“Everyone’s moving to Charlotte,” said Jason Gentry, managing broker of Premier Sotheby’s International Realty in Charlotte. With a price growth of 5% – 7% y/y, low state taxes and mild weather, what’s not to like?
Luxury real estate is seeing even more interest. According to Reed Jackson of Ivester Jackson Distinctive Properties in Charlotte, an affiliate of Christie’s International prices are growing with it. “(Buyers) get more in Queen City…” with luxury pricing starting at $700,000 and capping at approximately $7M to $8M.
Gentry believes luxury pricing is more in the range of $3M to $3.5M.
Business is now considered to be Charlotte’s middle name with everything from Fortune 500 companies to mom-and-pop enterprises. It has the third biggest banking industry in the US, behind NYC and San Francisco. Wells Fargo and Bank of America are headquartered in Charlotte. Honeywell is relocating from New Jersey and LendingTree is expanding its already established headquarters in Charlotte. And American Airlines has its hub at Douglas International Airport.
Charlotte’s housing markets reflect the same heterogeneity as its business environment. Its Q4 average sale price was $286,794 with a home price growth rate of +6.4% in 2017, according to the Charlotte Regional Realtor Association.
Mid-range homes are reportedly selling briskly while the sales pace of luxury homes is a bit slower but still growing. Two hundred luxury homes sold in 2018 (Charlotte Regional Realtor Association) compared with 140 luxury homes being sold in 2017.
Gentry said, “There’s a lot of value here….Not only is it a big small town where you can go almost anywhere and run into people you know… you spend $2M to $3M on a home that would cost $6M to $10M in other metropolitan areas.”
Jackson of Ivestor Jackson agreed. “Long term, (Charlotte) is a great investment.”
