How Much Do Homes Appreciate in Value Each Year? A Look at Some Numbers
- Apr 25, 2020
- 8 min read
The question of home appreciation has a way of stirring up strong opinions. Some people insist that real estate barely outpaces inflation. Others talk like every house in a “hot area” doubles in value every few years. This episode of the Selling Greenville podcast cuts through the noise with something refreshing: actual numbers.
Using detailed data from the Greater Greenville Association of Realtors, the host walks through how different parts of the Upstate — especially around Greenville — have appreciated over the last 10 years and over just the last three. The result is a grounded look at where homes really gain value, how much they tend to appreciate each year, and which specific submarkets have quietly become appreciation engines.
It’s not a theory episode. It’s a math episode (the useful kind, not the pop quiz kind).
How Much Do Homes Appreciate in Value Each Year?
The episode starts by tackling the big question head-on: how much do homes appreciate in value each year across the Upstate as a whole?
To get there, the host pulls from monthly charts published by the Greater Greenville Association of Realtors. These charts break the Upstate into numbered market regions. They aren’t always intuitive — some areas carve out just a narrow slice of downtown, one code covers only the northern part of Five Forks and ignores the southern side, and many boundaries follow specific street lines. But it’s the system everyone has, so it’s the system being used.
From those charts, the analysis focuses on the median sales price rather than the average. Median is the middle number in a series (line up the sales prices and pick the one in the middle), which helps smooth out the impact of ultra-high or ultra-low outliers.
Then the host compares:
The median price 10 years ago
The median price 3 years ago
The most recent median price
From there, the annual appreciation rate for each submarket is calculated over two windows: 10 years and 3 years.
For the broader Upstate — including Greenville, and also Anderson, Spartanburg, Laurens, and a few other surrounding counties — the numbers come out like this:
10-year annual appreciation: about 4.76% per year
3-year annual appreciation: about 6.1% per year
That’s meaningful, especially when stacked against an inflation rate the host estimates at roughly 2% per year. If inflation is eating 2% of purchasing power annually, and median home prices are climbing at 4.76% to 6.1%, then real estate isn’t just keeping up — it’s pulling ahead.
And because these percentages work like compound growth, each year’s appreciation builds on a higher price base. A 6% increase on a $180,000 home is one thing; 6% a few years later on a $200,000 home is something else entirely.
In simple terms, across the Upstate, real estate has not just tracked inflation. It has outpaced it.
How the Numbers Were Built (And Why That Matters)
The episode is careful to add a few caveats. The host isn’t an economist or financial advisor, and nothing in the discussion is meant as personalized investment advice. The goal is clarity, not prescriptions.
The data:
Comes from the Greater Greenville Association of Realtors
Uses median sale price, not average
Covers the Upstate, but is heavily weighted toward Greenville
Relies on the MLS “area codes” that sometimes slice neighborhoods in quirky ways
Another important nuance: these appreciation figures reflect changes in median price, not a tracked history of individual homes. New construction, flips, and major renovations can all push the median upward (or occasionally distort it).
Still, taken as a whole, the patterns are hard to ignore — especially when the episode zooms in on specific submarkets.
The Big Winners: West Greenville, Brandon Mill, City View, Sans Souci
The strongest appreciation story over the last decade is centered in the corridor just east of Blue Ridge Drive and west of Highway 276 — an area that includes West Greenville, Brandon Mill, City View, and parts of Sans Souci.
Over the last 10 years, this area has seen the median sales price rise about 19.6% per year. That’s not a typo. And over the last three years, the annual gain has jumped to nearly 26% per year.
Some of that can be attributed to redevelopment: renovated mills, higher-end condo-style conversions, and ongoing investment in older housing stock. Those kinds of projects tend to push median prices upward quickly. But even with that caveat, the numbers point to a powerful trend — the neighborhoods wrapped around the west side of downtown Greenville have transformed into serious appreciation markets.
For anyone who bought there early, the last few years have been very kind.
Dunean, Judson, Welcome: Quietly Explosive Growth
Not far behind — and in one timeframe, even ahead — is the Dunean / Judson / Welcome area. Roughly speaking, this is east of White Horse Road, near the hospital systems and close in to town.
Over the last 10 years, the median price in this region has risen about 14.87% per year. That alone would be remarkable. But over the last three years, the annual increase jumps to about 31.73% per year, the highest three-year figure on the entire list the host compiled.
Unlike some purely new-construction pockets, much of this growth appears to be driven by renovations and flips of older homes. Investors have been steadily upgrading properties and reselling them at higher price points, dragging the median price upward as the area continues to change.
In other words, this isn’t just brand-new subdivisions setting the pace — it’s older neighborhoods getting a second life.
Donaldson Center and South: From Overlooked to In-Demand
Another standout is the area around Donaldson Center and stretching south toward the point where Anderson, Abbeville, Greenville, and Laurens counties meet.
Here, the median price has:
Risen about 13.35% per year over 10 years
Increased by about 22.23% per year over the last three years
The episode highlights a personal example from this area: a first flip purchased for around $38,000, lightly renovated, and resold for about $83,000. At the time, those numbers felt solid but not wild. Today, that same type of property in that same pocket would command far higher prices.
What was once “underappreciated” — both literally and figuratively — has become a textbook case of how being early in a rising submarket can pay off.
Between Highway 25 and the Saluda River
Moving west, there’s another strong-performing region: the stretch between Highway 25 on the east and the Saluda River on the west, including areas like Gantt and portions of Piedmont and Powdersville-adjacent communities.
In this region:
The last 10 years show about 10.31% annual growth in the median price
The last three years show about 13.3% annual growth
That keeps it squarely in “excellent” territory by almost any measure. For buyers and investors, it’s another example of a submarket near Greenville’s core that has enjoyed sustained, above-average appreciation.
Stone Bridge Area: Strong Past, Slowing Pace
Not every standout area is on a straight upward trajectory. The Stone Bridge–area segment — roughly between White Horse Road and the Saluda River, and between Highway 123 and I-85 — is a good example.
There, the median price has:
Increased by about 9.96% per year over the last 10 years
But only 7.72% per year over the last three years
Those are still solid numbers (especially compared to inflation), but the pattern suggests that appreciation in this pocket has cooled slightly relative to some of its neighbors. The episode doesn’t speculate heavily on why, but it notes that not all strong areas stay at the top of the leaderboard forever.
Overbrook, Midtown, and Pleasantburg: High Prices, High Appreciation
Another intriguing case is the Overbrook / Midtown Greenville corridor, stretching out toward Pleasantburg Drive.
This area is different for one key reason: the current median price is close to $300,000, considerably higher than many of the other submarkets discussed, which tend to top out in the low to mid-$200s.
Here, the median price has:
Grown about 9.22% per year over the last 10 years
Climbed about 13.19% per year over the last three years
With relatively little new construction compared to some other areas, much of this appears to be driven by appreciation in existing housing stock — renovations, resales, and the ripple effect of demand for a near-downtown, established neighborhood that isn’t quite as expensive as the core of downtown itself.
For many families, it hits the sweet spot: close to everything, solid appreciation, but not as transitional block-to-block as some more urban-adjacent pockets.
Nicholtown, Greenville Tech, and Greenville Country Club
The Nicholtown / Greenville Tech / Greenville Country Club region is another example of a submarket where appreciation has accelerated recently.
Here, the median price has:
Risen about 7.57% per year over 10 years
Jumped about 16.13% per year over the last three years
That three-year figure makes it one of the top performers on the list. Investment, renovation, and revitalization in and around Nicholtown, paired with the inherent desirability of the Greenville Country Club area, have pushed prices sharply higher in a relatively short time.
Five Forks: Family-Friendly, Late to the Party
One of the few more “traditional” suburban family areas that shows up with strong recent numbers is Five Forks — specifically the northern portion, above Woodruff Road but below I-85.
Over the last 10 years, this area has seen a modest 3.1% annual increase in median price. But over the last three years, that number jumps to about 10.06% per year.
The episode notes that much of this may be driven by new construction, which tends to come in at higher price points than older homes. Even so, when new builds lift the median, they often drag values of nearby resales up along with them.
For buyers looking for:
Strong school districts
Newer construction
Family-oriented neighborhoods
Something is not right in the middle of downtown
…the Five Forks area stands out as a place where appreciation has recently picked up speed.
Anderson: When the Numbers Say “Be Cautious”
Not every market in the broader Upstate is booming. The episode spends a few minutes on Anderson, where some submarkets have lagged behind.
In downtown Anderson, north of I-85 and out toward the Saluda River, the median price has:
Grown about 3.47% per year over 10 years
But only about 0.75% per year over the last three years
Two other Anderson regions show similar patterns:
A large central section of Anderson County:
4.14% per year over 10 years
2.94% per year over the last three years
West Anderson:
5.24% per year over 10 years
3.57% per year over the last three years
If inflation is hovering around 2% annually, those recent three-year numbers barely outpace it — and in some cases, almost fail to keep up. The episode doesn’t write Anderson off; the host has personally flipped houses there and still helps clients in that market. But as a pure appreciation play, the data suggests Greenville County has been the stronger bet.
Appreciation, Cash Flow, and Why Investors Care
All of these numbers matter most when they’re connected to real decisions. Many local investors are buying rental properties in the high-appreciation pockets around downtown Greenville — West Greenville, Brandon Mill, City View, Sans Souci, Dunean, Judson, Welcome, and areas near Donaldson Center.
The appeal is simple:
Cash flow from rents
Appreciation in value over time
Potential tax benefits when guided by a good accountant
The host mentions personally owning 13 rental properties, either independently or with partners, and viewing these appreciation numbers as confirmation that the strategy makes sense in the right areas.
Of course, there are tradeoffs. Property taxes near downtown Greenville can be higher. Transitional neighborhoods can vary dramatically street by street. And appreciation is never guaranteed. But when the data shows decade-long double-digit annual gains in certain pockets, it’s hard to ignore what that means for buy-and-hold owners.
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Bottom Line
When it comes to how much homes appreciate in value each year in the Upstate, the numbers are clear: real estate here has done more than just keep pace with inflation.
Across the region, long-term appreciation has hovered around 4.76% annually over the last decade and closer to 6.1% over the last three years, with certain pockets near downtown Greenville far outpacing that. Areas like West Greenville, Brandon Mill, City View, Sans Souci, Dunean, Judson, Welcome, Donaldson Center, and parts of Five Forks have all seen especially strong gains in their median price points.
Not every market is a star—some parts of Anderson have lagged behind—but overall, homeowners in and around Greenville have quietly built real equity over time. For investors, the data reinforces what many already suspect: in the right submarkets, holding real estate in the Upstate can combine solid appreciation with rental income and long-term upside.
Ien Araneta
Journal & Podcast Editor | Selling Greenville
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