Today we’d like to introduce you to John Neel
Hi John, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
My name is John Frederick Neel. I am married to Lisa and we have two kids and two grandkids. I’ll turn 53 years old in May and thinking about such a question like this one makes a person realize all the life you have lived up to this point. I was raised in two small towns in South Carolina: Edgefield and Saluda. There are so many memories from those days.
Even as a child, I loved being on the square in Edgefield and listening to senior males talk about the war and anything that was the topic of the day. One of the biggest early influences in my life was my Grandma “Ama,” Lois Lular Griffis Neel. My grandfather’s, Fred Hurley Neel was a solider from Virginia, who met my grandma while stationed in the miliarity in Columbia. To this day the mountains of Virginia, Kentucky, West Virginia just speak to my heart. Interesting enough my wife’s family was not too far away from his home place. It is always such a joy to be in those mountains.
After graduating Saluda High School, I found a path to Anderson University. These were some amazing years for me. I love my days at AU.
During my four years at Anderson University I think I truly developed my personality for leadership and had the opportunities to grow and tackle things beyond which I had imaged. The professors were encouraging to and supported the things my mind came up to create.
I became the youngest Managing Editor of the school newspaper and under my leadership the paper won it’s first awards . I was selected as Communications Student of the Year four straight times becoming the first to win it as all four years. With a couple fellow Communications students we launched the first on-air broadcast of Anderson Trojan Basketball teams on the local cable channel. We even broadcast a table tennis tournament held on campus. Along the way, founded a political organization and we hosted a political parties candidates for Governor in the primaries. I meet some amazing leaders during this time, including, long time serving Attorney General Travis Medlock. He too made a large impact on me. I saw these people as learn the best of qualities and tried to learn from them.
My career background includes these fields: journalism, radio broadcast, ministry, education, and real estate.
I had every intention of going to law school but felt the call to ministry almost nowhere in my mind. When I founded callings in some smaller churches, I gained an Education degree.
Fast forward to now, I am an English teacher at Greenville High School in Greenville, SC and Realtor with Keller Williams Western Upstate and co-founder of the JL Factor Group, LLC, a real estate team at the end of 2024 with my wife, Lisa. Lisa had a twenty year nursing career prior to launching into real estate. The best part of real estate is the great people we meet and become family with. In fact one of our first clients a few years ago, spend this past Christmas with us.
It is great working as a team together in real estate. We tend to bring a total package to clients when selling or buying a home.
I am a big sports fan of primarily of NASCAR, High School sports, College Football and Basketball. One of the best part of sports for me these days is seeing the grandchildren Nevaeh and Gabriel experience there first games and races. Neveah has run down the hill at Clemson, been to numerous Clemson games and this year Gabriel had his first Clemson Men’s Basketball game. To my surprise for her 9th birthday, when my wife asked Vey if she wanted to go to a local track to see a race, she replied I want to see Kyle Busch,my favorite driver for some years. Turns out the race on the NASCAR circuit at Darlington was just about to happen and we made the trip. She had a blast. I remember going to these as a kid and those are some of my favorite memories. It is so awesome to be doing that with them now. It means so much.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
No, it has not been a smooth road. Often here people have stories to blame other people, that’s not really who I am. In the end, even I was likely thrown to the side, dismissed, discounted, lied to or anything else…I try to find a way to see the mistakes I made. I think it is because inside of me I have the biggest heart.
I am glad I do despite any trouble or pain it has caused me.
I have been extremely shy as a young person. I have struggled with insecurity and doubt. Inside I know I am winner and there is a good track record. I am painfully honest but never use it to think I hurt others. My biggest disappointment in life is even when you are honest, have nothing but integrity and still people will not return it back to you.
I was married before a while and divorced.
I have had lots of success and money and I have lost most everything.
I have had some health challenges including most recently three cervical discs replaced with metal plates on December 4, 2024.
I have felt before I might give up but I know I never will.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I perform a dual career role. My own real estate business partnered with my wife, Lisa and co-owner our own business JL Factor Group, LLC. We sell real estate servicing the Upstate in land and home purchases and sells. We proved the best in client service. My efforts are deeply based in my study and knowledge of real estate law, market trends and data. Advising a client is often easy as a result. Many have found to the good and bad that if I have the knowledge it is based on facts. If they listen many realize that it is good professional advice and not opinion. Those who don’t often won’t say so, but if it still generally plays out like the data and information I shared revealed. At first I found it disheartening for clients not to take the advice. Had some be a bit rude and insist on their rejection of the data and advice and say they will never do something only to see them pick another agent who makes tons of potential costly errors in the listing and they are doing exactly what they refused to do. I just think it is humorous and human nature. Even those won’t admit it but they know, I knew they know.
The best thing to this is getting to know people. Some of my early clients spend this past Christmas with us in our family celebration. Clients like them have never stopped sharing our business with others. They become actual family.
My other career has been in Education. Currently a College Prep teacher of juniors and seniors. I totally love working to grow our talented students and seeing them grow and gain even deeper knowledge and showcase great levels of success. Just like with clients in real estate, I am very real with students. I can be very silly and love to joke with students. Often times I really enjoy the other staff at a school I have taught at. I think the nature of the way education is structured today is a bit of a challenge from what I can see in the faces of the leadership of the school and other teachers.
In every aspect of my professional life I am the one who sees more, evaluates more in every situation. I tend to free with of judgement and rarely share these say or share these thoughts until the occurrence of double standards and inconsistency of leadership. I think because I am keenly aware of it and I try to eliminate such in my own leadership roles throughout my life. People who show great qualities of honesty, fairness, and steadiness are the leaders to me regardless if they are at the top of the organization or on the bottom half of the leadership.
I have been called pastor, teacher, writer, realtor and in any field I love to observe those I find as admirable and quality. I often brag about other realtors, teachers, administrators. Not because of trying to gain favor. But because I am impressed. That is performance based not title based. As a result, in reflection, I will always respect a title and try my best to be a good team player when I am in that role. Still I will always recognize those that are of superior quality above anything else. These are the people I want to learn from and continue to model myself after.
My best piece of advice to anyone is to always be sure anyone who influences you is someone who should influence you.
We’d be interested to hear your thoughts on luck and what role, if any, you feel it’s played for you?
I think for many people would answer this question depending on where they are at the time. If a good time the focus would be on the good luck and the good breaks or how they walked into the good things in life and vice versa. Truthfully, I have had bad “luck” and it made me wonder what did I do to deserve this and I have been told that was born with a golden horseshoe.
I think it has been a mix of good luck and bad luck. A fair mix? I don’t know. I don’t know if I would even call it luck. It might be the quality of connections and timing that of the events at the time.
I don’t think it is luck all the time nor do I think it has to impact you if you make that decision not to let it make you feel negative.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://johnneel.kw.com
- Instagram: @johnneelrealtor
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/johnneelrealestateagent/
- Twitter: @johnneelrealtor
