The Price of Greenville

"red white&blue" poses the following question:

If the city of Greenville was listed on the stock market how much would the purchase price be and how many shares would you be willing to buy?

I was born and raised here. I have lived here most of my life. You really get a different picture of Greenville if you move away and come back. I have done that on several occasions with my job. I remember the Greenville of old and to see her as it is today makes me want to cry. To see KDH closed, to see General hospital (DRMC as you know it today) and to see Washington Ave. with its closed business it is so sad, To see crime like it is. I don't personally believe we have had 54% drop in violent crime. There is a lot of crime that the general public is not aware of.

This is a very interesting question. If you judge the worth of a city by its collective property values, Greenville is certainly a buyer's market. Many long time home owners in Greenville are bailing out as property values decline. Several homeowners who have invested thousands of dollars in improving their homes are being forced to take below appraised value in order to sell.

A home is generally considered one of the largest investments we make, and like all investments, we would like to see at least a nominal return on our investment. Here lies the problem. Supply far exceeds demand. Very few people are moving into Greenville. Most of the local home sales are citizens who are either leaving Greenville or moving south of town.

Real estate is much like the stock market. You invest on the assumption that you will turn a profit over time. In reality, Greenville is not a very promising investment, residentially or commercially. We all remain hopeful that projects like I-69 or the Blues Quarter will come to fruition and turn Greenville around; however, it is difficult to project what Greenville will look like ten years from now. I welcome all thoughts on this matter.

Forthright