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Volume 3 Issue 18 |
January 11, 2008 |
Lettitor
By Heather Holbrook |
So. How are those New Year’s resolutions going for you?
Yeah, me too. But let’s cut ourselves some slack and stick with it a little longer. Say, next week at least.
I resolve to eat more chocolate. And I can do this if I keep my other resolution to run three days a week. Seems that January is just a thirty day breather between the indulgent months of December and February; between eggnog and sugar cookies and well, chocolate and more chocolate. So even though the Month of the Valentine is still weeks away, I find myself thinking about chocolate. Dark, milk, white, chips, cheap, good, Godiva. When our son was a baby he’d see the familiar rectangular gold foil box and pronounce proudly, “Diva-ducks”.
One January many years ago, I did Outward Bound survival school in the North Carolina mountains. Trail-less hiking, snow camping, cave dwelling, spelunking, fording icy rivers with a heavy pack…that kind of adventure. The food, believe it or not, was actually pretty good, but there was not a thing sweet to eat except a dried apricot here or there. At one point as I tried to pitch camp on the side of the mountain in the dark, the wind ushered in a sleet storm and blew all our tents away. One of our leaders was a fine Belgian lad and wise beyond his years. He produced his special stash of emergency morale chocolate to break out should the need arise. Out it came- those smooth Belgian braids of the good stuff which practically made us forget our hardship. Saved by chocolate, we survived the night.
Travel and chocolate go well together. Another January in Paris, my best friend and I visited a chocolate salon called Verlet. Cozy and elegant, we reveled in its steamy chocolate bowls of beauty. That hot chocolate was divine, but to date my favorite was found thanks to Jim and Shann Rocco on a hot summer day in New York at City Bakery on 18 th between 5 th and 6 th. Even though it was July I was glad to place my cup under a fountain of thick chocolate and plop in a couple of homemade marshmallows. I happily slurped it down while wiping sweat from my brow.
Rooting through my pantry I see some a leftover Christmas chocolate bar…I believe I will heat up some milk and get busy. So bottoms up, islanders. Cheers to the New Year with a stiff gulp of the good stuff. Let’s mix up a batch and invite the neighbors. Better yet, y’all bundle up and take a thermos down to the beach and savor this place we call home. |
The real estate year in review, part 1
By James T. Sears, Phd |
2007 is now history. Some folks are still recovering from the irrational exuberance of a U.S. real estate boom-gone-bust. What was this past year’s residential real estate market for Isle of Palms, Sullivan’s Island, and I’On in Mount Pleasant? How did these markets compare to past years since 2000?
We should look at three major factors when analyzing trends in residential real estate markets: median sales price and days on the market before selling, the difference between the listing and sales price, and the gap between homes coming onto the market and those withdrawn or sold.
Over the next three columns, I will look at each of these factors for existing single family homes, beginning with median sales price and days on the market (DOM). The median sales price is the mid-point for all properties sold with an equal number of transactions above and below. DOM is the number of days a property is on the market before a ratified contract to purchase.
Nationally, the median resale home price in 20 key markets declined 6.1 percent during the 12 months ending in October. This was the largest decrease in the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller Home Price Index for its six-year history ( this and other reports are available on my website). The National Association of Realtors reported the median sales price of an existing single family home was $208,700 in November, down 3.7 percent from a year earlier. In the South, the median sales price was $174,200, 2.5 percent below November 2006.
My analysis, using Charleston Trident Multiple Listing Service (MLS) data, finds that the median price for a single family home in Charleston County was $281,900 in 2007, a decrease of 1.1 percent from the year before. The last time the median sales price of existing homes decreased in this county was 1993 when it dipped .5%. Despite this lackluster showing, the area market fared better than the national and regional areas. Moreover, there had been a 4.8% increase in 2006 and single family homes sold through the MLS appreciated 65.9% from 2000 to 2007. It has taken longer for a home to sell in Charleston County (100 days) compared to the market’s zenith when it was about half that time.
Contrary to national and regional trends, on the Isle of Palms the median sales price of a single family home for 2007 was $1,350,000, which represents a 17.4% increase from 2006 ($1,150,000). With the exception of 2001, median sales prices have increased every year on IOP and the median priced single family home has jumped 134.4% since the turn of the century. However, sellers are waiting longer for their homes to sell, with IOP homes averaging 206 DOM compared to 96 in 2006. The number of days to sell a house in 2007 was comparable to what seller’s experienced between 2001 and 2003. Recent memories of a fast-paced sales market have no doubt made some sellers impatient. At the beginning of January, there were 266 single family homes sitting on the market for an average of 233 days with a median list price of $1,585,000 (more details of the current market for IOP and other Charleston area communities can be found at www.searspartners.com)
While the median price was higher ($1,925,000) on Sullivan’s Island than IOP, 2007 sales prices actually decreased 8.3%. Nevertheless, the median single family home price on Sullivan’s Island has advanced two-fold (204.2%) since 2000. Those who were successful in selling their home this past year, however, had to wait an average of 212 days. This was similar to the time span in 2003 and 2004, but stands in stark contrast to the fast clip of 85 DOM in 2006. Today, 40 homes are for sale through the MLS at a median list price of $1,987,000; the average home has been on the market 226 days.
For I’On, the planned community in Mount Pleasant, the median price single family home sold in 2007 was $832,500 with sales price also decreasing (12.4%) from 2006. From a longer term perspective, homes sold on the MLS have escalated 102.7% since 2000. A typical home took 167 days to sell in 2007, up from 130 the year before, but just two more days than the average selling time since 2000. Currently, there are 81 homes available with a median listing of $1,150,000 and an average of 201 DOM.
Along with the short-term slide in median prices has come the lengthening time that successful sellers have to wait before receiving an acceptable offer. Although DOM increased across every market during 2007, the time is still less than the years running up to the height of the “buyer’s market” in 2005.
Median sales prices and days on the market don’t give us a complete picture of the degree to which the market price has softened in 2007. In the next column I will present data on the widening gap between the price a seller lists a home and the amount actually paid by the buyer. James T. Sears, PhD., is a licensed Realtor and an Accredited Buyer Representative (ABR) associated with CSA Real Estate Services. Specializing in residential investment property, he works with clients interested in the islands, historical neighborhoods, and gentrifying communities in the Charleston area. He also heads the consultancy group Sears & Partners, which provides detailed analysis of local market conditions and investment properties. Copies of Sears’ past columns, institutional and governmental reports, and analyses are available at www.searspartners.com. If you have a question, email him at csa@jtsears.com or contact the Island Eye at 886-NEWS or www.luckydognews.com.
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Adios to Laura |
The Isle of Palms Recreation Department is losing a beloved member of its family. Laura Togami is saying “good-bye” after seven years with the Recreation Department in order to dedicate herself to her children at home.
Norma-Jean Page, Recreation Director, hosted a going away party for Togami on January 4 at Morgan Creek Grill. The room was filled with well-wishers, from co-workers to IOP Mayor Mike Sottile. It did not take long to see the strong bond that had formed over the last seven years as Page took a moment to address Laura and the audience.
“We’ve laughed together. We’ve cried together,” Page said before admitting, “Well, she cried. I just sat and watched her and said ‘don’t cry for crying out loud’.” But that statement was only true in the past. Page had special present for Togami and the emotion was undeniable. “I never write poems. I wouldn’t do it for just anybody,” Page declared. “But for you, Laura, I wrote a poem.” In front of everyone, she read the rare work of art. At times it inspired laughter. At other times, poignant smiles. After a tearful hug with the poet, Togami took her turn and tearfully addressed the crowd in an emotionally wrapped voice. “All of my experiences have been so wonderful. I couldn’t have asked for better people to work with,” Togami said. As she reflected on her time at the Recreation Center, she admitted that she was not very familiar with the job she had taken there and that it was not originally a career choice. “Little did I know that I would be here for this long and that I would learn so much...not just about work but about life in general,” she said.
Many co-workers and friends brought gifts, one of which had to be opened at that particular moment. It was a “Mommy survival kit” filled with a myriad of mini-gifts. Some were gag gifts like fake energy pills with instructions to take two every six minutes as needed. There were also real gifts that she could use to care for the children and even a legitimate bottle of Excedrin.
With the tear-filled, good-bye party, one could easily forget that Togami will actually be remaining on the island. But when that is realized, the strength of the friendships that she has forged can be seen as easily as the waterway behind the Morgan Creek Grill, only deeper and wider. “I’ll be back to see each and every one of you,” she said. It’s a good thing that distance will not prevent her from keeping that promise. Her absence will truly be felt, as evidenced in this line from Page’s poem:
The children will come and go and recreation programs will continue to flow.
The halls will be quiet and missing the sounds of our Laura who chose to wear the Mom crown. |
Make a splash with Sullivan’s Island Elementary
By Carol Killough |
South Carolina Bank and Trust presents the first annual “Make a Splash Bash”, a casual auction party benefiting the Sullivan’s Island Elementary School on Saturday, February 23 from 5:00-9:00pm at the Windjammer on Isle of Palms. This fun event will feature food, beverage, a live and silent auction and entertainment by “The Island Trio” with tickets available for $25.
Tickets may be purchased at the school, located at 2015 I’On Avenue on Sullivan’s Island. Donations to the auction portion of the event will be accepted at the school as well. For tickets and donation information, contact the SCBT Splash Bash Chair, Lisa Mitchell, via the school at 883-3118.
Monies raised from this event will be used to fund teacher salaries not covered by school district funds via the Friends of Sullivan’s Island School (FOSIS) grants fund, held by the Coastal Community Foundation.
Since its inception, FOSIS has provided funding for full time computer, art, and music instruction, additional elementary level instructors, full time guidance services, and a Spanish pilot program in kindergarten-second grades. These added faculty positions provide for smaller classroom sizes and increased teacher resources during enrichment classes.
Donations to the FOSIS grants fund are tax deductible and may be sent to the Coastal Community Foundation, 90 Mary Street, Charleston, SC 29403. Checks should be payable to CCF, with FOSIS noted on the check.
Questions may be directed to Lisa Mitchell at 883-3118. |
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