George Real Estate Group Radio Broadcast

Navigating Hendersonville's Real Estate: Market Insights, Economic Shifts, and Community Highlights

• George Real Estate Group

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Have you ever wondered how shifts in federal policy could impact your home buying or selling journey? Join us as we delve into the latest updates in the Hendersonville, North Carolina real estate market, where average single-family home prices have surpassed $551,000 with an 8% appreciation over the past year. We'll unpack key economic factors, including Jerome Powell's recent announcement of a half percentage point interest rate cut – the first in over four years – and discuss how this significant move by the Federal Reserve might spark increased buyer demand and shorten market times. With nearly 500 active single-family homes currently on the market, you'll gain valuable insights into inventory levels, trends in listings, price reductions, and homes going under contract.

Beyond market statistics, we shine a spotlight on the vibrant community around our Flat Rock office and exciting new developments in the local dining scene. We also celebrate the joys of working in real estate, emphasizing our commitment to supporting clients through life transitions and highlighting career opportunities for both new and seasoned agents. Finally, we share personal congratulations to my brother Eric and his fiancée Mary Leslie on their upcoming wedding and express our excitement for the fall season. Don't miss out on this comprehensive guide to understanding and thriving in Hendersonville's dynamic real estate landscape!

Speaker 1:

Hello friends, thank you so much for being here. This is the George Real Estate Group podcast, which is a production of our live weekly radio shows hosted on multiple radio stations here in Hendersonville, north Carolina. The George Real Estate Group serves Western North Carolina and upstate South Carolina and it is a privilege to share positive news about our local real estate market and community. Thanks so much for subscribing and, of course, if you have any real estate questions or if we can help you in any way, be sure to reach out. Visit us at georgerealestategroupradiocom for more information. Good morning and welcome to the Georgia Real Estate Group Live radio broadcast here on WFKP every Thursday morning, bringing you positive news about your local real estate market and community. Grateful to be here with you. Thank you for tuning in. It's a great day. It's a beautiful day. It is. We're over halfway through September. A lot of news, certainly about the economy, about interest rates, about the feds. We're going to jump into that and what that means and the impact of of of of all of that and also going to give you a snapshot of our local real estate market, what the market's doing, the housing market here locally, the economy we're going to jump into the conversation. If you're tuning in, if you're tuning in for the first time ever. The George Real Estate Group's located in Flat Rock, right next to the Flat Rock Bakery, hubba Hubba BBQ, campfire Grill, the Wrinkled Egg, all our friends there on Rainbow Row, we have some new friends going to be opening soon. I don't have any specific details about it, but certainly watching out. The former Honey and Salt breakfast spot now has a new sign on the building called Hub-A-Loo, and it's going to be exciting to have another amazing place to eat there. I joke, it's a dangerous place for an office with all the local restaurants and amazing food offerings and, again, it's a wonderful place. If you've not stopped by the Rainbow Row there in Flat Rock, please do and stop by our office, say hello. We have an incredible group of agents. We have incredible staff. We are serving the community through real estate. I'm coming up on my 20th year in 2025, having my broker's license North Carolina broker's license and grateful to serve the community through real estate. I've had the privilege and honor of helping over 1,400 families throughout the years and just grateful to continue to help people and serve the community through real estate and we'd be honored to interview for the job. There's no pressure, there's no cost, there's no obligation. You can give us a call at 828-393-0134, 828-393-0134. Find us online at realestatebygregcom.

Speaker 1:

We're here every Thursday morning at 10 am, right after the 10 o'clock hour news and sharing with you news of our local real estate market and community and grateful to be here with you. You can also we podcast all of our radio shows. We podcast all of our radio shows. You can find that on your favorite podcast platform. We also are here every Friday morning bringing you the Hometown Hero series here on WHKP. It's a privilege and honor to do that and to hear some amazing stories of people making a difference in this community. We have an incredible community we live in and thankful to support that and to share the amazing stories. And if you want to hear some of our other Hometown Hero stories, you can again go to our podcast. Go to wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts Spotify, apple, amazon, wherever. Listen to the Georgia Real Estate Group radio broadcast on your podcast platform and we've been doing that for a number of years as well.

Speaker 1:

If you're tuning in and just curious what the market's doing. The average single-family home price in henderson county as of this morning 551 533 over 551 000 is the average single family home price, some eight percent appreciation this current 12 months versus the previous 12 months. And that's a function of supply and demand. I will say this the inventory levels are going up. I mean there's there, we're, we're, we're quickly approaching 500 active single-family homes in the market. As of this morning there's some 484 active homes, single-family homes, on the market. We've been averaging 123 single-family homes a month selling. So the math, if you do the math, I mean, we have almost a four-month supply. It's still a seller's market. That's why prices keep going up.

Speaker 1:

The demand is outpacing the inventory levels. We have about a 3.9-month supply. A six-month supply is considered a balanced market and really it's the absorption, the number of homes selling each month compared to the number of homes hitting the market. And another dynamic to bring up, I mean, just in the last seven days there's been 50, 50 new listings. In the last seven days in Henderson County there's been more price reductions, 53 price reductions. There's been 37 homes go under contract. And again, while those numbers seem close, there's more inventory at the moment hitting the market than the homes going under contract. And then in the last seven days there's 33 homes that have closed. And so in that just snapshot of seven days, the inventory is outpacing the homes going under contract. It's outpacing the homes closing, if you just look at the seven-day snapshot of what's happening for residential homes in Henderson County. So I mean, if that was to continue, that's where you're going to see the inverse.

Speaker 1:

Right now it's a seller's market and while we have a seller's market, that's where prices are going to remain strong. I mean, the average single-family home price in Henderson County over the last 12 months is at $551. The previous 12 months it was at $507. So again, that 8% appreciation for single-family homes in Henderson County is continuing over the last 12 months. And so it's supply and demand.

Speaker 1:

And we know every home's unique and different, every situation is unique and different, all the factors that go into play with the buying and selling process. And regardless of the economy, regardless of the interest rates, regardless of the inventory levels, regardless of the prices, we know people make decisions about their real estate choices based on what's going on in life. And as always I say this because it's so true it could be a really positive reason why you're buying or selling. It could be a very challenging reason, but whatever it might be. We're here at the George Real Estate Group to walk alongside, to provide clarity, to provide information, to help our clients get clarity as to what's right for them and what's right for, regardless of the interest rates, regardless of the prices. I mean it is and we saw that and even in my almost 20-year career in the real estate market in the ebb and flow in the prices and the inventories. I mean we are in a strong market. The prices I will say this are the highest Prices are the highest they have ever been in Henderson County and we're continuing to monitor that and to watch that. I mean it's amazing. And if you look at the prices and the history of prices over the years and from where things were, I mean we are significantly higher than the previous peak of the market, which is, you know, our market. You know 07, 08, you know our market really peaked out and then it bottomed out in 2011. And then here we are, you know, 13 years later, in the extraordinary year over year appreciation that we've experienced is, it is extraordinary and it's the the, the market that we're in. It's driven by supply and demand. I mean just just for some context. I mean this is amazing.

Speaker 1:

In 2005,. Uh, when I got my real estate license in North Carolina, the average single family home price was two, 34. The average single family home price in Henderson County was two, 34. Um, and then, uh, it peaked out in 2007 at two, 73. It then bottomed out at two,000 as the average in 2011. And here we are, some $350,000 higher 13 years later where prices are. And it's fascinating, at one point it got up to and this is just historical data that the days on market, the average single family data, that you know the days on market, the average single family home price, the average, the median price and the number of homes selling, I mean, but we're averaging right now, 123 single family homes a month selling, which is, you know, even higher than what it was in the bottom in 2011. We were only averaging some 70 homes a month selling. And so the market's the market, the data's the data, the interest rates are the interest rates.

Speaker 1:

And we're here to and what I realized over the almost 20 years in the real estate industry it's coming alongside with our clients, helping our clients navigate through the markets, the market, and helping provide clarity and letting our clients understand what their options are and understanding, you know, how they have choices and you know, if you do decide to sell, providing a plan if you do decide to buy and do you buy before you sell or do you sell before you buy and what are your options. And that's where we come alongside with our clients. There's no pressure, there's no cost, there's no obligation to have a conversation and consultation about you know what the market is doing, what your thoughts are, what your goals are, and just having a safe place to discuss all those things without any pressure or any obligation to do anything. And so it's a privilege and honor to help our clients navigate through that. We love having the discussion, we love providing clarity. There's patience and care, because the real estate experience is a human experience. It's about the experiences that you're going through and how does your home environment, how does the life you want to create, how is that reflected in what your environment is? And again, where you live is a big part of that. And so give us a call 828-393-0134, 828-393-0134. Find us online at realestatebygregcom.

Speaker 1:

We podcast all of our radio shows and we'd love to connect with you. You can stop by our office anytime. We'd love to connect with you. You know the big news and I know you've probably already heard it and we're going to talk about it again. I love the newsletter I subscribe to every morning, called the Morning Brew, and their approach, in just the way they describe the news and you know I feel it's from an unbiased position which is so hard to find these days in the media and the wit that they write these articles. But the Morning Brew talked about and this is amazing and I love how they I'm going to just share with some of their thoughts on it.

Speaker 1:

But for the first time in over four years, jerome Powell stepped up and announced an interest rate cut. And it was not the traditional quarter percentage point 25 basis points cut. It was the half percentage point reduction in borrowing costs. Economists started pushing the Fed to cut rates in July, but the central bank resisted, wanting more proof that inflation had tempered. And while everyone expected a cut yesterday, no one knew what size it would be. But the central bank started bold, setting its benchmark rate between 4.75% and 5% in a sign that it's now more concerned with the job market than inflation. And again, this is from the article from Morning Brew. Fed officials said they felt more confident that inflation was cooling, announcing that they expected the personal consumption expenditures, the PCE annual inflation rate, to hit their 2% goal in 2026. And, for reference, it hovered around 2.9% at the end of 2023.

Speaker 1:

Inflation wasn't the Fed's only factor. Powell said the rise in unemployment rate this year was concerning and that he expects the rate to inch up to about 4.4% before the end of the year, from the 4.2% currently for unemployment rates. He emphasized that the job market and economy were still in good shape, but the Fed hasn't managed to tamper down inflation while simultaneously keeping unemployment rates low since the mid-1990s. So it'd be a huge feat if it it can now, um, he powell also made it clear he's not promising to keep the big cuts going. You know, for now, the only thing every industry, industry economist, wall street trader can agree on in response to yesterday's rate cut is it's about time.

Speaker 1:

The article goes on to say most economists seem to be worried about a recession. Excuse me, words matter. Most economists seem to be done worrying about a recession and expect more cuts in the future that could potentially push interest rates closer to 3% by the end of 2026. That's a big deal, and don't confuse the interest rates of the feds, the borrowing rate, with the mortgage rates and mortgage rates have been coming down. In fact they are coming down and the mortgage rates are lower than they've been in a long time and actually the impact that mortgage rates have on the housing market. Obviously it's current homeowners that have these extremely low interest rates and I believe obviously they are willing to pay a higher interest rate for their next home. But it seemed like such a gap between the twos and the threes and the fours versus the six, sevens and eights. But the thing is, a lot of people now that interest rates are in the low sixes potentially could get into the fives, potentially could get into the fives.

Speaker 1:

A lot of buyers that were on the sidelines because of the high mortgage rates. There's a feeling and it seems like things are starting to shift. The rates are coming down because of a number of economic factors the fact in yesterday's Federal Reserve cutting the Federal Reserve rate for the first time since they began raising rates and they don't control more, and you know. Again I want to be clear the Federal Reserve rate does not control mortgage rates but it does set the stage for mortgage rates to fall even further than they have, especially since more cuts from the feds are expected into next year, and lower mortgage rates are bringing more buyers back into the market, and, I would argue, lower mortgage rates. A lot of the buyers are actually current sellers or potential sellers, and so, with the lower mortgage rates, potential sellers are now saying, hey, I'm willing to consider giving up this low interest rate. You can hold on to that low interest rate. If you did your 30-year fix, you can choose to hold on to it the entire 30 years.

Speaker 1:

The thing is, though, what are you compromising? Is the house too big? Is the house too small? Is it not in the right location? Is it not what you want? Is it not? You know, serving your family's needs like it originally you thought it would. I mean like there's so many reasons why you might consider selling, and it's not just the interest rate that might. It could not be the most compelling thing to keep a home. It could not be the most compelling thing to keep a home. And so you know mortgage rates. You know lower mortgage rates are bringing more buyers back into the market.

Speaker 1:

Lisa Steuervant, chief economist at Bright MLS, said a drop in the cost of borrowing will help fuel more home buyer demand. Falling rates will also bring more sellers into the market and, the thing is the best part, you can take advantage of that renewed buyer interest. Our recent blog post and you can find this on georgerilestategroupradiocom georgerilestategroupradiocom we have a graph on our most recent blog post that illustrates the activity, buyer activity and the falling mortgage rates, and the activity increases as you see. The mortgage rates go down. As mortgage rates go down, more buyers start, more people start to re-engage in the process, and so, according to the National Association of Realtors, home sales increased in July, which was a welcome shift after four straight months of declines.

Speaker 1:

And if you're a home owner thinking of selling, the uptick in buyer activity works in your favor. You know more buyers mean more competition, which can lead to higher offers and shorter time on the market for your house, and according to Edward Seller, the AVP of Housing Economics at the Mortgage Bankers Association, this trend is expected to continue. Mba is expecting that slower home price appreciation, coupled with the lower rates, will ease affordability constraints and lead to increased activity in the housing market. All in all, the market is becoming more accessible to a wider range of buyers, which could result in even more people looking to purchase a home like yours. So, with buyers entering the market.

Speaker 1:

Now's the time to start getting your home ready to sell. You know the recent decline in mortgage rates again is increasing the activity and driving more buyers into the market and experts expect this trend will continue and we'd love to work together with you to take advantage of this increased buyer demand and getting your home ready to sell. It's right if it's right for you and the environment that we're in and, by the way, we've been helping, we've our team. I'm so grateful to report we've helped more people this year than we did last year, year to date, and we're growing. We're helping more people. We'd love to to to help you if it's right for you and and you can give us a call at 828-393-0134, 828-393-0134. 828-393-0134.

Speaker 1:

Find us online at realestatebygregcom. Realestatebygregcom. You can also just Google George Real Estate Group. You can see all the reviews we have there with Google and Facebook. You can follow us on social media and Facebook. We'd love to connect with you any way. We can, or stop by our office at 2720 Greenville Highway there in Flat Rock. We'd love to have the conversation, love to provide clarity, provide information, to provide support as you're considering what's right for you, answering your questions and providing guidance and just because you have the conversation doesn't mean you're going to be buying or selling. We'd love to have the conversation to provide information. It's never too early to have that conversation either and we'd welcome it. We can have a cup of coffee at the bakery there. You can stop by our office. We can meet in the conference room. We could do a phone call. However you'd like to connect, we'd love to do that.

Speaker 1:

This past Sunday we had do that. This past Sunday we had six open houses. A couple of the properties are already under contract. We had a lot of activity. It's amazing the activity that we're experiencing. We had homes across. Majority of them were in Henderson County. We had one up in Buncombe County on the market. We had a number of them in Hendersonville. We had one up in Buncombe County on the market. We had a number of them in Hendersonville. We had one down in Zirconia. We had a six-house open house event this past Sunday and it was extremely successful.

Speaker 1:

We're having another open house this Sunday at one of our luxury properties, 131 Falkirk Way in Zirconia, over an acre of land of the lot available. It's in the very desirable Cobblestone Village. The address is Zirconia but it's probably more Flat Rock location than some Flat Rock locations. It's bordering it's exclusive community, bordering Flat Rock. It's right next to the Kenmure community and, albeit with a zirconia address, it's right there in the heart of Flat Rock.

Speaker 1:

The finishes the upscale finishes on this home are incredible. It has just undeniable charm. The main floor has all you need for one-level living and lifestyle the cozy living room, stone fireplace, ample dining area, stunning eating kitchen, upscale cabinetry, refined appliances. This is a luxury property and it's about the lifestyle that you can live in this home. It has a split floor plan, has that has privacy in the master suite. In the primary suite it has not only screened porches but also an open air porch to take in the stunning landscaped garden in the mountain views. The main floor has direct access to the laundry room. It has an oversized garage. The super light and bright bonus room over the garage is wonderful for a hobby or play area. It has a finished basement to host guests or in-laws. It has a large den with an additional stone fireplace. There's so many features, but the way this home makes you feel when you walk inside it is undeniable.

Speaker 1:

131 Falkirk Way, ari Munez. On our team's hosting it open this Sunday from 2 to 4. Highly recommend. If you want to see a spectacular home $1.4 million at 131 Falkirk Way in Zirconia. But it is just minutes from our office there on Rainbow Row. Encourage you to come out and check it out. If you want to find more information about it right now we're going to be posting about it more on our Facebook and social media pages. You can also go to realestatebygregcom. You can see the listing in addition to all the other listings that we have. Or just call us. Call us directly at 828-393-0134.

Speaker 1:

And we are just having so much fun at our office working together, working with our clients, the enthusiasm that we're experiencing the market's the market, the economy's the economy, but the privilege and honor it is to walk alongside with our clients through whatever is right for you and helping provide clarity and a path forward to what that next step looks like. And acknowledging the beauty of where you're coming from in your current home that served you so well, but recognizing sometimes chapters end with homes and it's time to downsize or upsize, or maybe it's time to move in or closer to the grandkids or move into a retirement community for that next chapter in life, and so we'd love to connect, we'd love to help you any way we can, and we are here every Thursday morning bringing you positive news about the local real estate marketing community. We're here every Friday morning at 845 bringing amazing stories and our Hometown Hero series. As we partner with WHKP, we podcast all of our radio shows. You can find that on your favorite podcast platform and we would love to connect with you. We're also growing.

Speaker 1:

If you know somebody that has their license or wants to explore a career in real estate, we'd love to have the conversation. If you're thinking of getting into the industry, if you're thinking of making a change in the industry, maybe you are looking for more support, maybe you're looking for more guidance, maybe you're looking for more coaching or just a path forward to help others with the support, while finding that elusive balance and taking care. When you're a small business owner or self-employed, I mean, there's always things to be done and, of course, taking care of our clients at the highest level possible. I heard I mentioned this to you before, but the division of labor or the economy of scale in the sense that one person trying to do everything you can only do so much versus the team approach and having someone that specializes in each aspect of the process, from our listing management to our closing coordination, to our agents that have the because of the support they can focus on our clients, helping our clients have the best experience possible, and it actually adds to the experience that the clients are having. You know, from our professional photographer to our. You know getting the professional floor plans to. You know staging the houses to preparing the houses to. If you need a contractor, if you need, I mean the resources that we have. That you know.

Speaker 1:

Recently, you know, with our, we had a wonderful conversation with an incredible home warranty company that provides coverage for our sellers that is available. And then you know whether you want to do a pre-inspection or how we navigate through once you go under contract and in the, the closing process and the under contract process and working with the attorneys and the lenders. It's a collaboration of so many pieces and ultimately to give our clients the best experience possible while providing the support to our agents. And it's a beautiful thing and we we're grateful to serve the community through real estate. We're grateful for our incredible team.

Speaker 1:

So if you're looking to get into the real estate career, there's a place for you. We have a wonderful onboarding process and launching process. We have a wonderful support system in place for the experienced agents. Maybe you've sold hundreds of homes already, but looking for something better than what you currently are in and looking for other options. We'd love to have the conversation. You might've heard of the 80-20 rule. 20% of the agents actually do 80% of the business, and also it's a staggering number that the attrition of real estate I mean it's only second to insurance as to the number of people getting their license and then leaving the industry. It's you know. So only one in 10 new licensees today will be in the business in the next five years, and so we've had a track record of helping people launch their careers and we'd love to help you. And maybe you've had that license, you've just not used it. We'd love to talk and you can give us a call. You can stop by our office. We'd love to have the conversation.

Speaker 1:

And again, we're here every Thursday morning sharing with you positive news about the local real estate market. We'll be here tomorrow morning and grateful for the opportunity to share time with you this morning, I do want to. On a personal note, I'm going to say congratulations to my brother, eric, and his fiancee, mary Leslie. They're getting married this Saturday and I wanted to give them a shout-out and congratulations. We're going to have fun this Saturday at the wedding and best wishes.

Speaker 1:

I have to get my speech in order and start practicing my speech in order and start practicing and I got my thoughts together but excited to celebrate them and have fun and get dressed up and my kids and my daughter getting dressed up to be a flower girl and we're going to have fun this weekend. So congratulations to my brother, eric, and wanted to just wish you and Mayor Leslie the best and congratulations this weekend. It's going to be a lot of fun. But thank you so much for tuning in this Thursday morning here right after the 10 o'clock news and, of course, all the news about the real estate market and the interest rates, and if we can help you in any way, give us a call 828-393-0134. Have a great day, have a great Thursday and we'll be here tomorrow morning.

Speaker 2:

Fall is just around the corner and it's the perfect time to fall in love with your new home.

Speaker 1:

The George Real Estate Group. We're here helping our clients find their perfect home. We're also helping our clients sell perfect home. We're also helping our clients sell. It's a great time to sell and with this new season comes new opportunities.

Speaker 2:

You guys are seeing a lot of activity in the real estate market continued right the market is as strong as ever.

Speaker 1:

The activity, the buyer activity, buyers are buying, interest rates are falling, prices keep going up. The environment is wonderful to sell your home and to find the next perfect home.

Speaker 2:

Remember the George Real Estate Group podcast series available wherever you get your podcast and you guys are in Flat Rock, north Carolina, we serve all of Western North Carolina.

Speaker 1:

We serve upstate South Carolina as well. Give us a call at 828-393-0134.

Speaker 2:

Thank you for listening to the George Real Estate Group podcast. Tune in next time for more134 or at realestatebygregcom.