Mortgage rates have soared nearly an entire percentage point the past few weeks and as a result, September 2024 yielded the first year-on-year decline in the median sales price in Greenville since March 2023. Why is this happening now, and does it mean we're entering a buyers market? This episode is sponsored by Piper Insurance Group, who can help …

Negotiation is one of the most important aspects for a real estate transaction, and yet many people don't know their negotiation style or that of those they are negotiating with. In the old school of thought, it didn't matter what style the person across the table from you had - you simply negotiated aggressively with them and tried to win the nego…

"Listing agents don't do anything besides put the home on the multiple listing service," is a phrase I hear frequently from people. And while some listings require less work than others, every listing requires many hours of work, and some require literally *weeks* worth of work. So today I tell the story of my listing from this year that has had a …

Homeowners insurance premiums have increased dramatically the past 4 years in the US, specifically in the Southeast region of the US, which, coincidentally, is where Greenville is located. Thankfully, SC hasn't suffered the worst of the premium increases when comparing to states like Florida, but with our state getting hit hard by Helene and the po…

I may be on my fourth straight day without power, but that's not going to stop me from reporting from the front lines on the unbelievable and devastating damage caused by Hurricane Helene to the Greater Greenville Area and to Western NC. In this episode, I discuss how Greenville was hit by a 1/100 year weather event, what it means for me and those …

Even though this podcast is all about Greenville real estate, still by far the main question I get from listeners and others is, "What are you seeing happening in the market?" Are buyers still active? Are sellers still getting top dollar? Have investors given up? Some of these we can answer with data, but data is dry and can only take us so far. So…

It's Fed week! And by the time most people watch/listen to this episode, we will already know whether the Fed decided to drop the Fed Funds Rate by 25 basis points or by 50 basis points. What impact will their decision have on the real estate market? And while we're talking about the impact of national politics on real estate, what about former Pre…

The (10-year/2-year) yield curve has been inverted now for quite some time. Since 1955, every recession has been preceded by a similar yield curve inversion, but when the curve uninverts (as it did recently), does that mean things are getting better or worse? Headlines say better, economists say worse, but this is a Greenville real estate podcast. …

Greenville hit an all time high for prices in July, but housing affordability still improved. Why? Because mortgage rates have moderated and are (as of this recording in late August, 2024) sitting at 6.37%, way down from their 8.03% peak in October. Long story short, sellers are getting high prices and still fairly favorable selling conditions whil…

In 2021 we saw record high real estate demand coupled with record low supply. Those dynamics aren't the case anymore in 2024, but how much has the market flipped? Let's compare the 2021 numbers to 2024 to get a sense of where things are at. This episode is sponsored by Piper Insurance Group, who can help you with all your home, auto, and umbrella i…

Unexpectedly, many real estate firms this past week, including my own real estate brokerage, rolled out new policies for listings that fully decouple buyer agent commissions from listing agent commissions. The result? Well, beyond it being a confusing new system to navigate that now means a lot more back and forth between agents, some real estate s…

Several months ago, it was announced by the National Association of Realtors that, in light of several antitrust lawsuits that were being waged against the NAR and other real estate organizations, major changes were coming to the real estate industry. And chief among those changes were changes to how realtors, specifically buyers agents, would be c…

"You cannot fool the real estate market" is a phrase I love to use, because many home sellers seem to think that overpricing a listing is the best strategy to use when selling a home. But homebuyers aren't stupid, and they will identify an overpriced home quickly and simply ignore it, with the end result usually ending up worse for the seller than …

We talk a lot about how the real estate market has shifted and what that means for buyers and sellers, but how does that actually impact your strategy for buying or selling real estate? Let's discuss five points for buyers and five points for sellers for how to educate themselves, strategize, and maximize their opportunities in an ever-evolving rea…

Looking at the data we now have for Greenville through June 2024, there are increasing signs of weakening demand coupled with increasingly growing supply. In fact, we are seeing record new listings coming on the market all the while the average price of a home in Greenville has soared above $400,000 for the first time ever. What does all this mean,…

A lot of headlines right now are focused on homes losing value from their 2021 peak, but the headlines are national, and we need to assess what's happening specifically in Greenville. Thankfully, we have a simple way of doing this - we can look at all homes sold twice or more since 2021, evaluate the spread between the first sold price and the seco…

At the end of 2023 into the beginning of 2024, I did a "bold predictions" episode where I discussed what I thought would happen to the Greenville real estate market in 2024. Well, now that half the year is over, it's time to do a preliminary review of the predictions to see how well they're doing. So let's go through all 10 of my 2024 bold predicti…

Election years always have a weird impact on real estate, and that's never been more true than this year. Not only are the Presidential elections impacting real estate (a well-known phenomenon that happens every four years), but in Greenville, more than ever, state and local races are proving to be hugely influential in things like development, inf…

As we look at the Greater Greenville Association of REALTORS market stats, a theme emerges: supply is increasing faster than demand, resulting in a softening market. Does that mean it's a buyers market? Not yet, but we may be closer than people realize to it *feeling* like a buyers market, even with prices as high as they remain. This episode is sp…

Solar panels are one of the most controversial topics in real estate in SC, with some believing homeowners have a moral responsibility to use solar to help with climate change, while others on the opposite side of the spectrum believe that solar panels are nothing more than an expensive scam. Well, I finally had a chance to purchase and sell a home…

Should I hold, or should I sell? That's a question investors ask themselves daily, but people who own real estate, even if they aren't "real estate investors," should also be thinking about this. There are a lot of changes coming - potential declining populations, rising insurance costs, decreasing supply for homes with acreage, etc. - that will al…

For the first time since Selling Greenville was inaugurated, Stan has solicited listener questions for a massive mailbag episode. Tune in to learn about what headwinds are in the Greenville market, when it makes sense to rent or buy, what differentiates Greenville from the rest of the US in terms of our real estate market, and even whether a hot do…

We finally have the April market stats for the Greater Greenville area, and several things stand out. Most significantly, even though we are finally seeing things like active inventory normalize to pre-pandemic levels, many numbers, such as days on market, median sales price, etc. still point to Greenville being a seller's market. So why does it fe…

For the first time in 5 years, we're seeing foreclosures, short sales, and cheap (potential) flips coming online in Greenville, SC. Oh and questionably low appraisals are back too! Are we in or entering a buyers' market? And how will rates coming down, realtor compensation changes, etc. impact the state of the market? Let's talk about where things …

It's election season, and real estate is top of mind for those running for office in Washington, DC, in SC, and in Greenville. I've spoken to legislators, politicians, and people running for office at all levels of government, and it's time to crack open the notebook and spill all my secrets on what is happening behind closed doors, and what it mea…

One of the things that scares people the most when buying a home is the possibility of it having structural issues. The reality is that most issues we deem "structural" are relatively easy and inexpensive to fix, but it's still helpful to be able to identify structural issues and diagnose their severity as much as possible prior to getting a home u…

Very seldom do we see a real estate market driven by retirees, but that's exactly what we see now with Boomers having a much larger portion of real estate market share than normal. Meanwhile Gen X has been almost left behind and Millennials are still trying to find their way in a historically unaffordable market. What is the cause of these seemingl…

Looking at the final data we have for Greenville in Q1 2023, the market is finally starting to see some stability. Some of the data shows potential market softening, but much of it is indicative of strong demand still pushing up prices, pendings, and closings while driving down days of market and affordability. The question now is will mortgage rat…

In this episode, we delve into the dynamic Greenville real estate market, now grappling with the impact of rising mortgage rates. We'll explore the significant price adjustments sellers are making—how often are prices being dropped, and by what average amount? What implications do these changes hold for both buyers and sellers? Join us as we unpack…

There are a lot of misconceptions about the Section 8 rental program in Greenville, but I heard one recently that I had never heard before, and that's that it was an "unpredictable" program. Not only is this not true, but the Section 8 program in Greenville is substantially *more* predictable than the private rental market as a whole. The end resul…

Doomers are constantly talking about "the real estate bubble bursting," but the reality is that the dynamic we saw in 2007-08 of the entire US housing market crashing at one time is unusual and not likely to repeat itself any time soon. What we do see, however (and particularly since COVID), is localized markets forming bubbles that inevitably burs…

As we look at the most recent market stats for the greater Greenville area, some weird data trends begin to appear. Listings are up but pendings are down. Pendings are down, but closings are up. Prices are still high and increasing but not everywhere. Closings in the sub $500,000 price point are decreasing whereas above that price point are increas…

On March 15 the National Association of REALTORS® announced a proposed realtor compensation settlement for the Sitzer/Burnett case, and the national media immediately put out a ton of clickbait headlines about the sudden "end of the 6% commission." As with most things, the media got this one wrong, but there is MUCH to talk about with regard to thi…

During his State of the Union address on March 7, 2024, President Biden outlined multiple proposals for how to make housing more affordable: -A $400/mo credit for first time homebuyers or people "trading up" -Title insurance reform to reduce fees -Measures to stop anti-trust violations and price-fixing among big landlords -Cutting red tape on feder…

"The Greenville real estate market is strong," is what we keep hearing, but making a statement like that is painting with broad strokes. Some parts of the Upstate of SC are getting stronger and some are softening, but which is which? Thankfully, there is a little known report called the Market Conditions Addendum Report that I can run that looks at…

There are rumblings in the Greenville investor community about how there are more rental portfolios being sold off than usual, and these rumblings usually come with an innuendo or suggestion that maybe being a landlord in Greenville isn't what it's cracked up to be. So what is actually happening here? Are the rumblings true? Is there a problem with…

As mortgage rates have crept up in recent weeks, buyer activity has slowed down. Seller activity, on the other hand, hasn't, with a record number of new listings in January. The result? Inventory is increasing, giving buyers more options and sellers more competition. But in spite of that, prices remain near all-time highs, with no relief to buyers.…

[Episode has been updated to correct initial audio issues.] One of the biggest headaches of being a homeowner is having to deal with pests. I (Stan) have personally dealt with mice, rats, bats, cockroaches, termites, ants, carpenter bees, and much more in my homes over the years. And every time I have, I've reached out to my longtime friend Andrew …

The last week was a wild one for treasuries and mortgage rates, with a lot of economic data released, a FOMC statement sent out, multiple statements from Federal Reserve members, and a 60 Minutes interview of Fed Chair Jerome Powell. The end result was that mortgage rates briefly went over 7%, and (as of this recording) are hovering at 6.99%, despi…

Hope Brooks is a local real estate investor who has worked behind the scenes with a lot of Greenville's major REI players. And it just so happens that she and I (Stan) were attacked on social media recently by someone who apparently believes all landlords are inherently greedy and immoral. It may surprise some that this sentiment about landlords is…

As we take one last look at 2023 by means of the most recently released Greater Greenville Association of Realtors Market Stats, a few things jump off the page. Most significantly, we can now say definitively that Greenville saw strong price growth for the year, particularly in contrast to some other parts of the country that are getting headlines …

A debate rages on social media these days about whether it's better to rent where you live or buy and be a homeowner. The reality is that in most places (including Greenville, at least for now) the monthly costs are cheaper if you're renting, but this doesn't take into account other important parts of the discussion, most significantly, real estate…

We have a winner! In this episode we announce the winner of the $200 Amazon gift card from the giveaway that was announced in episode 200! But we also need to talk about the CRAZY start to 2024 that we're experiencing. Is it possible that people have woken up from their 2023 slumber and are ready to buy real estate again? The early returns would in…

Happy New Year! It's that time again - we need to come up with ten bold predictions for what will happen in Greenville real estate in 2024. Will rates go up or down? What about prices? Will listings linger longer than in 2023? And what's the Fed doing these days? Lots to discuss with lots of predictions to be made! Have your own predictions? Let me…

Who doesn't love an end of year giveaway? Well, to celebrate 2023 and the 200th episode of this show, we're randomly giving away a $200 gift card to one lucky listener. Listen to this episode for more details. Oh, and we also have to recap 2023! So let's talk about the wild ride that was this past year in the real estate market and where things are…

At the end of 2022, Stan came up with 10 bold predictions for the year 2023, and as we come to the end of 2023, it's time to see how he did! So let's go over each prediction and analyze what happened that caused the predictions to be right... or wrong. As always, if you have any questions or comments (or, of course, need a realtor), feel free to re…

Most people from outside of SC who discover Greenville do so while researching other major cities in the Southeast, such as Atlanta and Charlotte. After all, Greenville is literally wedged right in between those two cities, while also finding itself relatively close to many other major SE cities that have been getting a lot of buzz lately. So how d…

Real estate is under the legal microscope as the National Association of Realtors along with several major real estate brokerages recently lost the Sitzer/Burnett case that alleged realtor commissions have been anti-competitively fixed by the NAR and major brokerages. More lawsuits are coming, and the question is: what exactly does it all mean for …

As we take a delayed look at the Greater Greenville Association of Realtors market stats that came out in November, we see a Greenville market slowing due to the holidays, and yet home prices are staying high. Why is this, and what would happen if we saw inventory pick up from around 3 months of inventory to around 4 months? Using the data, we can …

Every year around Thanksgiving, Stan discusses what he's thankful for. This year, the thankfulness topic is the City of Greenville and five things in particular that Stan is thankful for in the city. 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…