santee River was destroyed by the hurricane of 1822. Several years later the town became a year-round home to the descendants of planters. Today, the
town’s principal economic activity is commercial fishing. McClellanville, located on Jeremy Creek, is home port to a large fleet of shrimp boats.
Awendaw/McClellanville Median home sales price: $153,100 Number of sales: 22 Average days on market: 215 School district: Charleston
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Daniel Island
A newly developed community, Daniel Island is part of the city of Charleston, although it is located in Berkeley County just a few minutes’ drive from the heart of Mount
Pleasant. The island offers 4,000 acres of planned community living. The island has only recently been developed. In 1947, the prominent Guggenheim family of New York purchased the entire island for cattle ranching and a family hunting retreat.
Daniel Island Median home sales price: $407,500 Number of sales: 250 Average days on market: 127 School district: Berkeley
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Facts:
When Harry Frank Guggenheim passed away, the land passed to his foundation, which sponsored a group of some of the top urban visionaries from around the country to develop a master plan to ensure the island would be responsibly developed. The island was sold to the Daniel Island Company in 1997 and today is being developed in accordance with the vision outlined in the master plan. Daniel Island offers a variety of shops as well as restaurants, banks, medical facilities and a grocery store. There are also a number of business and corporate offices in the center of town. Parks are plentiful here, with gardens and natural areas for families to enjoy. The island is home to the Charleston Battery, the area’s professional soccer team. Each year, the island hosts the Family Circle Cup Tennis Tournament, and concerts and cultural events are held at the stadium throughout the year. The Club at Daniel Island holds events for its members and coordinates activities for both children and adults.
Johns Island
Top Sellers (Charleston area, 2nd half 2011)
1. 228 Eagle Point Road, Kiawah Island: 5,445 sq. ft. – $4,850,000 (Aug. 3) 2. 361 Rhoden Island Drive, Daniel Island: 6,637 sq. ft. – $3,375,000 (Oct. 17) 3. 2 Gibbes St., Charleston: 6,029 sq. ft. – $3.2 million (Oct. 14) 4. 7 Eugenia Ave., Kiawah Island: 4,939 sq. ft. – $3.1 million (Dec. 2) 5. 1851 Ion Ave., Sullivan’s Island: 8,383 sq. ft. – $2,635,000 (Dec. 13) 6. 36 Chalmers St., Charleston: 3,667 sq. ft. – $2,450,000 (Aug. 9)
Facts:
Johns Island is located due west of Charleston. For most of its history, Johns Island has been a coastal farming center, and it still boasts vast expanses of lush, unspoiled acreage only recently available to prospective real estate buyers. The island serves as a gateway for its more famous neighbors, Kiawah and Seabrook. Although technically an island because it is surrounded by the Intracoastal Waterway, Stono River, Kiawah River and Bohicket Creek, Johns Island is protected from the ocean by other islands surrounding it. Laced with tidal creeks and surrounded by rivers and waterways, the island offers a variety of waterfront lots, and newly developed neighborhoods overlook Wadmalaw Sound and the Kiawah and Stono Rivers. Winding country roads bordered by great live oaks sport a series of game preserves and newly designed golf courses. A few local farms are still in operation, growing tomatoes, cucumbers, lettuce, melons, winter greens and more. Year-round produce is offered in roadside markets and at restaurants on
the islands and beyond. The famous Angel Oak is located here off Bohicket Road, the main highway through the island. This massive, 1,500-year-old live oak is said to be the oldest living tree east of the Mississippi. Johns Island boasts a handful of fine restaurants and a number of small shopping areas near the heart of the growing population centers. Bohicket Road has been widened near the entrances of Kiawah and Seabrook, and two new bridges have been constructed, further attracting development.
7. 16 Logan St., Charleston: 2,262 sq. ft. – $2.4 million (July 29) 8. 1615 Atlantic Ave., Sullivan’s Island: 5,143 sq. ft. – $2,360,000 (Sept. 2) 9. 7 Conquest Ave., Sullivan’s Island: 4,100 sq. ft. – $2,325,000 (Aug. 15) 10. 17 Turtle Beach Lane, Kiawah Island: 3,247 sq. ft. – $2.3 million (Dec. 16) Source: www.Realtor.com
Johns Island Median home sales price: $188,000 Number of sales: 287 Average days on market: 93 School district: Charleston
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Sullivan’s Island
New Construction Market Share Top 10
(metro Charleston, 2011)
1. Johns Island – 55.1 percent 2. Wando, Cainhoy area – 40.4 percent 3. Goose Creek, Moncks Corner area – 40 percent 4. Greater Summerville – 31.3 percent 5. West Ashley – 28.6 percent 6. Daniel Island – 27.6 percent
Facts:
7. Greater North Charleston – 27.5 percent
Sullivan’s Island, a barrier island north of Charleston Harbor, is home to approximately 2,000 residents in half as many households. These are primarily full- or part-time citizens who enjoy the relaxed lifestyle of the island. There are very few short-term rentals and no hotels, motels, bed-and-breakfasts, or other transient lodgings. The town, incorporated in 1817 as Moultrieville, did not allow lean-tos or shacks then or now. At that time lots were required to have a minimum of half an acre, and the same is true today. Sullivan’s Island is distinctive because the beachfront lands that have built up over the years are owned by the town and held in a perpetual easement by the Lowcountry Open Land Trust, thus protecting the natural environment along the Atlantic Ocean. The island has a long military tradition of protecting the harbor from invaders, and many wonderful histories capture those stories. The island has played a part in fiction as well. Edgar Allan Poe was stationed at Fort Moultrie from 1827 to 1828 and used the island as the setting for his short story “The Gold Bug.” Remnants of the military are abun-
8. Dorchester Road corridor – 25.8 percent 9. Upper Mount Pleasant – 23 percent 10. Hanahan – 19.1 percent
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NOTE: Figures refer to the percentage of sales in a given area that are newly built homes. Source: Charleston Trident Association of Realtors
dant in now-privately held military housing; even former fortifications are now single-family residences. Many of these historic homes have withstood the test of time and ravaging weather. The Sullivan’s Island lighthouse, built in 1962, is a 140-foot-tall triangular building that boasts an elevator instead of the typical spiral staircase. It stands as a prominent symbol of the island and can be seen from various points surrounding Charleston Harbor.
Sullivan’s Island Median home sale price: $1,335,000 Number of sales: 37 Average days on market: 205 School district: Charleston
Did you know... The Charleston area was ranked one of 10 best small “Adventure Burgs” by Outside magazine in August 2009.
Summerville
Summerville’s name evokes its history. Situated on a pine-forested ridge, the city was first inhabited in the late 1700s as Charlestonians and other inhabitants of the Lowcountry “summered” there to seek respite from city heat, mosquitoes and disease. From May to September, plantation families along the nearby Ashley River and other coastal areas headed for the higher elevation in the area to live temporarily, or “maroon,” in the tiny forest colony soon dubbed Summerville. Other pioneer residents descended from those 1696 Puritans who established the nearby settlement of Dorchester, thus endowing Summerville with a heritage spanning three centuries. Summerville’s beauty is mirrored in its motto, “The Flower Town in the Pines.” Since the early 1900s, visitors have flocked to the town during early spring to enjoy the millions of spring blossoms, particularly azaleas, in private and public gardens, including the midtown Azalea Park. The town is known for its unique shops lining an “old-fashioned” Main Street, but its access to I-26 has also attracted larger chain stores. Ultimately, it’s the community’s charm-
the referendum results and North Charleston became a city. North Charleston’s many neighborhoods offer a wide range of amenities, including golf, fishing, tennis, playgrounds, schools, day care, dining and recreational opportunities. This thriving region boasts a 13,500-
seat coliseum that is home to the ECHL’s Stingrays. North Charleston also offers a convention center and a performing arts center, numerous hotels, and abundant shopping, including Northwoods Mall and Tanger Outlet Center.
Did you know... The Charleston metro area reaches 50 miles inland with 90 miles of oceanfront.
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ing neighborhoods with a variety of housing styles and price ranges that make it so desirable a location in the Lowcountry. The town’s population hovered around 3,000 for nearly a century, not reaching 6,000 until the late 1970s. Then, as a bedroom community for the larger urban centers in the area, the charm of Summerville resulted in a doubling of the population in the 1980s. It continues to attract families, business people and military personnel as a great place to live and work.
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James B. Hamilton II, Realtor, CPA Pratt & Co. at RE/MAX Pro Realty
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Marianne Stabenau Summerville
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Facts:
North Charleston, continued from 30