The approximate population of Myrtle Beach is 28,600 and it is the most well known city within the Grand Strand. Myrtle Beach has been a vacation destination since the late 1800s and through the 1900s people began to call Myrtle Beach, South Carolina home. The beach, golf courses, shopping, entertainment, and special events have made the area a favorite for millions of people. Those in the know bought real estate and continue to do so because no matter what the market is doing they realize that there is only one Ocean on the east coast.
When I am asked about home and condo foreclosures in the Myrtle Beach area those asking think there are multiple properties available. Some do not believe me when I tell them foreclosures are limited and what is actually for sale in today’s real estate market. Our Multiple Listing Service (MLS) includes property listed for sale within a sixty mile coastal area known as The Grand Strand. I was shocked myself when I pulled up the real numbers from the Coastal Carolina Association of Realtors (CCAR) who supervise our MLS system. According to CCAR in the single family home category (excluding manufactured homes) there were 5,503 Myrtle Beach homes for sale but only 270 of those were foreclosures and in the condo/townhouse category there were 4,718 units listed for sale with only 99 foreclosures.
The potential buyer of foreclosed real estate is unaware that during the past few months the purchase of distressed property has become more difficult and that difficulty may be worse around Myrtle Beach because of the number of forclosure real estate that is a second home or vacation home. There has always been a problem with short-sales because only 15% of them ever get finalized and closed but foreclosure purchases were fairly easy until now. First the major mortgage lenders withdrew real estate that they had listed for sale, then after a few days they relisted some properties but the days of an easy transaction seem to be over. A prime example happened only weeks ago when, on the day a foreclosure purchase was scheduled to close, the closing attorney received a call from the lender to say they were removing the property from the foreclosure process and it could not be sold. The family who thought they would be moving into their great foreclosure home were left with nothing but a moving truck loaded with their furniture and no home.
There is also another thing to consider, at least in this real estate market, when you want to find the best value in Myrtle Beach homes it may be standing inventory new construction. A Realtor has access to all properties listed for sale on the MLS and that would include foreclosures and new construction.
Sandy Keller, Realtor
Licensed in North and South Carolina
North Myrtle Beach Real Estate