Keith Strawn www.ExploreBeaufortRealEstate.com

Every deal feels terrific, doesn't it?. After all, this is what Realtors set out to do each day, isn't it. We try and help our clients buy and sell property for the best possible terms.

So, I feel pretty good today. My partner in the office, the wonderful and indefatigable Kim C., and I just helped a nice couple from up north purchase a deep-water homesite, in one of Beaufort's best neighborhoods, for 40 cents on the dollar. The purchase price was $235,000. The seller's had paid $480,000.

This is not to gloat over the misfortune of the sellers, but rather to celebrate a victory in helping our clients find a wonderful investment property on the water, at a price which would have been unthinkable just a few years ago.

That is something we can feel very good about.

Many newcomers to Beaufort, SC dream of living in Historic Downtown Beaufort, an area teaming with 200-year-old mansions, and immense historical significance which dates back to Colonial Times.

When my family was searching Beaufort for a home in the mid-1990s, we drove through the Old Point and dreamed of living in this neighborhood made famous by Beaufort native son Pat Conroy. We dreamed of being able to walk downtown for dinner at the shops and restaurants of Bay Street, Beaufort's best-known thoroughfare. The Old Point is probably the most consistently sought-out area in Beaufort.

The downtown area is the land of The Great Santini, and The Prince of Tides, two Conroy stories which have immortalized Beaufort, SC in both novel and on film. There was only one Santini, and there is only one Beaufort.

Thanks to the current housing market, there are seemingly endless real estate opportunities in Beaufort's Historic District which weren't there a few years ago. Did you know you can purchase a property, 3.5 blocks from Bay Street, for under $79,000? Yes, it needs plenty of work, but -- take my word for it -- some of the swankiest mansions and homes in downtown Beaufort were darn-near uninhabitable homes when I moved to the area in 1996. Now, they are showplaces.

There are two low-maintenance condos in the Old Point available for under $300,000. One of these, which was purchased for more than $350,000 just a few years ago, is available for $225,000. From this location, you can walk -- and take your time doing so!!! -- to Bay Street in about two minutes.

I am not ashamed to admit that, a few years ago, I thought the days had passed when you could purchase a home in the Old Point for under $400,000, regardless of the amount of work required.

Yes, opportunity abounds in Historic Downtown Beaufort. For more information on these opportunities, visit www.ExploreBeaufortRealEstate.com. Thanks for stopping by, and have a great day.

Beaufort, SC, and the surrounding Lowcountry has some marvelous options available for buyers seeking a home near South Carolina's greens and fairways.

Take, for instance, Dataw Island and Callawassie island, two a well-groomed communities offering a nice country club lifestyle. Of these two communities, Dataw is closer to downtown Beaufort, just minutes east, on St. Helena Island. Of the 120 homes currently on the market on Dataw, asking prices range from just under $160,000, up to more than $2 million. Dataw Island features some of the best waterfront property available in Beaufort, and two Pete Dye golf courses.

Callawassie Island has 27 holes of golf, designed by Tom Fazio. Currently, There are currently 16 homes on the market, with asking prices ranging from $255,000 to $845,000.

Spring Island and Brays Island are two pricier golf community options for Lowcountry buyers. Spring Island may be the single most beautiful developed island in the Lowcountry, and is located adjacent to Callawassie Island. In fact, Callawssie and Spring share the same guard house and entrance. Brays Island, located west of Beaufort near Interstate 95, also features a hunting preserve. Both of these communities are very private.

Fripp Island also features two beautiful golf courses, although the larger attraction at Fripp is certainly the three miles of beaches.

We always recommend you conduct due diligence before buying anywhere, but especially in a situation where there is an equity membership involved. These can be tricky, because in most of these cases, the owner of the membership must keep paying dues until he/she is able to sell the membership.

Also, every community has individual guidelines regarding associated fees, some of which are paid at the closing table, and some of which are paid after closing.

In many of these communities, there may be different memberships, from golf to social. There may be different membership dues for improved property, versys dues applying to vacant homesites.

For more information on Beaufort, SC, or the Beaufort, SC real estate market, visit www.ExploreBeaufortRealEstate.com.

Despite an historic combination of affordability and low interest rates, October 2010 was a month of frustration for many involved with the Beaufort, SC, real estate market, as pending and closed sales figures dipped from October 2009.

The Beaufort Mutliple Listing Service recorded 55 home sales in October of this year, compared with 73 home sales for October 2009, a decrease of 24.7 percent. Pending sales also dipped, with 134 homes under contract at month’s end, compared with 202 for October 2009, according to information provided by the Beaufort County Association of Realtors (BCAR).

As we mentioned, October 2010 was a challenging month despite a combination of historically low interest rates, and a very high affordability index for the Beaufort, SC real estate market.

Still, the opportunities are there for buyers. In October 2010, Beaufort buyers enjoyed an affordability index of 163, which means the median family income in the area was 163 percent of what would be required to qualify to purchase the median priced home. The affordability index was up 14.7 percent from the November 2009 figure of 142, according to BCAR stats.

Homes closing in October 2010 also took longer to sell than those closing in October 2009. Homes closing this October spent an average of 215 days on the market, up 16.3 percent from the 185 days on market for homes closing in October 2009. Days on the market begins with the signing of the listing paperwork, and ends the property is transferred to the new owner.

Overall, year-to-date, the sales pace for 2010 continues to surpass that of 2009, with 673 homes closed at the end of October 2010, a 36.5 increase over the 493 homes sold by the end of October 2009.

Although sales figures are up, most real estate observers will probably not point to a recovery until prices stabilize. That has not happened. The median sales price in October 2010 was $177,000, down 8.5 percent from the $193,400 median price of October 2009. Year to date, the median sales price for 2010 was $175,750 through October, compared with $192,500 for the same time period in 2009.

There were 21.7 months of inventory on the market in Beaufort at the end of October 2010, about the same as the 21.9 months at the end of October 2009. The inventory is the estimated amount of time required to sell every home currently on the market were no new homes to be added to the inventory.