Using our South Carolina Contract, your agent  will prepare all the paperwork per your instructions and explain your rights and obligations to you.   (Please keep in mind your realtor is not an attorney and his/her explanations are not legal opinions.)

Your Realtor will negotiate strongly for you with the property owner or their Realtor,  and help you evaluate any counter-offers.

After you and the property owner reach an agreement and initial any changes to the contract of sale, your Realtor will assist you in selecting a real estate attorney and a home inspector.

Your Realtor will accompany you to the home inspection and notify the property owner of any discrepancies.

They will follow up with the property owner, lender appraiser, surveyor, attorney, inspector and others to assure that all contract conditions and all deadlines are met.

In the meantime, there are somethings you need to do: Contact your insurance agent to make arrangements for a hazard insurance policy, confirm that you have provided all requested documentation to your lender, notify all utility companies, and obtain a certified or cashier’s check in the amount estimated by your lender.

Your Realtor will accompany you to the closing, review the settlement sheet, and strongly support your position if there are any disagreements. Then, proudly hand you the keys to you new home.

Now you have decided what you would  like in your new home, and the price you will feel comfortable paying for your new home it’s time to get started looking.

Using the MLS data base and other sources your agent will research houses that are available for sale. Together you will choose houses that meet your requirements.

Your agent will make appointments for you to inspect the houses you selected and your agent will point out the pluses and minuses as you go through them.

When you decide on some  house that you like, your agent will estimate your closing cost and monthly payments. Your agent will do the research to determine answers to any questions you may have about the houses  and communities so he/she can  present them to you. If none satisfy your requirements, your agent will then discuss options such as adjusting your wants and needs or simply waiting for other houses to come on the market  Then the agent will show you other house at your convenience, for as many days as it takes to find you the right house.

I know you will have many questions on what to expect, when you buy a house. The following is a guideline I created that will help you in the buying process.

There are four simple steps

Pre-purchase Consulting

Looking for your home

Buying your home

Pre-Purchase Consulting

Today I would like to l address the reasons why taking the time to have a Pre-Purchase consulting meeting is  in your best interest.   It’s important for you and your agent to invest  some time together before you actually go out and look for homes, it will you help you feel confident about the home buying process  and your choice  of the Realtor your going to work with.

It’s important for the agent to really know what you are looking for so he/she will ask you to share information to discover your wants and needs. Your hobbies and special interests will be an important part of this process also what you do not like about the current house you are living in.  For example you may be living in a home that has a very small kitchen and because of this you have discovered you would really like to have a house with more counter space  or an eat in kitchen. We will show you some houses on the computer to see which houses catches your eye, we also will ask  if schools are important to you, which school district you would like to in.

The Financial aspect of buying your home is important, so the Realtor will ask how much you would feel at ease with paying on a monthly basis, for your mortgage payment. You may have already been qualified by a mortgage company, however, many times the bank will say you qualify for a payment that you do not feel comfortable with, therefore, you may become uneasy with the buying process.  We will help you decide how much money you  wish to invest upfront as a down payment, how much you are willing to pay monthly for your mortgage payment and then determine the price range  of the houses to show you.   We will explain financial options that will suit your circumstances and if you would like choose a local lender so you can make application as soon as possible.

We will provide you with our local disclosure forms, plus a copy of the contract we use locally, so you can take the time to read it prior to us finding you a house, if you have any  concerns or questions they can be answered before you make a commitment to buying a house. The Contract also explains the responsibilities of the buyer, the seller, and the agent.

To morrow we will share with the process of showing you homes.

As we place ourselves in the seller or Buyer’s shoes we have to acknowledge they may be confused a little frustrated and possibly scared. The information they have accumulated has mostly come from the news reports they have either listened to or read. Some of it will be fact, some may be myth, so we have to educate them on what is really happening and become their expert guide by directing and guiding them with factual information.  First, whether it is buyer or seller it’s important to go over the process of buying and selling, make it detailed,sharing with them exactly what is going to happen including what might go wrong and how you will handle it.

Supply and demand has always been a measure on whether or not it is a buyer’s market or a seller’s market.  In most markets today it is a buyer’s market; inventory is high, we have foreclosures and short sales competing with sellers who have to move for either business reasons or personal reasons. Which means we sometimes have to be the bearer of bad news (the house will not sell at the price the seller was expecting.)  The houses that are selling today are either in perfect condition, or at the best value. Which means price per sq ft, incentives, and how we are planning to market it.  Our goal of course (even though the absorption rate in a particular neighborhood might me 14 to 15 months) is to sell the house at the  highest realistic price.  The seller, even though they might not like what we are telling them, does appreciate the honesty. The goal of the seller is to move, our goal is to sell the house, we are doing the seller and ourselves a disservice if  we do not share the market facts. Yes, that means sometimes they decide not to sell. Which is definitely good for us also as were not in the business of listings houses, we are in the business of selling the houses we list.

Explaining the process of the sale to the buyer means the difference between a smooth transition and possibly a difficult one. They will need to understand the contract, before they decide to buy a house.  Give them a copy of the contact at the first meeting so they can go over it at their leisure, if there  items that they have question about, you can  explain them, so they will know what they are signing when they find the house they want to buy.

When we educate our buyers and sellers it establishes our value to our clients, they want to work with an agent who can recognize the importance of explaining each step of the journey to either buying or selling their investment.

We provide full service and our agents consistently list more and consequently sell more properties than agents with other companies.    Carolina One signs are everywhere and as a result our agents are quite often able to sell their own listings based on the volume of inquiries.

We provide a variety of in house training programs, that vary from office to office but consistently we help our agents grow to a level they want to grow to.  We will help you set goals and achieve those goals through regular office meetings, regular educational opportunities and one on one management assistance and coaching.   Because of our top notch training programs our agents are the best prepared and best educated agents in the marketplace today.

Ask Sheila why our agents make more money than other agents in the area.  And how we guide and direct you to take your career to the next level.

Sheila is actively recruiting new and experienced agents to join our team.  Our office is located in the James Island area of Charleston, servicing all areas of Charleston.

Sheila’s goal is to help her agents grow their business to whatever level of success they seek and still achieve balance in their personal lives too.

Whether you are looking to make a career change, or if you are just curious and want to see what we have to offer, give Sheila a call today and set up a no obligation meeting.

If you are thinking about selling your home or buying a home call our office today and a well qualified Carolina One agent will be happy to assist you in the marketing and sale of your home, or the buying of your new home.

Congress Abandons Critical Housing Programs – Again

Once again, Congress left town without reauthorizing the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) and the Section 502 Rural Housing programs. The NFIP is now expired. The Section 502 Rural Housing program has exhausted its funding and lenders have stopped accepting applications.

Until Congress extends NFIP, no new or renewal flood policies can be issued. Without the flood insurance coverage provided by NFIP, thousands of residential and commercial transactions are on hold.

Congress has also abandoned the Section 502 Rural Housing Program. The housing program provides zero-down-payment mortgages to eligible families in rural area of every state.  Many of these families signed contracts before April 30th and plan to utilize the home-buyer tax credit.  If this program is not restored soon, they will lose their chance.

When buying a home you are faced with many decisions and many questions.  We are here to help you on your journey of buying a home.  Are you ready to purchase a home?  Locating the perfect home is not always easy and obtaining a mortgage loan can be a frustrating process.  Although, once you have determined you are ready to move forward towards your home-purchasing goal, the rewards are well worth the effort.

We are here to make the process of buying a home an enjoyable experience.  We are familiar with the current homes on the market, we know neighborhood values and we can help you determine which properties are fairly priced before you start your search.  We will help you locate and review properties for sale that match your requirements and guide and direct you throughout the process of buying.  We will help you prepare so the seller will see you as a qualified preferred buyer.

Your first step is to list what kind of house you’d like and where you would like it to be.  Be specific. Separate the “must haves” from the “want to haves.”  Do you want to be in the city of Charleston on the Peninsula or in the suburbs, West Ashley, James Island, Johns Island, North Charleston, Goose Creek, Summerville, Mt. Pleasant, Isle of Palms, Sullivan’s Island or Folly Beach.

Your Next Step:  Loan Pre-Qualification

Once you have addressed the above needs, your next step in the purchasing process is to get pre-qualified with a mortgage company.  This can be done over the phone or even online in a matter of minutes.

Call us and we will refer you to a mortgage professional that has an excellent reputation and track record for successfully acquiring loan approval for his/her clients.

We Will Find The Right Home For You

Once you’ve been pre-qualified and know what price range you want to stay in, we can help you determine which properties fit your needs by using the (MLS) Multiple Listing Service system to locate them.

We Will Help You Every Step Of The Way

We will help you complete your financing and inspections, and closed on the transaction.  Our top priority is to make sure that your home buying experience is pleasant, cost-efficient, and successful.

Our first priority is to educate our sellers on what is really happening in the market place. Of course they do have an idea; although, we have to be more specific, explain the supply and demand issue. What the odds of selling are in their specific neighborhood.  We have to show them our market penetration.  Houses selling today are either in perfect condition or the best value, price per sq ft. Our job is to give them all the facts so they can base their decision on what is best for them in today’s market.

The seller wants to know how we find our Buyers. We have to have a clear precise plan on how we find our buyers. How you market to other agents, what internet sites are you advertising on, the exposure their house will be receiving besides placing it on MLS.  They want to be kept informed on a weekly basis and want to know the comments the buyers are relaying to their agents about their house.

It’s important that we keep ourselves informed so we can give our clients the facts.

Michael Staver, founder of the Staver Group, an executive training company, says that acknowledging failure, then moving on, can help keep one’s passions from dying.

Michael Staver who is a national speaker and coach, sent me the following email concerning recognizing one person everyday, I thought it was a good idea, not just for our real estate business but for our family and friends also.  So often we are so busy we forget to recognize those who mean the most to us.

Dear Shelia,

What do you think the world would be like if each of us committed to recognize one person every day?   I have a challenge for you. The challenge is a lifelong commitment to recognition and gratitude.

With that in mind, I started a club inspired by an insightful Exec at CUNA Mutual Group named Dan Meylink. The club is called the ROPED Club and I am inviting you to join. It is free of fees, but not free of responsibility.

ROPED stands for Recognize One Person Every Day.
If you want to join, here are the rules: you MUST purposefully recognize one person every day for the rest of your life. They can be anywhere at anytime; just commit to recognize one person every day. That’s it! It’s that simple!

Our world is so fast and busy that seldom do people receive recognition.  What is purposeful recognition?

Purposeful recognition is:

1.  Specific – be certain that the recognition is about something they did.

2.  Appreciative – Be clear that it mattered to you!

3.  Personal – Do it face to face whenever possible!

4.  Immediate – Don’t wait! Do it as soon as possible!

Share this with a friend.   Sheila

The  MLS Residential Activity report shows Current # of listings in the each area, current # number of closed sales in each area, Median Sales Price, Average Sales Price and List price to Sale Price ratio in each area  of  Charleston.  It also shows the average days on the market which is a little misleading as it records only the houses sold since they were placed on the market and of course they might have expired and been re-listed. Keep that in mind when you are checking out the different areas.

Click on the Activity report to the right and it will zoom in so you can read it if  you click on it again,  it will enlarge again,  it is for the first quarter of the year 2010.