Allen Tate Realtors^®   recently launched an excellent ad campaign, including a television commercial which emphasizes that, just as the weather is local, so is the real estate market.  It starts with a weather forecaster saying, "It's -10 degrees and snowing EVERYWHERE!"   Doesn't make sense does it?  They go on to say that real estate is similar, and that the Charlotte market is local, and different.  

  SNOW FORECAST FOR CHARLOTTE IS WRONG!

Very true.  While numbers of sales are down slightly, and days on market is a bit longer, Charlotte has bucked the national trend by actually posting a 1.8% increase in sales price for the month of January.  The highest in the nation, and the only major metro area posting an increase at all.

What makes Charlotte different?  Well, we had fewer investors over the last 5 years over inflating our markets.  While many metropolitan areas had it's share of  "flippers" who sent their markets into meteoric rises, we were taking the slow and steady route.  So we did not have the large bubble to burst.  While many of us in the business were a bit envious of the increases in other markets over the last several years, most of us are now grateful we did not indulge in that experience.  Sellers are definitely happier.

The local homebuilder's association has also done an excellent job in managing our new homes market, which helps the resale market maintain prices as well.  They observed what was happening around the country and prepared our market by cutting back on land acquisitions, holding permits to a minimum, and also thinning their overhead not just in employees but with construction costs, as much as possible.  This has kept the market from having a glut of new homes sitting, effectively managing the supply vs. demand. My hats off to them!

  The Homebuilder's Association of Charlotte has also launched an incredible marketing tool to educate buyers and sellers about our local market.   It is called, "Charlotte Between The Lines," and offers statistics and expert real estate forecasters who study our market intensively, as well as the national markets.  If you have clients who are moving to Charlotte, I highly encourage you to forward this site to them, and also to a REALTOR^® , like myself ;-) , who understands our market.  My e-mail is Lori@BeeRealty.com .

As REALTORS^®  and homebuilders partner together to educate buyers and sellers about local market conditions, I forecast a bright future here in Charlotte.  Do I think we will remain immune to the national market? Certainly not, as we honestly have already been impacted a bit.  But if we allow consumers to believe the national media "knows everything everywhere," well, we allow "perception to become reality." We here in Charlotte are fighting back, and helping buyers to realize, it truely is "A good time to buy, " and that "real estate is local."

By the way, it's actually going to be 70 degrees and sunny here in Charlotte today!