Category: Waxhaw/Weddington

Trends show that people want to downsize after their children leave the nest. Builders have noticed this trend and they are responding in a big way. There are at least 6 communities specifically catering to active adults over age 55. Trilogy Lake Norman, Cypress, Tree Tops, Aldersgate, Cresswind Charlotte and Carolina Orchard have been built over the last few years. There are many other projects in the works as demand is soaring.

Most of the communities have found features specifically geared toward a soon to be aging population. These features include single-story homes, low to no maintenance exteriors taken care of by an HOA, and start prices around $200,000.

The thing that sets these communities apart are the amenities. They usually have large recreation centers with gyms, yoga rooms, spin classes, heated salt-water pools and more. Many of them have cooking classes, poker clubs, book clubs, boating clubs, and dinner outing clubs. There are even some communities that cater to the travel minded, organizing group trips to destinations all over the world.

The active adults that want to live in these places are still very much a part of the wider community. Many of them move to be closer to family, but to still be independent. There is really a sense of belonging within the projects.

Many of these 55 and older communities are marketed as if they are campuses of like minded people coming together. They focus on holistic wellness, resort style amenities, and social interaction. There are also many of the communities that provide full assisted living for residents who require a higher level of care.

If you are interested in one of the many communities for active adults in and around Charlotte, give us a call at (704) 525-4045. You can also view current listings on our website here.

Home sales were down again this June compared to last year. 4,719 homes sold in June compared to 4,904 this time last year. This represents a decline of 3.8%. These numbers all come from the monthly report from the Charlotte Regional Realtor Association. The report is based on data from the Carolina Multiple Listing Services Inc.

The supply issues we have been tracking continue as well. There is a 2.5 month supply of homes on the market as of June. Last year at this time we had a 3.5 month supply. This means just 9,967 homes are on the market compared to 12,592 last year. This represents a decline of 20.8%. It is up from last month when only 9,795 homes were on the market.

As is typical with supply and demand, when there is less supply, demand goes up driving prices higher. Median sales price in the Charlotte area rose from $225,000 to $245,000 in just one year. This is a rise of 8.9% year over year. Average sales price also rose from $279,243 to $290,067 representing a rise of 3.9%. Homes are selling quicker than last year, averaging 99 days from listing to closing.

Pending contracts on homes were up 17.4% year over year. Pending sales show that there is still strong demand for home in the area and is a good sign for sales to be up next month as well as these contracts head to the closing table.

There were 5,658 new homes listed in June, a small increase, just 0.1% year over year. To solve our lack of supply, we will need to see this number increase drastically.

If you are looking for a home in the Charlotte area, give us a call at (704) 525-4045. You can view current listings on our website here.

Last week, the Federal Reserve again announced that they are raising the nation’s federal funds rate by one-quarter of one percent. This brings it to a range of 1.00 to 1.25 percent making this the second straight quarterly increase.

At this time, the prediction is that mortgage interest may not see a direct increase from this rate hike. In the short term, car loans and bank fees will probably be the first to show an increase. This could also affect millions of borrowers who have credit card debt as it could push their monthly payments higher. The hike could additionally impact borrower’s ability to qualify for a mortgage.

It is not clear at this time if the Fed needed to raise the rate right now. Unemployment is low at 4.3 percent in May. The economy isn’t growing as fast as the Fed would like, nor are wages. The rate hike is unlikely to help either of those causes. It seems that the Fed found themselves in a bind. They said they would raise the rate earlier in the year and they are following through, even though it might mean slowing the economy further.

The Federal Reserve will reassess the market again in September to be sure the projected additional increase is in line with the market at that time.

If you are in the market for a home right now, the hike is not likely to affect you in terms of interest rate. You may qualify to borrow less money if you have significant credit card or other short term debt.

Borrowers who will feel the rate hike the most are ones with an adjustable rate mortgage that is about to adjust as it will now adjust by half a percent. This could mean hundreds of dollars more per month on a mortgage payment. Other borrowers who will feel the pinch are ones with home equity loans or lines of credit. Repayment on those loans will call for steeper payments due to the rate hike.

If you are in the market for a home, call us at (704) 525-4045. We can help you get started on the process today. You can also view homes currently for sale on our website here.

Home sales were down slightly in May according to data released by the Carolina Regional Realtor Association. New listings and pending sales were up year over year, up 4.6% and 16.6% respectively. This shows that there are buyers out there and they are willing to purchase when the right home comes on the market.

The Charlotte area is still suffering from a lack of inventory. The supply of homes fell again down to a 2.5 month supply. This is down 26.5% from the same time last year. A balanced market between buyers and sellers is considered to be a 6 month supply.

The supply of homes was up slightly from last month. In April, there were 9,525 homes on the market. In May, there were 9,795. This represents a rise of 270 homes or 2.8% month over month. Last May, by contrast, there were 12,268 homes for sale.

Median sales price was up 7.9% to $226,500, and Average sales price was up 6.6% to $274,957. Low inventory drives prices up and we have seen gains in home prices for the past few years with no end in sight.

Homes are staying on the market for less time as well. Days on market from list until close went from 106 last May to 95 this May.

Buyers are also not getting as much of a discount on list price. Last year, they paid 96.8% of the list price for a home, and this year they are paying 97.3%. This could indicate more instances of multiple-offer situations where the highest and best offer wins the home.

We have not seen widespread evidence of homes selling for more than list price. When this happens, there is often a case of a home selling for more than the appraisal value and the buyer having to come up with the difference in cash. This is happening in some cities such as Austin, TX.

If you are interested in a home in the Charlotte area, give us a call at (704) 525-4045. You can also view homes on our website here.

Home prices have been rising in the Charlotte region for the past few years with no apparent end in sight. Case-Shiller’s S&P CoreLogic home price index has prices 6.7% higher in March. This is well above the 4.3% year over year increase they reported in March of 2016. It also far outpaces the national average of 5.8% which represented a nearly three-year high.

Unusually low inventory of homes takes much of the blame for the price hikes. People are staying in their homes rather than selling and moving up. Mortgage interest rates are also on the rise which may deter some sellers as a new mortgage would have higher carrying costs. This could contribute to the current trend as it keeps inventory low and prices going ever higher.

With all of this news, you might be thinking that renting might be a better option, but is it? According to home real estate website Trulia, buying remains a more cost-effective option than renting. Trulia’s study shows that purchasing a home in Charlotte is 39.4% cheaper than renting. This assumes that buyers have a 20% down payment, have a 30 year fixed rate mortgage and stay in the property at least seven years.

However, Trulia’s study shows that renting appears to be making up some ground. Home prices have been escalating faster than rental prices. Rental rates from 2016 to 2017 have dropped 0.4% while home prices increased 7.5%.

For now, buying a home in the Queen City is a pretty safe bet. If you are interested in making the jump into homeownership, give us a call at (704) 525-4045. You can also create custom searches of home listings on our website here.

Last week we showed you the local trends for housing prices. This week, we have national numbers as well, released by the National Association of Realtors. They show that housing prices in metro Charlotte rose at nearly double the rate of the national median in the first quarter of this year. Median sales price of an existing single-family home in Charlotte grew year over year 13.4% to $209,600. Nationally, the median rose 6.9% to $232,100.

Low inventory factors into the high appreciation in Charlotte. There was a more than 20% drop in home supply in the Charlotte area, just a 2.5 month supply. This is well below the balanced market of 6 months supply, giving sellers a distinct edge in transactions.

Housing Analysis firm Metrostudy released figures on new home sales this week. They show that new homebuilding rose 16.4% from last year at this time to total 2,695. Additionally, the number of previously vacant new homes that are now occupied rose 23.5% to 2,725. Annual starts increased 7% to 11,372, and annual closings rose 10.6% to 10,922.

At the same time, the unemployment rate in North Carolina came in below the 5% mark in April according to newly released labor data. While this is still higher than the national rate of 4.4%, it is really encouraging. It also means that more people could be eligible for mortgages once they have enough job history in these new jobs.

There are some glimmers of a market correction on the horizon. Rental rates in the Charlotte area have showed a cooling trend in recent months. Housing markets across the nation are showing the same trend. Trulia published their report showing that 12.5% of rental listings had a price reduction to get tenants in. This could be a prelude to upcoming price cuts in the for sale market as well. We will keep you up to date on all of the market trends.

If you are in the market for a home in the Charlotte area, give us a call at (704) 525-4045. You can also view listings on our website here.

Four firms have submitted applications to become the consultants to analyze building new rail lines in Charlotte. The consultation would involve a transportation study expected to begin in July and take 18 months. Budget for the consultation could be as high as $4.4 million, though cost estimates have not been finalized.

The study will analyze building new lines and how those lines will align with existing stops and stations. This is the latest development for the 20 year old campaign to develop the transit system. Busses remain the main thrust of the system, but as light rail is built out, it will take on more of the load.

The first of the lines they will be studying is a proposed 25-mile northern rail line from Uptown to Iredell County. This proposed Red Line would help ease congestion on I-77 especially for people who live in Lake Norman, Mooresville, and Davidson.

The second line in the study is a western route connecting Uptown to the airport and possibly going to the future master planned community River District. This line would be great for travellers of all sorts, business travellers and tourists most especially.

The third piece of the study will be how the new lines would be integrated into center city. This would include the already proposed 13.5-mile $2.5 billion Silver Line extending from Uptown along Independence Boulevard towards Matthews. It will also include the currently under construction 9 mile $1.2 billion Blue Line extension connecting Uptown with UNC Charlotte.

Much has changed since the original transit plan was adopted and there are now new buildings that need to be accounted for in the plan to connect new rail lines. This could mean tunnels to get lines in and out of Uptown like were recently built in Seattle.

Rail advocates propose building all three additional lines simultaneously for an estimated range of $5 to $7 billion. These numbers are rough and are subject to change. Building out the light rail so robustly would launch Charlotte ahead of many other mid-sized cities and help make it more of a destination that it is currently. Many leaders see these lines as necessary as the population in Charlotte is projected to double from 2.5 million to 5 million in the next 20-30 years.

Real estate along the existing corridors has increased in value tremendously after construction completed. If you are interested in purchasing a home in Charlotte and want to take advantage of existing or future rail lines, give us a call at (704) 525-4045. You can also view homes on our website here.

For more information, read the full article in the Charlotte Business Journal.