Myrtle Beach condos in the news

Permits for new Myrtle Beach condos down sharply Resale market slow; single-family homes still sell
Associated Press
Myrtle Beach, S.C.

The softening real estate market in the Grand Strand has slowed condominium building.

The number of condo building permits in Horry County dropped 34 percent in the second quarter, from 1,105 last year to 724 this year.

New condo sales fell 31 percent and the resale of condos fell 26 percent, according to Market Opportunity Research Enterprises, a regional real estate market research firm in Rocky Mount, N.C.

But some analysts don't see the slowdown as a long-term problem."We don't see this as an extended downturn. Although it seems sharp right now, it is sharp only in the very short term as builders try to adjust from the excess of their starts late last year," said Bernard Helm, president of Market Opportunity Research Enterprises, which tracks real estate markets in the Southeast.

There are also a lot of condominiums on the market. A number of concerned developers have called Tom Maeser, market analyst and president of the Fortune Academy of Real Estate, because there are about three times as many condos on the market this year compared to the same time last year.

Developers are cutting back on what they build because they may have trouble meeting bank requirements that say they should sell 80 percent to 100 percent of the units before getting a construction loan.

Meanwhile, the market for single-family homes in still going strong in Horry County.

Single-family building increased 7 percent over last year to 1,535 homes, even though sales of new houses stayed flat and resale homes fell 6 percent.

This could be good for home buyers, some analysts say.

"Builders will have some excess inventory, and that will end up being good news for consumers. They have to work out that inventory and that means softening prices," Helm said.

"In Georgetown County, sales of existing homes have declined slightly, but new home sales are up 60 percent, to 104 homes this year."

Georgetown County is getting ready to do what Horry County has already done. It's good on new houses but has problems in resales," Helm said.

"The decline will happen in new home sales."
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My thoughts:
We've got a HUGE amount of condos in Myrtle Beach that have to be consumed before they continue to build more. The land owners that got on the bandwagon too late need to hold off for a year or two and let the present glut sell before they take on yet another new development.

Myrtle Beach condos are still the best investment real estate on the east coast. Right now is probably the best time of all to BUY a condo...there are incentives everywhere and prices have dropped a bit since last year. You should be prepared to hold on to it for a year or so. But you can make so much on rentals that it's not a lot of out-of-pocket expense during that holding time. And you can use the condo yourself instead of shelling out $1000 everytime you want a beach vacation. The conversion condos like Sea Mist Resort and Patricia Grand may be some of the best deals anywhere for this kind of investment.

I also hear first hand that real estate in Charlotte real estate and Raleigh, North Carolina are hot as a firecracker right now. Looks like last year's hot spots are cooling down and sharing the wealth with the ones who were slack then.

The economy is strong and us baby boomers rule. If you can afford a vacation condo or home, go for it. This beach has never seen a long term downturn in real estate prices. We've got beautiful new developments like Prince Resort Myrtle Beach and great bargains like Coastal Villas at CCU. Give us another year or two and we'll be back in the sun again!