Thoughts on Christmas

21 12 2011

It’s snowing here at wordpress.com. It’s probably the most snow I’ll see all winter. In South Carolina we rarely see snowflakes, and when we do it almost never sticks to the ground. In the six years I’ve lived here in Charleston we’ve had one snowfall that was measurable. There was a snowman in every yard that morning.

Vickery's

Vickery's

Even without the snow, Christmas is a magical time of year here. It’s warm so people are out and about, enjoying the weather and their time off. These are some of my favorite things about Christmas in Charleston.

James Island County Park offers one of the best light displays in the country, called the Holiday Festival of Lights. They have a 3-mile loop set up with thousands of lights in the form of everything from a candle stick to replicas of the old and new bridge over the Cooper River. Cars line up and crawl bumper-to-bumper through the park to enjoy the lights, the music, the activities, shops, and a visit with Santa.

Speaking of lights, it seems like there are more houses with lights on here than anywhere else I’ve lived. The restaurants and businesses around town hang lights as well. There’s something special about a palm tree and Christmas lights. Last night we enjoyed the lights and palm trees on the deck at Vickery’s on Shem Creek. Read the rest of this entry »





Where’s the Beef?

27 04 2011

This post was contributed by Andrew Wright, a Carolina One Mortgage loan officer.

Nearly anyone over the age of 30 remembers the little old lady in the Wendy’s commercial trying to purchase a hamburger and wanting to know where the meat was.

Almost everyone this day in age can relate. Today we are constantly left wondering “where’s the service?”

ANY experience with a vendor can be made or broken through the level of customer service provided.

If you’ve been out for a fine meal and felt that you were treated without respect, the food wasn’t good, and what started out as a memorable evening became memorable for the wrong reasons.

Don’t even get me started on going to the mechanic, the doctor, any government office, or dare I say trying to purchase a home or applying for a home loan?!

Excellent customer service can be achieved through the smallest details. There is a fast food restaurant that requires the employees to respond to a “thank you” by saying “my pleasure.” I am so impressed with this one little detail that I’m actually disappointed if I stop in for a meal and I don’t hear it!

We all deserve the best customer service as consumers of goods and services and really should expect nothing less. Excellent customer service is the “meat” in a vendor/patron relationship. So just like the little old lady in the commercial we have the right to ask “Where’s the Beef?”





Stephanie Davis Earns National Recognition

31 03 2011

Stephanie Davis (yours truly), a REALTOR® with Carolina One Real Estate, has earned the Accredited Buyer’s Representation (ABR®) designation by the Real Estate Buyer’s Agent Council (REBAC) of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (NAR).

The ABR® designation is the benchmark of excellence in buyer representation. This coveted designation is awarded to real estate professionals who meet the specified educational and practical experience criteria.

It’s such a blessing to help others achieve their dreams of home ownership. Thank you to my friends and family – many of whom are also my clients – for helping me grow and thrive in a very challenging career field. Today marks the first day of my 5th year in real estate, and I wouldn’t be here without you.

Please visit the REBAC Web site for more information about the ABR designation for REALTORS®.





Closing Costs: Who Pays Deed Stamps?

7 02 2011

This week my eyes were opened to a new trend starting with new home communities: The builders are having buyers pay deed stamps at closing.

The fee for deed stamps has always been part of a seller’s closing costs – the majority of a seller’s closing costs – and now builders are passing the fee on to the consumer. In South Carolina the fee is $1.85 for every $500 in the sales price, so on a $100,000 it’s $370; on a $500,000 house it’s $1850. Read the rest of this entry »





Is This a Good Time to Buy a Home?

25 01 2011

This post was contributed by Andrew Wright, a Carolina One Mortgage loan officer.

One of the most common questions I’m asked is whether or not this is a good time to buy a home. For anyone who works in any real estate field, when we are asked this question it is in our nature to whip out a list of statistics, diagrams, and presentations to prove just how great a time it is to buy. But the real question being asked is “Is it a good time for ME to buy a home?” Read the rest of this entry »





Padding the Loan Should Be Illegal

22 09 2010

Sometimes it doesn’t matter what you do; bad things happen to good people.

I know some folks who have worked very hard to keep their homes. According to our federal government, they’ve done all the right things. For one family, medical complications and other unforeseen circumstances have snowballed in the past few years, making it difficult if not impossible to make their mortgage payment. Instead of doing the easy thing and burying their head in the sand, they called the bank and asked for a loan modification. The bank lead them to believe they were a good candidate and approved their participation… A year later they owe $25,000 more than they borrowed to start with. Read the rest of this entry »





Biking Goose Creek

3 06 2010
Route to Wal-Mart

Wal-Mart: 4.5 miles one-way

One thing I always wanted was an active lifestyle. Tennis, boating, biking, hiking, didn’t matter, I just wanted enough time in my day/week/month to fit it in. For the last three years or so I’ve been running about three times a week. However, about a month ago severe knee pain caused me to trade running for biking.

Biking Goose Creek has given me a whole new appreciation for this great city. I love that I can get from one end of it to the other on my bike. Already I’ve discovered and become intimate with the many trails in Goose Creek – trails I’ve known about for years but never experienced because they weren’t right by my house. Read the rest of this entry »





Home Buyer Tax Credit Winding Down

23 04 2010

One week from today will be the last day for home buyers to qualify for the $8000 or $6500 home buyer tax credit under the Obama stimulus plan. April 30, 2010, marks the deadline for buyers and sellers to come to terms on millions and millions of houses.

Showing activity has been up in these past few weeks as home buyers scramble to decide which house to make their home. If you are pursuing the tax credit – either as a first-time buyer or a repeat buyer – here are some things to keep in mind.

1. Leave the short sales, foreclosures, and corporate relocation houses alone. All of these types of transactions take weeks to get off the ground. You’ll never make the April 30 deadline. Read the rest of this entry »





Buyers Need Recourse for Delayed Closings

31 12 2009

Twice this month the VA caused major delays in closing for my clients. In one scenario I was the listing agent; in the other I represented the buyer. Thankfully each one helped me see and understand the side of the other, but I wasn’t homeless and living in a hotel room with four kids for two weeks, nor was I trying to plan a cross-country move without a target move-in date.

Granted the closings for each of these houses was scheduled to happen at the end of November, which was the supposed end of the $8000 tax credit for first-time home buyers. Each of the buyers for these two purchases were first-time home buyers, so they both wanted to meet the November 30 deadline. Fortunately the tax credit purchase deadline was extended, because neither of these closings happened in November. Read the rest of this entry »





YouTube Video Shows Goose Creek’s Plan for Improvement

2 10 2009

Goose Creek’s Civic Redevelopment Plan, Nov. 2008

This video outlines plans to improve and develop a central downtown area for Goose Creek, SC, with commentary by Mayor Michael Heitzler. It was posted to YouTube last fall.








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