Connie Dittrich

If you’re looking for a beautiful home in Mt Pleasant, SC you’re in luck. Just over the Ravenel Bridge from downtown Charleston, Mt Pleasant offers a range of different neighborhoods from beachside to inland. I recently helped a family who were relocating to the lowcountry all the way from Washington State when she was transferred with the Boeing Corporation. They found a beautiful home in Mt Pleasant. They were concerned about schools for their three young children, family neighborhoods, proximity to medical care and all the things that are important when making such a big change. But once they toured the town, and became familiar with the in’s and out’s of the area, they chose a beautiful home in Mt Pleasant not too far from I526 which is convenient to the airport and the Boeing facility. And after meeting with the Principals of the local schools, they felt confident that the schools in the area were among the best in town. They’re settled in that beautiful home in Mt Pleasant now and today is the first day of school for the children – yes they do start early here in Charleston!

Mt Pleasant offers old established neighborhoods like Hobcaw which is very convenient to the downtown area. Full of one beautiful home in Mt Pleasant after another, you’ll find older neighborhoods with tall shade trees arched over the quiet streets and homes with long docks reaching out to the Hobcaw River. If you’re lucky enough to find a beautiful home in Mt Pleasant on Wandolea Drive you may even have spectacular views of the Cooper River and downtown Charleston.

Just up from Hobcaw is the pretty village of I’On. A planned community, it has won numerous awards and while most of the homes are less than ten years old, driving through or walking the narrow streets is reminiscent of parts of the best of downtown Charleston. You will undoubtedly see some of the most beautiful homes in Mt Pleasant – many are custom built with unique qualities. And across Highway 17 from I’On is the Old Village, a neighborhood not to be missed. Containing some of the most beautiful homes in Mt Pleasant, it is the oldest part of the town of Mt Pleasant. Find your way to Pitt Street and you’ll be able to enjoy a coke at the Pitt Street Rx, and a cookie at the Village Bakery.

If you’d like to find a beautiful home in Mt Pleasant give me a call or email me. I will help you find the one that is here and waiting for you.

Connie Dittrich

Realtor, Carolina One Real Estate

Mobile: 843.475.7993

cdittrich@carolinaone.com

So you've decided that you want to retire to Charleston. You've been visiting for many years and stayed in quaint B&B's downtown, in Oceanside homes in Kiawah and even splurged on room-service at Charleston Place! But now it's time to find that place of your own... a place to call "home."

The decision to move to this easy-to-love city was a no-brainer, but where to actually settle is proving to be a challenge. You're finding that the Charleston you thought you knew so well is actually a small town with lots of great neighborhoods you've never even heard of! It's so much more than the beautiful bustling downtown with great restaurants and shopping and its historic neighborhood South of Broad. Have you heard of Wagener Terrace or Hampton Park Terrace? How about the Old Village or I'On in Mt Pleasant, or Avondale in West Ashley? Yikes!

These are just a few of the wonderful Charleston neighborhoods - each with unique qualities - that you'll have to choose from once you begin your search for the perfect home in earnest. You'll need someone who really understands their way around the city and can help you navigate the differences between each area. A good Realtor will be able to steer you in the right direction - and I don't mean just drive you around from neighborhood to neighborhood.

I'll start a travelogue of Charleston neighborhoods which I hope you'll find helpful. You'll know how to find me if you have any questions. Meanwhile, have fun dreaming of your final move to the Holy City!

Connie Dittrich

Realtor

Carolina One Real Estate

843.475.7993

I don't know about you but I'm usually torn about doing open houses for my sellers. Of course they're part of my marketing plan - albeit a part that I don't push too hard. The reason is that as most of us really believe that "houses don't sell at open houses." That's just a fact.

So why do we hold them? And if we believe that they fail as a marketing tactic, why do we keep holding them? Here are my thoughts...

• Very rarely, although it does happen, an interested (and qualified) buyer will find you and purchase your listing, making you look like a hero to your seller!
• Sometimes - very occasionally - an unrepresented Buyer will come in and you and that person will "click" and if the stars align you may actually end up with a buyer - although probably not for your listing!
• And lastly there's the unknown benefit of an Open House visitor telling a friend-telling-a-friend...

So how do you feel about Open Houses? Effective marketing tools? Do they work? Seller placaters? House sellers? Would love to hear your point of view.

I finally got the call from my wonderful DC clients that they had a contract on the home they had been trying to sell for the past six months. "Yay," I told them, "Now we can get serious about looking for your dream home down here in Charleston."

"Not so fast." Iwas told. And my buyers went on to explain that they wanted to wait until they closed on their current home in the end of June, pack up all their belongings, move them into a short-term rental property in Charleston and only then begin to look for that dream home.

My excitelment for them took a nose dive when I thought about all the extra time and money they might waste (and lose) if they did it this way. I understood that they only had about six weeks to get a lot done... he had to transfer his law practice over to its new owners, packing AND finding their new home. But she's retired and extremely organized. And I knew they had done a great job of "de-cluttering" prior to putting their home in DC on the market and had many boxes already in a storage facility, ready to go right into a truck. And since they'd already been to Charleston on three "previewing" trips, we all had a very good idea of exactly what and where they wanted to look for their next home.

So, when I heard the great news about the contract on their home and the conditions - 6 weeks until closing - I struggled with how firmly to resist my buyers' (who had also become friends over the past two years) idea to essentially conduct a two-step move and all that entails. Besides the time and money issues, my other rationale include the following:

• Right now in Charleston as in many if not most part of the country it continues to be a "buyers market" meaning that there is generally an abundance of inventory available. This means that my buyers will have many homes to select from.
• Because of the Buyers market, sellers are generally more willing to negotiate, meaning that my sellers should be able to write a contingent contract based on the successful closing of their home in DC. (Doing it like this means that they can leave all of their belongings where they are and save the expense of moving and storing them.)
• The rental market in Charleston is getting tight with landlords increasing rates and demanding longer-term commitments.

Again though, I am worried about pushing too hard. My buyers are feeling the stress that all sellers do after going through negotiations and hoping that they reach a successful closing. Obviously I wasn't involved in that process and don't know if it was amicable or contentious. What I do know is that I want to be a facilitator to the process, not someone who adds to their stress.

To that end, I've put my concerns out there and will abide by their decision now that they have the benefit of my thinking that they can add to their decision-making process.

Connie Dittrich, Realtor

Caroline One Real Estate

843.475.7993

This time of year is always beautiful in Charleston and this year has been unusually wonderful, with cool temps at night and low humidity during the day. The magnolias are blooming and their pungent lemony scent fills the air and surprises you in out-of-the-way places!

Happily the yellow pollen is gone and the cicadas that seem to be all over the rest of the southeast haven't visited us this year. If you're thinking of visiting Charleston, the springtime is a wonderful time to be here. We don't have tourists, we have visitors and treat everyone with respect and we try to make everyone feel welcome.

So come on for a visit and if I can help you with questions or provide information, just give me a call or send me an email. Oh, and welcome to Charleston!

Connie Dittrich

Realtor®, SFR
Carolina One Real Estate

628 Long Point Road

Mount Pleasant, SC 29464
Mobile: 843.475.7993