February 26, 2010: February 25, 2010: February 23, 2010: February 20, 2010: February 19, 2010: February 17, 2010: February 16, 2010: February 15, 2010: Happy Valentines Day!
Hey, I've got a very busy day today but wanted to wish you a wonderful weekend. I've got a final walk through this morning then a closing then I'm meeting with two buyers this afternoon. I'm very blessed to be as busy as I am and to have such good people to work with. By the way, wrote an offer for a very nice retired couple from Vermont yesterday. They said they are ready for some warm weather!!! Warmer weather makes me want to get to the lake with some friends and cook up some low country boil.
Ya'll have a good one!
Good morning folks! Sorry I haven't been posting as much lately. Been very busy working with a number of first time homebuyers. Remember time is running out, you need to get it done. I've got one closing tomorrow with first time homebuyers. They are so excited and I am too! The market is really starting to pick up and I'm getting a lot of inquiries from all over the country. Lot of Florida folks still trying to make it up here. Looks like it's going to be a beautiful day and I've got to run. Remember, I do a lot of tours for people visiting the area and I'm just a phone call away. 864-335-8490, call me, I'm glad to help.
Best,
Don
Your Greenville SC Realtor and Exclusive Buyers Agent!
Hey, if you need something to cheer about, let me help you find some great Greenville SC Homes for Sale!
Good morning everyone. Got a busy day today. Got some folks in from out of town who are looking to relocate. A nice couple from up north who are trying to get a little warmer! If you been reading my site you know I had some nice video tours up that I've removed. Will have those back up shortly, had some back up problems.
I told someone the other day how interesting real estate is. There is no other business where you get to know people like this profession. I mentioned Saturday that I just finished up a transaction and how wonderful it went. You know folks there is nothing like having a great Greenville SC Buyers Agent on your side and sellers, it's good to always get a great listing agent too. The real estate transaction I closed last week couldn't have been smoother because the agent was in control of the transaction and insured all was done in a timely manner. I love it when that happens. It just makes it nice for everyone!
By the way if you are interested in a tour of the area, just call me. I'll be glad to show you around! 864-335-8490! Hope you have a wonderful day!
A Black and White of The Blue Ridge Mountains!
Good morning folks. I don't normally post on the weekends but I just want to say congrats again to Gerry from MA who closed yesterday on a beautiful home in a great area at what I thought was a wonderful price. She is tickled pink and I couldn't be happier for her and her family. Folks, that's what it's all about and why I enjoy so much what I do. Ya'll have a good one!
What a Beautiful Day!
Good morning! Hey got a busy today tomorrow with a first time homebuyer! I've got about 16 homes to look at. Good thing I love what I do! Anyway, I like to keep you up to date on Fridays as to what is happening in Greenville SC over the weekend so let's take a look.
Want to take the kids out. Go see How I Became a Pirate at The Gunter Theatre. Ringling Brothers Barnum and Bailey Circus is at The Bi-Lo Center. Rock and Roll Heaven is playing at Centre Stage. Macbeth is at the Warehouse Theatre. Little Shop of Horrors is at Furman University. The annual Orchid Show and Sale is at Duke Power's World of Energy. The "Art" of Theatre: A Dinner Theatre is at the Museum and Gallery at Bob Jones University. Gladys Knight is at the Peace Center for The Performing Arts. Kennel Club Dog Show at The Carolina First Center. Enjoy!!
Good morning! Ok, let's look back at yesterday's profile of Holly Trace. What did you think? Alright, I'm going to pretend that I'm not from the area and just look at the raw numbers.
3 Sales in 6 months? Can't make any assumptions because if I was not from the area, I wouldn' know the turn in the neighborhood.
Average sales price of around $285,000? Well, that wouldn't mean anything either cause I wouldn't have knowledge of the neighborhood.
Average days on market of homes that sold of 154, that might seem real low depending on the area of the country I'm coming from.
Current days on market of 207, again depends on where you are from.
One under contract for $250,000.
Average sold price per sq. ft. of $99.
So you see folks if you don't know the market here then you really wouldn't know what to think. Well there are all sort of sources out there that produce raw data and make assumptions. Let me tell you what I know. 3 sales in 6 months, that's ok for the market now, average sales price of $285,000...that's about right for Holly Trace, average sold days on the market of 154, that's high compared to Greenville but you have to know Holly Trace to understand why, some homes are not as updated in there as others, and these homes pull the average days up. One under contract at 250. You can't read anything into this because the contract price can't be disclosed until after closing. It could be under contract at $260,000! Average sold price per sq. ft. of $99?
Folks to me, $100 a square is a bench mark for Greenville. Why, because you can buy a very nice home in a great area for around $100 a square. When I start seeing homes get much above this out in rural areas I really start looking closely at the pricing and other factors.
One thing I didn't mention is that currently Holly Trace is selling at about 96% of list price. Folks, if you are looking at raw date, this figure can be very misleading. Call me and I'll explain why. 864-335-8490.
What the above figures don't tell you is the flavor and feel of Holly Trace. Holly Trace has been a well thought of Simpsonville neighborhood for a long time. Some homes in there are better than others and you need experience on your side to help you understand the real value in your purchase. 
Come see Me at The Downtown Remax Office, I'll be There Waiting!
Good morning! Looks like we are going to have another pretty day today. Hey, thought I'd run a neighborhood profile real quick for you this morning. Let's see, what to look at??? Let's check Holly Trace, a well thought of Simpsonville SC neighborhood. Ok, I'll open up the Greenville MLS and hold on.....here we go.
For the last 6 months year to date we had:
3 sales with and average sold price of $285,133 or 96.4% of list price. Average days on market, 154.
Currently there are 3 active listings with an average list price of $277,809 and average days of 207.
There is currently one under contract with a list price of $250,000.
Average sold price for the last 6 months is $99 a sq. foot.
Ok folks, if you were buying, would this be good information for you to have? Of course it would! Would you get it from the listing agent, maybe but probably not, why....well they are not working for you. And as a matter of fact, if the comps don't support the sales price they are not allowed to give them to you! Why, well that wouldn't be in the best interest of the seller.....now would it. Once again and I just can't say it enough, get an exclusive buyers agent, realtor to help you make good decisions.
Now let's take it a step further, cause you know some exclusive buyers agents are going to be better than others. If you are looking at the figures above you could make some assumptions. Well go ahead and make some assumptions and I'll come back tomorrow and tell you what these figures mean to me. You can see if you were correct. Ya'll have a good one. I've got to go find some great Greenville South Carolina Real estate for my buyers!!!!
Hey folks, you know I just had to step outside and grab a shot for you. We've had so much yucky weather that I just can't resist it when those Carolina Blue Skies appear, and man is it beautiful! Shot from just outside my office at the Downtown Hyatt in Greenville!
Come See Me in Beautiful Downtown Greenville!!
Tell the ones you love ...... you love them!
February 13, 2010:
Saturday morning.....
February 12, 2010:
It's coming down!
4:50 pm.
Wonder how much we'll get???
Good morning! Hey looks like we may get some snow today! I tell you, we've got more of the white stuff already this winter than normal. Anyway Greenville is looking at 2 to 4 inches and the lower part of the state could get 4 to 8. Hey all you folks up North don't be alarmed Greenville is still MUCH warmer and get's MUCH less cold weather than you do. Actually we have a very nice change of seasons with some snow, beautiful springs, summers in August in the 90's but not as humid as Florida and spectacular falls!
Got a very nice couple (first time homebuyers) who I'm trying to show tomorrow. Got a fellow in Michigan considering the area and just got a call from very nice family from Maryland who are considering a move. Actually the fellow may be taking a job offer in the area.
Picked up couple of local referrals too! Gosh folks, I'm blessed and thankful I live in such a wonderful thriving area. Now not all South Carolina is like that but the Upstate Greenville SC just keeps a rolling!
So let's take a look at the weekend! I always like to give you a calendar of events for the weekend!
Wicked will be finishing up at the Peace Center for The Performing Arts. The Stars of Doo Wop are at The Carolina First Center. How I became a Pirate is at the The Gunter Children's Theatre. Macbeth is at The Warehouse Theatre. Winter Jam 2010 Tour is at The Bi-Lo Center. Celtic Women are at the Bi-Lo Center Sunday and one of my favorites Emile Pandolfi will be doing a Valentine's Day Concert at the Greenville Little Theatre!
February 10, 2010:
Folks, I'm sorry I haven't been posting in the last few days, I've just been very busy with under contract homes for sale in Greenville SC and surrounding area, and a number of buyers I am currently working with. I've got to step out early this morning too, but I once again want to mention to all you folks from out of state who are thinking about maybe relocating to Greenville SC. Call me! I'll be glad to send you some info and will be glad to tour you around the area when you make it to town. 864-335-8490. Here are some of the downtown Greenville South Carolina hotels I've stayed at and recommend..... Downtown Greenville SC Hotels page. Ya'll have a great day!! Don
Great Economic News for Greenville.....again!
I'm going to pin this here at the top of my blog because once again Greenville and the surrounding area get's GREAT NEWS!
Proterra selects Greenville SC! It is the third large company to hit the
ICAR is considering a recent letter of intent they have received from another auto maker to locate at their facility.
There is a titanium plant under construction that already has orders to fulfill their first two years of production.
A battery manufacturing company is committed to ICAR.
A $30 million grant has been approved by the state to improve parks, walking trails and transportation and a bill has been submitted to
Folks, there are lots of great things happening here! Come see, call me for a tour today! 864-335-8490.
February 5, 2010:
Good morning! Getting an early start on the day. I hope you have a good one and stay dry, if you are in the Greenville area. I was telling my wife yesterday, man we've had the rain this winter, which is good. I'm just about ready for spring though.
On Fridays, I always like to take a look and see what's happening over the weekend in Greenville. As I mentioned Wicked is in town at the Peace center. I'm planning on going, I just need to get tickets. Larkins by the River is holding Dinner Receptions for the Friday and Saturday shows. An American Story is being performed by the Greenville Symphony at Center Stage. SC Arms Collectors Gun and Knife show is at the Carolina First Center. The Actors Nightmare and Stealing the Show are at the Greenville Little Theatre. GSO Spotlight series is at Center Stage too.
I've got a busy weekend working with first time homebuyers. Hope the rain let's off! :-) I'll buzz over to Weather Underground and see what it's going to be like. Gosh, we've got a 100% chance of rain through the day and 20% tomorrow. Could get a little snow too. We'll see.
So what's up in the world of Greenville South Carolina Real Estate this morning? I've got a home inspection at 9am this morning for a very nice couple. Usually my buyers like to be there for these. The termite inspector will be there too. I can't imagine we will find much wrong with this home, it appears to be in pristine condition. New roof too.
Thought I'd brighten your day with a flower since Valentines is on the way. I hope you have a wonderful day.
Don
February 3, 2010:
Good morning. I think spring is really going to break open so I wanted to keep track month to month sales in Greenville as compared to last year. Let's take a look at Greenville real estate sales in January. This is for Greenville County, single family, condo, Townhomes priced $99,000 and above.
January 2010 January 2009
Sales 166 178
Average sold price $236,024 $227,562
Average days on The Market 106 88
Current Pending Transactions 238 no history
I think this will be interesting to follow. The most striking thing is days on the market. I doubt this kind of difference will hold true but we will see. My feel is it's a great time to buy if you can because homes are in fact sitting longer than they have regardless what the days on the market will come out to be. While I've got the MLS open. Oh by the way Joe Pitts at Greater Greenville Association of Realtors wants all realtors who have web sites not to use MLS, multiple listings in advertising. The reason is it can be misleading, because it can lead the public to believe that they are looking into the same system that we have access to.
Well folks, you are.....you just don't have all the information that we have available. I see plenty of realtors in fact advertising MLS access, even in their page names. Be aware, they are not supposed to do that and the search function and information is limited by what GGAR allows.
I'm trying to make a point though. I don't care where you are looking, my search, realtor.com, tax records, zillow (good for fun and that's about it), anywhere. You need an experienced guide to help you interpret the information. I can't tell you the number of times in my career that I've had people make bad assumptions about good property and good assumptions about bad property based on raw data.
Also, one more thing I noticed this morning while I was browsing the internet, don't login to see a property. I mean come on. I've written two or three blips on this. I saw a nice property on another realtor web site I wanted to look at and guess what I had to "register to see it". I mean just unbelievable, all that information is readily available. The only reason for login is to capture your information for "prospect" follow up. Folks, I don't want to be a prospect, don't know about you. That's why I allow access to my search function without any registration. I'm going to say it one more time, if you need my help....you will contact me. But I'm not going to bug you. That's why I quit doing news letters too and started a blog. None of us need more email. If you are interested in what I have to say, you'll bookmark this page and come back regularly, I mean it's all common sense....isn't it? Gonna be pretty today, she's a warming up!
February 2, 2010:
Good morning! I thought I'd write just a bit about our sales contract. As I've mentioned before I believe our sales contract is fairly simple, it really is if you compare it to let's say California. I have heard theirs is in excess of 30 pages.
And remember these are just opinions, I'm not a lawyer. Our current version of the sales contract allows for an "inspection" period. This inspection period allows the buyer to conduct things like the home inspection, termite inspection, radon inspection, appraisal, really anything they want to do to "inspect" the property.
The inspection period is agreed upon in the contract between the buyer and the seller and usually runs between 10 and 15 days. The buyer has the unilateral right to withdraw. Now folks, if you google unilateral you'll get some definitions like "done or undertaken by one person or party" "obligation to do or forebear is imposed on only one party" you know stuff like that. So I guess it means what I think it means. My buyer has the right to withdraw without the other sides agreement. But I'll tell you GGAR, that's the Greater Greenville Association of Realtors board did a funny thing on the last contract, actually it's been there they just put it in bold. "based on inspections" was put in bold print. So, in my opinion, what they are implying is that the buyer can withdraw but they must do inspections and then base their withdrawal and return of escrow on those inspections. I'll pass on this now to stay on subject.
Well, I've got a buyer from last year who still has his escrow tied up by the seller because the seller says the buyer didn't withdraw "based on inspections". I'm not going to get into it but just to say the seller has sour grapes. The seller suffered no harm on the little time the place was under contract and the place had been on the market a very long time. The seller will never get my buyers escrow, he just wants to make sure my buyer doesn't get it back. You know, to punish my buyer. Folks, life is just way to short for stuff like this. Get over it and move on, especially since no harm was done.
Just a few interesting tid bits from the world of real estate. Ya'll have a good one.
Downtown Baptist Steeple
February 1, 2010:
Good morning folks and welcome to February! I just looked at the temp. and it's a chilly 25 degrees outside. That's ok though because I believe we are supposed to get up to 49 today. I'm really glad the ice was not as bad as it could have been. My wife and I stayed in downtown Greenville at the Hampton on the River for an event Saturday night. There was a shuttle running up to the Westin Poinsett so we stayed warm and didn't slip. I got out a bit on Saturday afternoon and walked down to the bridge and snapped a few shots.
Thought I'd post up a few for you here. I've got a fairly busy day working with a couple of first time homebuyers! Hey don't wait too long to start looking if this is your first home. Time is running out and man $8,000 sure can come in handy!
Hampton Inn on The River
The Falls
Overlook Grill
Swimming on The River!
January 10 Blog December 09 Blog November 09 Blog October 09 Updates September 09 Updates
August 09 Updates July 09 Updates June 09 Updates May 09 Updates April 09 Updates March 09 Updates February 09 Updates Jan 09 Updates December 08 Updates Past Real Estate Updates