Selling Greenville

We now have over half a year of the main purchase agreement for residential real estate in SC (known as SCR310) handling inspection periods on a "due diligence" basis. When this change was made in 2022, it sent shockwaves through the Greenville real estate market, as buyers, sellers, and realtors were forced to adapt overnight to a new way of approaching home inspection periods and repair negotiat...

Right now a lot of major news publications are generating headlines that would lead people to believe that the real estate market is crashing. The reality is that the market is contracting (there are fewer closings) but, in Greenville at least, we haven't yet seen prices go down to an unseasonal level. At least not yet. Let's dig into the numbers on where the market stands now that we have the GGA...

Smart home systems have become a major part of every day life, from smart thermostats, to doorbell cameras, to smart locks, etc. But it's easy to compile a bunch of devices together from different "ecosystems" without taking full advantage of the voice control and "scenes" offered by Amazon Alexa, Apple Home (i.e., Siri), etc. So when I (Stan) moved this past year, I decided to rethink my smart ho...

There are a lot big things in the works in the SC State House, ranging from potential state-wide allowances of Airbnbs to (finally) eliminating discriminatory deed restrictions, and everything in between. There is a lot happening that impacts real estate, and it's worth talking about!  As always, if you have any questions or comments (or, of course, need a realtor), feel free to reach out to Stan...

Warren Buffet once said, "Only when the tide goes out do you discover who's been swimming naked." Well, according to a recent Bloomberg article (link below), the real estate tide has gone out, and now we see several iBuyers have been swimming naked. In Q4 one of the most prominent iBuyers, OpenDoor, lost money on at least 89% of its real estate transactions in Phoenix, AZ! On the flip side (no pun...

The Homebuilders Association of Greenville held its annual Housing Market Forecast conference this past week, and there were plenty of interesting nuggets to take away from it. A few things that were discussed there were: -The point at which higher mortgage rates dramatically impact buyer behavior -Why and how the media inaccurately portrays real estate prices as going down. -Why the real estate p...

Looking back at the final numbers published for 2022 by the Greater Greenville Association of Realtors, one thing becomes clear - we have to rethink how we evaluate market statistics. Some numbers are returning to "pre-pandemic norms," but it certainly doesn't feel like the pre-pandemic market did. In reality, we're entering another "new normal," and we have to adjust our thinking accordingly. One...

Neighborhood and community amenities have been all the rage the past two years to the point that some are willing to sacrifice on home quality to be in a neighborhood that offers great amenities, such as a pool, common areas, sidewalks, playgrounds, etc. But at the end of the day, is there a way to actually quantify the impact that community amenities have on home prices? Not entirely, but a case...

Have we ever entered a new year with as much uncertainty about the real estate market as we do entering 2023? Certainly not since 2007-2009. Obviously, nobody knows what the new year will bring, but that doesn't mean that we can't speculate on what might happen. And so here are 10 bold predictions on what will happen in 2023, discussing everything from mortgage rates, to the pending recession, to...

The year 2022 was a tale of two very different half-years of real estate. In a few, short months, we went from tons of homes coming on the market each week and tons of people bidding on them to suddenly much fewer homes coming on the market and not nearly as many people making offers. This poses some challenges for predicting what 2023 will be like. Will we be going into recession? If so, how seve...

Wrapping up our mini-series overviewing the Greater Greenville area of SC, there are several important areas that deserve to be covered: Travelers Rest, Taylors, Mauldin, Piedmont/Powdersville, and Easley. The Upstate of SC is about so much more than the city of Greenville, and in this episode, we talk about all the areas that we haven't so far, discussing the perks, amenities, and potential downs...

Similar to Greer, Simpsonville is a massive geographic area with a downtown, suburban areas (such as Five Forks), and plenty of rural areas. Greenville County's primary amphitheater, its only IMAX theater, and numerous other important parts of the county find their home within Simpsonville. And, of course, a lot of people find their home in Simpsonville because of how much it offers for residents....

As we overview the various parts of the Upstate, the first that comes to mind outside of Greenville proper is Greer - a city located half in Greenville County and half in Spartanburg County. Previously an extremely rural part of the Upstate with a ho-hum downtown, Greer has been transformed the last 20 years into one of the Upstate's most desirable downtown and suburban areas, while still having p...

Like any city, Greenville has numerous different residential areas and neighborhoods, each with their own "feel," price point, and amenities. In this episode, Stan breaks down these different areas to help those looking to move to (or within) Greenville better understand what to expect in the various neighborhoods within the Greenville metro area.  As always, if you have any questions or comments...

As I (Stan) reflect back on the past year or so of real estate in Greenville, it's easy to get overwhelmed by all the chaos. But there is much to be thankful for, and during this week of Thanksgiving, I want to do just that. And to be clear, more than anything, (at least when it comes to real estate) I'm thankful for you guys - my listeners and clients. (Oh, and I also go on a little rant about Th...

Looking at the Greater Greenville Association of Realtors' market stats for the month of October brings us to our first evidence of the real estate market returning to a pre-COVID norm: the number of homes on the market to end the month were comparable to 2017-2019. Common sense would indicate that number will increase, but is that what the data says? And are prices "going down" yet? We delve in t...

Several months ago I predicted that a lot of people overpricing their homes for sale would get left out in the cold. Well, those people are starting to shiver, as we see massive numbers of home sellers having to reduce the prices of their homes for sale. How does this compare historically to other markets, and what does it mean for those buying and selling real estate right now? That's the topic o...

There are a lot of real estate investors (both in Greenville and elsewhere) who pose as high volume investors, when in reality they either only do part-time real estate investing or, in some cases, don't invest at all. Oftentimes these "investors" are looking to get something out of rookie real estate investors - trying to find an angle where they can look like an expert so that those looking to g...

Home prices are going down in the US but not in Greenville (not yet, at least). Home prices were up 17.5% year-on-year for the month of September, which is shocking given the shifts occurring in the market, including soaring inventory, higher days on market, and lower percent of list price received. What does all this mean, and where is the real estate market headed in the upcoming months?  As alw...

It's always interesting to hear what non-South Carolinians say about Greenville when they visit for the first time. Almost all of the visitor comments are positive, although everyone complains about the gross "palmetto bugs" that we have. Bugs aside, there is a lot to learn (and be reminded of) when it comes to Greenville by looking through the eyes of first-time visitors. So let's talk about 10 t...

Over the past 5 years, the cost of purchasing small multifamily properties in Greenville has doubled. So have rents kept up? And should we be concerned that there is a multifamily bubble that will soon burst?  As always, if you have any questions or comments (or, of course, need a realtor), feel free to reach out to Stan McCune directly by phone/text at (864) 735-7580 or by email at smccune@cdanjo...

The weather in Greenville is mild compared to some parts of the US, but that doesn't mean that we are immune from bad storms. And with storms comes damage to houses, whether from flooding, from wind, from hail, etc. Sometimes the damages are covered by insurance, but many times it is not, and it's important to know what risks are out there, what you can do about them, and what might happen if you...

As discussed last week, the real estate market is shifting and a "slowdown" is upon us. But one of the major quirks of the housing market the past two years is that seasonal slowdowns basically haven't happened, whereas in a normal market, things do slow down in the fall/winter. In other words, in a normal, healthy real estate market, housing prices go down during the fall/winter months, and then...

As we've been saying for months now, big changes are coming to the real estate market, and those changes are finally upon us. Inventory numbers are now hovering just below pre-pandemic levels, percent of list price received is at it's lowest point since early 2021, and listings that were getting multiple offers in August aren't getting any offers in September (at least not immediately). So are pri...

The story of how Stan got into Greenville real estate is a winding tale that goes from a teacher ruining his love for meteorology, to him getting a scholarship to study Bible at Bob Jones University, to him having a child within his first year of marriage, to him buying a frozen yogurt shop (and much more). The time has come to tell the full story.  As always, if you have any questions or comments...