What Our Crazy Market Means for Buyers and Sellers

Here’s what the beginning of 2022’s market looks like so far.

In case you don’t know, our real estate market has been crazy lately. In fact, it can get pretty hectic, so today we want to update you on what’s been happening since January. Afterward, we’ll let you know what it all means for Q1 and beyond. 

As predicted, 2022 has started exactly how 2021 ended. Buyers are still very active, and sellers are selling their homes in a matter of days.

As of the time of this video, Greenville's MLS currently has just over 1,000 properties for sale, which is about one month’s worth of inventory. This means that if no new homes hit the market, we would be out of homes to sell in only a month. Fortunately, new houses are hitting the market every day; they’re just selling incredibly fast. 

Meanwhile, the Western Upstate MLS area has about 1.3 months worth of inventory and Spartanburg's MLS is keeping in line with Greenville and Western Upstate. The rate with which homes are selling confirms that a high number of people continue to move here to make Upstate SC their home. It doesn’t look like our low supply is going anywhere for a while.

“New houses are hitting the market every day; they’re just selling incredibly fast."

As expected, our low supply coupled with high demand is having an impact on price. For both Greenville and Western Upstate MLS areas, the average sales price is around $322,000 on residential properties. That’s an 11% increase for Greenville and a 12.5% increase for the Western Upstate area versus this time last year. In other words, on average we are selling houses at approximately $188 per square foot in Greenville and approximately $165 for the Western Upstate area. 

Next, let’s talk about interest rates. We know we will see some form of an increase in March, and expect to see additional increases as the year continues. If you’re looking to buy using a home mortgage loan, this means your purchasing power may drop. When we combine this with rising prices, it may make the home purchase process more difficult for some buyers. We recommend you save as much as possible for a down payment, get your credit score as high as possible, and, if needed, seek additional funds to help cover all of some of your closing costs.

If you are looking to sell, do not let this market activity and low interest rates pass you by. We recommend that you list your home sooner rather than later. As home buyers’ purchasing power decreases, you may see fewer buyers for your home and possibly a reduced ability to maximize your home's potential in this market.

If you have any questions about how you should navigate our changing market, please call or email us. We’re always here for you.