There was an article in the local Island Packet today that discussed home prices rising over the last several months (based on a survey of 20 cities).

I was talking to a client of mine and they said they did not know who to believe; one day the newspaper says that things are getting better and the next day the same paper says that things are getting worse. 

I think it is important to remember that all real estate is local and you should not look at national studies to determine where your local market is. 

I can pretty much guarantee that Hilton Head Island was not included in this 20 city report. 

The real estate market on Hilton Head Island, as in most resort areas, has been slow as inventory increases and sales decrease causing a lowering of prices. 

Just remember, do not look at the national trend – look at the local trend.

Caroline did some research this morning on real estate sales during the first 16 days of March, April, May and June.  Unfortunately, the numbers showed me that the market is not quite moving in the direction I want it to be going in.  The numbers were as follows:

March 1-16: 103 
April 1-16: 101
May 1-16: 89
June 1-16: 80

The first time home buyers credit has expired and I think that along with what is going on in Europe has taken some of the wind out of the market. 

What does this mean?  As a seller, you have to be more aggressive and make sure your property is priced to sell.  We are making sales, people just are not getting as much money as they would like. 

Any buyers out there?  If so, there are some great opportunities available.  Let me know and I can show you some of the best options out there!

I have had a lot of clients call and ask me how the oil spill in the gulf has affected Hilton Head Island. 

Hilton Head Island has noticed an increase between 25% and 30% in visitors over the last several weeks. 

We had a call from a family friend who visits Panama City, Florida every year.  She said that this year they have booked their stay in Hilton Head along with 24 of their family members. 

I think there has been a lot of confusion as far as the effect the oil spill has had on the beaches of Florida and it seems to be driving regular visitors of that area to other locations.  I would not wish this on anyone, but it does appear that it has had an effect on our market – the rental market has been at its strongest in quite some time. 

I’ll keep you posted on any other developments that arise from this disaster.  We continue to keep all the people of the gulf and those affected in our thoughts and prayers.

If you read my blog yesterday, you know that we were talking about the states with the highest percentage of mortgages with negative equity. 

The following are the states with the lowest percentage of mortgages with negative equity; Oklahoma with 6.1%, New York with 6.2%, Montana with 7.4%, Alabama with 7.4% and North Dakota with 8.6%.  There were several states that did not report including Louisiana, South Dakota, Maine and West Virginia. 

If you will notice, the states with the highest percentage of mortgages with negative equity are ones where massive building occurred and most of the mortgages were obtained between 2003 and 2007.

For the real estate market to turn around we are going to have to see the number of foreclosures reduced.  With high numbers of foreclosures, it makes it very hard for regular sellers to compete in the real estate market. 

For purchasers, there are some great opportunities available.  Visit my website to view a list of short sale and foreclosure properties available for sale.

I received several phone calls from clients this morning asking if I had seen 60 Minutes last night.  Unfortunately I missed it, but I have actually been doing some research myself looking at the percentage of mortgages that have negative equity – meaning that the owners owe more than the property is worth.  There are five states that are in really bad shape with very high percentages of mortgages that have negative equity; Nevada with 65%, Arizona with 47.9%, Florida with 44.7%, Michigan with 37.3% and California with 34.7%. 

I find this absolutely unbelievable – this means that in Nevada that 2 out of every 3 people with a mortgage have negative equity.  These statistics have a detrimental effect on the real estate market.  I feel that it important to realize that one of the first things that needs to be fixed is the real estate market as it has an effect on many other factors in this economy.

If you look at these numbers you will realize that we have not solved the foreclosure problem in the United States and it could definitely get worse before it gets better.  For purchasers, there are some great opportunities available. 

Stay tuned – tomorrow I will give you the states with the states with the lowest percentage of mortgages with negative equity.

At the Beaufort County bank foreclosure sale on Monday there were approximately 150 properties that were foreclosed on – some in Beaufort, some in Bluffton and some on Hilton Head Island. 

We went through a 15-year time period where we had no foreclosures on Hilton Head.  There is an old saying that says “a rising tide lifts all boats” and when people’s property values are going up 10%-25% per year there are not going to be any foreclosures because they can sell the property at any time they want. 

When the reverse of that happens, people who purchased in 2004, 2005 and 2006 are left in trouble and due to financial difficulties, some lose their home to foreclosure.

In a slow real estate market, buyers are always looking for the best deals out there and they are often interested in foreclosures.  This would have a negative effect on someone who is not a foreclosure because you have to deal with these properties. 

Many times people think that foreclosures don’t have any effect on their property value.  Buyers don’t look at it that way.  A buyer is looking for the best deal available – whether it is a foreclosure or not.  It is important to realize that any and every seller has to compete with foreclosures.

There are some great deals out there.  If you as a buyer, are interested in getting a list of the foreclosures please let me know.  We can set you up so that you will be notified of new foreclosures – it is fast, easy and harmless. 

Click here to view my Hilton Head and Bluffton foreclosure properties.

It is this time of year that we all start thinking about our goals for the new year.  Here are my suggestions to my real estate clients on Hilton Head. 

If you are thinking about buying resort property, now is the time to buy.  Prices have never been lower, interest rates are low, sellers are motivated and the selection of property is unbelievable.

If you are considering selling, you should probably go ahead and do it now.  I know a lot of people have been waiting, thinking that prices were going to go up in the next several years.  I wish that were the truth, but I do not think it will happen.

I think we will look at 2010 and it will be called “the year of the buyer”.  There are so many good properties available – now is the time to buy!

It has been my experience that people always miss the bottom and a year or so later wish they had bought the year before.

When I go on a listing appointment and I am explaining the value of property, people often tell me that they want to list their property at “x” value.  Many times the price they want is way above the market, but they reply “find me a buyer who does not care about money.” 

I’ve been looking for that buyer for 29 years.  I’m sure there is a buyer out there who does not care about money, but I have not found one.

I was in Aspen, Colorado recently and was talking to a Realtor concerning the real estate market.  Aspen’s market has some of the top values anywhere, but there market is very slow.  I told my Realtor friend that I did not think the top end of the market would not be hurt by this economy.  They laughed and said that all ends of their market was hurting. 

People think that people with money will buy when they want to buy.  I often think that people who have money have gotten this money by being astute and not wasting money.

It is important to realize that in a slow real estate market, everyone is affected - top end, low end – everything is relative.

Of course nobody knows for sure if we’ve been through the worst yet but there are some interesting statistics that I recently heard.  I was on a webinar the other night where one of the top foreclosure experts was going over some statistics.  She had actually been monitoring sales in the 4 worst markets in the country: California, Nevada, Arizona and Florida.  California sales have been up for 15 months in a row, Nevada’s have been up 14 months in a row, Arizona’s have been up 15 months in a row, and Florida’s have been up 14 months in a row.  These are the four worst real estate markets so it’s good to see even the bad market sales are increasing.  I think that’s an indication that now might be the time to consider to look for that vacation home on Hilton Head.  I don’t want all my clients to be sitting around four years down the road saying they wish they had bought in 2010. 

There are some great deals available.  If you go to our website JamesWedgeworth.com we have a foreclosure section where you can see some of the best deals. 

Also, if you’re interested in a foreclosure property please type your interest in and we’ll call you.  Some of the best deals are sold even before they are on the market.