Repossessed Homes for Sale Pull Down South Carolina Prices
Lower-priced homes for sale in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina have been pulling down home prices, based on data from the area's Multiple Listing Service and real estate research firm Site Tech Systems.
The median home sales price in the area has fallen to $176,000 in the third quarter, a 12-percent drop from the same quarter last year. The decline was largely because of the increase in number of lower-priced homes sold. Nearly 75 percent of all houses sold this year were priced below $250,000, according to researchers at Site Tech.
In addition to getting price discounts as much as $40,000, buyers are also getting better features such as stainless steel appliances, granite countertops and wide yards for houses priced below $150,000. Buyers looking for homes nearer the beach are now more likely to achieve their dreams.
According to realtors, sellers cannot hold on to their higher price levels because of the lack of buyers who can afford to buy at higher prices. Second home buyers, investors and first time home buyers are all looking for more affordable homes.
Many houses priced at $249,000 in 2006 are now being sold at $205,000. It is now common for sellers in Myrtle Beach to lower their asking prices by $50,000 as more auction homes for sale enter the market. Realtors said the days when homeowners can sell their homes at twice their purchase prices are gone.
In the new report released by an online real estate research firm, the pace of foreclosures in South Carolina increased by nearly 11 percent compared to the previous quarter and soared by almost 60 percent compared to the July to September quarter last year.
With a foreclosure rate of one in 268 residential units and more than 7,500 foreclosure filings in the July to September quarter, South Carolina ranked 24th in the quarterly chart of state foreclosure rates. Nearly 2,700 had been repossessed by the banks during the quarter.
During the month of September, foreclosure numbers in South Carolina also increased compared to filings in the previous month of August. A total of 3,231 households received default or foreclosure notices in September and more than 1,000 units entered bank foreclosure portfolios.
The pace of foreclosure in the state rose by almost 31 percent from August and soared by nearly 47 percent from September 2008. Nearly 1,600 households were notified of default and a total of 1,057 units became repossessed homes for sale.
