Greenville Realtor Joan Herlong to release first book Sept. 26

Here’s a novel career path for you: earn your bachelor’s degree in English literature, land your first job out of the University of Virginia as a CNN news writer, move to Greenville, then launch a real estate career and notch $400 million in sales over a decade.

Now Joan Herlong will be a published nonfiction author. On Sept. 26, Forbes Books will release her debut, “As Is: An Insider’s Guide to Real Estate,” which is billed as a “funny and informative book that will empower you with everything you need to know about real estate.”

Before starting as a Realtor in 1993, three years after arriving in Greenville, Herlong thought the business was boring because her mother, Martha, was a Realtor.

Since then, she has learned the flipside of helping make homeownership dreams come true. Like the time she showed one residence featuring a picture of the bikini-clad owner in every room. Or another home with only a drum kit in it. She’ll explain why she uses Van Morrison to help sell a house, and what appearing on HGTV’s reality show “House Hunters” is really like.

“Whether you’re a buyer, a seller, an agent, or aspiring agent, you’ll find insights and strategies that will help you become better informed, to get the most out of your experience,” Herlong said.

Herlong is CEO and owner of Joan Herlong & Associates Sotheby’s International Realty, which she opened in 2017 and includes her husband, William, the COO and broker-in-charge, and son Jackson, CSO and broker-in-charge.

Jim Sobeck, managing member of New South Real Estate Partners, has known Herlong for more than 20 years.

“This book reflects her experience as well as her wit and savvy,” Sobeck said.

Quotable

“This book is my effort to raise the bar, hopefully inspiring more dedicated, full-time real estate professionals who will treat this high-stakes business with the seriousness that buyers and sellers deserve.” — Joan Herlong