Posts by : Rosette Garcia

Is 2024 the year that you finally make a move so that your life fits your house? This article explores the challenges of upsizing and downsizing. We also share tips and tricks to make the transition as smooth as possible. 

Making a move can be stressful and we can help. It can especially daunting if you own a home and you need to move to a different one. We help folks across all walks, chapters and stages of life. Below are a few questions to ask yourself to determine if a move is in your future.

Downsize:

Is your home too big now that the kids have moved out? Being an empty nester is amazing! Date nights and less responsibility! With unused rooms in the house, keep in mind, you’re pay...

Most lenders today rely on your FICO credit score to determine whether to approve your application for a mortgage and when assigning an interest rate to your loan. Generally, the higher your FICO score, the lower your interest rate.

Most lenders consider a FICO score of 800 or more to be excellent. You can expect to earn the lowest interest rate when your score is that high. But you don’t need an 800 FICO credit score to qualify for a mortgage. You can usually secure a loan even if your FICO score is as low as 620.

But did you know that FICO scores aren’t the only credit scores out there? And did you know that you have more than one FICO credit score?

But who's keeping score?

Why don’...

A cash-out refinance is a way for homeowners with enough equity in their residences to access a lump sum of cash. They can then use that cash for anything they want, from paying down high-interest-rate credit card debt or funding a kitchen remodel to paying for a child’s college tuition.

Here’s how it works: Instead of refinancing your mortgage for the amount you owe on your current loan, you’d refinance it for a higher amount. Maybe you owe $150,000 on your mortgage. Instead of refinancing your mortgage to a new loan of $150,000, you might refinance to a new loan with a balance of $200,000.

You’d then receive that extra $50,000 in a lump sum payment, money that you can use in whatever ...

I was born to make a difference in the lives of others and God gives me opportunities to do so via real estate. Sometimes making a difference a means helping people decide to not move to South Carolina. Sometimes I help people decide they would rather use their equity to make updates instead of sell their current home. Sometimes I help people crunch numbers so they know what it costs to buy an investment property and they decide it’s not for them. Or, maybe I run comps on the inherited family home so that siblings can make a decision on how to split the assets of their deceased loved one. These situations are just a few examples of where I invest a lot of time and energy into helping peop...

One of the bigger challenges in purchasing investment properties is coming up with enough money for a down payment. Say you want to purchase a single-family home costing $150,000. A down payment of 10% of this home’s purchase price would be $15,000. That’s a lot of money. But don’t let this dissuade you. The BRRRR investment method can help.

What is the BRRRR approach?

BRRRR stands for buy, rehab, rent, refinance, and repeat. And it’s a tested method that real estate investors have long used.

Buy: First, you buy a distressed home or one that is in foreclosure for a lower price than you’d pay for most properties in that community. Buying a home for a price t hat is low enough is key. If...

Private mortgage insurance, better known as PMI, provides a type of financial safety net to your lender if you should stop paying your mortgage on time. How much you pay will vary, but PMI typically costs 0.1% to 2% of your loan amount.

That can add up. If you are taking out a mortgage of $300,000 and your PMI runs 1% a year, you'll spend $3,000 a year on PMI. That comes out to $250 a month.

How to avoid PMI

You don't always have to pay for PMI. Your lender won't charge you for this insurance if you come up with a down payment equal to or higher than 20% of your home's final purchase price.

Say you are buying a home for $300,000. If you come up with a down payment of $60,000 — equal t...

As final numbers for October 2023 are available for review, we took a look in the rear view mirror and compared last month to October 2022. Click through to read the article and learn a few insights that might help you in the upcoming market.

Last month, the average sales price of all properties was $366,822 which is a light increase over the average October 2022 sold property of $365,450. In the months in between, the average price peaked at $386,387 and valleyed at $352,957, demonstrating that the market is constantly changing. However, compare that to October 2021 and the average price was $309,576. The average price of real estate close to the beach goes one way over time: UP. 

Will...

Like all fixed-rate mortgages, your interest rate will never change with a 40-year, fixed-rate mortgage. Your rate will remain the same until you pay off your loan, refinance your 40-year mortgage into a new loan or sell your home.

The difference between a 40-year mortgage and other fixed-rate loans comes in the term. The 40-year mortgage comes with a longer term than other loans, one that stretches four decades.

As with other mortgages, you'll pay this loan back with interest in regular monthly payments. If you hold your loan for its full term, you’ll make 480 payments — 40 years of 12 monthly payments.

What is the benefit of a 40-year mortgage?

The biggest benefit of a 40-year, fixe...

You know that you can borrow against the equity that you've built in your home, using the funds from home equity loans to pay for whatever you want, whether you're ready to remodel your aging kitchen or pay off high-interest-rate credit card debt. What you don't know, though, is whether it makes more sense to take out a standard home equity loan or a home equity line of credit, better known as a HELOC. Which loan product is the better choice?

What are equity loans?

Building equity is one of the main benefits of owning a home. Equity is the difference between the value of your home and the amount you still owe on your mortgage. If you owe $250,000 on your mortgage and your home is worth ...

When you make your mortgage payment each month, a portion of your dollars will go toward paying down your loan's principal balance. But a good chunk of your payment will also go toward paying the interest that your loan accrues.

During the earlier days of your mortgage, more of your payment will go toward interest and less will go toward paying down your loan's balance.

The good news is that you can deduct from your taxes the interest you pay on the first $750,000 of mortgage debt. And if you bought your home before Dec. 16, 2017, you can deduct the interest you pay on the first $1 million of your mortgage debt.

How much will this deduction save you?

How much you save because of the m...

Did you know that the latest a major hurricane has ever made landfall in South Carolina is Oct 15th and the latest any tropical system has hit SC is Oct 31st? That said, the only named hurricane to make direct landfall in Myrtle Beach was an unnamed category 2 storm that hit October 31, 1899. 

October storms and McClellanville seem to have an interesting relationship:

Hurricane Matthew in 2018 made landfall in McClellanville as a category 1. Our area had larger impacts from flooding after the storm than the hurricane itself. Before we named hurricanes, two other storms hit McClellanville in October: a category 3 in 1893 and  a category 1 in 1913. If you’re keeping score… only 6 named st...

Comparing last September to this September shows some surprising similarities and differences.

In 2022, the average sales price of properties in our area was $356,124. A year later, the average price is up by almost $20,000 with an average price of $374,968.

September 2023 saw 7.4% fewer closings than last year with 1,465 sold properties versus 1,582 sold properties in 2022. 

Total supply of properties for sale continues to creep up with 3.4 months of inventory for sale in 2023 versus only 2.7 in 2022. 

Last year, there were 1,448 new construction properties for sale in September. This number peaked in December at more than 1,800 new construction properties on the market. Last month, ...

As the name suggests, flood insurance is a type of insurance policy that will pay out if your home is damaged by flood waters.

If you are taking out a mortgage to buy a home in a federally designated flood zone, you are required to buy a flood insurance policy. These zones are in parts of the country in which the risk of serious floods is high. Your lender won't give you a mortgage in these parts of the country if you don't first buy flood insurance.

To find out whether the home you are buying sits in one of these areas, enter your ZIP code in FEMA's flood map service center. Your mortgage lender will also be able to tell you whether you are required to buy flood insurance.

If your hom...

As home professionals, we're often asked questions about design, how to make improvements work and the resale value of decor ideas like kitchen renovations or bathroom updates. Here are some of the most frequently asked questions:

What is the best way to decorate a small room?

The key to small spaces is to make the size work. Don't overcrowd it with too much clutter. Use a rug to create floor boundaries, add plenty of lighting and use mirrors to reflect the light in the space.

How do I choose the right paint color for my walls?

There is no wrong answer when it comes to choosing a color. Whatever color you love, go with that. There are no rules saying you have to use a light shade in a...

We started on the south end of Pawleys Island and parked in the largest public beach access in Georgetown County. To get to the point, we walked further south and there’s a small creek that separates Pawleys Island from Debidue Beach (easily confused with Debordieu Colony). As we reached the point, we both spied Debidue Beach and realized one day we’ll need to coordinate access to the gated communities of Prince George and Debordieu to walk even further south. 

Pawleys Island is a pristine, quiet coastline. With fewer people, there were more seashells and we even came across a few starfish. With an average sold price of $2.4 million, the oceanfront homes are gorgeous. Most homes are olde...

French country is a traditional design style that delightfully blends continental European sensibilities with rustic country charm. A French country kitchen can be perfect for anyone seeking the effortless yet refined look of this style. Here are some ways to incorporate French country design into your kitchen:

Colors

Choose warm, earthy colors, such as cream, beige, off-white or light yellow, for your walls and cabinets. You can also add some splashes of color with accents like curtains, dishware or linens.

Natural materials

Blend natural wood, stone and clay into your kitchen design. Consider wooden beams on the ceiling or a stone backsplash. You can add natural textures with woven ...

If you're like many Americans, your home will be the most expensive thing you own. It will be a key part of your estate as you plan for the long term. So you need to think strategically from the outset.

To start with, if you want to know how much of a mortgage lenders think you can handle, get preapproved for a mortgage before you start shopping for a home.

What is preapproval? That's when you work with a mortgage lender to determine how large of a loan that lender is comfortable giving you. To begin, you'll provide a lender with copies of your last two paycheck stubs, last two months of bank account statements, last two years of tax returns and last two years of W-2 forms.

Lenders wil...

The stats below are compiled from a variety of sources. Surprisingly, NC and SC differ significantly with South Carolina having a significantly lower tax burden. Since it’s the middle of Hurricane Season, I also wanted to share storm numbers. Again, South Carolina wins! We have cheaper gasoline too! That said, I love my northern neighbors. Please don’t hesitate to ask if there’s any way The Anderson Team can you help you learn more about the area

NORTH CAROLINA’S TAX BURDEN 

Real estate tax rate: 2.82% (19th in U.S.) 

Vehicle property tax rate: 0.45% (32nd in U.S.) 

Income tax rate: 2.87% (36th in U.S.) 

Sales and excise tax rate: 4.36% (27th in U.S.) 

Number of Direct hits by...

Opportunity awaits just outside downtown Conway! This 3 bedroom, 1 bathroom home is in a no HOA, well-established neighborhood. With stunning live oak trees this property offers a fenced in yard and a lovely covered back patio. From the front porch, you enter the home into a spacious living room that is the heart of the home. To the right are three bedrooms, and to the left is a dining area that leads to the galley style kitchen. The gas range and washer and dryer are 2020 and the HVAC was installed in 2019.

Check out the 3D Matterport Tour and schedule your appointment today!

OPEN HOUSE! Join us this Saturday, September 9, 2023 from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm for an open house at 310 73rd Avenue North, unit 3B, in Myrtle Beach. This spacious 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom condo is just a short walk to the beach in the exclusive Palm Ridge II community. Make sure you stop by to see this beautiful condo! Luke will be hosting and giving away Stella’s Homemade Ice Cream and Cakes gift cards for attendees.

Click to view details for 310 73rd Ave N, Myrtle Beach