For the past several months, we have been posting updates on the Lake Hartwell Dream Spot.  We helped our clients find a gorgeous lot, and after a smooth build process, they have moved into their new home.   Check out this video showing the full project from beginning to end, and give us a shot at finding your spot on the lake.  And if you already have a lot, and have been thinking about building, we can help you make it happen.  Check out these great floor plans at different price points.

As many of you know, Lake Hartwell hosted the 2018 Bassmaster Classic, the "world championship of bass fishing".  But there will be plenty of fishing action at the lake in 2019 as well, including this weekend's Bassmaster High School Eastern Open.  Other 2019 tournaments include the Bassmaster Elite Series (April 4-7), Fishers of Men Team Series National Championship (April 11-13), Crappie USA Tournament Trail (May 4), and B.A.S.S. Nation Championship (October).  Many of these will be hosted at the recently improved Green Pond Landing and Event Center.  Make sure to check it out next time you're in the area and let us help you find your spot on the lake!

A couple of weeks ago, we posted about the Greenville Boat Show.   If you made the trip and picked out one of the premium wakesurf boats (at 6 figures+), you may need a sweet place to keep it (a real steal at 5 figures+).   If you haven't locked in your spot on the lake, we can help you find one close to the same price as some of the boats mentioned above.   Beautiful docks make our lake more beautiful, and we love Kroeger Marine and the way they build docks.  Not only are they beautiful, but they are structurally sound and can withstand anything mother nature can throw at them.  This dock is wrapped in wood and also has a gorgeous shake shingle roof with a cupola to top it off.   By the way, Kroeger Marine can also help you with the rip rap to stabilize and beautify your shoreline.  Click here for more dock ideas.

This polar bear may (or may not) have been spotted at Lake Hartwell trying to avoid the frigid water temperatures, but on February 23rd, you can see some humans with slightly less sense taking to the water for the 23rd Annual Polar Bear Plunge at Hartwell Marina.   Costumes are encouraged, and there will be a costume contest.  Festivities begin at 11am and include a chili cook-off.  The plunge is at 12:30. 

Photo credit for above:  Michael Isom, Hartwell Sun 

Last week, we reported the Q4 2018 Lake Hartwell market update.  The report showed a reduced inventory of homes, signaling a shift towards a seller's market.  I wanted you to know that the prediction now has some hard data to accompany it in just the first month of the year.  Our team has 10 new properties under contract since January 1st.  7 of those properties are our listings.  3 of the 7 had multiple offers.   In 2018, we only had 2 listings with multiple offers all year long.   I acknowledge that January could be a blip on the radar, and things could go back to the way they were this month, but I don't think so.  I haven't seen this type of shift in the 16 years that I have been practicing real estate at the lake, and I want the people in our network to be the people with the best, most current, information about our market.  If you are a buyer considering Lake Hartwell, I encourage you to look hard at what is currently available.  If you are thinking of selling, this is the best possible time to list your property with us.

The Lake Hartwell market finished the year strong.  Home sales were up 11% over Q4 2017, but the big story is that lot sales were up 237% over Q4 2017 and that was also the second most number of lots sold in any quarter over the last 10 years.  The average lot price of $122k was up 3% over last quarter.  83 homes were sold with an average price of $360k, with the average price up 12% over last quarter.  The number of available lots is down 11% from last quarter and the available home inventory is down 24%.   The absorption rate is the number of months that it would take to sell the existing inventory at the existing rate of sales.  While the absorption rate for lots is still high (plenty of inventory), the absorption rate for homes is at 7 months, which is very near a balanced market (6 months).  With sales sure to pick up as warmer temperatures approach, there couldn't be a better time to let us help you find your spot on the lake.

On weeks like this one, it may feel like we will never see warm temperatures again, but believe it or not, boating season is only a few short months away!  If you think this might be the year you finally get your first boat or upgrade to a newer model, make sure to check out the Upstate South Carolina Boat Show at the Greenville Convention Center this weekend (Jan 24-27).  And even if you're not ready to buy, they sure are fun to look at!  Whether you're interested in a PWC, fishing boat, pontoon, or ski boat, the boat show has you covered.  And you're definitely going to want somewhere to help you maximize the use of your new toy, so come let us help you find your spot on the lake!

We are excited to announce that Hartwell now has its first brewery, Southern Hart Brewing Company.  The ribbon cutting celebrating the opening will be on Friday, 1/18/19, at 10:30 AM.   They will be open immediately following with food and beverages available.  (It's 12:00 somewhere.)  I can't wait to visit and support one of the new local establishments that help to make our area great.  Make sure to save some time to let us help you find your spot on the lake.  We can drive.

You can't help but be aware of all of the new companies that will guarantee to buy your home without ever showing it. It seems too good to be true. Why wouldn't everyone want to do this? There is one primary answer: you should expect to net 10-25% less on the sale of your home if you select this option. The guaranteed offer from the company is frequently below the current market value of your home. If you accept, they will typically do an inspection, and then ask for a reduction in price due to the repairs that need to be made. In addition to the low sales price and repair reduction, you also have transaction fees that range from 7-13%.  They will then do some minor clean-up and put your home back for sale at or above the full market value. I have researched company websites and public reviews, and while you do see some satisfied sellers, these are mainly people that put an extremely high value on making the experience easy and fast, without concern for maximizing their net proceeds from the sale. There was also a high number of bad reviews from buyers purchasing homes from these companies. I don't want to presume that there is never a time when this might be a good option for a seller, but I do know that we helped 110 clients buy or sell last year, and we have 102 4 or 5-star reviews at this public website. By the way, if you know someone that might want to sell their home below market value, please reply to this note - asking for a friend. :)

One of my past clients, Bill Powell, captured this moment on 1/1/19.  I hope all of you had a fun and safe New Year's Eve and welcomed the New Year with family and friends.  Our work schedule was a little more relaxed over the holidays, but our SpotOnTheLake team was able to finish the year strong.  We helped 110 people buy or sell real estate in 2018 generating over $23 million in sales, making it our best year ever. We are especially grateful to the clients that took time to let us know how we did by submitting an online review here.   If you have been considering buying or selling a lake property, we hope we will have the chance to work with you in 2019.  Let us know how we can best serve you.