Greetings from the Grand Strand!
This is a combined newsletter, containing the usual monthly reports for May and June. Of course, my Best Buys are also included.
There are some big topics I plan to cover in the coming months but, for now, I think I'll just keep it short and sweet.
It's not directly related to real estate but one thing I want to address is the recent live Facebook video of a man pulling out a pistol and shooting up the Boulevard in Myrtle Beach. Untold millions have viewed this,
including most of my readers I'm sure
. One aspect of the incident which might be lost on most viewers is how quickly and efficiently this was handled. The entire incident only took a few seconds. When the man pulled the gun, there was a police cruiser already on the way to the scene to disperse a large, but until then, peaceful, group that had spilled out into the street. The shooter was apprehended within 6 minutes.
Miraculously, no one was killed or critically wounded.
Most of the criminal activity in the tourist areas involves people who don't live here. On any given day during peak times, there are between 600,000 and 800,000 visitors in the area.The vast majority are great people and law-abiding citizens. A few are not.
The shooter was a 17 year old from Charlotte, reportedly with gang affiliations. When there were several well-publicized shootings downtown several years ago during the Memorial Day Bikefest, the shooters were thought to be gang members from the Charleston area.
The city has been taking steps to address crime for several years. Over 800 video cameras have been installed throughout the city. Efforts are being made to improve lighting. Unoccupied buildings have been torn down.
The number of police officers patrolling the downtown area has been increased and there are plans to add even more.
Unfortunately, it takes time to hire and train officers. The city has brought in police from other areas to assist. I like to go running along the new Boardwalk and I see the officers all the time. They are very professional - firm yet friendly - and they treat visitors with respect.
For what it's worth, I've lived in this area for over 35 years now and I've personally only been a victim of crime once when my car was broken into and some CDs were stolen (Does anyone remember what CDS were?). I don't consider this to be high-crime area, although, as with any city, there are certain sections in which I would not want to be in the middle of the night.
Incidentally, the crime statistics for the area are misleading. They are based on the number of crimes per
permanent population even though the number of people in the area is always much higher. The population of the city of Myrtle Beach is actually not very big - less than 40,000 people.
Anyway, suffice it to say that the local public is up in arms, city officials are on notice and there will be additional actions taken. I often include articles about this in the Press Releases section of my website.
OK, back to real estate. I've received quite a few calls lately from condo owners who own one or more properties (sometimes many more) who have been waiting for the right time to sell.
Please contact me if you would like to discuss current and probable future market conditions for your particular property(s).
That's it for now. See you at the beach!