As 2010 begins to unfold, some interesting events are worth mentioning in the World of Charleston Real Estate. According to the Charleston Trident Association of Realtors, at the end of 2009 we had just over 3800 members. Of those, 1900 had not written one transaction during the entire year of 2009. So that gives us about 1900 full time Realtors.

But the plot thickens. By the end of June of 2010, every Realtor must complete additional continuing education courses and we all must renew our State License. So it may be possible that the part timers may not wish to spend more money to keep themselves active. This is a very interesting set of conditions.

If I were looking for a Realtor, I believe one of my first questions might be “Are you a Full Time Realtor?” I would not favor a doctor who only saw patients after 5:00 PM or an attorney who only worked on the weekends. The next question that might come to mind would be “How many transactions have you closed in the past 12 months?” And my third question might be “Tell me about your credentials please.” Interview a Realtor just like you would any other professional. To me, I would want a person I feel confident can get my job done. And someone that I feel comfortable in dealing with in helping me with my Real Estate needs. But most importantly, I would want someone who answers their phone all of the time.

This past year in Charleston, we have seen our inventory of homes grow. According to the Charleston Trident Association of Realtors, as of January 31st, we now have 6300 single family homes and 2518 town homes/condos for sale in the Tri County Area. Now last year, according to the same source, we sold 6510 Single Family Homes. This means that with the current levels of inventory, we are looking at 11.6 months to sell out what we have on hand today.

There is more. Last year 5788 Single Family Homes were withdrawn from the market and another 2403 Single Family Homes had their listing expire. So either the homes were priced too high or the sellers decided to remove them from the market and wait. This is the second shoe about to fall. As soon as we see positive movement in our market, those home owners might reasonably consider putting their home back on the market and that will increase our inventories once more.

But now we have a “third shoe” about to fall. The foreclosure market takes quite a bit of time for a home to be recovered by the bank and placed on the market. The forecast could place an additional 2ooo homes added to our Charleston Inventory in the first half of 2010.

So what does all of this mean? To home sellers, it means that the days of putting your home on the market without fixing up the property might well be over. With the tremendous number of homes for sale in Charleston now, if a buyer looks at a home that needs attention, they just move along to the next one that doesn’t and buy it.

For buyers, it is a glorious field day of finding a great home at a great price with interest rates at all time lows.

If home sellers are serious about selling, and the house is priced correctly, IT WILL SELL. We proved that 6510 times in 2009.

But whether you are buying or selling please seek the help and guidance of a Full Time Realtor. We really can make a difference.