By David Slade
Post & Courier

The number of homes for sale across the region dipped to a five-year low in September, while sales volume increased by double-digits for the third straight month, the Charleston Trident Association of Realtors said Monday.

While the inventory of homes for sale locally is still roughly double what it was before the housing market overheated — nearly 8,000 are on the market now versus around 4,000 in 2004 — the report shows steady improvement in market conditions.

When there is a glut of homes for sale and the supply far outstrips demand, it takes longer to sell those homes and it’s harder for home-sellers to get the price they are asking. As the housing bubble peaked there were 11,879 homes for sale in Berkeley, Charleston and Dorchester counties, in the spring of 2008.

Demand fell sharply in the following years, along with prices, as the nation plunged into recession and homes sat on the market for months awaiting buyers.

Last month the number of homes for sale dropped below 8,000 for the first time since 2006, the association reported. During the month, 774 homes were sold though the local Multiple Listing Service, at a median price of $183,822.

“This is an incredibly positive sign for the Charleston real estate market” said Rob Woodul, president of the Realtors group.

Pricing remains soft — good news for buyers, who are shopping at a time of record-low interest rates, with 30-year mortgages available at around 4 percent interest.

The median price of a home sold in the tri-county area last month was about $5,000 lower than a year earlier, and sellers this year have been accepting, on average, about 90 percent of their original asking price.

“Our local market is still weighted in the buyer’s favor, but a consistently shrinking inventory may indicate a more balanced buyer/seller ratio,” Woodul said. “We expect to see the volume of sales gradually slow, as it typically does heading into the end of the year, but buying activity continues to outperform 2010 levels.”

Charleston Named Top Tourist Destination

By Warren Wise
Post & Courier

Was it Charleston’s friendliness that earned it the No. 1 tourist destination in America on Monday from readers of the widely read Conde Nast Traveler?

Or was it the bounty of outstanding restaurants, top-notch hotels, rich history, quaint shops and overall ambiance that catapulted the Holy City to the top, displacing perennial winner San Francisco, which held the title for 18 years?

Apparently, it was all of it.

“It’s like winning the Academy Award for tourism,” an ecstatic Helen Hill, executive director of the Charleston Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, said by phone from New York City, where she accepted the honor from Emmy Award-winning comedy writer and fellow Charlestonian Stephen Colbert.

Charleston made its debut on the magazine’s Readers’ Choice Awards list of “Top 10 U.S. Destinations” in 1993, coming in at No. 6. The charming city went on to earn a top 10 ranking for 16 more years, holding its own alongside major powerhouse metropolitan areas, such as San Francisco, Chicago, New York and Boston.

For the past three years, Charleston ranked No. 2.

Mayor Joe Riley was pleased the city he’s helmed since 1975 is now the No. 1 tourist destination in America.

“We love to share our extensive heritage and tradition of hospitality,” Riley said in a prepared statement. “It is thrilling to see that the visitors who come here not only enjoy what they see and experience, they also find an open welcome from the city. Great food and lovely hotels add much to the enjoyment of our guests who come either for a day or a week. We look forward to the opportunity to show visitors what makes Charleston a great place to visit.”

Voters annually evaluate cities based on six categories: atmosphere/ambience, culture/sites, friendliness, lodging, restaurants and shopping. The city with the highest composite appeal wins top honors.

To help sell the city, the CVB is launching a website at charlestonly.com, a nod to the term coined to describe the one-of-a-kind characteristics that define the Charleston experience.

The website includes highlights of recent national media coverage, a video featuring local personalities saying thank you and a listing of special packages offered by the Charleston area’s eight 2011 Readers’ Choice Award-winning resorts and hotels.

Also honored at the gala event was Kiawah Island Golf Resort, which was ranked No. 3 on the list of Top U.S. Islands and No. 3 on the list of Top Mainland U.S. Resorts.