2024 Mid-Year Recap for the Myrtle Beach Market

[Myrtle Mike Thompson]

Myrtle Beach and its surrounding communities - collectively known as the "Grand Strand" - have garnered a lot of attention from the investor community over the past several years.  Is it justified?  YES!, lol.  See my other posts/comments.  For now I simply wanted to share some data as we head into what could be a very active second half of 2024.

This is a great time to buy an oceanfront condo.  Inventory has hit a 6-month supply, up about 90% from last year.  Average days on market is hovering around 125.  This means a lot of units are sitting, and we're seeing a lot of price reductions, lower offers being accepted, sellers willing to help cover buyer closing costs, etc.  Contrast that to 2022 when units were getting multiple offers within hours of being listed.  Interest rates are showing signs of improvement.  If you've been looking to buy, the next few months leading up the election is the perfect time, in my opinion.  After the election and purported rate cut(s) from the FED, I expect buying activity to pick up rather noticeably, which means more competition and likely higher prices.  I have local lending partners at the ready if you need a referral, one of whom can now finance beachfront condos and condotels with only 15% down instead of the typical 20-25%.

I follow KeyData metrics for vacation rentals.  2024 has been a solid year for Myrtle Beach short-term rental owners.  Occupancy, ADR, and RevPAR have all been down slightly from 2023, which we expected based on inflation (less people traveling) and saturation (more available units for rent).  But when we compare this year's figures to 2019 (the last normal tourism year pre-COVID), we see continued growth.  For example:  For the week ending August 3rd, Occupancy is up 4%.  ADR is up 21%.  And RevPAR is up over 26%!  Obviously some property types and locations are doing better than others.  Feel free to reach out and I'd be happy to share more insight with you.

For traditional buy and hold investors, long-term rents are up 1.3% year over year... not bad considering how quickly they jumped between '21-'23.  The massive influx of full-time residents to our market in the last 5 years has led to a shortage of affordable housing for renters.  And higher interest rates have priced out many would-be first-time homebuyers, forcing them to remain in a growing tenant pool.  Builders and institutional investors have responded with a number of build-to-lease projections throughout the area.  And new construction in general is booming - accounting for 47% of single-family home sales this year!  With builders offering in-house financing as low as 5.5% for investors/second home owners, and warranties on roofs and HVAC systems, I continue to support new construction as a solid choice for LTR buyers.