Good Neighbor Podcast: Union
Bringing Together Local Businesses and Residents of Northern Kentucky! Based in Union, KY....The Good Neighbor Podcast helps the residents of Northern Kentucky get to know local business owners as people. We allow the business owners and influencers in NKY to tell the stories of how they started their business and why. We hear about their families, their personal interests and why they love living in and serving resident of Northern Kentucky!
Good Neighbor Podcast: Union
The Realtor Next Door: Meet Ryan Harvey of Union, Kentucky
Ryan Harvey isn't your typical Northern Kentucky realtor. As both a licensed real estate agent and mortgage lender, he offers clients a comprehensive approach to home buying and selling that few professionals can match. This unique combination allows him to guide clients through the entire process with expertise that spans beyond just finding the right property.
During our conversation, Ryan shared a refreshingly honest assessment of the current Northern Kentucky market. While many regions struggle, our area remains exceptionally strong, with Boone County and particularly Union seeing continued growth driven by major employers like Amazon, DHL, and Kroger. The challenge? Record low inventory creating a persistent seller's market where demand continues to outpace supply.
What struck me most was Ryan's practical wisdom about interest rates - a topic causing anxiety for many potential homebuyers. He provided valuable perspective that today's rates around 6-7% are actually moderate when viewed historically. His key insight: "You can always change your interest rate, but you can never change the purchase price of your home." This challenges the common mindset of waiting for "perfect" market conditions that rarely materialize.
Beyond business talk, we discovered Ryan's deep community connections as a 15-year Union resident. Married for nearly 20 years with two teenage daughters active in sports, his life revolves around family, neighborhood connections in Triple Crown, and a genuine love for the area he represents. His passion for Union came through clearly: "I don't think you can beat Union at all. This is home."
Ready to explore Northern Kentucky's real estate opportunities with a knowledgeable local guide? Connect with Ryan directly at 859-640-2106 or find him on social media. Whether you're considering buying your first home, upgrading to something new, or just curious about your options, Ryan's combined expertise in both real estate and mortgages makes him uniquely qualified to help you navigate the journey.
This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place where local businesses and neighbors come together. Here's your host, Mike Murphy.
Speaker 2:Hey Charlie, thank you for the introduction. Yes, I am Mike Murphy, host of the Good Neighbor Podcast. We talk to local business owners here in Northern Kentucky to let you know them as human beings, people, not just logos on a business card or a logo on the side of a truck or on a building. So we have with us today a local business owner. He is a realtor here in Union Kentucky, a guy named Ryan Harvey. Now, ryan is known to some of you and many of you don't know who he is. We're going to make sure to change that today. Anyone listening to this podcast is going to know Ryan Harvey as not just a business owner but a human. And so, with that being said, ryan, welcome to the podcast. Mike, thank you for having me. Welcome and let people know who you are, what you are, what you do.
Speaker 3:Yeah, so like you mentioned, I'm a full-time realtor here in Northern Kentucky. I do specialize in Boone and Union. That's where I live. In addition to that, I also just recently got my mortgage license, so I do both real estate side and mortgage side kind of own the home buying and selling process, you know, holistically from beginning to end. So kind of a unique combination here in the area.
Speaker 2:That is unique. I mean, I'm not used to talking to realtors who also do the mortgage side of things, so that's an interesting dynamic that I hadn't considered. I didn't really know you could do that. We're not going to dive too deeply into the whole mortgage thing. That's a whole different podcast I think you and I need to have, but just in terms of, I guess, the real estate business, the real estate business. What is your take currently on the current state of real estate in Northern Kentucky?
Speaker 3:Well, the area as a whole just continues to, you know, remain very strong. Obviously, you know Northern Kentucky and Boone County and Union in particular are some of the fastest growing areas. That has to do a lot with, you know, obviously, the big employers that call Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky home right. So Amazon, dhl, p&g, kroger, that sort of thing. So really, you know the Northern Kentucky market has not seen the same impacts that we've seen elsewhere. So home values continue to remain high in Northern Kentucky and with union leading that. And then you know, inventory obviously being at record lows. It's a tough market sometimes just because the availability of homes is so marginal, but the market itself is still very strong. There's still a lot of buyers and sellers in this area and if you're willing to put in the work as a realtor you can a hundred percent stay busy in this market.
Speaker 2:So inventory at record lows. What does that mean to the average realtor out there and to, I guess, anybody looking to purchase a home like? What kind of market are we in right now relative to that?
Speaker 3:So low inventory, you know, typically means a seller's market right. So supply and demand right now supply is low, demand is still up. So what does that do to home values? Well, that, you know, makes tends to make them go higher.
Speaker 3:The mortgage, the interest rates that you're seeing on mortgages that's obviously a hot topic for everybody. That is helping to maybe slow the rate at which home values are increasing, but we're not decreasing by any stretch of the imagination. So I think what will happen is, as interest rates start to come down, you're going to just see a surge of buyers who have kind of been waiting in, you know, on the sidelines waiting for, for that first indication of a break, and I just really think that that's going to to drive a lot of buyers back into the market and it's actually going to be a. It's going to be a good thing for property values and for homeowners in the area. Obviously, you know, the goal with sellers is to, you know, get them primed and ready for that. And then same thing with buyers too, right, get them lined up and ready to go so that when the home that they've been waiting for for the last year finally hits the market, they're in a prime position to buy and the sellers are in a prime position to sell.
Speaker 2:So interest rates, that's something that you know. When somebody wants to buy a home, of course they're going to go online and they're going to look at interest rates and they're going to try to. It's almost like when you're in the stock market you're trying to time the market.
Speaker 1:Yeah.
Speaker 2:Okay and you're trying to find the perfect time to get in and get out or whatever In the real estate market that you know that just means like the perfect time to get in, like when should I buy? When should I buy that house? And I just want to give some perspective to people that you know I once upon a time when I bought my first house, interest rates back then were like don't know, like 12, 13, and you, you can wait around. But if you don't have the perspective of big picture throughout life, what interest rates have been and could be sure, you look at interest rates today of six point, whatever, seven even, and you think, oh my god, I would never buy when interest rates are so high. So that's a perspective issue. Interest rates are really not that high compared to, speaking, to what they've been in the past.
Speaker 3:Correct. And you know the kind of the way that I present this, especially to buyers, is if you wait for the perfect time to buy a home, it'll never come. There's never a perfect time where you're going to get the best price on a home and the lowest rate. There's never a perfect time where you're going to get the best price on a home and the lowest rate. And you know the exact house that you're looking for in the exact area that just the stars just don't align in that nature. So you know I never encourage anybody to overspend. I mean, I never want that.
Speaker 3:I don't want anybody to ever put themselves in a position, you know where where the affordability comes into play, right, and interest rates have a lot to do with that. But the thing to you know realize is that you can always change your interest rates. You can never change the purchase price of your home, right. So as rates start to come down and values do go up, you know you'll start to see that trade-off where you know, yeah, I'm paying a lower interest rate but I bought at a higher price and I've actually got some graphs and some charts that I could show where I can plug in numbers. That says you know if your rate is at this much and you buy at this price point, versus if you wait till you know rates are at this and home and you can show the difference and you will find your break-even point. The break-even point's not as far as people think it is.
Speaker 2:So it's funny. You bring up, you know, charts and graphs. Charts and graphs is something that many of us use as a punchline to a joke. We kind of roll our eyes at it. But then, when you're in the middle of an event such as purchasing a home that is one of the most major purchases you'll ever make in your lifetime, those charts and graphs become something that you rely heavily on and you want the comfort of knowing that you're making the right choice, and you're making it right now, and so on and so forth.
Speaker 2:I know that just because I've bought and sold homes through the years.
Speaker 2:You're making a decision in the moment but, quite honestly, without perspective. Bottom line is you need a professional to kind of help guide you and you want to buy a house. You see the dream, you see yourself in that home that you want to buy. But if you make a decision hastily, there comes a time, a year down the road, when you're in that home and you're like what the hell was I thinking? What was I doing? You need a professional to kind of help you step through that decision and think of all things, not just the here and now and the excitement of buying a home. But let's take a step back and let's look at the entirety of what is not only here right now, but what is to come, and I think that that is something that a real estate professional brings to the table and kind of helps especially young people, keep them from making a hasty decision, and it helps anybody make a decision that's thinking of the here and now and the future you. So that's why we need somebody like you in our corner.
Speaker 3:I 100% agree and I love working with first-time homebuyers. But you know, I tell, I tell all my clients. You know, you, you hire me as a, as a professional, both you know, for my insight, my representation, but sometimes I have to save you from the, the issues that come along right. It represents you to protect your interest, but sometimes I have to protect you from yourself.
Speaker 2:Right.
Speaker 3:So you know, buyers, sometimes, you see, they, they see a property and they love it and they get that gleam in their eye and they're like well, they don't, they don't think about the roof being, you know, 25 years old, or they don't, they don't think about the, the um, the issues, the development that may be going on in the area that could affect property values. And the same thing with sellers too is, you know, sometimes, you know, sometimes sellers do have overinflated values of their home, or sometimes they don't know that they can get as much as they just have a. They're there. People can be short-sighted just by nature, and so having that kind of independent third party perspective can really help on both sides, I agree.
Speaker 2:So, having said all that, that's the business part of you. It's also a personal side of you. Sure, I always ask everybody about their family, because when you're in a business such as yours, you know at the end of the day you come home, you kick your feet up, you have dinner, whatever, whether you've had a great day or you've had your ass kicked that day, there's somebody you go home to. That kind of helps get you through all that. It's called your family, that it is Do you have a family.
Speaker 3:I do. My wife Sarah and I. We will have been married 20 years, almost 20 years Actually. 2026 will be 20 years. Okay, you know, met at UK, decided to settle in Northern Kentucky. She's from Cincinnati, I'm from the Lexington area, so this was kind of a happy medium between between both of our families, two teenage daughters. One's a freshman at Ryle and the other is an eighth grader at Ryle, or, I'm sorry, eighth grader at Gray. So we'll have two at Ryle next year. Both athletes, both play sports for for Ryle the eighth grader plays tennis for Ryle and my freshman plays volleyball for Ryle. They play club sports outside of the year. So you know, basically, when school's in session, it's it's it's nonstop between between either club sports or school sports, or you know trainings or practices. You know it's just, it's. All we do at night is carpool around. I feel Right.
Speaker 2:It's that season of life you're in. So were you an athlete at all in the school?
Speaker 3:I was. I mean, I played soccer. Didn didn't play uh competitively in in high school, played uh recreationally all. Actually all the way through college uh played recreationally um play golf. I'm still still a big golfer, um coming into that time of year which is nice to, when, when school sports slow down and our kind of um, you know, personal uh recreation gets to pick up a little bit. But yeah, so I don't have a. I never, obviously, played volleyball, never, you know, played tennis, but yeah, that's my background. My wife played basketball through high school, okay.
Speaker 2:Good for you. So when you guys go out and have fun, when you're not working, when you're not doing your sports, you know, when you get that time to go out and explore the world, yep, what does that look like? Where do you go? What's your vacation time look like?
Speaker 3:So we always take a spring break trip every year. We try to go somewhere in the summers, you know, as time permits, definitely stay pretty close to home. We really love we live in triple crown. We love our neighborhood. Um, you can usually find us, you know, tooling around the neighborhood on the golf cart or, uh, playing golf, but, um, that that's we. We have a a really great friend group, you know, locally and um, love just spending time, you know, close to home. But definitely do try to, you know, definitely do a spring break trip every year, try to go somewhere every summer, if we can, to a lot of concerts. That's one of our favorite things to do is concerts. So, you know, if it's, if it's within two hours and it's somebody that we want to see, chances are we're going to go see them.
Speaker 2:All right. So this will be a telling thing about you. Who's your favorite band of all time you know? Of all time yeah, oh man, if you're listening to the radio or, like you know, music, have you owned like who? Who is it?
Speaker 3:so we we have, we use pandora channels a lot or apple music channels and I can tell you that, like noah khan, tyler childers, um, those actually we're going to see tyler childers, uh, next month in lexington, um, but but those are kind of our go-to stations obviously. You know, we we've reached that age where we're kind of we still do yacht rock. I don't know if you know not yeah, um you know definitely very soothing and calm, yeah in the background right, love some yacht rock um michael mcdonald, yeah right minute by minute.
Speaker 3:Yeah, so, um, you know very, very eclectic taste of music.
Speaker 2:So just love, love concerts and love that that atmosphere all right, I, I mean, I've always been a pink floyd fan and zeppelin is my thing, and ozzy and you know, acdc. But lately I've just been deep, deep, deep into the rabbit hole of all the Pink Floyd stuff and all the stuff that nobody's heard or seen or whatever. So music is a big part of, should be a big part of, everyone's life, because it's just we need to feed our soul as we feed our bank accounts. 100%, all right. So you mentioned UK. Okay, I know that when people think of UK they think usually basketball. I mean, they've had a great, you know, football team recently, but anyways, when it comes to UK, we are used to UK being at the top of the ranks coming into March. Madness, right, yeah, I mean, they're still doing okay.
Speaker 3:Number three feet. Yeah, that's not bad. Not bad at all, nope, right, yeah, I mean they're still doing number three feet.
Speaker 2:Yeah, that's not bad, not bad at all. No, um, do you? Um, I mean, you've got that, that dog in that hunt? Um, are you? Uh, I guess what I'm saying is have you filled that brackets and how much money have you put towards your team?
Speaker 3:you, you don't. You don't want me filling out your bracket. Um, you know, there, there, there's a lot that goes on in my brain all day, and you know sports, while I like to play and watch, just tracking it and that, knowing all the nuance of it is just not one of those things that I am able to reserve bandwidth for. So you definitely don't want me picking out your bracket. I don't care if UK is a number one seed or a number 16 seed, I'll have them, you know, going all the way to the championship.
Speaker 2:I'm a Michigan man. My team's ranked, you know, I'm a five seed going up against a 12. I don't feel really good about it, you know, quite honestly. But a lot of my family members are right there with you. They're rooting for the big blue. I'm Go Blue, you're Big Blue, go Big Blue. Yeah, there's a difference. People don't always get that, but yeah, there is a difference.
Speaker 3:If you've never been to Longnecks during a UK game, especially a big UK game, there's few atmospheres. I mean, I'm from Lexington, so outside of Lexington I just don't think there's any venue or any atmosphere. That's quite as exciting as that.
Speaker 2:So that's kind of our local UK. A lot of that is because they provide a lot of beer.
Speaker 3:That helps. That helps a lot. Yeah, knock on wood.
Speaker 2:Right. So before we wrap up here, are there any things we haven't talked about? Like last thoughts you want people to know about you or your business, like what are, what are your parting shots here?
Speaker 3:Yeah, so you know, I think we live in the greatest area. I think Northern Kentucky is you know, starting big and working in.
Speaker 3:I mean I think Northern Kentucky is a fantastic area, just starting big and working in. I mean I think Northern Kentucky is a fantastic area. Just I put it up against anywhere in the country Boone County among Northern Kentucky is my opinion the best. And then within Boone County, I just don't think you can beat Union at all. This is home. This has been home to us now for, you know, close to 15 years. We've got very deep roots, know everybody here and what's coming up. You know it's just it's an amazing area to raise a family and you know I steer everybody I can towards union. I mean it's not for everybody, I get that, but if they're, if they're saying you know, hey look, these are the areas that I'm looking at, union's one of them. You know, obviously I'm going to to be the biggest advocate for the city or just the area in general. I just think it's a fantastic area to raise a family.
Speaker 3:And you know there's no shortage of realtors in Northern Kentucky. I mean I always say you can't throw a stick in Northern Kentucky that you don't hit a realtor and everybody's you know cousins, brothers, husbands, sisters, dogs, et cetera as a realtor and so you definitely have no shortage of options. I think if you're looking for somebody who is really going to just invest in your needs, actually find you, work with you to get exactly what it is that you are looking for. I just don't think that anybody can can do what I do. I mean I'm sure we all say that, right, that's everybody. Nobody does what.
Speaker 2:I do, but you got to believe in yourself. But I really do.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I mean, you know, communication is just as critical to me. I mean I'm I'm available to my, my customers and my clients 24 seven. We'll always 100% tell you straight. Even if there's news you don't want to hear, I'm always going to shoot you straight. And I just think it's a fantastic time to get. If you don't have a house, it's a fantastic time to get into the housing market and it's a good time to consider upgrade, downgrade. There's no bad time.
Speaker 2:Yeah, better to own a house than not own a house. You know, just dive in and I think too many people make assumptions about themselves. Like I can't afford a house, um, it's not the right time for me. Whatever that argument might be, they're arguing for their own limitations. But if they talk to a professional, especially someone like you, they can help. On both sides of the fence the real estate and the mortgage part of it they see possibilities that they wouldn't have otherwise seen if they hadn't spoken to you Well, and realtors and lenders, that's, that's a hundred percent.
Speaker 3:True. Realtors and lenders, you know, do work hand in hand through the entire transaction, so you're in constant communication. I mean, sometimes I think understanding the mortgage side of things is only going to help me be a better realtor and understanding the real estate side of things is only going to help me be a better mortgage lender. Right, you touched on homeownership. I think it's 100 percent. True, it's interesting. You talked about interest rates a little while ago, but you know, what people don't think about is, yeah, interest rates might be six and a half percent right now, but if you rent your interest rates 100 percent because you're building no equity, you have nothing to take with you and you, so you know, you're essentially paying an a hundred percent interest at least with you know, home ownership, you're building some wealth, you're building some equity, you've got some tax deductions and you've got some ownership.
Speaker 2:With rental you're building somebody else's equity A hundred percent.
Speaker 3:Yeah, rental is an option for people that need it, right, I mean, it's, it's not I, I'm not, I'm not here to to dog there. There are lots of people who rent for a variety of reasons and those reasons are their own, and but but if, if?
Speaker 2:I think there would be people who are surprised at some of the options that are out there some people are renting strategically because they want to rent and they, um, they, they have a specific path ahead of them and rental is a part of they don't want to own a home for whatever reason Correct. But that's why you have to have a conversation, educate yourself, and that's really what it's all about. Make an informed decision, and you can help people do that. Yeah 100%.
Speaker 3:I'm here for your best interests, whether that's owning a home or not, or mortgaging a home or not. I'm here to help you in whatever works for you the best.
Speaker 2:Perfect, all right. Well, Ryan Harvey, we are done for now. This was a very fun conversation. Yeah, absolutely. Thanks for having me. I hope you weren't too nervous. No, no, I think we had a good time, I told you before.
Speaker 3:I've been told I've got the face for a podcast, so the fact that this is being video recorded makes me a little nervous. No, you did.
Speaker 2:You did great. I appreciate it. No, we're all good. So before we go, I want people to know exactly how to reach you. What's the best way to?
Speaker 3:reach you. Best way to reach me is to call or text me. My phone number is eight five nine640-2106. You can call or text me anytime. Facebook's also a great option. I am on Facebook. I am Ryan Harvey, Realtor slash, and then my NMLS number 266-3518. And then you can also find me. I'm pretty active on social media in the neighborhoods and the county pages, so probably find me that way as well.
Speaker 2:A lot of people know you. Some didn't, now they do.
Speaker 3:Some probably wish they don't.
Speaker 2:You're a good guy. You're a good dude. If you weren't a good dude, I wouldn't have you sitting here so close to me right now.
Speaker 3:This is very close. This is an intimate setting.
Speaker 2:We are. We're very close inches apart, so thanks for your time today. I'm glad people got to know you. I'm glad that you came in and spent a little time with us, not just me, but with Northern Kentucky. Thank you very much. Thanks again. So, all of you out there, this is the Good Neighbor Podcast. We're always happy to help you know, like and trust business owners in the community, especially real estate, because real estate is a big part of all of our lives. So thank you for spending time with us today. Until next time, everybody out there, please be good to your neighbor.
Speaker 1:Bye-bye. Thanks for listening to the Good Neighbor Podcast Union. To nominate your favorite local businesses to be featured on the show, go to GNPUnioncom. That's GNPUnioncom, or call us at 859-651-8330.