It Was Bound To Happen

The Charlotte Observer is reporting that housing prices in our area have dropped, over a twelve month period, for the first time in seventeen years. There is no need to panic as the decline was .1 percent, as in one tenth of one percent. The article points out that the bottom may not have been reached but also that our local economy is doing well. I've said it before and I'll say it again...it is a good time to buy.

Charlotte home prices slip for the year
It's the first such drop since 1991, and things are a lot worse elsewhere – but that's little comfort for homeowners who can't sell.
By Kirsten Valle
kvalle@charlotteobserver.com

HOW CHARLOTTE STACKS UP
For the first time in 17 years, average Charlotte-area home prices fell year-over-year, according to a survey released Tuesday. But the Charlotte market was strongest in the survey of 20 cities. How home prices compare, April 2008 vs. April 2007:

Charlotte
-0.1% (Best in survey.)
Las Vegas
-26.8% (Worst in survey.)
Composite of 20 cities
-15.3%

Average Charlotte-area home prices have fallen for the first time over a 12-month period since 1991, figures released Tuesday show – and they might not have hit bottom yet, experts say.

Still, many remain optimistic, saying Charlotte's historically steady market, population growth and strong job outlook will help the city stay afloat in this increasingly sluggish economy. They point out that things are far worse elsewhere, with steep declines in urban areas nationwide.

Area prices dropped 0.1 percent in the 12 months through April 2008, according to the widely followed S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index, ending a three-month streak as the only one of 20 urban markets across the country still showing rising home prices.

“Charlotte is still holding up better than any other market,” Wachovia economist Mark Vitner said. “I think our economy is very resilient.”

That means homeowners should be ready to give up some price appreciation when trying to sell, he said.

Home Prices Still Rising

As I watched CNN yesterday I heard the news presenter state that Charlotte is the only real estate market in the U.S. which is still rising. The Charlotte Observer agrees in this story. We have been spared big losses which many cities have experienced. Our local economy is still good and our unemployment numbers are good as well. The reality is it is a better time to buy than to sell but our housing market is stable.

The Charlotte region notched its third month Tuesday as the only one of 20 urban markets nationwide still showing rising home prices.

Area prices rose a little less than 1 percent for the 12 months through March, according to the widely followed S&P/Case-Shiller Home Price Index. That's less of an increase than in previous months but compares favorably with a 14 percent national decline on what is often a person's largest investment.

Fourth Ward Condo

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Good News For Charlotte Housing Prices

Vinnee Tong of the Associated Press recently wrote how Charlotte home prices were actually up. We were the only market to show gains. Obviously this is good news for us but we still have challenges in our area. I continue to see properties, even those which are well priced, stay on the market longer. With that in mind buyers continue to be in a strong position which has not always been the case in Uptown Charlotte. Charlotte center city is a great place to live and now is a good time to find your perfect home or condo.

Charlotte housing prices defy trend

Queen City the only exception as values slide in 20 other U.S. cities

VINNEE TONG
Associated Press

Home prices in many cities continued to plunge by record levels in January as sellers cut their asking bids and rising foreclosures took their toll -- except in Charlotte, new data showed Tuesday.

Only Charlotte squeaked by as a gainer in the Case-Shiller index, with a 1.8 percent rise in January compared to a year earlier.

Bob Morgan, president of the Charlotte Chamber, said the news is a positive reflection on the Charlotte area's economy.

"I think it says we're very fortunate in Charlotte that we're continuing to attract new jobs and that our population is growing," he told the Observer.

Real estate agents and local officials cited Charlotte's history of more modest house price growth during the boom years as reasons the market was holding up now.

"We've never seen the huge double-digit appreciation," said Dot Munson, president of the Charlotte Regional Realtor Association. "We have less of a correction to make than most other markets."

Charlotte Uptown Real Estate Market

On Friday, March 21, 2008, the Charlotte Observer ran an article, by Doug Smith, which discussed the slow down in the Charlotte uptown condo market. Several new projects have been canceled and others are proceeding slowly. I have noticed properties are sitting on the market longer as buyers can pick the perfect home as opposed to settling for any old property. In 1996 I bought in Fourth Ward and this was not the case. I bought what was available and worked my way to my perfect property. Now is a good time to buy in the center city. It was not all bad news for the new projects as the article did report on several condo projects which are being buit.

4 projects moving forward

Construction is proceeding on four high-rise residential projects

• The Garrison at Graham was delayed last fall when financing fell through. But the developer, Thomas Barnes, found local replacement investors and resumed construction this month on the 11-story, 41-unit condo building on North Graham Street.

• Catalyst, a 27-story tower being developed by Novare Group, is up to 18 floors at South Church Street and Martin Luther King Boulevard, said Tony Skillbeck, president of the company's Carolinas Division.

"We actually had financed before the credit crunch," he said. "But our lenders are looking at us on a monthly basis. It's a little bit more stringent than it used to be."

Condo sales in the 462-unit project are to begin in six to seven weeks, Skillbeck said.

• The Vue is under construction in Fourth Ward, and the first of the 50-story project's 409 units should be ready for occupancy in summer 2010, said developer Dan McLean, president and chief executive officer of Chicago's MCL Cos.

• The Tower, a 15-story, 26-unit condo project, is under construction between the Hampton Inn and Hilton Garden hotels on East Second Street. Developer Lee Curry said a model condo should be ready in about a month.

In an uncertain market, he said, he's being cautious.

"We want people to know what it is going to look like before we start selling," Curry said. "We want them to know it is going to be built."

The Garrison

The Charlotte Observer is reporting good news for another uptown Charlotte real estate project. In the article Doug Smith states that while some uptown projects have been delayed the Garrison at Graham is going up.

A Charlotte developer plans to resume work this week on an 11-story, 41-unit condo building on North Graham Street.

Construction of The Garrison at Graham stalled last fall when a portion of the project's financing fell through.

The Garrison at Graham is alive and well and soon you could be living in there. Units are still available and buyers should be moving in around May of 2008.

Childers, who is handling sales and marketing for The Garrison at Graham, said Barnes completed construction loan arrangements Friday and expects general contractor Cox & Schepp Construction Inc. back on the site this week.

The first buyers should be able to occupy their units in about 14 months, he said.

Of the 41 loft units, 21 have been sold. Childers said remaining two-bedroom and larger units range from 1,250 square feet to 2,550 square feet and sell for $427,500 to about $800,000.

This project sits in the northwest corner of Fourth Ward which makes it convenient to the many amenities which center city Charlotte has to offer.

Urban Getaway

The Charlotte Observer ran a wonderful article on suburbanites who are buying Uptown Charlotte real estate as their second home. They spoke with several people who lived in Fifth and Poplar, a Condo with many amenities, near Fourth Ward Park. By all accounts this is a great place to live and play.

You've heard of city people who flee to the country on weekends. The building boom that's transforming uptown Charlotte offers a different twist -- suburbanites such as the Palmers who'd rather spend weekends walking among the skyscrapers than tending yards or piloting boats.

The story went on to discuss the growing center city population and mentioned a few other new complexes which have been completed or are being built.

The center city's population is expected to jump from about 10,000 today to about 21,000 people by 2012. Many are young professionals and empty-nesters who moved uptown when kids moved away. Just about every new uptown condo complex -- from Courtside to 230 South Tryon to TradeMark -- includes a small corps of suburbanites who bought city homes as weekend getaways.

As someone who has lived in uptown since 1989 I know how these new comers feel. What a great place to live. We walk nearly everywhere and there is always something happening. Whether you live here on the weekends or full time center city living is not to be missed.