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NerdWallet says Waxhaw is the Best Place for Young Families

Waxhaw was in the news this week for a great reason. Turns out it took the number one spot on NerdWallet’s best places in North Carolina for young families. Next on the list was Stallings, Harrisburg and Wesley Chapel with Indian Trail and Marvin also making the top 10. They ranked 145 places in North Carolina, cities, towns, villages, and census-designated places. Data came from the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey. They restricted their data to places with over 5,000 residents.

Nerdwallet used many different factors to rank cities. They looked at schools, jobs, income opportunities, friendly neighbors, and affordable living. They weighed all of these factors and came up with a score for each small town.

Here’s how NerdWallet came about their numbers:

  • Home Affordability – looked at median home values and selected monthly homeowner costs
  • Growth and Prosperity – evaluated past and current family incomes to gauge prosperity and prospects for economic growth
  • Quality of Schools – incorporated ratings from GreatSchools, a nonprofit school ratings site to help determine the quality of the local schools
  • Family Friendliness – examined the percentage of families with children in school and the poverty rate for families with young children to learn if a community is a positive environment for children.

Key takeaways from the NerdWallet study include:

  • Top places are near big employers.
  • Top places have strong family incomes
  • Best options for families are small and midsize suburbs

Results of the study conclude that Waxhaw is one of the fastest growing towns in North Carolina. Waxhaw’s historic downtown is a big draw. Waxhaw is within 30 miles of Uptown Charlotte. With around 12,000 residents, Waxhaw ranks highly for  quality of education and family friendliness. Home affordability was not great as the median home value was the fifth-priciest out of the top 10. Below are the full Waxhaw rankings:

  • Great schools – 9 out of 10
  • Median home price – $259,500
  • Median selected monthly homeowner costs $1,704
  • Family income growth 1999-2015 – 78.2%
  • Percentage of families with at least one child under 18 – 49.7%
  • Median family income – $98,317
  • Percentage of families in poverty with a child under 5 years – 0

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

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People’s Market Coming to Dilworth

Dilworth is about to have a new coffee shop/market/deli/bakery/casual eatery. People’s Market is about to open and hopes to become a neighborhood hub. From your morning coffee to  a nightcap in the evening, People’s Market has you covered starting on October 31st.

People’s Market is partnering with Charlotte Coffee Company. They will provide coffee, cold brew, and espresso behind the bar. Many other local and regional coffee vendors will be represented on the retail side of the store. There will be spaces to work along with WiFi and workstations as well as conversation areas for meeting with clients.

Local is the theme at People’s Market and it extends to the beer and wine selections. The bar will have a wide selection of craft beers. They expect to have 10 to 12 taps and a rotating selection of local beers. There will also be a curated selection of beer and wine that you can purchase and take home with you. Along with your beverages, you can also grab prepared meals, snacks, and desserts then head home. If you are looking for a more social outing, you can grab a table and socialize with your neighbors.

On the food front, The People’s Market will be open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. They will feature salads, prepared foods and sandwiches. Local bakeries will provide cake, cookies, and cupcakes. Sweets will also be stocked from King of Pops and Two Scoops Creamery.

A covered patio and fireplace outside will make for a cozy place to hang out at People’s Market. A wide selection of music will tie everything together.

It will be refreshing to have this space at the corner of East Boulevard and Scott Avenue revitalized at last. It has been vacant since April of 2016 following it’s third fire in six years. A sister cocktail bar with small plate foods called The Queen & Glass is scheduled to open next door in late November.

If you are looking in the area for a home, this walkable area of Dilworth can’t be beat. To learn more, give us a call at (704) 525-4045. You can also view current listings on our website here.

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News About City Park

As density moves further away from Uptown Charlotte, a new and exciting project is growing right near Charlotte Douglas International Airport. We told you about the Townhomes at City Park in August. but the development has announced many more additions that will make City Park a true destination.

The major announcement is that a 139-room Aloft Hotel is coming to City Park. The hotel will have 77,000 square feet and should break ground early in 2018 and be completed by the end of that year. The hotel joins Mariott International Residence Inn and a Fairfield Inn & Suites already on the site.

Also planned for the development are two full-service restaurants and two additional eateries. Plans also include a salon and fitness center. Already signed to City Park Village are Panera Bread, Chipotle Mexican Grill, Starbucks Coffee, and Firehouse Subs.

This area at the former site of Charlotte Coliseum off Tyvola Road has been exploding recently. If you want to get in on this area, Ryan Homes has townhomes under construction now. They start from the $230,000’s and are 2 or 3 story. They have 1 or 2 car garages and up to 2,332 square feet. Plans have 3 bedrooms and 2.5 bathrooms and are designed in one of four basic plans. There are many ways to customize the basic plans and plenty of upgrades available.

The townhomes are all part of the 170-acre development adjacent to Renaissance Park. The park is loaded with trails, tennis, beach volleyball, golf, mountain bike riding, and more inside it’s 145 acres. There are also many community amenities planned so you can really have it all in City Park.

The final plan for City Park calls for apartments in addition to the retail, hotels, and townhouses. A newly opened Veterans Affairs health-care center and the new headquarters for Sealed Air Corporation are just down the road.

If you are interested in owning a home in City Park, give us a call at (704) 525-4045. You can also view current listings on our website here.

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Give Your Home a Facelift: Home Improvement Projects for Less Than $500

Editor’s Note: This was originally published on RISMedia’s blog, Housecall. See what else is cookin’ now at blog.rismedia.com:

Home improvement doesn’t have to break the bank. You can freshen up the spaces in your home or investment property with a number of small projects that cost less than $500, and make you feel like you spent a lot more! Here are some basic ideas.

Paint Power
Painting is one of the cheapest and easiest home improvements to make. A fresh coat of paint will make any room look as good as new, which is sure to add value. Choose colors that are popular to give a more modern, up-to-date look, or stick to the neutral classic colors. At around $25 a gallon, paint is an inexpensive way to improve your home’s desirability and is something that just about any homeowner can tackle on their own. While you’re at it, look up—do you have that outdated popcorn ceiling? Scrape that texture away to get rid of the dated looking ceilings.

Borrow Ideas
Instead of hiring a designer who will inevitably give you a lot of expensive ideas, such as tearing down walls or pulling up perfectly good flooring, just copy what others have done. You can find all sorts of ideas in books and magazines and on interior decorating TV shows, Pinterest and other websites. To keep to a tight budget, pick projects that can be completed yourself.

Get an Energy Audit
Take advantage of your utility company’s free energy audits to determine which improvements could save you hundreds (or thousands!) of dollars in utility costs each year. Most local utility companies will come and inspect your house for free, and the improvements are generally going to have some sort of tax rebate. Having an energy-efficient home is a salable improvement, or, if you plan on staying in the home for the long haul, you can put the money saved toward a different home improvement.

Plant a Tree
Landscaping will improve the curb appeal of your home greatly. Trees provide shade to keep the harmful rays of the sun from bleaching out your paint or heating up the inside of the house. Mature landscaping is a huge plus when trying to sell a home and is frequently sought after. When choosing which species or varieties to plant, it is important to take into consideration the water and maintenance requirements of the plants. Purchasing drought-tolerant plants that are slow or moderate growers will save you hours of yard work and money in the long run. Keeping the yard well maintained will help keep the property looking nice and tidy without investing a huge amount of money.

Keep It Clean
Keeping a home clean and clutter-free will leave a good impression. Get rid of the things you don’t need and “travel light.” You’ll be happy if you ever decide to sell the home that you don’t have a bunch of extraneous stuff to haul around with you or decide what to do with when you are in the middle of moving. If you are selling, it’s often difficult to make the house sparkle from top to bottom, so hire a cleaning service to really give the home a thorough cleaning. It’s worth the money.

Fake the Footage
Houses are often analyzed by price per square foot to help determine if it’s a good deal or not, but the feel and layout of the home can make the house appear bigger than it really is. Keeping the rooms light and airy by choosing light paint, furniture and window coverings can create a feeling of extra space. Adding a large mirror can double the room’s size just by creating that mirror image. An uncluttered home will make the space look bigger and more open. Have a big garage sale to get rid of the unnecessary clutter and put that money towards other home improvements.

New Fixtures
Nothing dates a home like old fixtures. Replacing old lights, faucets, door handles, etc. with updated fixtures really can change the look and feel of a home. The cost of fixtures do add up quickly, so shop around and start with rooms that receive the most traffic, such as bathrooms, the family room and kitchen. Updating these core rooms in the home can give you the biggest impact for the money.

These small improvements can make your home more pleasant for everyday living and give you a feeling of confidence when sharing your space with guests. In addition, if you are planning to sell your home, putting the time and money into small improvements can increase the value and pay off big in the end—quite a bit more than $500!

Kaycee Wegener manages marketing and media relations for Rentec Direct and shares industry news, products and trends within the community.

For the latest real estate news and trends, bookmark RISMedia.com.

The post Give Your Home a Facelift: Home Improvement Projects for Less Than $500 appeared first on RISMedia.