Every time a major manufacturer considers making a move within the US, there are 15,000 Economic Development Directors sealing large envelopes containing a packet filled with lovely and inviting brochures hoping to win jobs through private investment.

Boeing’s expansion announcement for Charleston is the national coup of the year for the Lowcountry.

We don’t know if there were 15,000 involved in the recent site review by Boeing, but we have to believe the competition was fierce.   The winner was the Charleston area, North Charleston to be exact.  The loser was Seattle, Boeing’s hometown for decades.

Boeing plans to break ground on a 584,000 square foot expansion near its existing North Charleston factory within the next few weeks.   They’ll begin rolling 787 Dreamliners out of Charleston in 2011.  The 787 is Boeing’s first new jet in more than a decade.

Boeing’s $450 million investment will produce at least 3,800 jobs.

The announcement is massively positive news for a state currently suffering one of the country’s highest unemployment rates and still reeling from recent political embarrassments.

Gooden + Faircloth welcomes Boeing and predicts everyone associated with the company moving into the area will love Charleston as much as we do.

I hear these statements every single day;  “I can’t find a job”, “I can’t pay my bills”, “Can you help my child find a job”, “The phones aren’t ringing”.

There are plenty of people fortunate to have salaried positions, reasonably well isolated from the financial struggling so common for so many of our neighbors and their businesses.   I personally see a great deal of struggling among my middle-class neighbors and friends.

A couple of thoughts for this period:

1)  Think positively.  There is going to be an end to this recession.  There is.

2)  Be kinder, gentler and more supportive to others.  Most are having problems.  Share a smile.

3)   Shop locally.  Avoid online purchases during this period.  Money spent locally circulates locally.

4)   Use this period to push yourself out of your same traditional line of personal and professional thinking.  Get out of your box.  Decide this downturn is going to have proven beneficial to you and your career.

Niels Bohr, the Nobel Prize-winning Danish physicist:  “Every great and deep difficulty bears in itself its own solution.  It forces us to change our thinking in order to find it.”

58 years ago, a baby girl was born 3 months after me in the exact same hospital room in Clinton, NC.    The hospital had only one delivery room.  It’s quite possible that she was even born on the same hospital bed as me.   Through our child and teen years, she and I remained close friends, even puppy lovers from time to time.   She went off to the University of North Carolina.  I went off to Vietnam.  Our paths didn’t cross again for 38 years.

A few years ago, I called her one evening while driving from NC to Florida.   We talked through 3 states.  Something special was still there.

2 years later, we are now real estate business partners and, in many ways, life partners.   The textures and depths of the history born in that hospital room 58 years earlier remains intertwined and richly meaningful.

Rebecca Warren Gooden is loved, appreciated and respected by all, including her business partner.

This week her Rotary Club of Mt Pleasant acknowledged their respect by giving her their Annual Presidential Citation.   She is Rotarian of the year.  Rotary’s motto is Service Above Self.   The club surely selected an exceptionally dedicated service oriented giver this year.   Rebecca is always there for anyone who needs a helping hand or a warm heart.  Always.

She’s a busy and successful entrepreneur who owns a residential real estate business (Gooden+Faircloth), a real estate investment business, a NC golf course and a top-ranked Mt Pleasant Restaurant (Crave Kitchen & Cocktails).  She’s a member of more professional organizations than I can keep up with.

Congratulations and thank you Rebecca.   You are loved, appreciated and deeply respected.

The Democratic Leadership Council was formed during the Bill Clinton presidential years.   It is known for its moderate positions, positions which often mirror classic moderate Republican positions.

The DLC has recently released a report which it believes contains the key to reinvigorating the American economy.  Gooden + Faircloth agrees.

According to the DLC, reticence among many potential home buyers to move into the market is preventing recovery. Few doubt that the housing bubble’s implosion drove the nation into its current recession. The authors suggest that an upswing in the housing market could also play a crucial role in turning the broader economy around.

Newly-installed DLC CEO Bruce Reed commented: “The housing market helped start this economic crisis. Getting homes moving again is crucial to speed the nations recovery.”

The Report, titled Moving Houses: How Sparking a Housing Recovery Is The Key To America’s Economic Recovery, makes several recommendations, including:

• Expand the $8,000 Homebuyer Tax Credit to individual and family homeowners looking to move or buy a new home, regardless of whether they previously owned another. This expansion is estimated to cost $11.4 billion;
• Limit the credit by ensuring it expires at the end of the year, forcing those intent on taking advantage of the credit to get into the market in the short term; and
• Ensure that homeowners have access to the credit at closing by directing the Secretary of HUD and/or the Secretary of the Treasury to use existing authority (possibly through the Home Program or the Troubled Asset Relief Program) to set up a fund that would advance some of the down payment and closing costs.

Among the report’s key findings:

• The turning point in five of the last seven recessions has been marked by the moment housing sales began to swing up again.
• The housing sector was responsible for over 75 percent of all job growth from 2004 through 2007.
• In the past year alone, existing and new home sales have fallen by 13.1 percent and 37.6 percent, respectively.
• Nationally, sales of existing homes fell 10.3 percent in February from a year ago, and the U.S. median sales price slid almost 16 percent to $165,400.
• The housing sector makes up approximately 10 percent of the nation’s GDP.

To access the full report, click here.

There is still plenty of rough economic news pouring out at us, but there is an unmistakable sense of calm and hope.   Barack Obama must be given the credit.  Yes, I voted for Obama and yes I understand there are plenty of folks who disagree with several items on his agenda.  But I believe thinking members of our community, as opposed to those whose knees jerk with ease, will agree Obama seems to be moving us in the right direction.

This is very very new territory for our government.  This is a very very problematic period in our history.  There is no supplied set-up documentation for him to follow.   He has clearly surrounded himself with brillant minds, clearly weighed his options and clearly moved us in what appears to be an intelligent direction with calm and confidence.

And it is that calm and confidence which I believe has resulted in increasing numbers of shoppers coming into my lunch neighbor’s store.

Bloomberg News says consumer confidence in the U.S. jumped by the most since 2005 this month as stocks rallied, mortgage rates dropped and Americans anticipated more jobs would become available.

“There certainly is starting to be a shift here, where the data is either less bad or even starting to improve,” Michael Darda, chief economist at MKM Partners LP in New York, said in an interview with Bloomberg Television. While “we certainly haven’t turned the corner yet” the economy “could bottom out between June and October of this year and then start” growing.

The gain in confidence raises the odds that recent gains in consumer spending, which accounts for 70 percent of the economy, will be sustained.

Public-opinion polls also show for the first time in four years most Americans say they believe the U.S. is going in the right direction.

Gooden + Faircloth’s real estate business has in the past month also seen a welcome uptick and movement toward the light.  Like our president, let us remain calm and confident that better days are ahead for Mt Pleasant and America.

We attribute Gooden + Faircloth’s success to several factors but location, location, location surely has to rate highly ( as does hard and smart work ).

Mt Pleasant is a wonderful city ( oops, there I go again referring to it as a city instead of a town ).    I grew up in Clinton, NC ( a  town of 13,000 ) but before moving to Mt Pleasant had lived the past 25 years in the Ft Lauderdale area.     Lauderdale is fine, but ‘ nothing could be fina than to be in Carolina’.   What a wonderful breath of fresh air Mt Pleasant ( and Charleston ) have been for me.  Want to see a ‘real’ traffic jam?   Check out I-95 during the season.  Want to see real crime, crowds, tempers and temperatures?  South Florida is the place.   Don’t get me wrong,  South Florida was exciting, beautiful, exilerating, but 25 years was enough.   Time to return home.

And, therein, lies the key to the success of Mt Pleasant.   It is a home;  a great home for our family or a great home for our business.

We now learn Businessweek has named Mt Pleasant the best city for starting up a business in South Carolina.    Cities like Charleston, Greenville, Spartanburg, Columbia and Florence are pretty good competition.

Mayor Hallman attributed the designation to competitive costs of business, a pro-business attitude and attractive financial incentives.   I suspect all the cities above could say the same.  The mayor, the council, the citizens of Mt Pleasant make our home attractive, inviting, appealing and comfortable.  Businessweek agreed.  We appreciate the recognition and appreciate the business support shown by Mt Pleasant.

“Mt Pleasant’s government and adminstration, supported by its citizens, deserves great credit for this wonderful designation from BusinessWeek, ” said company partner Rebecca Gooden.

Gooden + Faircloth Real Estate Services is based in Mt Pleasant and operates primarily within the town’s limits.

(click image to read article)

There is no shortage of outstanding realtors in Charleston and Mt Pleasant.  In fact, I really have a great deal of respect for the integrity, drive, quality and respectability of the hundreds or realtors I’ve dealt with personally.

But one realtor really stands out.

Rebecca Gooden is someone I’ve known since we were children growing up in Clinton, North Carolina.

She amazes me daily with the depth of her knowledge, the depth of her willingness to go the extra mile for her clients, friends and family and the kindness and humanity in her heart.  She is truly a ‘giver’.   Of Rebecca, I’ve often told people that if you want something done right ask Rebecca to do it.

Everyone loves her, and for good reason.  She’s a great lady and wonderful business partner.  Thank you Rebecca.

Weeks before they won the NCAA National Championship, my friend bought a basketball autographed by the University of North Carolina basketball team. He paid $ 160.   This is the team that went on to become the most successful college basketball team in the world, at least for the 08/09 season.

On this basketball, were the signatures of Hansborough, Lawson, Ellington and Williams, historic quick strokes of a magic marker in the hands of champions.

A lifelong Tar Heel fan, my friend saw an opportunity to achieve his own victory, that of making a winning contribution to his daughter’s Mt Pleasant school fund raising effort.

Keeping the ball for his trophy case was surely tempting.  After all, these were the signatures of the 2009 NCAA National Champions. He had graduated from UNC.   He had cheered for the Tar Heels since childhood. They were again in the basketball history books and surely he deserved this trophy.

His daughter, a teenager, knows the sacrifice her dad made. She knows exactly how much he would have loved to have been able to show the ball off to visitors for years to come. She knows how much her dad would have loved to have kept the ball for himself or sold it for a cool few thousand.

But instead she knows how much she is appreciated by her dad. She knows what he gave up to make his donation to her Mt Pleasant school auction. The autographed basketball sold for $2,200.

She will soon forget the NCAA National Championship Tar Heel team, but never forget her father’s act of affection, devotion and commitment.

Children are our future.

Great parents like Richard, not basketball players, are our society’s true champions.

For several decades, Wakendaw Lakes has been one of Mt Pleasant’s most desirable neighborhoods.

Gooden + Faircloth has just completed an informative summary of real estate sales activity in the Wakendaw Lakes neighborhoods, as well as a wonderful new video tour. You can access both on the Wakendaw Lakes neighborhood page by clicking the link below.

Wakendaw offers gorgeous, huge trees, several beautiful lakes, lots of surprising little gifts from nature, young and old strolling tranquil streets and a sense of true neighborliness.

Wakendaw Lakes is actually a series of four separate developments: Wakendaw Lakes, Wakendaw Manor, Wakendaw-on-the-Creek, and Wakendaw East.

The area has a rich history having been part of the Woodlawn Plantation, a 300+ acre working farm of pecans trees, acres of fields and over 9,500 head of livestock, mostly hogs.

During 2008, a total of 9 home sales ( excluding For Sale By Owners ) occurred in the combined neighborhoods of Wakendaw. There were no homes sold in the Wakendaw-on-the-Creek neighborhood.

The average sale price in Wakendaw Lakes was $ 501,557. In Wakendaw Place, 2 homes were sold, at an average sale price of $241,700.

Click here to acces the Wakendaw Lakes Real Estate Sales Report or to enjoy the new Wakendaw Lakes neighborhood video tour.

How did home sales in one of the area’s popular neighborhoods fare over the past year?

Gooden + Faircloth has just released an updated version of a key neighborhood real estate report.

Ivy Hall is in one of the fastest growing areas of South Carolina, the Highway 17 North corridor in Mt Pleasant, just outside Charleston.

Find out more about real estate in this popular neighborhood by clicking the image to the left.

Take a tour of Ivy Hall. Click the play button to begin.