Charlotte Parks
If you ever wonder why Charlotte North Carolina is so beautiful just look at our parks. It’s wonderful to see that not all of our city is taken up by Real Estate and that’s difficult for me to say considering I’m a Realtor. Colonel Francis Beatty Park is located in Southeast Charlotte and has some of the best areas to enjoy. There’s a lake for boating, several ball fields and biking trails. There’s a great park located on Pineville Matthews road between Rea and Providence roads that is so great (Davies Park). Nestled among fine homes this park has several soccer fields and plenty of areas to enjoy. The recently added dog park in Davies are some of the best, with a large dog area that is over 3 acres!
Our Greenway system is continually being expanded and has become extremely popular with walkers, bikers, runners, and others. I guess that I’m just spoiled here!
Relocating to Charlotte - FAQs
When I speak with new clients, the most often asked question is, “Where should I live?” Well, that depends on your needs. If you have school age children you need to be considering the best schools. As a parent that moved here over 26 years ago my research was limited. Now I would go to NCReportCards.org and schoolmatters.com. In addition, for Charlotte North Carolina schools, you can go to CMS.K12.NC.US. My clients have used these sites and find them to be worthwhile. We were lucky that in spite of not having accessible data we landed in the better school zones. Our children are grown, out of grad school with outstanding careers here in Charlotte.
So what else is important in order to find that great home in that perfect community? Selecting that right Realtor that cares more about your success happiness than the income they will receive. E-mail me with your questions and concerns on these two very important topics and I’ll elaborate. I can be reached at Irv@TopCharlotteAgent.com
Google Maps Street View
Go to Google maps and put in your home address and then click the Street View tab. I did mine and it was unnerving how the feel of my street came through as I panned around the cul-de-sac. We have been looking into how to incorporate googlemaps into our site as we have found it very useful. I was reading an article in my monthly Realtor magazine and thought this would be cool to check out. It currently covers 40 cities and I haven’t been able to spend the time to see if this includes the suburbs as well, but what an incredible tool for home buyers relocating from somewhere else. For the first time our buyer clients will be able to get a feel for not just an individual home, but the surrounding streetscape. Lynn, our web guru says it creeps her out. She’s sending a link to her parents who don’t like the idea of big brother looking over their shoulder-better watch out he’s here!
Charlotte Housing Market Update May '08
Is it a buyers market or sellers market? The most often asked question is this a good time to buy or sell Real Estate in Charlotte North Carolina? That depends on who you are. As of May 08 we have 2386 sold in May with an average of 91 days on the market. I’d say that’s back to normal for this agent.
If I’m a seller I need to price my home aggressively. I need to know that there are other homes in Charlotte that are doing the same. I have to be well presented both inside and out so that when someone is looking for homes for sale in Charlotte they will see the very best. As the inventory begins to dwindle in Charlotte North Carolina it will quickly become evident that the market has swung to the seller.
Some sellers believe that many Realtors like a quick turn and therefore we price our homes too low. Well this Top Charlotte Agent believes that you have to price it correct and it will sell. The true market value of a home in Charlotte is set by the buyer and not anyone else. I want my clients to get the most for their home, in the lease amount of time and with the least amount of effort. I’ve been representing clients for 18 years in the greater Charlotte North Carolina area and I clearly understand the importance of pricing it right and presenting and marketing it well.
Our housing market reports page offers several market reports on various real estate areas of Charlotte.
Does anyone have any experiences both good and bad that they would like to share?
What Makes Charlotte So Great?
Here’s what makes Charlotte so great. I’ve just come back from a cruise and I still feel that I’m on vacation. Yes that sounds so corny but it’s true! Why? It’s the ease of flying into Charlotte at Douglas International Airport and the ease of driving home. O.K. so that’s one small part of what makes us so great. Charlotte is green, clean and beautiful. If you want to get uptown to an event or dinner it’s easy in and easy out. We have the best of hospitals and a great climate. Speaking about our climate lets examine our work climate. One of the main reasons The Charlotte area continues to out pace the rest of the nation is the opportunity to find employment.
The Charlotte housing market continues to out pace the rest of the nation. What would $300,000 buy you if you lived in New York, Chicago or L.A.?
If you’re interested in knowing more of what I think about living in Charlotte please e-mail me at Irv@TopCharllotteAgent.com. If you have some comments I’d like to hear from you too.
Charlotte - America’s # 1 Place to Live
Charlotte has been voted America’s #1 city to live in by Relocate-America.com I’ve been here since 1995, and have been visiting regularly since the early 80’s. I would never have imagined that there would be so much to do in my adopted hometown, while at the same time keeping the small town feel and relative affordability to other areas. Check out the links below and let me know what you think? Agreement/Disagreement/Comments???
I moved here 13 years ago with no job and a couch to sleep on in my aunt & uncle’s house. Now I am raising a family and running a successful business in what is in my opinion the best city in America!
Newcomers Of The Week
Many people in Charlotte and around the country are realizing that there are opportunities to be had in Real Estate. It’s funny that so many folks seem to forget the old adage buy low-sell high! It applies in stocks, real estate, or whatever. We had two of our clients (see featured article from the Charlotte Observer) who took advantage of a seller who was willing to sell the house below market value in order to get their equity out. Our clients will have to put in some cosmetic repairs and spruce the place up, but at the end of the day they were able to buy the house cheaper than most of their neighbors. With solid schools and a great location this was a great opportunity. Many people are beginning to ask themselves how long will these deals remain on the table from motivated sellers and homebuilders looking to get rid of excess inventory. Centex homes recently had a one weekend blowout event to reduce the inventory of completed homes. It worked and they have a much smaller number of available homes and their prices have been restored to the previous levels. If you didn’t buy that weekend you might have missed an opportunity. I don’t have a crystal ball - if I did I would be in Vegas knowing when to bet it all on black 17 - but I do know that the way to make money in America still involves the concept of buy low-sell high. (A correction for the article - the Stallsworth’s bought in Indian Trail)
Charlotte Real Estate Rises in Value
Real Estate is local in nature - what happens in one market doesn’t necessarily have any bearing on what happens in another market. See the links below-one describes the whole country and one describes Charlotte. Our market never got superheated, so we haven’t had a crash. We still have companies moving jobs here and local companies expanding - that means more people, therefore, more housing.
Myrtle Beach Golf Trip
This past weekend I went down to Myrtle Beach for my annual golf trip with my fraternity brothers from NC State. It was our 18th year and it was as always lots of fun. We go on a package deal which includes 3 rounds of golf, lodging at condos at Ocean Creek, and breakfast each day. We played one round early at the Surf Club in N Myrtle Beach and then played Grande Dunes and TPC Myrtle Beach in Murrels Inlet. It is an easy drive from Charlotte to the Grand Strand and there are several different ways to go depending on your preference. The roads between Charlotte and Myrtle Beach improve each year and over time we’ve found our drive times reduced. There is lots more to do in Myrtle Beach other than golf so there is never a dull moment.
Helen Obtains Senior Real Estate Specialist Designation
Helen Sztarkman, a member of the Schwebel & Associates team with Prudential Carolinas Realty has been awarded the Seniors Real Estate Specialist (SRES®) designation by the Seniors Real Estate Specialist Council of the NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS® (NAR).
Helen Sztarkman joins more than 16,000 real estate professionals in North America who have earned the SRES® designation. All were required to successfully complete a comprehensive course in understanding the needs, considerations, and goals of real estate buyers and sellers aged 55 and older. The SRES Council, founded in 2007, is the world’s largest association of real estate professionals focusing specifically on representing senior clients in real estate transactions. There are more than 16,000 active members of the organization world-wide. The NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®, “The Voice for Real Estate,” is America’s largest trade association, representing more than 1.3 million members involved in all aspects of the residential and commercial real estate industries.
