Charlotte Real Estate

Charlotte in the News

2008-05-30T14:12:00.002-05:00

Charlotte is at the top of the charts when it comes to Real Estate. Unlike the majority of the markets in the nation, Charlotte has continued to see slow, but steady growth and an increase in home prices. Relocate-America.com made Charlotte #1 on their list: "Top 10 Best Places to Live in 2008".

A big reason for our growth is the banking industry and their tendency to hire recent college graduates. Bizjournals.com put together a great article with a list of "Best Metros for Young Adults".

New Year, New Job, New VUE

2008-02-07T14:29:00.000-05:00

I have been fortunate enough to land a great position as a sales associate for The VUE in Charlotte, NC. This is a 51-story luxury high rise in Uptown Charlotte. Located in 4th ward, it is geared towards individuals who enjoy high-end living and want to be within walking distance of all the amenities that Uptown Charlotte has to offer.

The Vue’s Fourth Ward location is within walking distance of a multitude of fine-dining restaurants, a fantastic array of nightlife, performing arts theatres, Bobcats Basketball arena, the Bank of America Panther’s Stadium, and the proposed minor league baseball stadium. Best of all, if you work uptown, you can walk there as well.

The VUE offers Studios, 1 bedroom Lofts, 2 bedroom Flats, 3 bedroom Flats, and Penthouse Units. The square footage range is 571 to 3,000+ and prices range from $319,900-$2,189,900.

Everything standard in The VUE is considered an upgrade in most other condo developments. Ceiling heights range from 9 feet to 18+ feet. Living areas will have your choice of hardwood floors and your choice of luxury carpeting in the bedrooms. 6-12” of poured concrete between each unit and acoustical treatment between floors will make you feel as if you’re the only one home in the whole building. At The VUE it won’t be necessary to buy any appliances as we have supplied them all for you: GE Profile Stainless Steel in standard units and Thermadore stainless steel appliances in premium corner and penthouse units. Your choice of granite countertop and designer wood cabinetry finishes out the magnificent kitchen. Your bathroom will also have the granite and cabinet selections you have made and you’ll get to compliment your selection with your choice of marble/ceramic tile floors. Some units will feature the infinity bathtub, some the soaking tub and others will offer the bathtub and shower combo.

The building itself offers many amenities. For peace of mind, The VUE features secure residential parking with biometric fingerprint access, a beautifully decorated lobby with a 24-hour doorman and concierge service, and a pet park on the outdoor amenities deck so you don’t have to go to street level. If entertaining is more important to you, the VUE offers a state of the art media room for entertaining guests or simply enjoying the movie experience without leaving your building, a wine vault for your most prized bottles, and Club VUE which will have plasma screens, pool tables, dart boards, an unmanned bar, and common seating. Looking to maintain your physique? The VUE caters to you as well by offering a 4,000 square foot health club with state of the art equipment and a yoga room, as well as the outdoor amenities deck with 25-yard heated swimming pool and tennis/basketball courts.

For more information on The Vue (www.vuecharlotte.com), please do not hesitate to call or email me. (980)254-1454/lew1230@gmail.com

Uptown Magazine Article

2007-04-17T08:26:00.000-05:00

Uptown, Charlotte's premier magazine for UPTOWN and the surrounding neighborhoods, has a great article this month reviewing some of the new condo developments.

It covers Uptown: 210 Trade, The Lofts @ Warehouse:3, 1st Row Warehouse, Courtside, 701 North Church, Fifth & Poplar, The Avenue, Frederick Place, Citadin, Garden District Row, The Garrison at Graham, SkyBridge Terrace, Lela Court Townhomes, Walnut Hill, The Park, The Quad at Quarterside, The Row at Quarterside, The Ledge at Quarterside, TradeMark, Celadon, The Metropolitan , The Trust , Uptown Village , The Vue Charlotte, and Bloc 90 .

SouthEnd: 1315 East, 3030 South,The Arlington, Southborough, Royal Court, The Block at Church Street, Park Avenue Plaza, Preston Flats, The Tremont.

NoDa or The Arts District: 28th Row, NoDa 18, Steel Gardens, The Renaissance, Royal Truss, 35th and McDowell.

Midwood: Seigle Point, Central 27 , The Vyne, SteelHaus, Plaza Vu, Cedar Gables.

Elizabeth: Elizabeth Court, Laurel Ridge, Ordermore 8, Woodstone of Elizabeth (no website), Avondale Square (no website).

I have visited the majority of these developments in past blogs, so be sure to check the archive for more information on these and also visit www.uptownclt.com.

I believe that one of the above developments needs more attention here because of the preservation component. Royal Truss is going to be an awesome development located in the existing Royal Manufacturing Building. What stands out most in this building is the curved, wood-slat ceiling that ranges from 9 feet to 20 feet, but the roll up doors are an exciting feature as well. There will be a total of 24 units ranging from 1025 sq. ft. to 1098 sq. ft. and prices ranging from $225,000-$232,500.

Eating Little Debbies Naked

2007-04-05T16:01:00.000-05:00

Bloc90 (www.bloc90.com) is a new Tuscan Development condo complex at 15th Street and North Davidson Street. It's going where the big purple Urban Storage is currently and tonight is the Grand Opening Event. Little Debbies come into play because they will be serving these at this evening's event and the Naked is in reference to one of their biggest selling points -- Naked Flats. Tuscan will be offering five 650 sq. ft. condos completely unfinished: no cabinets, fixtures, or floorings. In addition to these five 650 sq. ft. units offered at $100k will be 25 742 sq. ft. one-bedroom units and 60 1050 sq. ft. two-bedroom units ($150,000-$220,000)with a projected move in date of spring 2008. Bloc90 will offer skyline views, a large deck between the two buildings, exposed ductwork, and a location super close to uptown.

Tuscan is known for their Opt12 and Duncan Gardens developments which are also in the Optimist Park area of town.

The Townhomes at Seigle Point (www.seiglepoint.com) are going FAST! This site at 10th Street and Seigle used to be low-income housing, but was demolished last year to make way for condos, townhomes, and apartments. A big part of this development was making sure that residents of the old Piedmont Courts would have a fair opportunity to purchase one of the residential units by allocating some affordable townhomes and condos. Fifty 3 bedroom units are approximately 1,195 sq. ft. and will range from $140,000 to $200,000s. Move in is estimated for early 2008.

Wesley Heights: Sky's the Limit, make that SkyLine's the Limit

2007-03-26T08:57:00.000-05:00

Nestled in behind I-277, amongst mature trees and beautiful homes is a neighborhood called Wesley Heights. This tree lined neighborhood is home to classic bungalow style homes, a view you can't beat, and an even better location with quick access to I-277, I-77 and Uptown.

Walnut Hill – www.walnuthillcondos.com A 40 unit development consisting of 2 & 3 bedroom/ 2-3.5 bathroom Towhomes & Flats ranging from approx. 980 sq. ft to 1,500 sq. ft. Prices start in the low $200,000. Units offer attached garages and upgrades including granite countertops, surround sound,

Celadon – www.celadongreenway.com People love trees because they offer shade and privacy so the green surrounding these beauties makes this project stand out from others. The other plus is that these are the first condos in Charlotte to offer real “green” features such as light-reflective roof technology, and energy efficient appliances. This development will have 24 one, two and three bedroom units between 900 and 2,000+ sq. ft. and will run from the mid-$200k to mid-$400k. The modern-minimalist is cutting edge design for Charlotte, the kitchens will be Italian gourmet and can we say “om” for the master suites?

Summit Greenway – www.summitgreenway.com 12 townhouse-like condos, with prices from $179k to $259k. 1 car garages, approved by the historic commission, and the most incredible skyline views are just a few of the perks in this development.

Condo Update

2007-02-21T12:21:00.000-05:00

SOUTHEND and UPTOWN
The Boulevard Company has three developments underway, two of which will be on the South Boulevard/Light Rail corridor and the third in 3rd Ward Uptown. These are going to be a bit different from other recent developments in that they are going to be no more than three stories tall.

The 3rd Ward development will be between Sycamore Street and North Irwin Avenue. It will consist of about 50 residential units, some offices and possible retail.

The South Boulevard developments will be at the corner of South Church and West Bland and one at the corner of South Church and West Summit. There could be up to 140 townhomes built at the Bland location and the Summit location will have a mix use including residential, retail, showrooms, offices, and restaurants.

In uptown there could be a new condo development built on the parking deck beside the Westin hotel. The development will add more levels of parking and 90 condo units averaging around $1,000,000.

NoDa
Watch out NoDa, big changes are about to occur! Gateway Homes has planned a 620-unit development at 400 E. 33rd Street. The first phase will have around 400 units, half of which will be condos and the other half apartments. The building will be four stories and there will be a pool and fitness center. Unit square footage will range from 800-2,000. The second phase will have a 10 story tower and depending on demand will be condos or apartments or a mix of both.

COTSWOLD
Rosewood, a 134 units development is changing the face of Cotswold. Units range from $500,000 to $1,088,000 and over half of the units have already sold! What makes the development stand out from the rest is the façade, which was modeled after the Biltmore Estate architecture. Rosewood is located at the corner of Sharon Amity and Providence Road. The units have 10 foot ceilings and the development offers concierge and laundry service a putting green and gourmet coffee bar. Residents can expect to move in by June of this year.

BREAKING NEWS

2007-01-03T16:06:00.000-05:00

I must have been a very good girl this year because Santa has granted my wish. Better late than never. IKEA might be coming to town. For those of you who are unfamiliar with IKEA, please visit their site at www.ikea.com. IKEA is an international affordable, trendy, disposable furniture store where everything is flatboxed which makes for easy moving. It is a destination store and normally a day trip with a Swedish Restaurant for when you get hungry. For years now, people in the south have been traveling north with rented Uhauls to DC where the closest IKEA was, but in 2005 IKEA opened a store in Atlanta which cut the Uhaul mileage in half. The proposed location of the new IKEA is at the intersection of I-85 and City Blvd. Fingers crossed that this will happen. I will keep you posted.

New Year : New Condos

2007-01-02T10:42:00.000-05:00

I was en route to my New Years destination on I-277 (the loop that goes around Uptown) and all I could think about was how drastically the skyline will be in five years. The skyline I knew as a child is no longer: the office buildings have grown taller, sometimes playing in the clouds; the Panthers Stadium is beautiful and was a catalyst to much of Charlotte's recent growth; the Bobcats Arena symbolizes our growth and potential as a destination for big name bands and concerts; and our new Imaginon Children's Museum shows our dedication to teaching Charlotte's newest generations. Coming soon: the NASCAR Plaza and NASCAR Hall of Fame! Growth and change can be exciting and scary all at the same time. I know that as a Realtor and as a native Charlottean that I and most people I interact with are very excited about the impending condo developments in Uptown Charlotte. I just hope that we will be able to maintain our small city feel as far as politeness and caring goes because I know that it is the people of Charlotte that makes this city so special.

Instead of updating my original list of condos with website links I've decided New Year:New List.

The Gardens: 22- unit luxury townhomes starting at $750,000. Located at the corner of Wendover Road and Wendwood Lane. Completion is set for Fall 2008.
Poindexter Village: Light Rail Development sure to get your blood flowing. At South Blvd and Remount Road, this complex will be home to 1,000 residential condos, a hotel, 50,000 sq. ft. of office space, and 35,000 sq. ft. of retail space. Built for the young and young at heart you are going to find a park for concerts and playing, a fitness center, a spa, and a climbing wall plus more yet to be revealed. This could become over 20 acres of pure fun living set to open it's first phase in summer of 2008.
Laurel Ridge: Located at Randolf and Laurel in the much sought after Elizabeth Neighborhood, this development by David Furman has only 12 units remaining. These remaining units range from $300k to $400k. Find out more about all of the incredible amenities and available floorplans at www.theboulevardcompany.com
Cedar Gables: (www.cedargablesmidwood.com) Only eight units, but they start in the mid $200,000s and are in an awesome location close to uptown. Each unit has a one car garage, bamboo flooring, and custom granite.
Concourse: A David Furman Development located right next to the Bobcats Arena. This development will be a 25 story hotel/condo with 117 condos and 155 hotel suites with a completion date of Spring 2009. Prices will range from $180k to $300k with sizes ranging from 660 sq. ft. to 1,400 sq. ft. The penthouses (1,300 sq. ft. to 1,400 sq. ft.) will run about $700k. This is a unique development b/c residents will be able to use the hotel amenities such as the pool, meeting rooms, and gym. Also unique: each unit will be equipped with a refrigerator, washer/dryer AND a flat screen television! (www.blvdcentro.com/concourse)

Developments to keep an eye on:

-97-unit condo development with units ranging in size from 750 sq. ft. to 1,500 sq. ft. and a completion date of winter 2008. Four story building located at Marsh and Park road.

Please feel free to contact me if you would like anymore information on any of the preceding condo developments.

New Plaza Condos Announced

2006-10-18T11:08:00.000-05:00

Plaza-Vu will be located at the intersection of Plaza Rd and McClintock Road. It will consist of 36 condos starting at 800+ sq. ft. and prices starting in the $190,000s. You will be able to walk to the Harris Teeter, The Penguin, The Common Market, Thomas Street Tavern, Fuel Pizza, Dish, Lotus, etc. Plaza is a hot neighborhood located in east Charlotte that was established in the 1920s as a streetcar suburb. It is super close to Uptown and is surrounded by Midwood, NoDa (The Arts District), and Elizabeth neighborhoods.

Fat City Lofts!

2006-10-10T14:25:00.000-05:00

Fat City Deli and Bar used to be a super fun place to hang out at on a Saturday. They would have live music, great food, beer aplenty, and sometimes a little flea market. Well, Fat City shut down about 2-3 years ago and has been sorely missed ever since. The building still stands with the graffiti art intact, but windows have been broken, and it honestly just looks a little sad. New life is about to be put back into this NoDa landmark by way of a multi-use development which will actually incorporate the existing facade of Fat City! This development was announced in the Charlotte Observer on Oct. 10 and much excitement has ensued. There will be 26 condos ranging from 700 to 2,000 sq. ft. and prices starting in the low $150,000s to $400,000s. There will also be approximately 8,000 sq. ft. of street level retail which is becoming a staple in NoDa developments. The project is expected to be completed late 2007. Please feel free to contact me for more information lew1230@gmail.com.

NoDa is definitely one of the hottest places in Charlotte to live. During the early 1900s it was a cotton mill powerhouse and many of the mill houses and a few of the mills have survived to this day and are currently being renovated and rehabbed if they haven't been already. There are many condo developments and apartment complexes catering to the first time home buyers and artists alike. Every 1st and 3rd Friday there is a gallery crawl where people mill through the streets checking out the work of local artists while sipping on wine. Many of these spectators dine at one of the fantastic eating establishments such as Cabo Fish Taco, Boudreaux's Louisiana Kitchen, or Addie's Jamaican Cuisine after dancing to the rhythms of the drum circle and taking in the magic of the fire performers. Almost every weekend night and often during the week there are live performances at the Neighborhood Theatre or The Evening Muse...think bluegrass, undergrass, folk, indie-rock, jam bands. There is a bar for everyone in NoDa: Doggie Bar, Wine Bar, Pool Hall, and of course the infamous Mellow Mushroom Bar with their wide variety of beers on tap.

Need Room to Grow???

2006-10-05T08:59:00.000-05:00

Do you have between one and three million dollars? If so, then you could be calling the corner of 4th and South Tryon your new home. The Trust is a one of a kind condo development in Uptown Charlotte catering to the very wealthy in search of penthouse-style living. Imagine luxury at it's finest. There are only 8 units in this development ranging from 3200 sq. ft. to 7000 sq. ft. This means your home is an entire floor or half of a floor, all with sliding glass walls to let the outdoors in. Private elevators open into each unit (I can't help but think about the movie 'Big' with Tom Hanks). The top of the line kitchen will include Viking Designer Series appliances and imported granite countertops. A wine vault and private dining room will be built in the building's original bank vault for entertaining. The Rooftop terrace amenities will include a putting green, fire pit, and an outdoor kitchen. The Trust is not new construction, but a conversion of the Modernist Era Home Federal Savings and Loan Building which was built in 1967.

If Uptown living isn't your cup of tea, then maybe you should consider the recently announced multi-use development in SouthPark. SouthPark is second to Uptown in regards to the number of workers, so it was quite a surprise when LNR Property Corporation out of Florida decided to do a multi-use development with plenty of residential units as opposed to an office building. The development, to be called South Fair Plaza, will be located off of the 6000 and 6100 blocks on Fairview Road and will consist of retail, hotel rooms, and residential condos. I will post more information as it becomes available.

Light Rail in Charlotte

2006-10-03T13:24:00.000-05:00

Why NOW is the time to invest in the Center City, South End, New Bern/Tyvola, and South Charlotte areas. The LYNX Blue Line is going to run parallel to South Blvd with multiple stops in each of these areas and it is scheduled to open in Fall of 2007. This will be Charlotte's first mass transit system besides the CATS bus system and it has everyone talking. South Boulevard is going to be one of Charlotte's newest hotspots. Dilworth and Wilmore are already there, now we should start seeing the same type of growth and appreciation trickling southward.

Some developers caught wind of the light rail before others and are sitting pretty on land surrounding the light rail. One such developer is BlueSky Partners, LLC. They plan on building a multi-use complex composed of four buildings that will gradually decrease in height to blend in better with the pre-existing Dilworth neighborhood. I think this is an awesome concept and I hope they get the rezoning for this project. If they succeed it will bring almost 200 new loft-style condos to the area with prices projected to start in the low $130,000s for a 472 sq. ft. condo (please see first Blog entry). Look for these to start pre-selling in early 2007 with a completion in late 2008.

Crosland, Inc. has a nice 35 acres near one of the planned light-rail stations so we can expect to hear some plans for this property as well. Whatever they decide to do, we can count on one thing, it won't be another Arlington (Big Pink Building). Dilworth residents don't mess around when it comes to their neighborhood. They want to keep the quaint, tree lined streets with 1940s and 1950s bungalows looking the same. No eye-sores here.

Even Lowe's hardware had to agree to build residential condos around it's new location on South Boulevard to buffer it from the pre-existing homes in Dilworth.

The Wilmore side of South Boulevard will probably be more prone to larger scale condo/multi-use developments, but no word yet on what is to come. I'll keep my ear to the ground and keep you posted.

This city never ceases to amaze me. I love the confluence of the new and the old. My great-great-grandparents had two homes in Dilworth, both on Kenilworth, and they would be astonished at all of the development that is popping up just blocks from their homes. Keeping the old, historic neighborhoods is important and growth is inevitable, hopefully we'll see very tasteful new construction that compliments these historic neighborhoods.

New Condo/Townhome Information

2006-09-25T12:37:00.002-05:00

I realize that everyone and their mom knows about the condo boom in Charlotte, NC, but I wanted to give you a list of some of the more popular condo projects going on at this time. I tried to include as many website links as I could find. I'll try and keep this list updated. Beware of 500 sq. ft. condos!

Park Avenue Plaza (www.parkavenuecharlotte.com)

The Tremont (www.tremontcharlotte.com)

Steelhaus (www.thesteelhaus.com)

Southborough (no website yet)

Central 27 (www.central27.com)

Steel Gardens (www.steelgardens.com)

28th Row (www.28throw.com)

Elizabeth Court (www.elizabethcourt.net)
Woodstone of Elizabeth (no website yet)

Laurel Ridge (http://www.theboulevardcompany.com/properties_laurel_ridge2.shtml)
Connelly on Churchill (no website yet)

Eastover Place (no website yet)
Rosewood at Providence (www.rosewoodcondos.com)
Royal Court (no website yet)

Piedmont Row (http://www.crescent-resources.com/condos/piedmontrow/default.asp)
Lombardy Green (no website yet)

Parkwood Knoll (www.parkwoodknoll.com)

Dilworth at Lexington (http://www.kontoulasbuilders.com/properties.html)

420 Queens (www.420queens.com)

Queens Six Two Six (www.queenssixtwosix.com)

Roswell Place (http://www.bissellhayes.com/RoswellPlace/index.html)

The Croydon (www.thecroydon.com)

The Lofts at Morrison (www.theloftsatmorrison.com)

Oakleaf (http://www.bissellhayes.com/oakleaf/index.html)

Lofts Dilworth (www.loftsdilworth.com)

The Abbott (www.theabbotttownhomes.com)

Courtside (http://www.blvdcentro.com/courtside.htm)

M Street (http://www.blvdcentro.com/mstreet/mstreet.htm)

1st Row Warehouse (www.firstrowwarehouse.com)

The Park (www.theparkcondos.net)

Luxury Lofts (www.warehouse3.com)

230 South Tryon (www.230southtryon.com)

Trademark (http://www.trademarkcentro.com/trademark/)

Court 6 (http://www.blvdcentro.com/court6/court6.htm)

Citadin (www.citadinliving.com)

The Ledge (http://www.blvdcentro.com/ledge/ledge.htm)

The Quad (http://www.blvdcentro.com/quarterside/quad/quad.htm)

Avenue Condominiums (www.avenueuptown.com)

701 North Church (no website yet)

Condo vs Townhome

2006-09-19T13:47:00.000-05:00

Being the eighth generation Charlottean that I am, and having lived here all of my life, I have to say that I am very excited about the growth of Charlotte. The depressing downtown that I knew as a child has grown into a vibrant and ever growing high-end Uptown! New condo developments, new retail and entertainment developments, and new business arrivals seem to be announced on a daily basis. This beautiful boom plus the pending Light-Rail System is really going to put Charlotte on the map. We are a young city with lots of room to grow. I can't wait to see what the future has in store for us.

Let's talk about the difference between a condo and a townhome. A townhome owns the land it sits on, a condo owns a percentage of the common area. A townhome has it's own "roof" while a condo does not. Both normally have HOA's that help pay for maintenance of the grounds and the common areas.

Pet Peeve of the Day -- Buyers and Sellers who do not read the Offer to Purchase in full. It is a five page document; it is not a novel. Please read every word, especially before you sign. I will even read it outloud to you. By doing this you will be amazed at how much you will learn and you might even come up with a question or concern. In today's day and age these contracts are changing on fairly constant basis anyways, so the contract you "read" five years ago when you purchased your first home is NOT the same contract you are about to put your John Hancock on. Buyers and Sellers BEWARE.