Claire T. Manning

Foreign ownership of real estate has become a political issue

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Pending legislation in South Carolina may affect your transactions

Remember the Chinese surveillance balloon the United States shot down off the coast of the Palmetto State in February? That incident and other rising tensions between our government and China over several issues (the war in Ukraine, recognition of Taiwan, to name only two) have resulted in politicians proposing to broaden state law bans on foreign ownership of real estate.

According to a New York Times article dated February 7, entitled “How U.S-China Tensions Could Affect Who Buys the House Next Door”, legislation in Texas was proposed after a Chinese billionaire with plans to create a wind farm bought more than 130,000 acres of land near a U.S. Air Force base.

Proposed legislation is also pending in Florida, California and now South Carolina to restrict ownership of real estate by “hostile nations” or “foreign adversaries.” Some have suggested that such bills may run afoul of due process and equal protection issues.

Chicago Title published an Underwriting Memorandum on April 5 entitled “Foreign Ownership of Property in South Carolina” to advise agents of the pending legislation in our state.

You may recall that we have an existing statute (S.C. Code §27-13-30) prohibiting any “alien” or corporation controlled by an “alien” from owning or controlling more than 500,000 acres of land in South Carolina. Recently, the South Carolina Senate passed Senate Bill 576 that amends the existing statute by expressly prohibiting any citizen of a foreign adversary or corporation controlled by a foreign adversary from acquiring any interest in South Carolina property.  The proposed legislation will now be considered by the House.

The term “foreign adversary” is defined in the bill as “any foreign government or nongovernment person determined by the United States Secretary of Commerce to have engaged in a long-term pattern or serious instances of conduct significantly adverse to the national security of the United States or the security and safety of United States citizens.”

And there are other bills pending along the same lines.

Senate Bill 392 would amend our existing statute to reduce the amount of property allowed to be owned by an “alien” to 1,000 acres. House Bill 3566 would add a statute to reduce to 1,000 acres the amount of land that can be owned or controlled by China, the Chinese Communist Party, or an entity whose principal place of business is located within China.  House Bill 3118 would prohibit any company owned or controlled by China or the Chinese Communist Party or that has a principal place of business in China from owning, leasing, possessing, or exercising any control over real estate located within 50 miles of a state or federal military base for the purpose of installing or erecting any type of telecommunications or broadcasting tower.

All dirt lawyers will know immediately that all versions of the proposed legislation will create uncertainty in our market. I have only two pieces of advice at this point. First, let’s all monitor the proposed legislation. And, second, let’s pay attention to guidance provided by our excellent title insurance underwriters.

Who said real estate law is boring?

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Take a look at this “Deed of Child”

My friend and self-professed “fellow title nerd”, Lacey Higginbotham, who practices in Myrtle Beach, sent to me a “Deed of Child” she found in the Horry County records. The document is dated May 10, 1930, recorded June 3. 1930, and purports to convey a child from a father to another family .

Because the document is difficult to read, I’ll squint for you and set it out here for your reading pleasure:

I can imagine Professor Spitz presenting this document to us as an exam in our first- year property law class. He might ask for us to spot all the issues concerning the enforceability of this document. Thanks, Lacey, for this diversion!

How do mail away closings work in light of In re Lester*?

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A reader posed this question to me

A recent blog about a South Carolina Supreme Court amendment to a comment following our UPL rule contained the following paragraph:

“Remember that our Supreme Court adamantly told us in In re Lester* that a lawyer must be physically present for a closing. Prior to Lester, a closing attorney might be on vacation and available by telephone to answer closing questions. Lester called a halt to that practice.”

A reader responded, “Claire, can you clarify the effects of In Re Lester on ‘mail away’ closings?” This is such a great question, and I responded that I would answer with a new blog. This is that blog!

In the South Carolina Bar’s publication, Handbook for South Carolina Dirt Lawyers, I included the following discussion of mail-away closings.

“Attorneys in resort areas have done “mail away” closings routinely for years. Titles are examined, closing packages are prepared and mailed to a remote location for signatures. Recent South Carolina Supreme Court disciplinary cases requiring attorneys to be present at closings have caused some attorneys to question whether mail away closings can be done ethically by South Carolina attorneys.

The Supreme Court has not addressed this issue specifically, so no one knows the answer to this question. However, in a seminar in 2005, a lawyer from the Office of Disciplinary Counsel was asked whether an attorney can ethically handle a closing by mail.

He responded that it was his opinion that the attorney should:

           •     Schedule a closing date, time and place;

           •     Advise the clients that they should attend the closing;

           •     Advise the clients that the attorney will be able to provide better representation if the clients attend the closing; and

           •     Require the clients to sign a document indicating they received the foregoing advice but chose not to attend the closing.

Another speaker at the seminar suggested that he would only handle mail away closings if the clients agreed to meet with a lawyer in the clients’ location to execute the documents.

On September 16, 2005, we received a more formal opinion in the form of Ethics Advisory Opinion 05-16. This opinion states that an attorney may ethically conduct a real estate closing by mail as long as it is done in a way that:  (1) ensures that the attorney is providing competent representation to the client; (2) all aspects of the closing remain under the supervision of an attorney;  and (3) the attorney complies with the duty to communicate with the client, so as to maintain the attorney-client relationship and be in a position to explain and answer any questions about the documents sent to the client for signature. To meet this test, according to the opinion, clients must have reasonable means to be in contact with the attorney, by telephone, facsimile, or electronic transmission.

The Opinion states that there is no legal requirement that a client attend the closing, but it must be the client’s decision not to attend the closing. The Opinion acknowledges today’s climate by this statement: “Given today’s technological advances in communications and funds transfer, to require a client living in one part of the country to attend a closing against the client’s own wishes is both unnecessary and punitive.” The Opinion makes the point that the duties of the attorney do not change when the closing is accomplished by mail in this statement: “The prudent attorney will conduct closings by mail in such a fashion that the client is fully informed and properly advised, that the client has a reasonable means to consult with the attorney, and that all personnel assisting the attorney are properly supervised.”

South Carolina closing attorneys are relieved to have this authority and appreciative of the efforts of the South Carolina Bar Ethics Advisory Committee.”

Of course, technology has drastically changed since these words were written, but the legal issues have not. A dirt lawyer can certainly handle mail away closings ethically. But dirt lawyers must still practice law in connection with those closings.

Please feel free to make comments and ask questions about these blogs!

*353 S.C. 246, 578 S.E. 2d 7 (2003).

Transactions involving failed banks require extra attention

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Dirt lawyers: call your friendly, intelligent title insurance underwriter!

Unfortunately, failed banks are back in the news and again affecting the stock market and our 401(k) accounts. It is doubtful that the California and New York banks that have failed have significant assets or loans in South Carolina, but Chicago Title’s underwriters have heard of at least one recent local transaction that involved one of the failed banks.

How should real estate lawyers protect their clients and themselves?

First, here’s a link provides general information about failed banks: http://www.fdic.gov/bank/individual/failed/index.html

Next, remember that assets are not automatically transferred by state law to an acquiring bank when the FDIC is appointed receiver and simultaneously announces the acquisition of the failed bank’s assets. Also, remember that the acquiring bank is not necessarily a “successor” to the failed bank.

Such an acquisition does generally mean that we can treat the acquiring bank as the owner of certain loans of the failed bank. We can generally rely on payoff statements, releases, satisfactions, and foreclosure actions by the acquiring bank if the acquiring bank asserts that it is the assignee by purchase. Documents should recite that the acquiring bank is the assignee of the loan. And we should be able to rely on that recitation.

In foreclosure situations, the acquiring bank may be required to prove its ownership of the debt and its record interest in the mortgage.

Payoff statements from the failed bank may be relied upon and the payoff statement may be made at the failed bank’s direction. But any release or satisfaction executed in response to that payoff must come from the receiver or its attorney in fact. Closing attorneys should confirm that the appropriate signature will be obtained before making the payoff.

The FDIC should sign recordable affidavits, as receiver, to the effect that it sold the particular loan asset to the acquiring bank to support assignments and modifications.

If your client purchases an REO asset that was owned by a failed bank, the proper grantor in the deed will be the FDIC, as receiver for the named failed bank. The FDIC will likely grant powers of attorney to individuals at the failed bank, at the acquiring bank, or internally, to facilitate signing these deeds. The power of attorney should comply with South Carolina law.

FDIC Statement of Policy on Foreclosure Consent and Redemption Rights provides that where the FDIC holds a junior mortgage, it “hereby grants its consent” to any foreclosure by a holder of a bona fide senior mortgage. Your title insurance company may require notice to the FDIC and the acquiring bank.

My best advice in all these cases is to call the person who either knows the answer to your many questions or will find out the answers to each of these questions for you: your favorite friendly and intelligent title insurance company underwriter!

SC Supreme Court amends comment to UPL rule

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The intent is to allow lawyers from other jurisdictions to work remotely here

I begin this blog by admitting that I wouldn’t have thought this Supreme Court Order was a big deal if the brilliant Teri Callen (Chicago Title lawyer and USC Law School Adjunct Professor) had not pointed out its significance.

On March 15, The South Carolina Supreme Court amended Comment 4 to Rule 5.5, South Carolina Rules of Professional Conduct, Rule 407, by adding the following sentence at the end of the comment:

“A lawyer admitted in another jurisdiction does not establish an office or other systematic presence in this jurisdiction for the practice of law by engaging in remote work in this jurisdiction, provided the lawyer’s legal services are limited to services the lawyer is authorized to perform by a jurisdiction in which the lawyer is admitted, and the lawyer does not state, imply, or hold out to the public that the lawyer is a South Carolina lawyer or is admitted to practice law in South Carolina.”

This type of remote work in South Carolina by out-of-state lawyers was formerly only allowed in the event of a state of emergency, as in a global pandemic. Now, a lawyer admitted in New York can live, permanently or temporarily, in Hilton Head and practice law from her computer and telephone. The South Carolina Bar had requested an amendment to this comment, and the Court adopted a modified version of the Bar’s proposal.

Teri has previously taught us that a South Carolina lawyer working remotely in another state might be participating in the unauthorized practice of law. A Charleston lawyer who decides to live, permanently or temporarily, in the mountains, should check the court rules of that state to determine whether remote work is considered UPL in that state. 

Remember that our Supreme Court adamantly told us in In re Lester* that a lawyer must be physically present for a closing. Prior to Lester,  a closing attorney might be on vacation and available by telephone to answer closing questions. Lester called a halt to that practice.

The Court didn’t weigh in on whether a South Carolina lawyer is allowed under our rules to work remotely in another state where he is not licensed without running afoul of our rules. Our Court probably wouldn’t touch that issue because of the implications and unintended consequences that might occur. For example, if it is permissible for a South Carolina lawyer to work remotely in another state, is it also permissible to perform a South Carolina closing there?

There are land mines everywhere, lawyers. I feel as if I end 9 out of 10 blogs with the thought that everyone needs to be careful out there. This blog falls in the “be careful” category.

* 353 S.C. 246, 578 S.E. 2d 7 (2003).

Does real estate “wholesaling” work in our market?

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Maybe, but real estate practitioners should be careful!

A recent discussion on South Carolina Bar’s real estate section listserv surrounded whether and how to close “double closings” vs. “assignments of contracts”.  This is not a novel topic in our market. In the very hot market that preceded the crash beginning in 2007, one of the biggest traps for real estate attorneys was closing flip transactions. Title insurance lawyers fielded questions involving flips on an hourly basis!

Flips have never been illegal per se. Buying low and selling high or buying low and making substantial improvements before selling high are great ways to make substantial profits in real estate.  

Back in the day, we suggested that in situations where there were two contracts, the ultimate buyer and lender had to know the property was closing twice and the first closing had to stand on its own as to funding. In other words, the money from the second closing could not be used to fund the first closing. (Think: informed consent confirmed in writing!)

Where assignments of contracts were used, we suggested that the closing statements clearly reflect the cost and payee of the assignment.

The term real estate investors are using these days to define buying low and selling high is “wholesaling”.  A quick Google search reveals many sites defining and educating (for a price, of course) the process of wholesaling. This is a paraphrase of a telling quote I found from one site:

If you’re looking for a simple way to get started in real estate without a lot of money, real estate wholesaling could be a viable option. Real estate wholesaling involves finding discounted properties and putting the properties under contract for a third-party buyer. Before closing, the wholesaler sells their interest in the property to a real estate investor or cash buyer.

One of the smart lawyers on our listserv, Ladson H. Beach, Jr., suggested that there does not appear to be a consensus among practitioners about how to close these transactions. He suggested reviewing several ethics cases* that set out fact-specific scenarios that may result in ethical issues for closing attorneys.

In addition to the ethics issues, Mr. Beach suggested there may be a licensing issue where an assignor is not a licensed broker or agent. A newsletter from South Carolina Real Estate Commission dated May 2022 which you can read in its entirety here addresses this issue. The article, entitled “License Law Spotlight: Wholesaling and License Law” begins:

“The practice of individuals or companies entering into assignable contracts to purchase a home from an owner, then marketing the contract for the purchase of the home to the public has become a hot topic, nationwide in the real estate industry in recent years. This is usually referred to as ‘wholesaling’. The question is often, “is wholesaling legal?’ The answer depends upon the specific laws of the state in which the marketing is occurring. In South Carolina, the practice may require licensure and compliance with South Carolina’s real estate licensing law.”

The article suggests that the Real Estate Commission has interpreted that the advertising of real property belonging to another with the expectation of compensation falls under the statutory definition of “broker” in S.C. Code §40-57-30(3) and requires licensure. Further, the newsletter suggests S.C. Code §40-57-240(1) sets up an exception; licensing is not required if an unlicensed owner is selling that owner’s property. The Commission has interpreted, according to this article, that having an equitable interest is not equivalent to a legal interest for the purpose of licensing. In other words, a person having an equitable interest acquired by a contract is not the property’s owner and has no legal interest in the property for the purposes of this licensing exemption.

So real estate practitioners have several concerns about closing transactions of this type. Be very careful out there and consult your friendly title insurance underwriter and perhaps your friendly ethics lawyer if you have concerns as these situations arise in your practice.

*In re Barbare (2004), In re Fayssoux (2009), In re Brown (2004) and In re Newton (2007)

South Carolina has another builder arbitration case

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Real estate law never bores me, but our cases may seem particularly mundane considering the Murdaugh prosecution that has gripped our state for more than a month. You may want to put this blog aside until the jury returns its verdict. I’ve seen so many photos on social media of groups of lawyers watching the case together that I am confident real estate is not top of mind!

Huskins v. Mungo Homes, LLC* is a South Carolina Court of Appeals case which was originally issued June 1, 2022, then withdrawn, substituted and refiled February 15, 2023.

The Huskins signed a Purchase Agreement with Mungo in June 2015 for a home in Westcott Ridge subdivision in Irmo. The document consisted of three pages. The first page contained a statutory notice of arbitration, the second page included a paragraph entitled “LIMITED WARRANTY”, and the third page included a paragraph entitled “ARBITRATION AND CLAIMS.”

In 2017, the Huskins filed an action against Mungo alleging the Purchase Agreement violated South Carolina law by disclaiming implied warranties without providing for a price reduction or other benefit to the purchaser for relinquishing those rights. The causes of action included: (1) breach of contract and the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing; (2) unjust enrichment; (3) violation of the South Carolina Unfair Trade Practices Act, and (4) declaratory relief regarding the validity of the waiver and release of warranty rights and the validity of Mungo’s purported transfer of all remaining warranty obligations to a third party.

Mungo filed a motion to dismiss and compel arbitration. The Huskins’ responsive memorandum argued that the arbitration clause was unconscionable and unenforceable. They asserted that the limitation of warranties provision should be considered as a part of the agreement to arbitrate. The Circuit Court issued an order granting the motion to dismiss and compelling arbitration. In ruling the arbitration clause was not one-sided and unconscionable, the Circuit Court found that (1) the limited warranty provision must be read in isolation from the arbitration clause; and (2) terms in the arbitration clause pertaining to a 90-day time limit were not one-sided and oppressive because they did not waive any rights or remedies otherwise available by law.

The Court of Appeals initially held that the Circuit Court’s order was immediately appealable, stating that our state procedural rules, rather than the Federal Arbitration Act, govern appealability of arbitration orders. While arbitration orders are not typically immediately appealable under South Carolina law, this order had granted Mungo’s Rule 12(b)(6) motion to dismiss, which is an appealable order.

The Court next held that the arbitration clause must be considered separately from the limited warranty provision, citing cases to the effect that arbitration provisions are separable from the contracts in which they are imbedded. A prior D.R. Horton South Carolina Supreme Court case** considered the arbitration and warranty provisions together, in part because the title of the paragraph, “Warranties and Dispute Resolution” signaled that the provisions should be read as a whole. Since the Mungo paragraphs were separated, the Court of Appeals said they should be read separately. In addition, the two provisions did not contain cross references.

The Court next addressed the Huskins’ argument that the limitation of claims provision restricted the statutory limitations period from three years to 90 days and was therefore not severable from the arbitration clause. The Court agreed that the provision that limited the statute of limitations is one-sided and oppressive, but held that the arbitration clause is enforceable because the unconscionable provision is severable.

After concluding that the Huskins lacked a meaningful choice in entering the arbitration clause, the Court of Appeals held that the arbitration clause’s shortening of the statute of limitations violates South Carolina law and is therefore unconscionable and unenforceable.

The Circuit Court’s order was affirmed as modified.

Now …. back to the Murdaugh trial!

*South Carolina Court of Appeals Opinion 5916 (June 1, 2022, Withdrawn, Substituted and Refiled February 15, 2023.

**Smith v. D.R. Horton, Inc., 417 S.C. 42, 790 S.E.2d 1 (2016).

Facts of HOA-Developer dispute called “not for the weary”

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On February 8, the South Carolina Supreme Court issued an opinion* in a real estate case involving the I’On development in Charleston County. Justice Hearn’s opening sentence is revealing: “This case involves promises made and broken to homeowners by a developer and its affiliated entities.” The first sentence describing the facts is equally telling: “The facts of this case are complicated, and, (in the words of a prior Supreme Court opinion, citation omitted) are “not for the weary.”

I’On is described as a high-density residential development that comprises public squares, restaurants, shops, and homes designed to imitate historic urban housing, including a replica of downtown Charleston’s Rainbow Row. The opinion recites that after the Court rejected a referendum effort to restrict multi-use zoning, construction of I’On Phase II began around 2000.

In 2010 two individual homeowners sued the developer entities and individuals for various causes of action related to the nonconveyance of certain real property and community amenities within the neighborhood. A mistrial was ordered to realign the homeowner’s association as a plaintiff. A subsequent trial resulted in a jury verdict in favor of the HOA in the amount of $1.75 million for breach of fiduciary duty and in favor of an individual owner in the amount of $20,000 for negligent misrepresentation.

The history of the development includes a 1998 Property Report filed with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to comply with the Interstate Land Sales Full Disclosure Act. The report contained a paragraph in all caps promising that “recreational facilities” would be conveyed to the HOA upon completion of construction. But the report warned that certain recreational facilities may be owned and operated by persons other than the HOA.

The Court recited that shortly after the Report was issues, the developers began a pattern of conduct altering their initial promise to convey ownership of the disputed properties to the HOA. Later, an easement agreement was executed and signed by the same person in three different roles, as manager of the I’On Club, as president of the HOA, and as general manager of the I’On Company. A property owner expressed the concern that this agreement was “sort of shaking hands with yourself.”

The Court of Appeals waffled, first upholding the lower’s court’s verdicts, then, on rehearing, practically nullifying the verdicts.

I am not going to get down into the weeds on the complex facts, but I do want to make a couple of points for your information.

First, the statute of limitations issues were thorny, and the Supreme Court upheld the Circuit Court’s submission of these issues to the jury and stated that the facts supported the jury’s determination of the question of when the statute of limitations began to run.

Second, please pay attention to footnote 7. It states that the developer conceded on appeal that one individual owner’s contract to purchase his lot was a sealed instrument and thus has a twenty-year statute of limitations under S.C. Code §15-3-520. Please pay particular attention to whether your clients signed “sealed instruments” because liability under those instruments may be much longer than anticipated.

Otherwise, the Court was adamant that the verdicts were appropriate because of the “plethora of evidence presented of the Developers’ bad faith, broken promises, and self-dealing.”

Represent your developer clients well, dirt lawyers, to avoid losing cases like this one.  Read this case carefully and share it with your developer clients as an excellent lesson of what not to do!

*Walbeck v. The I’On Company, LLC, South Carolina Supreme Court Opinion 28134 (February 8, 2023)

FinCEN warns that Russian bad actors seek to invest in U.S. commercial real estate

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Financial institutions have reporting obligations under the Bank Secrecy Act, and Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) published an alert on January 25 warning financial institutions to be alert to potential investments in commercial real estate by sanctioned Russian elites, oligarchs, their family members, and the entities through which they act.  Commercial real estate lawyers should also be alert to these dangers.

You can read the Alert in its entirety here.

Use this link for a list of sanctioned Russian elites and their proxies.

Commercial real estate transactions are particularly vulnerable to exploitation by bad actors because of the complex financing methods and opaque ownership vehicles routinely employed. Because commercial properties are so high in value, buyers and sellers seek to use these methods and vehicles to limit their legal, tax and financial liability. In addition, foreign investors are common in commercial real estate.

The Alert points to the following types of transactions and vehicles that are so common that protection against invasion into them by bad actors would be difficult at best. The green, italicized words are mine:

  • The use of pooled investment vehicles, including offshore funds, to avoid due diligence and beneficial ownership protocols established by financial institutions. In other words, a bad actor may attempt to reduce its ownership percentage in a property to avoid normal due diligence for owners with higher percentages.
  • The use of shell companies and trusts to conceal ownership interests.
  • Involvement of third parties to invest in behalf of a criminal or corrupt actor.
  • Inconspicuous investments that provide stable returns. The properties may not be high end. They may be multi-family housing, retail, office, industrial or hotels in small and mid-size urban areas.

Thankfully, FinCEN’s Alert provides several red flags to assist in these difficult determinations.

  • The use of a private investment vehicle that is based offshore to purchase commercial real estate and that includes politically exposed persons or other foreign nationals (particularly family members or close associates of sanctioned Russian elites and their proxies) as investors. I had to Google the term “politically exposed person”. It means a person who has been entrusted with a prominent public function. These individuals generally represent a higher risk for potential involvement in bribery and corruption by virtue of their positions and influence.
  • When asked questions about the ultimate beneficial owners or controllers of a legal entity or arrangement, customers decline to provide information. In my former life in which I represented developers, when I asked questions about the identity of the beneficial owners, I got answers. It is a red flag if you are unable to obtain those answers.
  • Multiple limited liability companies, corporations, partnerships, or trusts are involved in a transaction with ties to sanctioned Russian elites and their proxies, and the entities have slight name variations.
  • The use of legal entities or arrangements, such as trusts, to purchase commercial real estate that involves friends, associates, family members, or others with close connection to sanctioned Russian elites and their proxies.
  • Ownership of commercial real estate through legal entities in multiple jurisdictions (often involving a trust based outside the United States) without a clear business purpose. Again, if you can’t get good answers to your questions, this is a red flag.
  • Transfers of assets from a politically exposed person or Russian elite to a family member, business associate, or associated trust in close temporal proximity to a legal event such as an arrest or an OFAC designation of that person. Remember that we check the OFAC (Office of Foreign Assets Control) list for individuals in our transactions using links provided by title companies. If you have questions about how to perform this function, call your friendly title insurance company underwriter. You can use this link.
  • Implementation of legal instruments that are intended to transfer an interest in commercial real estate from a politically exposed person or Russian elite to a family member, business associate or associated trust following a legal event such as an arrest or an OFAC designation of that person.
  • Private investment funds or other companies that submit revised ownership disclosures to financial institutions showing sanctioned individuals or politically exposed persons that previously owned more than 50 percent of a fund changing their ownership to less than 50 percent.
  • There is a limited discernable business value in the investment, or the investment is outside of the client’s normal business operations.

This is the fourth FinCEN alert on potential Russian illicit activity since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The Federal government is serious about policing these activities. I recommend that you contact your favorite title insurance underwriter any time you determine that sanctioned persons or their proxies involved in your transactions. Be careful out there!

Will 2023 be a “normal” year in real estate?

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The “Greenville Business Magazine” published an article on January 27 that should interest all dirt lawyers. The article, written by David Caraviello, is entitled, “Leaving the Frenzy Behind: Could 2023 Be a More ‘Normal’ Year in South Carolina’s Real Estate Market?” You can read the article in its entirety here.

The article outlines the frenzy of the 2022 real estate market in South Carolina which culminated in an acute inventory shortage. While industry leaders budgeted for 2023, they wondered whether home prices would plummet because of rising interest rates. The national picture may be bleak because of these factors, but the article points out that experts do not foresee a gloom-and-doom scenario for South Carolina.

I’ve seen several news sources recently, including this one, pointing out that South Carolina is a primary destination for consumers looking for milder winters and following jobs at BMW, Volvo, and other companies. The market does not look dismal for us.

Please take a minute to read the article. To some real estate professionals, it says, the scenario entering 2023 sounds “refreshingly normal,” although we may have forgotten what normal is.

Perhaps 2023 will return to the ordinary seasonal ebbs and flows to which law firms can adapt from a staffing and other cost standpoint. Maybe everyone will be able to take a vacation this year. Let’s hope so! Good luck out there!