WE BE Bloggin with LowCountry Joe®

Fall "Eye Candy"...From LCJoe

A Dream Come True For Buyers

Happy Fall from the Carolina Lowcountry....If you have been procrastinating about purchasing property because of all the negative "press" and naysayers out there, you might want to take the time to seriously ponder the following article. It says it all.

LCJoe

********************************************************************************************************************

By Steve Harney

RISMEDIA, Oct. 27, 2007-Even though the current real estate market is challenging for sellers, it’s a dream come true for buyers. Never before have home inventory levels been so high or mortgage rates so low. And while many real estate agents and mortgage companies are advertising to attract buyers, not everyone is listening. So if you’re one of the many who has been waiting to purchase your first house or to move up into your dream house, you might want to stop procrastinating and take action now. Consider the following reasons why buying a home today is one of the best decisions you can make.

1. Inventory is at record numbers

When inventory is low, it’s called a seller’s market because buyers have slim pickings and often have to engage in bidding wars with other buyers in order to get the home they want. But when inventory is high, as it is now, buyers feel like kids in a candy store. They can get any brand of candy they want, in any flavor they want and for virtually any price they want. In terms of real estate, high inventory levels mean that buyers don’t have to settle for less than they want or pay more than they can afford. So whether you want a simple starter home or your dream house with extra features and deluxe upgrades, chances are high that you can find it now at a price that will make you smile.

2. Interest rates are on the rise

Historically, the interest rates of today are extremely low. Back in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s, interest rates of 9-12 percent were common. But today, interest rates are substantially lower. With that said, though, interest rates are starting to creep up. So if you wait too long to take advantage of the great rates available, you may end up paying more than you need to for a home.

For example, a lot of sellers made the mistake of waiting for the market to peak before listing their home. However, many of them waited too long, and by the time they listed, the selling market had already started its decline-hence the high inventory. As a buyer, every day you wait to buy a home is another day for the interest rate to rise. So even if you wait for a seller to lower their price by $10,000, if you take a mortgage rate that’s a percent higher, the amount of money you save on the home’s asking price is meaningless because you’re paying more than that amount in financing fees.

Think about it. If you were to buy a car and only look at the monthly payments and not the overall cost of the car, people would say you were being naïve. The finance fee definitely impacts the price of the car, just as it impacts the price of your home. So since prices are down, act now. While you’re waiting for home prices to decline further, your finance charges will continue to rise.

3. Real estate is a long-term investment

Very few people who bought property 20 years ago look back and say that they regret their purchase. However, almost everyone has heard a friend or family member say, “If I knew 20 years ago what I know now, I could have bought that piece of property for dirt cheap. That property today is worth over a million dollars. I wish I would have acted on it back then.”

The fact is real estate value goes up every year, even in a market that favors buyers. A new study by Jack Clark Frances, a finance and economics professor at Baruch college in New York City, and Yale’s Roger G. Ibbotson, compared real estate investing from 1978 to 2004. They found that the average annual return on real estate was 8.6 percent. Their findings don’t take into consideration tax deductions and credits. So if you bought property today, it might not be worth much more five months from now. But five years from now you’ll have a good return on your investment, and seven to ten years from now that piece of property is going to practically double in value. So don’t get caught up in short-term thinking. Buy now so you can have long-term gains.

4. A home is much more than a commodity

Thanks to all the home renovation and home flipping shows on the air these days, many people view real estate as nothing more than a commodity to be bought and sold. But prior to five years ago, the main reason people bought a home was for a lifestyle consideration. Maybe they wanted to be in a better school district, or they wanted a bigger backyard, or they wanted to live closer to family. Whatever the reason, it was all about lifestyle.

Today, too many people are looking at real estate as something they can buy and sell like a stock. As such, they sacrifice location or home size or features they want. But don’t sacrifice an increase in lifestyle because you’re worried about overspending by a couple thousand dollars or you’re worried that the great location you want won’t be so desirable to others. Whenever you don’t go with your dreams, you pay a price. For example, suppose you received a promotion at work and now needed a larger home so you could host regular dinner parties for clients. If you found the ideal larger home but decided to wait on buying it because of the price or some other consideration (i.e.: you thought it was too far out in the country and you wouldn’t be able to quickly sell it in the future), what would that decision cost you in terms of job performance or client satisfaction? That’s the type of thinking buyers need to re-adopt.

Remember, purchasing a house is first and foremost a lifestyle decision. Yes, the financial aspect is there, as is the resale consideration, but those shouldn’t be the only factors. So as you look at homes, think of your kids, your job, your family, and your personal likes more than anything else. That’s the only way you’ll truly be happy with your decision.

5. Say hello to a good buy

Buying a home, whether it’s your first house or one of many, is always an exciting time. These days, however, it’s more exciting than ever due to the current buyers’ market. So take advantage of what today offers. Get the house you want at the price you want and enjoy the long-term gains. Remember, there’s no place like home…and that includes your home.

Fall as seen by LCJoe's old Bionic Eyes

Bloody Point Beach Protection

Well....the 125 ft. groin at Daufuskie Island's Southermost tip is almost finished as evidenced by the included Island Packet article. In the last eight years that I have lived at Bloody Point I have seen the beach at the extreme "point" come and go. The sand down to the public beach access has held up quite well in my estimation and in some areas has shown some accreation. It will be interesting to watch as Mother Nature deals with this "new found groin contraption". One thing is for sure, however, our pristine beautiful beach will be protected thanks to folks like Tony Simonelli and the Bloody Point Property Association. They not only had the vision to put the money "up" but to also spend countless hours making the groin program a reality.

So, when you get a chance throw the kids and the pooch on your golfcart and take a leisurly drive down to the point. This time of year the ocean and its accompaning views of Tybee Island are simply breathtaking. And if you want a real treat, go down at night and check out the Tybee Light beacon and the blinking Bloody Point range lights. It just doesn't get much better....LCJoe

***************************************************************************

Daufuskie Island residents to foot $1M bill to save beaches 

Published Thu, Oct 18, 2007

By PETER FROST

Daufuskie Island residents concerned about large swaths of white sand disappearing from the shores of their treasured Bloody Point beaches took an unusual and expensive step to protect them.

After residents concluded they would receive no financial support from the state or Beaufort County to stem a substantial erosion problem, the 146-member Bloody Point Property Owners Association voted to foot a nearly $1 million bill itself.

The project, now nearly complete, involved installing a 125-foot groin into the Mungen River near its confluence with the Atlantic.

Groins act as a barriers to stop sand from eroding and being swept away by ocean currents. As sand is trapped on one side of the groin, it accumulates, renourishing the beach and helping stabilize the shoreline.

"With the sheer amount of erosion on that point, we felt we had to do something to try and stop it," said Tony Simonelli, president of the association. "The beach is our biggest asset over here, and if no one else stepped up, we were going to find a way to fund it."

America's Silver Tsunami

Well, I have been pontificating for years about the wave of Baby Boomers that would retire in mass and change the US real estate scene forever. Pontificate no more my friends, as evidenced by the included article, the day has come.....The Silver Tsunami has arrived, and the first Baby Boomer is going to the mail box every month for her social security check. What will she do with that check? .....There is a good chance she will leave New Jersey and head to her new Southern home and spend it there.....It is estimated that over thirty three million (33,000,000) baby boomers are planning on leaving winter behind and moving South. Yes....to the sunny South and to places like the Carolina Lowcountry.

What does that mean to you?......If you are planning on staying North probably nothing. But if you are planning on moving South and building your dream home my suggestion is that you "listen up". At present, the market is, as we all know, slow for home sales and in most cases we are experiencing a buyers market. But as the tsunami hits....and the first ripples are now enveloping our shore, the resulting sales and price increases will be dramatic. It will be like in the 'old days" when folks waited in line to put a bid on a home only to have it sell right out from under them. I have watched the incredble growth in the Lowcountry since my arrival twenty one (21) years ago.....but even I.....a resident and real estate professional....is having a tough time comprehending the massive changes that will effect the Lowcountry as this huge influx of Boomers arrive.

Already I am talking to Boomers with visions of walking our sunny beaches. Many must sell their home up North and with the state of the current Northeast market that can be a challenge. My advice....take some equity out of your house and buy a piece of dirt now....yes good old Carolina dirty sand. Buy it at an incredable price......stop the bleeding if you will....secure a part of your future  because I can guarantee you one thing.....dirt prices are going to go thru the proverbial roof. Then when your home sells build a nice new one...just like in your dreams. Or maybe you might want to sell the dirt with a big profit and buy an existing home...or whatever. The point is you have SECURED a part of your future.

As for me, I am going to take my morning walks with my Bride on the beach....keeping a wary eye out for the tsunami....I know its coming....and now you know. The rest is up to you.

LowCountry Joe

*****************************************************************************************************************************

First boomer applies for Social Security

By STEPHEN OHLEMACHER, Associated Press Writer Mon Oct 15, 7:23 PM ET

WASHINGTON - The baby boomers' stampede for Social Security benefits has begun.

The nation's "first" baby boomer, a retired teacher from New Jersey, applied for Social Security benefits Monday, signaling the start of an expected avalanche of applications from the post World War II generation.

Social Security Commissioner Michael Astrue called it "America's silver tsunami."

Kathleen Casey-Kirschling applied for benefits over the Internet at an event hosted by Astrue. Casey-Kirschling was born one second after midnight on Jan. 1, 1946, gaining her recognition as the first baby boomer — a generation of nearly 80 million born from 1946 to 1964, Astrue said.

"She's leading the way for her generation," Astrue told reporters.

Casey-Kirschling will be eligible for benefits after she turns 62 next year. She said she taught seventh graders for 14 years at a school near Camden, N.J., before retiring and volunteering for the Red Cross in Gulf Coast areas hit by Hurricane Katrina.

She and her husband have since moved to the eastern shore of Maryland near the Chesapeake Bay.

"I think I'm just lucky to be at the top of the boom," she said.

An estimated 10,000 people a day will become eligible for Social Security benefits over the next two decades, Astrue said.

A Yellow Leaf

I remember a conversation regarding Fall with a local upon my arrival to the Lowcountry twenty three years ago. "Just wait Joe....it will turn Fall overnight". That particular Summer was hot as Haities and I wondered about my sanity to move South. As August turned to September and September turned to October I woke each morning expecting cool breezes to refresh me like the ones up North, but none came. My local newfound friend had been wrong. But then one morning as I opened the door for the morning paper, I was met with a welcome visitor....the first vestige of Fall. Overnight a cold front had beared down on the Carolinas bringing with it a semblance of my North West Pennsylvania memories. The fresh coolness raced through the opening and swept by my welcoming face. Like a spirit floating through the wind it enveloped my body ever so softly and sped away into the adjoining rooms. As promised, Fall had arrived overnight in the Lowcountry.

With that "cooling experience" I waited anxiously for the onset of turning leaves. I waited and waited and then one day in late November I noticed a bright yellow leaf floating effortlessly from the clear Carolina blue sky. Like a crazy man, and as a neighbor walking his dog watched, I rushed out into the street grasping for it in mid air. Once caught I held it ever so carefully in my hand not wanting to disturb even the fragile stem. For some reason this colorful yellow leaf had become very special to me. It was a fond remembrance of me as a child, experiencing the fun of hot Summer vacation days and submitting to the cool school day freshness of Fall.

I normally get very busy this time of year and it precludes making a trip North and join the throngs of leaf peepers. But this year I decided that life was to short to miss another Northern Fall season. Mary and I packed our  sweaters and headed way up North to our cottage in the Canadian Maritimes. As our small plane landed and taxied down the airstrip a collage of reds, yellows and oranges raced by the windows. Our stewardess opened the cabin door, a cool freshness of a bright Canadian day swept down the isle and over my welcoming face. I walked across the tarmac with a renewed spring in my step and looked towards the horizon. Out there in Mother natures brightly colored pallet a lone bright yellow leaf awaits.