by Carol Clay

    There were 20 residential closings in the Brevard market in July.  The average list price was $258,695 and the average selling price was $241,255, or roughly 94% of asking, which is really encouraging. Sellers are adjusting their prices to fit the market. This same time last year, there were 25 closings and those sales prices were a good bit more.  (Full July data is due in the coming days.)
    From personal experience, we have had a very, very busy summer.  Our listings have doubled in the last 6-9 months and we have been very busy working with out of town buyers.  As has been the case most of this year, what is selling is in the $200-$300K range.  But we have seen a real uptick in people getting back into the vacation home market. Plus, in the last 30 days, we sold two homes to people who were relocating here from various places. The vacation homes are still in that $200-$300K market, but it makes me optimistic that those second home buyers who are such a huge part of our economy are returning to the market place.
    The other uptick is in foreclosures.  I've seen more in all price ranges.  In fact, you might be interested to know that we just listed a foreclosure in Champion Hills in Hendersonville, with a Tom Fazio design course.  This home is over 7,500 square feet on three acres.  The tax-assessed value is $2,131,100 and the bank has started the list price at $1,239,900.  It is a phenomenal opportunity for anyone who wants a big house on the golf course.  This type listing demonstrates that the foreclosure issue affects all price ranges.
    The real estate market in western North Carolina, specifically the Brevard area, is very seasonal and typically ebbs and flows in synch with the volume of visitors.  The selling season will begin in the spring, usually around May, followed by a peak during the summer months.  Business slows after the kids start going back to school but peaks again during the leaf season.   After Thanksgiving, or the end of leaf season (whichever comes first), the streets are quiet until the following spring when we ramp up once again.
    This year has been no exception, and while the overall numbers are reflective of the downturn in the economy, the pattern is the same.  In June, there 25 residential closings, a marked uptick from May when there were only 14 homes closed.  For the first time since February, homes in the $200K to $300K price range outpaced any other bracket with a total of 9 closings.  In the $100K-$200K range, the numbers dropped off slightly from 9 closings to 5. There were 5 closings in the $300K-$400K range, the most significant increase in that price range since October 2008.  Two homes closed in the $400K-$500K range, an increase from the month before.  And 3 homes closed in the $500K and up price range, marking the best month in that price range since December 2008.
    As a result, the average closing price in June increased to $292,280, a 42% increase over May.  It is also nearly a 13% increase over June 2008.  The median price was $274,000 for a 39% increase over May and a 29% increase over the same time last year.

Carol Clay is a real estate agent with Keller Williams Realty in Brevard, NC.  She and her husband Robert publish a blog on local real estate and lifestyle issues in the western Carolina mountains at BrevardNCRealEstateBlog.com.  Carol can be reached at 828-551-6290.  If you contact her, please mention that you read her article here at Golf Community Reviews.

There are some signs of life in the real estate market in the western Carolina mountains, which is good news for communities like Balsam Mountain Preserve.  Its Arnold Palmer layout is one of the most scenic in a great array of local courses.

    In recent weeks, we have received word that initiation fees have been lowered at a number of impressive golf clubs.  At The Landings at Skidaway Island, near Savannah, membership has been decreased from $55,000 to $30,000 for those who purchase a property between now and April 30 next year.  The Landings features six excellent golf courses.
    At the exclusive Briar's Creek club just south of Charleston, SC, where only 130 families will share a fine Rees Jones golf course and a clubhouse where even the views across the marsh from the men's bathroom are impressive, the pricey member fees of $160,000 have been reduced to $100,000 in recognition that even the richest among us can use a break (maybe the savings will help them pay for the nation's healthcare tab).
    At Cobblestone Park in Blythewood, SC, the departure last year of Ginn Resorts as owner and the financial condition of many residents whose homes are worth less than what they paid caused the club to change from private to semi-private status.  New members can sign up for a mere $1,805 fee for full access to the nice 27-hole golf course, with dues pegged at a reasonable $250 per month.
    Like developers elsewhere, Mark Saunders at Ocean Ridge Plantation in Sunset Beach, NC, is in a struggle to offer competitive prices on remaining developer home sites.  Some property owners at Ocean Ridge are taking what little appreciation they have after a few years and pricing their lots to sell quickly, making it hard for Saunders to hold the line on his own prices.  Ocean Ridge recently announced that it would waive initiation fees for membership in its five daily fee courses (one of which is under construction) to anyone purchasing a developer lot, a $25,000 value according to Ocean Ridge.  The courses, known as "The Big Cats" for their feline names (Panther, Tiger, Lion, Leopard and Jaguar), are among the most highly rated courses in the Myrtle Beach area.
    Anyone who takes up primary or second home residence in the Myrtle Beach area can essentially "belong" to more than 100 golf courses along the Grand Strand by purchasing the Myrtle Beach Golf Passport card.   For just $39 annually, the card provides deep discounts on green fees, the ability to bring along three friends at the same price, and no limit to how many times you can play Caledonia, True Blue, Pawleys Plantation, Heritage or the dozens of other excellent courses along the 90-mile stretch of the Strand.
    If you have a golf club you want me to check on, please contact me.  Some clubs hungry for new members are willing to deal but do not advertise the fact.

Top, Briar's Creek, the small and upscale community on Johns Island south of Charleston, SC, reduced its initiation fees by $60,000 -- to $100,000.  Only a handful of members have the pleasure each day of playing the fine Rees Jones layout.  (Approach to first hole pictured.) Bottom, for just $39, Myrtle Beach area residents can purchase a "passport" that provides deep discounts to dozens of top-flight courses, including the sandy True Blue in Pawleys Island.(True Blue photo courtesy of Eliot deBear)