The following homes sold in Brickyard Plantation between December 1, 2007 and January 30, 2008:

1156 Clover Pl. $320,000
1151 Holly Bend $339,500
1248 Colfax Ct. $343,500
1171 W. Park View $352,000
2836 Waterpointe Cir. $419,000
2612 John Boone Ct. $560,000
1381 Brickman Way $670,000

The average number of days on the market for these homes was 212 days. The average selling price per square foot for these homes was $157.

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association, demand for mortgages last week was at the highest level in four year as interest rates continued to fall.

The majority of the applications (62.7 percent) were for refinancing as many people are using this opportunity to get out of adjustable-rate mortgages and move into safer fixed rate programs. Interestingly enough, only 9.2 percent of the mortgage applications last week were for adjustable-rate mortgages!

I spoke with a mortgage lender this week and they have been flooded with applications as consumers are hoping to lock in on some of the lowest interest rates we have seen in quite a while. At one point this week, rates for a conforming (below $417,000) mortgage with no origination fees were as low as 5.125%. Wow! I think I’m going to go see my mortgage lender!

Wow! In spite of all the dreary economic news, the I’On real estate market continues to experience an “uptick” in activity. Showings have picked up significantly and through the first 2 weeks of 2008, we have had 5 more homes go under contract in I’On. That makes 12 homes that have gone under contract since November 20th. I actually had 20 showings on my I’On listings on Saturday, January 5th. This is the most in one day in many months!

A few more homes have come on the market in I’On since New Year’s Day, but the number of recent contracts has resulted in a slight decrease in inventory. There are currently 80 homes for sale which means that buyers still have alot of choices in virtually every price range. You can see all available I’On homes online by going to http://www.ionhomeinfo.com

Please check back regularly as I’ll be posting more I’On udates and other interesting real estate news. Have a great week!

In spite of all the negative real estate news this past year, the Belle Hall market was not impacted nearly as much as other neighborhoods in Mt. Pleasant or elsewhere in the lowcountry. In fact, the number of homes sold in Belle Hall in 2007 rose to 77 units, up from 72 sales in 2006. While the median price of homes sold in Belle Hall remained constant at $345,000, the average selling price actually went up in 2007 to $487,886, an increase of 7% over the 2006 average of $454,139.

Inventory levels are also down. At the end of the year, there were 36 homes on the market in Belle Hall, down from the peak of 57 in April. This is good news for 2008 as fewer homes on the market will help to further stabilize prices.

While the real estate market will continue to be challenged in 2008, it should be comforting to all Belle Hall owners and prospective buyers that this community has weathered the downturn very well! Obviously, it remains one of Mt. Pleasant’s top choices for home buyers. Its location and wide variety of available homes is a perfect mix in today’s market.

Please check this site regularly to get more information on activity in the Belle Hall real estate market.

The statistics above reflect all activity in Belle Hall Plantation including Rice Bay, The Courtyard, The Veranda, Battery Point, Hibben, Evian and The Islands.

While Brickyard Plantation remains a very popular Mt. Pleasant community, it had it’s share of troubles in the topsy turvy 2007 real estate market. Home sales in Brickyard were down this past year. There were 45 home sales in 2007 compared to 60 sales in 2006 which represents a 25% decrease. For comparison, single family home sales in all of Mt. Pleasant in 2007 were down 17.5%.

Other key real estate indicators were also down in Brickyard last year. The average sales price was $415,787 in 2007 compared to $505,545 the previous year and the average selling price per square foot was $162 compared to $180 in 2006.

But, there is some good news amidst all of these figures!! The inventory of homes for sale has been steadily dropping since mid 2007. As of the end of the year, there were 27 homes on the market in Brickyard. This is the lowest level since March, 2006 and way below the previous high of 48 homes for sale which occured in March, 2007. If this trend continues, the lower inventory levels should help to stabilize pricing and hopefully result in a much more normal market in 2008.

As the 2008 real estate market develops, stay tuned to this site for more updates on Brickyard and the Mt. Pleasant market!!