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Valentine's Day is coming up quickly, but do you know how you're going to spend it with that special someone? As a real estate agent, I travel all over the city and know quite a few good places to go. Gennaro's Italian restaurant is family-owned and family-run. The food is to die for, and they have live jazz. It's very casual, and I highly recommend it if you're looking to relax with a loved one. Another good place if you're looking for a little more romantic option is O-Ku Downtown. It's very dark inside and the music is eclectic. The Japanese cuisine is excellent, so if you like sushi I would recommend this to you. Theater 99 is a great place to go before or after dinner. This is a comedy club and they serve drinks, as well as laughs. If you're in the mood for some lighthearted fun, then I suggest Black Fedora. Black Fedora is a skit comedy place that uses the audience as part of the act. I recently went to a murder-mystery there and it was outrageous. Finally, if you're just looking for a once-in-a-lifetime meal, then I would run on down to Halls Chophouse. The food is absolutely spectacular. It's hands-down some of the best food that I have had anywhere in the world. I'd recommend making reservations if you want to go here. It's a popular Valentine's Day spot.
There are a lot of other great spots to go in Charleston for Valentine's Day, so please don't hesitate to contact me if none of these tickle your fancy. Have a great Valentine's Day!
Today I have Felicia Lane with us to discuss the ins and outs of appraisals. She's been doing appraisals for ten years and has done nearly 3,000 in her lifetime. She works with the Felicia Lane Appraisal Group and she is an expert in the Charleston market. There are three different approaches to appraisals: cost approach, income approach, and market approach. The income approach determines the value based on income that can be produced by that property. The cost approach determines the amount of money it takes to build or make improvements. The market approach is what you hear of most commonly, and that determines the market value of the home before it is sold. So, how is a home value determined? Felicia begins by looking at comparable properties within the area. Comparisons are based on the number of bedrooms, square footage, location, and amenities. There are other things that can be compared, but an appraiser will pick homes with similar value indicators. These are often found by what is and is not selling on the market. If lots of 4-bedroom homes with large backyards are selling, then those features would increase the value of similar homes in the area. It really depends on what is selling and what is not. Depending on where you're selling a home, value indicators will be different. In downtown areas, larger homes with more bedrooms are very desirable as investment properties. The appraiser has to do their research on a given area before assigning a value because value indicators are constantly changing, no matter where you're appraising.
Now if someone completely remodels their kitchen with all the latest and greatest appliances and fixtures, would they get the value back in an appraisal? This is a good question, and it's really something that would be determined by the market. It all depends on what the buyers are buying and if there is anything comparable in the neighborhood. If there is no other kitchen like it in the neighborhood, it's hard to tell if that's a good or a bad thing. Every adjustment made by an appraiser has to be justified, and if there are no comparable properties, then this nice kitchen simply becomes a selling feature and it will not increase the value in an appraisal. This is why large kitchen remodels aren't always recommended when selling. Do banks allow you to make adjustments to values in response to increased or decreased demand? Most lenders don't allow time-sensitive adjustments because most times these increases in value are artificial and volatile. If something is happening over a long period, then adjustments can be made to compensate that increase in value. If you have any other questions, please don't hesitate to contact me and I can put you in touch with Felicia.
This past week, the Fed raised the short-term prime interest rate by 0.25%. What does this mean for the Charleston housing market and mortgage rates? The quick answer is, not much. Adam Kernen from Guaranteed Rate explained that the markets were expecting this increase, and last week we saw little movement in interest rates. In fact, USA Today reports that the mortgage industry had anticipated this increase, and may have been pricing it into mortgage rates already. If there is an increase in the mortgage rate premium, just know that it will make a very slight difference in your monthly payment.
Interest rates will not skyrocket anytime soon. It's still a great time to buy and a great time to sell. Take advantage of these historic low rates if you're looking to downsize or get into that bigger, better home. If you have any questions, give me a call or send me an email. I would be happy to help you!
