Sunday, April 26, 2009

Charlotte Condos - Charlotte Townhomes

Charlotte Condos for Sale experienced explosive growth over that past several years. The main area of growth was in uptown Charlotte NC. Charlotte planning realized that a great city needs to keep the uptown workers close to town to aide the local economy. Charlotte observed that other cities lost economic activity at night when the workers went home to the suburbs. Center City Charlotte made great strides so that uptown Charlotte remained vibrant after dark. Charlotte began by attracting entertainment venues into the city. This included the arena, the football stadium and various other venues such as the Nascar Museum. The restaurants and night clubs followed suit as did the young professionals. Charlotte Condos began to thrive as the national excitement grew about Charlotte Real Estate.

Today the market has cooled due to the national economy. Crisis means opportunity! There are currently a great deal of Charlotte Condos being sold at lower prices than new! This is a fantastic deal since Charlotte will inevitably continue to grow. How can you really tell that Charlotte will continue to grow? Talk to people. Do not just follow the media like sheep but speak to people who actually live here. Ask them what they think. Ask them if they have family or friends relocating to Charlotte in the future. Just ask.

You will find that the growth in Charlotte is not due to the media but by real people visiting and realizing how nice it is to live here. You will discover this also. I would hope you question every resource. The best way to gain an impression of an area is to speak to someone who is thinking like you but a few years ahead (they already moved). Do not stop at just one person. Ask people at breakfast, out shopping, or in a coffee shop. You will quickly realize what is happening as Charlotte Homes for Sale continue to multiply!  The time to buy a Charlotte home is today! The prices are only going up along with the interest rates.

Monday, April 20, 2009

Charlotte NC Home Tax Values

Many people continue to get mired in the "Assessed tax value" of Charlotte Real Estate. North Carolina and South Carolina Real Estate is assessed every four to eight years and each county decides when to assess. The assessments are all made together as a "mass assessment". This means they compare like properties in a very general sense by type of home, heated living area and garage. It is a little more detailed but not much. For example, if you have a home that is in extreme disrepair compared to one that is completely updated, it is likely that they will have the same assessed value if they are similar in square footage and in the same neighborhood. Do they really have the same market value? Of course not. Does te owner of the run down home realize that his home was over assessed? Typically not because he is delighted that his home is worth more than he thought.

Next consider time. What were the prices in the neighborhood four or five years ago? The only reason it matters is because you can see if the neighborhood is generally trending upward or downward since last property tax assessment. Here is a good way to elate to this issue:

Consider the Dow Jones Industrial Average. If you were purchasing a share of the DOW, would it really matter what it was worth four or five years ago? All that would tell you is that the value has appreciated or depreciated since then. That trend may change but you at least can use the history as a guide. Would you expect to pay the price of the stock four or five years ago or would you expect to pay current market value? Charlotte homes are the same.

How do you assess current market value? Market value is determined by what the market eill support. The best indicator is how much has a ready, willing and able buyer pay for a similar home today. We look back three months to help determine market value.

Visit Charlotte NC Homes for Sale to learn more about the greater Charlotte Real Estate region.

Sunday, April 12, 2009

Charlotte Builders Continue to Merge

Two national builders merged this past week. Pulte, the owner of Del Webb Senior Communities and Sun City Carolina Lakes south of Charlotte Real Estate, has purchased/merged with Centex. Centex Home Builders was based out of Texas and had large land holdings in both Texas and the Carolinas. This was appealing to Pulte based on the demographic trends and the baby boomers. New Homes nation wide and especially the Charlotte new homes market will flourish with senior homes.

Pulte homes tended to focus more on seniors and I am certain they will continue on this successful business plan as lending rules constrict. As lending rules tighten (or actually just become practical and cost effective) who has equity, credit and money? Seniors! It will be prudent to structure developments to cater to the seniors as they retire and continue to move south for lower taxes, less expensive homes and a warmer climate.

Centex was building new developments and were riding the trend of larger and larger homes. As credit tightened, much of their market could not sell their homes out-of-state and business slowed. Pulte capitalized on this opportunity. Every crisis provides opportunity for those positioned well for the current trends and demands. Pulte Homes is that company.

Visit Charlotte NC Homes for Sale to learn about the great Charlotte Real Estate Opportunities. Yes, our market has slowed due to the national downturn. but it is still the best place to buy a home. People all around the nation have the desire to relocate to Charlotte Real Estate just to not have the financial liquidity to capitalize on the current opportunity. Be assured their plans have not changed; merely placed on a temporary hold. The opportunities of today will be gone very soon. If you are fortunate enough to capitalize on this financial downturn, Charlotte NC Real Estate awaits.