Greater Columbia, Chapin, Irmo, Lexington and Lake Murray.

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

OPEN HOUSE: Lost Creek Patio Homes (October 12, 2011)

Breakfast Open House: Lost Creek Patio Homes (Columbia, SC)
Wednesday, October 12th from 9:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.

Stop by to see two beautiful homes in this very popular patio home community in the Irmo area.  Located off Lost Creek Drive near Harbison State Forest, this community is convenient to shopping, medical facilities, Lake Murray and downtown Columbia.   All homes in the community are brick construction and have private backyards.

Directions:  exit 102B from I-26 to end of Lake Murray Blvd (East); right onto Broad River Road; left at Lost Creek Drive (2nd traffic light); continue to entrance to Lost Creek Patio Homes on left.

Your Realtor hosts, Mel Coker and Suzanne Haygood, will be at their Lost Creek Patio Home listings serving doughnuts, danish, coffee and orange juice on Wednesday morning (Oct. 12) from 9:00 to 10:30.   Please stop by to see these nice homes.  NOW is the time to buy with incredibly LOW mortgage interest rates.

406 Patio Drive in Lost Creek Patio Homes Community
401 Patio Place  -  MLS#296614
2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms
app. 1500 square feet; 1 car garage
$133,800
Agent: Suzanne Haygood  -  EXIT Real Estate Consultants

406 Patio Drive - MLS#293204
2 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms
app. 2257 square feet; 2 car garage
$169,000
Agent: Mel Coker  -  RE/MAX Metro Associates
Co-host: Randy Brown - Mortgage Options (803) 732-5787
Virtual Tour


Mel Coker
RE/MAX Metro Associates
Columbia, SC Real Estate
(803) 388-8011

#1 on the Internet!

BEST of the Internet

Top Ten United States Websites:
  1. Google.com
  2. Facebook.com
  3. Yahoo.com
  4. YouTube.com
  5. Amazon.com
  6. Wikipedia.com
  7. Twitter.com
  8. Blogger.com
  9. eBay.com
  10. Craigslist.org
Top Five Real Estate
  1. Realtor.com
  2. Zillow.com
  3. Trulia.com
  4. Homes.com
  5. REMAX.com
Top National Residential
  1. REMAX.com
Top Columbia, SC Real Estate
  1. ColumbiaSouthCarolina.us
  2. MelCoker.com
Mel owns a number of real estate related domains, plus has a presence at many other sites including, remax.com, realtor.com, trulia.com, zillow.com, realbird.com, realtytimes.com and others.
CLICK HERE to see Mel Coker's Columbia, SC real estate websites



rankings by analysis and opinion


Mel Coker
Columbia, SC Realtor
RE/MAX Metro Associates
(803) 223-6214

Sunday, October 9, 2011

Why use a REALTOR in a Real Estate Transaction?

  
All real estate agents ARE NOT the same!

Only real estate licensees who are members of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® are properly called REALTORS®. They proudly display the REALTOR "®" logo on the business card or other marketing and sales literature. REALTORS® are committed to treat all parties to a transaction honestly. REALTORS® subscribe to a strict code of ethics and are expected to maintain a higher level of knowledge of the process of buying and selling real estate. An independent survey reports that 84 percent of home buyers would use the same REALTOR® again.


Real estate transactions involve one of the biggest financial investments most people experience in their lifetime. Transactions today usually exceed $100,000. If you had a $100,000 income tax problem, would you attempt to deal with it without the help of a CPA? If you had a $100,000 legal question, would you deal with it without the help of an attorney? Considering the small upside cost and the large downside risk, it would be foolish to consider a deal in real estate without the professional assistance of a REALTOR®.

Last year, a large independent real estate company in the Greater Columbia area dropped out of the Realtor organization.  With this dubious move, all agents in their company instantly became real estate sales agents rather than professional Realtors.   Obviously this was done as a measure to allow agents that don't sell many homes to "save" money.  Maybe these agents should not be in the real estate field if they cannot afford this one important "expense" to be in the real estate business.  Yes, it does cost individual agents some money to be a member of the National Association of Realtors - but, there are many benefits to the agent and their clients.  First for consumers, an obligation by a Professional Realtor to follow a strict Code of Ethics.   There is more, including: more professional training opportunties, more Internet presence as a benefit for listing marketing, and,  support of important national and local political issues that support homeownership (Washington politicians are always thinking of stupid ideas that will hurt home ownership). 
 
When you work with a Greater Columbia, SC real estate sales agent, make sure that agent is listed as a Professional Realtor at Realtor.com.   Check your "sales agent"  out to be sure they are a Professional Realtor!
 
Mel Coker IS a professional Realtor!  Mel is a member of the National Association of Realtors, South Carolina Association of Realtors and Central Carolina Realtors Association.  Mel Coker believes in ongoing professional education and holds the following important real estate designations:  CRS, ABR, GRI, SRES and e-PRO.
 
 
 
View Mel's Profile at Realtor.com
 
View a website listing Mel's Internet Presence (it is substantial!)
 
 
Mel Coker
RE/MAX Metro Associates
All offices are independently owned and operated
(803) 388-8011

Friday, October 7, 2011

Extreme Makeover Home Edition in Columbia, SC?

Extreme Makeover Coming to South Carolina
"Move that bus!!!" may be coming to Columbia, SC very soon!
Due to my Internet marketing for Columbia, SC real estate, I've been contacted by the show producers seeking my help in finding someone whose home deserves an Extreme Makeover.   Ty Pennington and his crew have been all across the map and they are ready to drive that famous bus into central South Carolina.


What does it take to be picked for an Extreme Makeover?
We are in search of deserving families and deserving people - people who have amazing strength of character and who put their own needs aside to help others. Whether it’s a mom, a soldier, a teacher, or a fireman, we think deserving families are families who inspire those around them. In addition, the producers are looking for families whose houses need major alterations or repair- homes that present serious problems for the family and affect the family's quality of life.

ACT Quickly! 
The deadline: for nominations is October 14, 2011. BUT Don’t Delay! Please send story submissions as soon as possible!
CLICK HERE for more information


Mel Coker
Columbia SC Real Estate
(803) 223-6214
RE/MAX Metro Associates