www.charlestonmarketreport.

com

February 2009 Edition

2/11/2009

In This Issue:
The CMR Soundtrack: Ball of Confusion
RIA
Charleston Residential Market
Not Impressed Big Spender
My Credit Market Solution
The Problem is You!
Unemployment
Bailout Rate of Return
Government Stimulus
The Positive Perspective
Delinquencies and Foreclosures
Housing Cycles and Bottoms
Commercial Real Estate

Greetings from sunny Charleston, SC everyone! If you are stuck in the snow we have plenty of homes we can sell
you down here next to the beach with warm weather, golf and great restaurants all year long. Hint hint! Just pack
your stuff up and move to the beautiful low country and get out of the rust belt, Yankeeville or wherever you may
live. ☺ Don’t you just hate it when it is 70 degrees here in Charleston and you are freezing your tail off, dealing with
high taxes and unemployment? Spring is right around the corner and it is a perfect time to move here.

I want to focus on real estate issues for this month’s CMR. This month you get a double dose of both residential and
commercial real estate from both a national and local perspective. First we are going to focus on some economic
issues at play that are having a direct impact on the financial markets.

The soundtrack for this edition of The CMR is an awesome tune that was given to me by my business partner in Cali,
G$. After Tim “Turbo Tax Cheater” Geitner blew it yesterday and the mass confusion demonstrated by the Obama
Administration and Congress over the past two weeks this song fits perfectly with this February edition.

Ladies & Gentlemen turn up your speakers because we are going to blast some Motown music courtesy of The
Temptations. Man, Detroit must have been a rocking town during the Motown days! Now look at it.

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Ball of Confusion (Dedicated to our Government!)

Click Below to Play

http://tinyurl.com/afnmrj

I would also like to introduce you to a new webpage on The CMR site called The CMR Music Video Page dedicated
to the housing and economic fiasco. I have compiled some great music videos from various bands that are really cool.
Trust me you will not be disappointed because most of the tunes are really good.
Check it out below and crank up your speakers!
http://charlestonmarketreport.com/musicvideos.aspx

Registered Investment Advisor (RIA)

My business partners in California and I have decided to set up a Registered Investment Advisory firm (RIA) in South
Carolina. We are pursuing this strategy because of some projects we are involved with on the east and west coast and
the need for investment advisory services which focuses on risk management. The firm will focus on real estate,
estate planning, and 401(k)/investment consulting and it will be fee based only.

I will have joint ventures and partnerships set up with specific money management firms, CPAs, Financial Planners,
Real Estate Agents, etc. who offer robust risk management for investment portfolios. The best part about our firm
will be the Wealth Management process for all clients so that there is a cohesive strategy with real estate, investing
and tax/estate planning. I know from my days as a Financial Advisor with Wachovia Securities and RJFS that this is
often a critical element that is missing when you invest. I plan on having programs set up for everyone so you can get
the best advice possible for the foreseeable future. It is just too difficult an environment to allow 10-40% losses in the
markets.

I will have more details in the coming weeks as we move forward to set up our practice.

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Charleston Residential Market
I have some exciting news regarding The CMR and Charleston. A major national business magazine has requested
me to provide insight into the “front lines” of the Charleston market. The reporter of this project has an excellent
reputation so I look forward to working with her and her staff. This is not going to be a one shot deal or article but
more of an ongoing piece for the magazine and it will include other markets in addition to Charleston. The magazine
wants local observations that will be interesting because they will be unfiltered (although somewhat edited)
viewpoints about what is happening on the streets of America. The magazine plans to invite other readers to comment
on the information we provide. At the end of the year, the magazine may have a body of work that may turn into a
magazine piece. I will keep everyone updated as I get more info on how this project is going to work. It should be
fun and it will bring some national attention to the Charleston market. So go buy and sell some homes so I can
report some positive news that reflects improving market conditions in the coming months!

My initial goal is to provide a 5 year snapshot of the Charleston market for the national reader who may not be
familiar with our market. I hope to provide more details and different perspectives of the Charleston real estate
market instead the same old macro statistics. Hopefully I will get the opportunity to show some trend analysis for
certain micro markets in Charleston which will demonstrate how many unique and different micro markets we have
across our wonderful city.

Below is what I submitted over the weekend along with the chart:

The past 5 years have been a roller coaster for the Charleston real estate market. Our market peaked in 2006 but it
has held up better than many other markets around the country because of the quality of life in Charleston and our
very diverse economy. However, Charleston's real estate market is experiencing challenging times just like other
towns and cities across the country and we have seen our single family home inventory more than triple over the past
five years while sales volume has decreased 29% in the past year. The condo/townhome market inventory has also
tripled over the past five years and sales volume decreased 35% from 2007 to 2008. Due to increasing supply and
decreasing demand, home prices have weakened in the Tri-County area in many segments of the market. The current
dynamics of supply and demand are reflected for both detached and attached homes as the Months Supply has
increased over 30% when comparing 2007 to 2008. The declining sales data for Charleston is directly related to fear
in the market due to the economy and stricter underwriting guidelines by banks.

As a result of the 45-60 day lag time between contract and closing date we will need to closely monitor whether the
reduced home prices and lower mortgage rates will have a positive affect on our market during a non-seasonal
period for real estate.

The interesting aspect of the chart below is the difference between average and median home prices. There is a
reason for this which is why we have to be careful when dissecting the macro stats of the Tri-County area. A problem
I have with the MSM stats is that they should separate single family (detached) homes versus the condo/townhouse
(attached) homes. These are two different markets which can easily be segmented instead of lumped together into one
statistic.

The January numbers are down but keep in mind how seasonal real estate is and combine that with the problems and
fear that persist in the markets from the September and October fiasco. In my opinion, these price declines are good
news (unless you are a seller) and a natural occurrence that takes place when a market is trying to bottom out. This
should not be taken as bad news by the media considering the credit shock and housing issues we have experienced
over the past few years. Just remember that the quicker prices bottom out the more affordable the market becomes
and once the economy stabilizes we will enter more normal real estate market conditions. Also keep in mind that the
low mortgage rates did not really kick in until after Christmas. I know that traffic and showings are up but these
numbers will not be reflected in the local market stats until late February, March or April based on the time it takes to
close on a home. I continue to believe that existing market conditions present some excellent buying opportunities if
you have a 10+ year strategy to live in the home you purchase. Do not forget the difference in buying a home versus
a stock. Yes, they are both investments but there are major differences especially since your home is a tangible asset
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that you will spend many hours a day as you get older. If you set up the correct retirement strategy both of these
asset classes should work very well together.

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Not Impressed Big Spender
Currently, I am NOT impressed with our President and his administration. We already know how bad our Congress
sucks so that is old news. I do not like any of these clowns in DC and I have now appointed myself as a Political
Atheist. Obama went from a positive message of hope on the campaign trail to we are heading for a catastrophe or
financial Armageddon if you do not pass my Spendulis Bill. Does this fear mongering not sound familiar and bring
back memories to the Hank “Punk Ass” Paulson days? You remember him don’t you? He is the former “Goldman
Gangster” turned Treasury Secretary who pulled off the biggest financial heist in the history of the world and got
away with it in broad daylight with the consent of Congress. It has to be the biggest and best robbery of all time!

I told you Washington DC should become Barbeque Capitol of the World with all the pork running around that town.
The bottom line everybody is you can not stand by and wait for this government to help you.

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I wish the government would realize that a large part of the answer to improving economy lies within the
entrepreneurial spirit of its citizens. Think about the number of jobs created by Bill Gates, Michael Dell, The Google
guys, etc. etc. Did these entrepreneurs get a handout from “Big Mama” when they started their companies in their
garages? Nope! How come I get the impression from Obama that we are a bunch of fools and idiots and the only
way we can be saved is if “Big Mama” steps in to clean up the mess she created? These politicians egos are so
incredibly distorted they actually believe they have the solution to all of our problems that they continuously make
worse each and everyday. Please quit drinking the “Big Mama Socialistic” Kool Aid and realize that the answer to
your problems and dreams reside within you NOT the government.

My Credit Market Solution

Memo
To: President Obama, Congress, The Treasury Department and The Fed
From: The CMR
Solution: 3 Words: LET THEM FAIL!

Bank of America, Citigroup and all the other insolvent TARP banks do not deserve to be in business and America
needs to put them out of their misery just like any other insolvent business is supposed to experience in a free market
economy. Their commercial portfolios have not even blown up yet. I believe they have cost us enough money
already. I wonder if these banks are tired of sticking their hands out to “Big Mama” like a bum on the street? Please
Barack, Ben, Timmy G, Congress just let them fail. Let these banks fail so the market can cleanse itself of all the
toxicity and we can move on with our lives, especially in real estate. There are plenty of solid banks around the US
who can pick up the slack. The bad banks are nothing more than a gigantic MONEY HOLE! I know you love money
holes but I believe $10 trillion or whatever the amount you have spent to this date is quite enough.

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The Problem is You!
From a fantastic NYT article discussing the absurdity of our economic situation (hat tip CB):
Here, ladies and gentlemen, is the crux of the problem: We are reliably informed that whatever part of the economic
crisis can’t be pinned on Wall Street — or on mortgage-related financial insanity — can be pinned on consumers who
overspent. But personal consumption amounts to some 70 percent of the American economy. So if we don’t spend,
we don’t recover. Fiscal health isn’t possible until money is again sloshing into cash registers, including those at this
mall and every other retailer.

In other words, shopping was part of the problem and now it’s part of the cure. And once we’re cured, economists
report, we really need to learn how to save, which suggests that we will need to quit shopping again. Got it?

Unemployment
I am sure you heard from the Main Stream Media (MSM) that our economy shed 598,000 jobs last month and crept
up to an unemployment rate of 7.6. Well I have some bad news for you. The economic data that is filtered to the
MSM is BS and it is actually worse. In fact it is way worse. Once you read these stats and if you have a good job you
should be very thankful. If you are looking for a job then hang in there keep on plugging away and hopefully you can
catch a break. If not call Obama and he will take care of you and maybe give you a government job since they appear
to be growing at an incredible pace. ☺

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Unemployment Now at 13.9%
The best measure of unemployment is not the one you read in the newspaper. The U-6 unemployment rate, which
represents 13.9% of the total adult population who wants to work, also includes part-time employees who would
rather work full-time. The number of part-time employees desiring full-time work is now 7.8 million, which is up
65% over the last year. In addition, the U-6 rate accounts for the 2.1 million unemployed people who want to work,
but have stopped looking. The U-3 unemployment rate, which is what is reported in the paper, consists of 11.6 million
people, which is up 54% over the last year and represents 7.6% of the labor force. The U-6 category of unemployment
is growing faster than the U-3.

It gets worse. Shadowstats.com an economics firm I have a tremendous amount of respect for is reporting their SGS
Alternate Rate at approximately 18%. So if we took the halfway point between the BLS (U3 & U6) vs. the SGS
Alternate we are looking at an unemployment rate of 16%. Then factor in the fact that companies laying off
employees has accelerated in recent months and you can understand why our fearless leaders in DC are very nervous.

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Here is the deal everyone and my honest opinion. This economic downturn is beyond a recession. I am not sure what
you call it because I am not an economist. You are going to start hearing certain individuals in the media call this a
depression, repression or maybe a severe L or U shaped recession. The next year or two are going to difficult for
everyone but we all have to stay focused and use common sense when it comes to financial decisions. Do everything
you can to get out of debt and reduce your style of living if necessary. The bad times will not last forever and just like
past recessions or depressions there is a light at the end of the tunnel.

Patience will be necessary and there is no magic pill or magic dust Obama, The Fed or Treasury can sprinkle on our
economy to make this a quick fix. In fact, as many of you know, I feel the government or “Big Mama” policies will
prolong the economic downturn. We just have to let the chips fall where they may and deal with it.

Bailout Rate of Return

I bet most of you reading The CMR have no idea what type of return our Federal Government is getting on this TARP
Program I am still fuming about that the goobers in DC passed the TARP because they fell for Paulson’s BS to
bailout his banker buddies. Are you ready? The Rate of Return on the Bailout is -1,096 according to an article in
Time Magazine called “Why Your Bank Is Broke.” Since the Tarp was slammed through in October, Treasury has
invested $165 billion into the nation’s eight largest banks.

Those same financial firms are now worth $418 billion less than they were four months ago. CBO calculates the
taxpayer’s preferred shares are worth $20 billion less. That is why fellow CMR readers we do not want the
government in the investment or banking business. These politicians are a bunch of IDIOTS. All they know is how
to get greased by lobbyists and pile a bunch of pork in the bills they pass.

I believe that any politician who voted for the first TARP or Stimulus Bill is no different than the two gentlemen
below whom I will call Daryl and Daryl. I was talking to Daryl (On the right) and Daryl (On the left) below and even
though it was hard to understand what they were saying even they think the politicians in DC are a bunch of idiots. I
bet they have more common sense also! This is why we can not rely on “Big Mama” anymore and must formulate
our own game plan to take advantage of what the markets are going to give us as the economy worsens. Just
remember as all this blood gushes into the streets there will be tremendous opportunities.

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Government Stimulus Plan
The buildup was incredible for new “Tax Cheating/Lehman Bustin” Treasury Secretary, Timmy G to come on TV
yesterday at 11am and give us the grand master plan for solving the credit and housing problems! He came on TV
yesterday and basically said, “Wah wah wah Wah wah wah Wah wah wah. Have a nice day.”

He gave no details on what the heck The Treasury Dept. is going to do with all the toxic assets because he probably
does not know himself. The stock market does not like the lack of info and is down 348 points as I write this on
February 10, 2009. These guys are MORONS. Why even come on TV if you have no plan? Why did Obama build
up this speech like it had some details that the markets were waiting to hear about and this give us nothing…NADA?
Speaking of Stimulus check this out:

Right now this economy is impotent because all economies around the world have performance issues. ☺

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Click below to play
http://tinyurl.com/df84ue

The Positive Perspective

In the chart of the U.S. Real GDP which covers the Great Depression period 1930-1939 we had 4yrs (1930-1933) of
sub-zero growth but then swung to 4yrs of strong growth (1935-1937). This history is a useful guide to the resilience
of the American economy in response to highly negative financial events of our own creation.

How this correlates to the market can be seen in the chart of the Dow Jones chart below spanning 1928-1935.(The
BLACK ARROW represents the inauguration of FDR)

We do fix the problems and we do recover. Those who buy in the current market and can hold till recovery will most
likely do quite well even without timing the bottom. (The author’s opinion not mine)

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Source: Seeking Alpha
http://seekingalpha.com/article/116085-u-s-real-gdp-regression-analysis

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Chart:www.shadowstats.com

If you look at the chart above from www.shadowstats.com you will notice that GDP growth has already been negative
for 3 years. I do not see any change in trend yet so you have to be careful how you analyze all the economic stats.
One thing is clear from the GDP chart above is that this downturn is nasty.

Personally, I think we have another leg down. I do not see a housing rebound in 2009 at all and until that begins to
straighten out, I think we are exposed with risk to the downside.. We have faced worse time than this (it was worse
when Reagan took office, 10% unemployment, 12.5 inflation, double digit interest rates) and we came through just
fine.

Those looking 10 years down the road will look back on current conditions very favorably one day.

Delinquencies and Foreclosures

It's no surprise that delinquencies and default rates are increasing as more borrowers are under water on their
mortgages and can't afford the monthly payments anymore because of rate resets and rising unemployment. What is
surprising is the historical connection between home price appreciation (HPA) and loss severity, i.e. the actual loss
incurred by a lender after foreclosure.

In times of rising home prices, a lender will barely lose money even if a borrower defaults: the delinquent borrower is
forced out of the house, the property is put back on the market and the lender recovers most of the unpaid loan
balance through the sale of the foreclosed property in an auction. Now take a look at this chart and comments which
Steve Smith, MAI found in a recent presentation by T2 Partners:

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The chart shows a scary connection between home price appreciation and loss severity. With 10% HPA per annum, a
lender gets 95% of his money back if the borrower defaults. With more modest increase in house prices of 3% per
year, severity is at 60% - i.e. the lender gets only 40% of his money back.

Based on this picture, what will the loss severity be in an environment of rapidly falling home prices? Now you
understand why the banks who took on too much risk on homes with no down payment in high risk areas are failing
or bleeding to death.

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Charleston Foreclosures

Picture Courtesy of the Post & Courier. The interactive chart can be found at:
http://www.charleston.net/flash/20090131_foreclosure/

Below is a chart showing the top counties in South Carolina with the most foreclosures. The bad news is that all three
counties that make up the Tri-County, Berkeley, Charleston and Dorchester counties made the list.

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Next we take a look at the increase in foreclosures in each county from 2007 to 2008. Not a pretty picture folks. If
you have been reading The CMR this is not a shocking statistic because I have written about this and been
interviewed numerous times regarding how the foreclosure market would grow in Charleston.

In my opinion the foreclosure process is NOT a bad thing unless of course you are the bank that owns the note or the
borrower who can not make the payment. The foreclosure process is part of the bottoming out process that needs to
take place after excessive gains in real estate.

U.S. home sales registered their biggest monthly jump in nearly seven years in December, as declining prices began
to draw out more buyers and several major housing markets showed some signs of stabilizing.

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The 6.5% rise in sales from November was attributed in part to strong sales of foreclosed homes. Economists say it is
too early to suggest that broad improvement is at hand, though, and warned that the spring buying season is likely to
be sluggish amid growing economic hardship. ...

The National Association of Realtors said sales of previously occupied single-family homes, condominiums and
cooperative homes reached a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 4.74 million units in December. Last month's rise was
the largest since the early phase of the housing boom in January 2002 and a sharp rebound from the prior month,
when sales plunged 9.4%, according to revised data from the Realtors.

But home sales were still down 3.5% from a year earlier. The trade group said 45% of transactions completed in
December were "distress sales" by banks unloading foreclosed properties or homeowners selling for less money than
they owe to lenders.

This is important.
At the bottom, banks blow out the inventory of foreclosed homes at almost any price just to get rid of
properties on their books. When prices are low enough, demand comes back into the market, setting a floor at
which prices can stabilize.

Such behavior is a sign that the bottoming process in housing has begun. This specific data point does not
necessarily mean the bottom is in. Prices may still go lower. However, it signifies that the bottom in home
prices in the United States is in sight, and most of the decline is over."

The government does not understand this for some odd reason. I know many buyers who are waiting on the sidelines
to take advantage of the lower prices. Once the bank takes the loss on the foreclosure they have to write down the
loss on their books, which hurt their numbers for shareholders and/or Wall Street. The bad banks who made too many
poor loans are just praying “Big Mama” will come along and pay too much for their toxic assets just like Bank of
America did with Merrill Lynch. Remember when Ken Lewis of Bank of America paid $30 per share for Merrill
Lynch and all their toxic loans without doing his due diligence on the company before he wrote the check. John
Thain, the former CEO of Merrill Lynch, is on a beach drinking pina coladas laughing right now after that deal was
done.

Why Be a Nation of Mortgage Slaves?

The Wall Street Journal
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123336541474235541.html?mod=googlenews_wsj
By RAMSEY SU

Preventing foreclosures has become a top priority of politicians, economists and regulators. In fact, allowing
foreclosures to happen has merit as a free-market solution to the crisis.
If the intent is to help homeowners, then foreclosure is undoubtedly the best solution. Household balance sheets have
been destroyed by taking on too much debt via the purchase of inflated assets. With so little savings, a household with
negative equity almost implies negative net worth. Walking away from the mortgage immediately repairs the balance
sheet.

Credit may be damaged, but homeowners can rebuild it. And by renting something they can afford, instead of the
McMansion they cannot, homeowners are most likely to have some money left over each month that they can save
toward a down payment on a house they can eventually afford.

The securitization model has proven to be flawed. Slicing loans horizontally into tranches created asset classes that
have conflicting interests in a dissolution strategy of the same underlying asset. The holder of a senior tranche would
be agreeable to modification, since his position is secured; the holder of a junior tranche would essentially be wiped
out. The lower tranches are worthless but are still legally an encumbrance, hindering any type of sale or work-out
effort.
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Foreclosures provide the foundation of recovery, both for Main Street and Wall Street. As properties are foreclosed,
they can move from weak hands to strong hands. Households that have been foreclosed upon today are the buyers of
tomorrow, when given a chance to recover.
The media should interview those who had been foreclosed upon. Do they feel sorry or relieved? Are they rebuilding
their credit, not to mention their lives? Do they miss the pressure of having to make payments they cannot afford on a
McMansion that belongs to the lender?

The intent of modification programs to date is to create a generation of mortgage slaves. Fortunately, mortgage
slaves can free themselves via foreclosure, and the masses are choosing to do so.
Mr. Su is a real-estate consultant and a former REO broker. He is also a bright guy with some common sense.

Housing Cycles and Bottoms

As you can see from the chart below we have had bear markets in real estate before. It has been a long time since we
have seen one that is as bad as this one.

We are experiencing only the sixth worst bear market in housing.

Ken Winans, author of "Investment Atlas," a book offering deep historical perspective of the markets, offers guidance
on when to anticipate a bottom.

He says:” This bear market will probably not end in 2009. Past real estate bear markets ended when the average time
it took to sell a new house dropped to 3 1/2 months. Currently, it is taking over 9 months for transactions to close due
to tight credit conditions.”

Watching this figure might help prudent investors spot the upturn on a national and local level.
History also tells us that the current market looks bad, but it is far from the worst. The chart below offers insight into
the extent and duration of pervious declines in new home prices. The Depression era drop of 68% from 1929 to 1932
makes the current 23% decline seem tame. Keep in mind we can not judge the historic nature of this bear real estate
market until the correction is over. At the rate “Big Mama” is handling the housing and economic problems they are
clearly extending the time period this downturn lasts.

Just remember we are only 3 years into this housing downturn. I have written previously how housing trend changes
occur in slow motion and housing bust cycles can last a decade. Take a look below at the chart put together by
DeForest McDuff in an excellent article titled “Slow-Motion Housing Cycles.”

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What is important for “Big Mama” to understand is this correction takes time and if they would get the heck out of the
way the free market will take care of the problem but there is no instant magic bullet when it took us 8-10 years to get
to this point. As soon as the banks get rid of their short sales and the loan resets clear out the home price declines
should be begin to flatten out.

Commercial Real Estate

Currently there are about $3.7 trillion in outstanding commercial real estate backed loans. Very few of these loans
have reached maturity. The amount of debt reaching maturity will start to pick up at the end of 2009 and greatly
accelerate into 2010 and 2011. This will create a sort of refinancing and default time bomb in which the timing
couldn’t be worse especially if the present liquidity and lending problems persist.

The commercial real estate market is a different animal than residential which has not received much press from the
MSM. Here is how the process will play out. Retailers, for example, are receiving less revenue as a result of the
collapse in consumer spending. Soon the owners will be bankrupt and no longer able to pay their leases or will
negotiate lower payments. The contracts will be broken or provide less income. After enough broken contracts and
the inability to fill empty space takes grip, property owners will no longer be able to pay their mortgages. There’s no
predatory lending, and although the asset backed paper behind the commercial sector has been grossly overpriced, it
wasn’t chopped up and repackaged nearly to the extent of residential MBSs. The losses will be just as real, but the
timing in which it takes to sort the mess out should be less.

Liabilities of the bubble are also slightly different than that seen in the residential sector. The typical candidates were
still involved. Leading the way are the insurance companies, hedge funds, and banks. The difference lies in the last
culprit. The investment banks definitely participated in the financing of the commercial real estate bubble, but Wall
Street financed the highest quality commercial operations. This time it was the regional banks who have taken on the
riskiest assets. One of the main reasons the regional banks put themselves in this position is because they financed
these local projects, many of which were their own customers. Regardless, their balance sheets are going to have a
really tough time absorbing the losses once they begin. For that reason, several short investment opportunities will
present themselves as a result of the commercial real estate bubble.

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Here are some charts from the CMSA that demonstrate the complete lack of liquidity in the commercial real
estate market right now. This is simply unbelievable. The amount of lending that occurred in 2006 and 2007
during which this website sounded off the “lending bubble” alarm bells is simply beyond my comprehension. I
would hate to be an appraiser with my name on some of these commercial reports. Can you say pending lawsuits?
Keep in mind that many of these commercial loans have NOT imploded yet. Can you say TARP 10.0, 11.0, 12.0 etc?
Where will the bailout madness end? Will it take the printing presses to just completely break down or run out of
green ink?

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Source: http://www.cmsaglobal.org/

The next question is how does the commercial real estate market look in Charleston right now?

Below are a couple of excellent snapshots courtesy of the local commercial real estate firm Grubb & Ellis/Barkley
Frasier. The charts below can be found at www.barkleyfraser.com.

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Currently all the commercial market indicators which include occupancy, absorption, rental rates and construction are
in a downtrend as of the 4th quarter of 2008. The commercial real estate market is affected by the same issues which
are having an impact on the residential market which includes tight lending and a loss of consumer confidence. The
good news is that if you have access to capital the cap rates are moving higher and there are some very motivated
sellers in Charleston right now.

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The economic downturn is also affecting the Charleston hospitality business. Obviously less people have money to
visit our beautiful city which has ramifications on the hotels, restaurants and tourist related businesses.

The good news is that Charleston is holding up better than the nation, state and cities close by except for Hilton Head.
It could be worse so let’s be thankful we are not hurting like Myrtle Beach aka “The Redneck Riviera.”

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Chart courtesy of The College of Charleston Department of Hospitality and Tourism

That is it for this month everyone. I hope I made you laugh a little bit and not cry. Stay positive and if you need my
help on anything feel free to call or email me. My info is on the website, www.charlestonmarketreport.com.

Have a great month!

Disclaimer
The research done to gather the data in The Charleston Market Report involves examining thousands of listings. With
this much data inaccuracies will occur. Care is taken in gathering and processing the data and information within this
report is deemed reliable. IT IS NOT GUARANTEED. The real estate market is cyclical and will have its ups and
downs. Past performance cannot determine future performance. The purpose of the Charleston Market Report is to
educate you on current and consistent market conditions by reporting leading market indicators with the support of
traditional real estate data.

This information is offered with the understanding that the author is not engaged in rendering legal, tax or other
professional services. If legal, tax or other expert assistance is required, the services of a competent professional are
recommended. This is a personal newsletter reflecting the opinions of its author. It is not a production of my
employer. Statements on this site do not represent the views or policies of anyone other than myself.

Investing in real estate is not a get-rich-quick scheme nor is there any guarantee you will make a profit. Every effort
has been made to make this report as complete and accurate as possible. However, there may be mistakes. Therefore,
this report should be used only as a general guide and not as the ultimate source for making money in real estate.

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