Let’s Give Thanks

Dear CENTURY 21® friends,

On this eve of Thanksgiving, I’d like to take a moment to give thanks TO YOU, as you prepare for what I hope to be a safe and enjoyable holiday filled with new memories for you to share with your friends and family for years to come.

Memories are a defining part of our business. After all, we work hard to serve our customers and connect families across the world to homes, where they will make their own memories. I am thankful to you for the dedication and the hard work you put forth every day to help people create these great experiences.

Thanksgiving is also an opportunity to share the time-honored traditions and dishes.  Love them or hate them, our first-ever #Thanksblasting social campaign, puts you and your meal favorites in the middle of the conversation.  So far over 15,000 fans have voted on their favorite dish. It all culminates on Thanksgiving day (light meat versus dark meat) on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram!  If you get the chance, be sure to join the fun on line.

On behalf of the CENTURY 21 International Headquarters team, I wish you a happy Thanksgiving.

Regards,

Rick Davidson
President & CEO
Century 21 Real Estate LLC

Shop Local Small Business Saturday

Gain Big Results

Each year, American Express sponsors Small Business Saturday the day after Black Friday to encourage people to shop at small businesses. The single day has grown into a very strong movement, starting in   2010.

The Grand Strand, stretching the many miles that it does, has grown expeditiously over the decades. However, it is rooted in small, family-owned businesses. Today, many of those generations of ancestors still carry on the family name in serving locals and tourists alike.

Whether retail shops, restaurants, hospitality, real estate, service stations, publications or the myriad of other establishments and companies, this beach is rich with industrious-minded individuals and families.

Take time this holiday season to stop and patronize our local small business partners. We appreciate them and their commitment. They continue to make this area strong and successful.

North Myrtle Beach Celebrates The Great American Smokeout Day

The American Cancer Society marks the third Thursday of November The Great American Smokeout Day for an important reason. This date sends a message to people across the nation to take a step toward a healthier lifestyle. Today signifies supporting those who do smoke in making an effort to quit, as well as reducing cancer.

If you are a smoker, use The Great American Smokeout Day as the perfect opportunity to stop smoking and protect your health and the health of your loved ones. It is not news that smoking inflicts immediate damage to your body, threatening your future with increased risks for cancer, heart attack, lung disease, and early death.

The idea is simple, though the change can be hard. For those who smoke, commit to not smoking for 24 hours. Then try 48 hours, then 72. Break the change down into smaller pieces.

If you are a North Myrtle Beach resident, check out Smoke Free NMB, a grassroots organization with a mission to reduce the effects of secondhand smoke (SHS) on workers, residents and visitors.

The Great American Smokeout is just one day out of the year. However, connecting people with cessation resources, the impact can last for generations.

Visit cancer.org/smokeout, a website featuring tools to install on your computer, such as the Smokeout Countdown Clock that allows you to pick your quit date and provides daily tips.

Resources:
• Helpguide.org: http://www.helpguide.org/articles/addiction/how-to-quit-smoking.htm
• SmokeFree NMB: https://www.facebook.com/SmokeFreeNMB
• American Cancer Society's tools: http://www.cancer.org/healthy/stayawayfromtobacco/greatamericansmokeout/index

Community: Property Tax Bills Being Mailed

Press Release: Conway, South Carolina—The County is mailing approximately 250,000 2014 real property tax bills this week. You can currently view your tax bill online by visiting www.horrycounty.org and clicking "Online Services", then clicking "Tax Payments and Receipts". Next, enter the property owner name or map number to view the details of the tax bill. This is the same screen where you can make an on-line payment if you chose to do so.  With the implementation of the new tax billing system, you can now pay property taxes by telephone by calling 1-866-830-3582.  The following day you can print your tax receipt from the County's website by following the above steps.

Tax bills relating to 2014 can be paid without penalty up to January 15, 2015. Payments postmarked after January 15, 2015, and payments paid at the County's Treasurer's Office locations after January 15, 2015 will be subject to a 3% penalty, and additional penalty of 7% if not paid on or before February 1, 2015, and a third penalty of 5% if not paid on or before  March 16, 2015.  Additional information relating to paying real property taxes on-line, or signing up for the installment payment plan, is available at http://www.horrycounty.org/Departments/Treasurer.aspx. The deadline for new applications for the 2015 tax year Installment Payment Program is January 15, 2015.  For more information concerning tax payments please contact the Horry County Treasurer's Office at (843) 915-5470.

The Horry County Auditor's Office is mailing approximately 60,000 personal property tax bills. Personal property tax must be paid on all personal property, including business personal property used to generate business income within Horry County. This includes business personal property, such as furniture, which is located within a condominium or house that is rented to third parties to generate revenue for the owner. The tax is assessed on the values that the business owners report to the County when they file the Form PR 26 by April 30th each year. More information regarding this filing requirement, including the form and the instructions, are available at http://www.horrycounty.org/Departments/Auditor.aspx. If you have questions regarding the personal property tax bill that you receive, or if you filed a Form PR 26 but do not receive a personal property tax bill, please call the Auditor’s Office at 843-915-5054.

The Auditor's office is also mailing over 15,000 tax notices for watercraft/motors (SCDNR-registered boats and U. S. Coast Guard documented vessels).  There is no annual filing requirement for SCDNR-registered boats; however, if you own a vessel federally documented with the U. S. Coast Guard, you are required to file a Watercraft Survey with the Auditor's Office by April 30th of each year for a vessel you owned on the prior December 31st, even though it may have been sold after the December 31st assessment date.  The Watercraft Survey is available at http://www.horrycounty.org/Departments/Auditor.aspx. If you have a question about taxes on a SCDNR-registered watercraft, please call 843-915-5055.  If you have questions about a tax notice for a U. S. Coast Guard documented vessel, please call 843-915-6643.

Lisa H. Bourcier | Public Information Director
Horry County Government
Public Information Office
P.O. Box 1236, Conway, South Carolina 29528
Tel 843.915.5390 | Fax 843.915.6390 | bourcier@horrycounty.org
www.horrycounty.org

Is your office enrolled in the Showcase Advantage Listing Program?

HomeFinder.com and CENTURY 21 Real Estate are excited to announce a national partner program that offers a discounted rate to all CENTURY 21 Offices.  HomeFinder.com has driven thousands of leads to CENTURY 21 Offices at a low cost per lead in the past and we look forward to serving your offices again through this exciting program.

Program Includes

• Special CENTURY 21 System pricing = $65 per office (67% savings!)
• Enhanced Listings for all your office listings. This includes: Priority sort; Premier branding; Trackable phone number; Email lead form from property details page; Unlimited photos and social media integration
• Plus 5 Featured Properties

If your office i not enrolled yet, now is the PERFECT time to take advantage of the bonus savings on Homefinder.com all month long! Act now!

Top 5 Resources For The Best Real Estate Books

Good investments are backed by great information. Real estate is no different. Books are one of the best sources of information for anybody interested in real estate. It is true that most of us have no time to waste and we turn to internet and short articles for the topics of our interest. It is also true that by doing so we limit ourselves to incomplete information. Books have been and still are the best source for thorough, detailed information, especially when large amounts of money are involved.

Since there are so many books out there and it has become increasingly hard to filter out the good reads from those that can easily be passed on, we have decided to lend a helping hand and do the work for you. So here are 3 great resources listing some of the best real estate books anyone should read:

• BiggerPockets: The Best Real Estate Books Ever - presents a list of great books in various categories like real estate investing, best “specialty” books on real estate investing, best real estate flipping books, best books on landlording, and best business books for real estate entrepreneurs.
• National Association of Realtors: Top 10 Real Estate Business Books - presents of the ten most popular real estate business books on Amazon. Interestingly enough, the list includes four books in the "for dummies" category.
• Masslib.net: Top 5 Real Estate Books for Beginners - a good list of must-read books for beginners.
• Real Estate in Your Twenties: Seven Must-Read Books for Real Estate Investors - compiles a great list of real estate books and even follows up with an update of the most recent top reads for real estate investors.
• JWB Real Estate Capital: 10 Real Estate Books You Should Read Before Investing - a list of great book to read before making a real estate investment, providing a well-rounded education in the field.

Most successful real estate investments have less to do with the money and more with the quality of the decisions made based on knowledge. If time is money, knowledge is power. Improving your real estate literacy can get you to levels of success you can only dream of. Let us know in the comments section below if you have run into other great real estate books. And remember, the best place to start for any of your real estate endeavor is Century 21 Thomas website.

Myrtle Beach Area Real Estate Market Update - July 2014 Statistics

The real estate market in the Myrtle Beach area has seen a few interesting twists both in June and year to date. Here are a few important statistics to consider:

• Single-family home sales jumped 11.5% in June from June 2013 in Horry and Georgetown counties
• Myrtle Beach area up 6% in growth for the first half of 2014 versus the first half of 2013
• The local area's real estate market is no longer dependent on sales of homes priced $150,000 and lower
• The real estate growth in the area for both this June and the first half of 2014 has been in home sales in the $200,000 - $400,000 range
• Sales of homes priced $200,000 - $250,000 surged 23% in June 2014
• 204 homes priced between $200K - $400K sold in Horry and Georgetown counties in June 2014, 93 more than in the 2nd highest selling price range, $150K-200K
• For the year, 990 homes priced $200K - $400K have sold, 387 more than the 2nd highest price
  
  range, $100K-$150K
• There were 715 pending sales at the end of June, 34.4% higher than June 2013
• The median sales price for single-family homes in June 2014 was $193,929, up 5.1% year to date
• Condominium sales are slightly below last year's numbers

The large increase in the number of single-family homes sales is due  to the fact that there have been relatively fewer distressed properties (short sales and foreclosures) for sale. The number of lower priced single family homes which made most of the transactions for the past few years has dropped, making room for higher priced properties.