June 4, 2015
What do I see?

Charlotte, NC is a beautiful city in many ways.Not all the ways readily visible because some like to tear down buildings and homes and restaurants to make way for new. It is as though we cannot be content with what we have achieved but keep pushing to prove that we are a cool city…or that we will be when everyone wants to come here. We boast about our location between the mountains and the sea, we celebrate our weather because for the most part it is ideal with only a few exceptions here and there. Charlotte is made of fine stuff. But all that glitters is not gold. The rumbling I hear from every corner troubles me. The marauders have come. The faceless who buy and sell. I call it the Board Game. There are those who come or who are joined by others called investors who build buildings because the money is cheap not because they are interested in office space or living space. They are interested in selling the building before they even build it. And the buildings I see them building are far from inspired, not even close to filling an appealing corner with a statement that helps define our gracious southern city. We become fodder. Charlotte becomes an opportunity. And we help. Because no one is watching the store, no one is tending the look, the appeal, the city blocks, the neighborhood history, the countryside sprawl. We are busy going fast. Waiting for someone to speak up and say, “What is happening?” Why is what is happening troubling? Is it because our identity as a charming southern city is hurtling forward at a rate not easily changed. Because blocks and blocks of apartments without design or imagination or thoughtfulness are casting corner after corner so we can lose our way on frequent boulevards because they all look alike. It is already too late.

Going My Way?

May 14, 2015

I am not Dorothy and this is not Oz..

Could it be that tornadoes and tidal waves and earthquakes are spawn at the root level of our own cultures, born of seeds tainted with a deep hunger for more even before life is tasted, well before love preens our heart for the magical elixir, and surely before we connect words with deeds or thoughts with needs or will to live in peace.
I heard the tornado and remember what we were taught: head for the cellar, go to an interior room, crouch under a table, take cover and pray. The unravelling of our financial system, the crumbling banks, the deep eddies of derivatives and off shore investors and wall street speculation, loan packages subprime lending heeled with the likes of too many new ways to spin the gold, too often poorly constructed on every level: surely the winds would howl, certainly there would be a price to pay.

I am not even me anymore. For every where I look the stages are different, the headlines are often misspelled, the water rises and falls, and the mongers have latched on to the very essence of our real estate business, fragile at best, lacking in many ways, but still at the moment a tried and nearly true and growing practice that for the most part was good, kept most folks on the path and delivered millions of people into homes of their own and billions of dollars into the economy.

Then those who hang on tree limbs could see that here was truly the way to the yellow brick road. Real estate could be monetized in a zillion ways. The agents could work to secure listings (those homes and condos of the homeowners who give their trust to the agents to represent them fairly, to do their best), their brokers could sell their listings to the big search engines and the real estate association could actually believe they were getting a deal by sharing the work of the worker bees. And this giving of the treasure, the listings, the data collectors mined, culled the data and the world was overjoyed and thought it was now welcomed in the world of the fourth estate.

The worker bees, like real bees, are being eaten and now monetized by even more than their own association has. For the data collectors, the huge search engines, the data is free, the way to mine is negligible really, the information is out there for all of us. We like pushing a button and having information immediately.

Now the real cannibals arrive, setting up more ways to sell the agents, and to have the agents buy the space to sell themselves based on the properties they have sold and to also help those agents create a network of referrals so the money trickles through many hands.

Are you spinning yet?

An Ill Wrought Plan..How come?

Randolph Rd. at Sharon Amity
Cotswold Shopping Center
Charlotte, NC

February 3, 2015

This is a pickle. This could be the start or continuance or a future look at how informed we are, how thorough our City Council is, and how involved we want to be, how attentive we are, myself included. This in my opinion is a disaster and a BIG one. Cotswold. See the elementary school. See Chic-Fil-A where a line forms every morning during height of traffic and every lunch time and every dinner time blocking traffic that includes one the busiest intersections in Charlotte DOT...closer to Randolph on the right coming from that intersection is Cotswold Shopping Center and at the edge a big Harris Teeter. Now note the two way arrow and the stop light. That little half street is congested ALL THE TIME and when school is starting or ending it is at a standstill. Now see the block outlined in red PUBLIX...a Publix has been approved for that spot by our City Council and that building is coming down and the grocery store will consume the entire footprint and parking will be BELOW the store. This is sheer lunacy. And it is a done deal and there is nothing that can be done about it unless someone made a mistake on either side. And to my dismay City Council said they would keep an eye on the congestion. They would have to pitch a tent to keep an eye on it or, oh, no, they will be able to see it from a satellite. Is this what we can expect as we assume our position as the fastest growing city in the country? That we will consider and pass this egregious zoning that will effect that neighborhood and area for years to come at a great detriment. Shame! Shame! On the city council and us for not catching it. Let us be more wary now that we know no one is watching the store.

Food for thought, January 31, 2015

I remember hearing the interview with an economist just as it was evident that we as a country were in the slide to a great depression, now named The Great Recession. He remarked that he could see more people renting (this as the foreclosures swelled and seemed to be the harbinger of what was to unfold), because if a person lost their job, had a new job offer in hand somewhere else, yadda, yadda, they could just pick up and go.

And in a way that made sense except what about our perceived notion that real estate holdings can yield personal wealth  and more?( I thought at the time, ”Well that makes sense to the investor who can have someone else pay for the investment even considering that the capitol built the place and maybe that was risky, okay it is/was risky but certain risks can also be tax breaks) So here come the Millennia's who it is reported do not leap to buy cars, run to purchase homes and condos, prefer walking, bicycling, sharing rides, well, yes, even sharing apartments, renting out a room in their apartment, being big buyers in consignment shops. Yeah! ( I am no stranger to GW.)
So as Charlotte, N.C. is poised to host thousands and thousands and thousands of renters, who have no investment in the city, have no need for maintenance and repair and remodel, can just pick up and leave at any time that suits their plans, this sounds pretty attractive. But what about those of us who bought into home and hearth? Paint and planting pansies? Maintaining the streets, the public areas, the schools (though we don't do this well, nor do we take care of our teachers)

Charlotte is on the brink of being the Queen City of Apartments.
Why should this concern us as brokers? We help folks buy and sell. What should we care?
Let's listen to all the developers and builders with their charts and graphs and projections and not even look at our own infrastructure. Seem silly? That is what I feel we are doing. I am going off here on maybe a deep end, but I feel that the people tending the store have Gone Fishing.

My gut tells me we indeed are entering a phase that will be akin to the frog in water. By the time we think we should jump out it will be too late. Money is not bad, only in the hands of those who have nothing else but money and power and that is addictive. They want it all. You know, someone is off track when they say, “Now I can have it all.” And because you have been there and came to your senses through a rude awakening or a wiser voice, you got out and realize “Less is more.”

Maybe it is about stuff. All the stuff we gather and collect and buy for ourselves, maybe others. Our economy is based on consumer spending. Hello! And why do we do that? Because we can. Many can.

to be continued

 

Hear Ye! Hear Ye! Look What We Found!

The Real Estate Lady®
with Condo Cando ®

Just When Charlotte Needs a Super Hero!

January 28, 2015
 We know you know we know to be on the lookout for a map plotting/ showing where the many apartment buildings, new or near new are in Charlotte, NC, our hometown. And where are the ones that have been announced or proposed? No luck in the government hallways so far but look what we found by asking the erstwhile Google. Fantastic...Thanks to The Charlotte Observer. This will be a great start to the project and what a good, no, make that great start.http://bit.ly/1DhU0EN
Why is this important?
Density,
traffic,
parking,
engineering
and can we trust this scenario?

Haven't we seen the builders and developers in Charlotte and coming from other states,  and countries all jump aboard ship many years ago right on the cusp of The Great Recession?Had they all been started Charlotte would look like Planet of the Apes. Is it enough the say Charlotte is the fastest growing city in the country and is that a reason to be pompous enough the believe everyone is finding their way here. Like being on their way right now?
I allude the naysayer tag, but my intuition has been throwing down the red flag for months. We have some more info to post soon on the subject of too many too soon.

Later,

Lynnsy and Condo Cando®


 

 

http://bit.ly/1DhU0EN

The Anachronism of Real Estate

January 26, 2015

There is a place I go to explore time, to examine the minutes and lay them out, walk up a hill and look down to see what direction they point to or from side to side to determine if I am seeing the future or looking at the past.

Out of the city, out of my sequestered small neighborhood, driving down a two lane road, the back way to other two lane roads, the fog is thick now and it starts raining. I could be in the sky or in the ocean. I feel I am close to the runway. Another hour, I will have finished all the turns and be set to take off.

 The road narrows a bit. There are no other cars. The fog is very, very light, like a portrait filter.  This is the past and the future. This is the country. Small houses or large, with barns or garages  or a tin roof to protect a car or truck. Single mobile homes with scattered yard furnishings, a gas station with flickering lights and space. The branches and bodies and crowns and bareness of old trees catch my breath and spin me away out there beyond the windshield. The world has a light gossamer shield, the world is still and I recall this road.

But it has changed. And I am surprised. This is a country road and there are farms around, and homes of workers who tend the fields and fix the tractors and herd the cows and gather eggs and feed the horses and built the fences and work in the small towns up and down the road and out past the Interstate and now, some are vacant. The old gas station where stone and wood were stacked for sale is vacant, gone. The Great Recession smashed them down and I do not think they will come back because the only thing holding them together were the people. The people and their families and their friends and their communities and their work, their jobs. They are gone and I do not think or feel they will come back. I had not expected to see this. I thought this road, the symbols on this road were basic, were somehow eternal, the heart of country even though it changed, even though the tide came and went, this was the heartland.

And in the city, where I live and work, I feel an imbalance as well. All is not as it seems. Higher priced homes are selling, and the prices increase because demand is there and loans are attainable. Mid-priced homes and entry level, not so much. There is a lot of glitter and the money changers are present. Times are changing fast and we must be careful what we ask for.

On waking Charlotte

January 8^th, 2015

12 degrees

On my way to take a hot bath, insulated underwear, warm breakfast, hot chai, pull up medicine ball and start…but first Facebook, yes, I am entangled. I love my buds!

Okay, so here we are….hmmm.

The first thing I did this morning was open the front door, let the dog out after rubbing her butt as she does downward facing dog, step out to check the chill, pick up her metal water bowl, frozen all the way to the bottom. I run hot water and put the bowl face down and hear a clunk. A perfect round disc falls into the sink. Beautiful. I play with the warm water and watch the shape morph into a slimming disk, and finally a slender, clear ring and then nothing. An empty bowl. I think of Charlotte. Our city.

I watch as our city morphs. Every day, I read the newspaper at my breakfast table. Every Saturday I read the Business Journal and save certain articles. I read the names, the buildings, the parts of the city, the money, the partnerships, the companies, the interviews, the comments, the justifications, the mergers, the acquisitions, the ideas, the movement, and then I drive out Sardis and into town. So much is being cleared and removed…and it happens so fast, did I miss something or is all of this going on at night?

What else is going on that I cannot see?

I read the article and see the picture of the homeless woman sitting on a bench in Uptown…I gasp because I think, Oh, God, are “they” moving her out again? But no, the city and others have taken a stance that we will be done with homelessness in two years. People are coming together, banks are chipping in, organizations and departments will be assessing and going out to find that population and money will be budgeted to build homes, apartments, shelter for 450 people. Many voices. A robust chorus. A great idea, long overdue. Then crashing down around my morning quiet comes the great shadow wing of the Great Recession. Too many people, changing cash, developing plans, who is in charge? Who is watching? Who will be short shifted? Who will find out? Before it happens? While the program is underway? When we are supposed to be finished but the money has dwindled, the bones were not strong. Can we depend on this project to come to fruition? Can we?

Charlotte: Flashpoint, December 14, 2014

What have we learned in the last decade? What have I learned? Am I synched with this city I love so well? After all, I write and claim the phrase, “ I am a part of Charlotte and Charlotte is a part of me.” What have I learned? The Great Recession brought the greater lull as businesses came to a standstill, as real estate almost stopped. Lives stopped, jobs stopped, money stopped to some not to all. There are always cats at the coliseum. We, I, am looking back, over my shoulder and mostly now looking forward. Besides the Great Recession I experienced the siege of cancer with all the trappings of chemo therapy, radiation and surgery and damage control to mitigate the side effects. I stopped. “I am a part of Charlotte and Charlotte is a part of me.” I changed, we change.
Once the dust began to clear, once the money started loosening up, once the great tides of foreclosure stated to wane, once the adjustment so many of us, yes, “Us”, faced and held on and stretched to find a way or slide back, once we got our footing, once the looting had faded, not gone, but stepped back to reshape itself, we begin again. I begin again. We have changed. The wave forward is coming like a tsunami to our city. And in every direction: to the east in Concord-Kannapolis, to the south in Fort Mill and Rock Hill, to the west at both the lake and the airport and to the north, the lake, the townships, the techno highway to server farms from all over the world, even China, stretch up Lincolnton way.
And more are coming. More are coming because the green pastures that stretch within our country and around our county are indeed green and the glint of gold shoots through the ground once again and gold is on everyone’s mind. The corporations come from other countries, other hubs, other lands bringing their people for jobs and money for development of farms that once stood idle, manufacturing complexes that shut down keeping only their ghosts.
But it is inside the city that I feel the wrenching of growth as old homes are torn down, old buildings are rendered dust, the streets change, parks spring up, all whispering, “Come to Charlotte, bring your families, life is good, come to Charlotte.” All of this could be good, but once again we are wiping out our past laying glory to the future as though the future will be perfect and never disappoint us. The future glimmers in our mind of prosperity, children playing on green lawns, a center city where folks play and work and thrive. But do we have to tear down what nurtured our hearts; do we have to demolish that which gave us a sense of place, landmarks for knowing where home is?
  As I, too, reboot, survey the playing field, assess the players, observe the ebb and flow, I feel the undertow. And I see the moments where we change from one revolution to the next.

I Could Not Sleep Last Night

July 24, 2014

I could not sleep last night.
The word is "stucco".

Sometimes days just roll out of the last  minutes of midnight and head towards their own unique beginning for each one of us.
Yesterday ended with “stucco” and today’s, just shortly after midnight, the second between the last second of the passing day and the arrival of the new, the word ‘stucco’ flashed in neon again and again.

Not so weird, I am a real estate broker and have been for almost thirty years now. Some days the word starts later and could be a couplet, “loan approval” or  lone words, “counter”, “closing”, “due diligence”. Well, you get my drift. Words symbolizing, punctuating the day and sometimes days depending on the transaction.

The last couple of days, one word has been and is still, “Stucco”.There is more to stucco than meets the eye and that is the source of the mystery, unraveling what lay beneath or is growing on. Everything about stucco is important. But then all of the details in real estate and probably all businesses are important. I take mine personally. I do not sleep.

Further, this case of stucco has me going back to the house, with permission of course, taking pictures of anything that feels odd, shouldn’t be there. I carefully parse every corner and walk up very close to examine the substance if any is coming from a small crack.

So I thought it might be a good idea to write about quirky or very simple pieces of a real estate experiences. The world imparts, and it seems everyone portends  to be an expert when it comes to the how-to’s, the numbers, the surface stuff, maybe it is the small stuff that drives the detective in me after the bold, big strokes are catalogued.

But you see it is the small stuff I sweat. Because  the pieces are the sum of the whole.

What do you think?

April 20, 2014

 

Morning-Easter Sunday

 Finally, the sky is clear, the rain soaked clouds  poured their wealth into an already saturated earth here in the Carolinas. There is a crisp coolness in the air, a difference between sharp cold and a light coolness. Like breathe and slow breathing. The gentle coolness soothes my radiated nostrils and throat. The sharp cold spiraled though my nose and throat down into my neck and shoulder where there is less blood, less tissue, less.
I walk to the garden, my garden, in the back. There is work to be done after days of rain. I can almost hear, no, I do hear the roots pushing down and climbing up to the surface. Some of the plants have nudged through and burst into the air, swimmers in the pools of dirt reaching for the sun.
There is work to be done.

But first, many of my technology tools need attention, an external drive I mistakenly deleted but fortunately had backed up (because I back up everything) needs to be restored. Another external drive  freshly packed with a mirror image now runs at midnight every day because of a rash of interlopers, the virus makers, an email account where the server keeps failing and asks to be refreshed , a new smart phone that has more features, emphasis on more, and I admittedly pack on the Apps, and  a new platform in our real estate multiple listing service. There are classes for the tools, practice in my off time, developing social networking tools, rebuilding websites and one is not publishing, my favorite.
I am a voracious reader. The real estate market is volatile, either up or down and especially in play.
And we humans are curious and competitive, many of us, we like learning, I do. I like knowing and seeing and learning. I do have a fondness for the people I treasure. I want to hear about them, from them. Their pictures are often delightful. There is much to see and hear and feel and love and miss.
There is simply not enough time. For me there is not enough time.

More becomes more. Technology creates an abundance quickly, the big news and the incidental and we, I, lap it up.
More is more.

I have to stop. I want to stop before we crash, before I crash or get off.

I try to grasp a sense of direction. There are ultimate possibilities in every field. The underlying beat feels familiar. I keep listening for simplicity especially in my own life, in my own heart.

Today is the very day to think about new beginnings and life itself.

 

Immersion

March 25, 2014

 

Immersion.

Coming up for air. Several weeks ago I decided to immerse myself in the world of social media to see what I can see, learn what I can learn and apply what I think is important to my own world of blogs and podcasts and other portals like Twitter and Instagram, Facebook and Linked In. The journey consists of classes at Central Piedmont Community College and workshops at Queens University and even more classes at Superior School of Real Estate.
The word I hear most often is “Overwhelmed”.
Another descriptive word might be “Cumulative”.
And yet another and another , “saturation” and even “super saturation”.

Coming out of The Great Recession and even before, our government spotlighted the recovery efforts on jobs, construction, and real estate. And those who were looking and listening for a star to hitch their wagon to globbed on to real estate. New platforms had been created to deliver more information to a culture already fascinated and enthralled with real estate, to a culture with its short memory, a veritable smorgasbord of information and pictures and details garnished from public records as well as the acquisition of the local Multiple Listing Services, the gold data. No matter that the information could sometimes be incorrect, and those platforms dismiss any responsibility, while charging the same agents who provided the data used for listings a premium. There are of course free limited spaces for the agents and brokers. Those with cash get better position and more space. So I would pay for space while my work in gathering and verifying information comes free.
How serious is this? One executive with the Realtor Association has already jumped ship and gone with one of the larger data providers. It is a squeamish situation. I try to rationalize it. This is the age of Big Data. The information age. As a Broker I verify everything two maybe three times. And sometimes even with that I could be wrong. So what is the draw for the general public?
And before you think you see a smoking gun, I think there are also some good points. I like it that buyers and sellers can busy themselves exploring and learning and checking. They are good team mates, good and willing partners in the process.
And on these sites, the introduction of For Sale by Owners. I participated in this recently with a seller who had a condo in Charlotte, lives in New York and posted his property on one the large platforms, my buyer saw it at 3:36 a.m. called me and within 24 hours we had a contract and the seller paid the full commission. It was a more difficult transaction because the seller had no agent, operated by his rules and not the industry guidelines. But it happened.
So I have concern. I have to be a better teacher for my clients.
Long term, I also have concern, for these platforms will own that information from our MLS and the pictures as well. These platforms are in the information business. Read Big Data.
There is no crystal ball on my desk, but my intuition says, “Caution”. Over and over.

More as I rebuild our websites, and listen to you. Got questions? Let me hear them. Thanks.

 

The wearing of the green...seems like a good day to begin a blog...spring is truly in the air here in Charlotte, NC...the pear trees are almost in full bloom running almost the whole length of Wendover Road...and the town itself is blooming. In many ways. Okay, especially in real estate. Charlotte used to be a sleepy Southern town. We had Mom and Pop shops, small towns as our neighbors. Cows and horses nearby. Charlotte was a peaceful town with a couple of good restaurants, a couple of movie theatres, a nearby river...and a vibrant energy. That was in the 50's...and times have changed. I sometimes smile when I tell the folks who are relocating that everything they are coming here for...is really gone. And Charlotte is still vibrant and good and fun and growing like all get out! And that is what I love and that is what I will be writing about...real estate from my point of view. Charlotte, NC has been my home for well over 60 years and real estate has been my life support for almost 30 years. I specialize in Condominiums. Condo CanDo, our registered servicemark along with The Real Estate Lady, also registered back in the late 80's...both saved my neck as a new agent in a highly competitive market. Now, I blend technology with intuition and experience with listening...observing the market for both buyers and sellers. I have three websites built over the last 15 years. They are in the throes of being updated...the research has changed, the stats have changed, and our editor changed. And I am one of the few remaining "Mom" shops...I open doors for folks, pour them a cup of coffee or green tea...sit on the floor and play with the children...and sometimes I give advice like, "Now is not the time to sell"... or "Wait a while". Let the green begin...and thanks for tuning in. The Real Estate Lady/ Condo CanDo Lynnsy Logue

February  3, 2014

On Becoming Charlotte

Curiouser and curiouser!' cried Alice (she was so much surprised, that for the moment she quite forgot how to speak good English); 'now I'm opening out like the largest telescope that ever was! Good-bye, feet!' (for when she looked down at her feet, they seemed to be almost out of sight, they were getting so far off). From Lewis Carroll’s Alice Adventure’s in Wonderland.

Well there it is. An apt description of how I feel/think this morning reading the paper as I do while I crunch on my bowl filled with cereal and berries.

“Why is that?”, you might ask.

Being visual, the shapes and sizes and relationships of words and paragraphs tell their stories as well as the words and paragraphs. Here is an example:

Three headlines for three columns stacked on one page in The Charlotte Observer and a side bar. In a nutshell:

1.The first, “Landlord lender moves into area. Blackstone Group subsidiary sees upside in Charlotte market by Andrew Dunn.
The company provides loans to landlords and rental-home owners looking to buy between five and 1,000 more houses to rent out. It’s Blackstone’s latest bet on the single –family home rental market. Another subsidiary, Invitation Homes, buys homes to rent out for itself.
 Some real estate experts have said investment firms artificially drive up home prices, forcing mom-and-pop buyers out of the market. Experts also worry what will happen to the local real estate market when the firms look to sell these homes.
2.More luxury en route to Park Road by Eric Frazier
The Stratford Apartments across Park Road from the Park Selwyn Terrace Shopping Center are about to be bull-dozed to make way for a 273-unit luxury apartment complex.
What struck me on this project as residents were given a 30 day notice is this complex has been home to a number of Seniors who could walk to shopping.
You see, I wonder where the Seniors will go.
3.The last story, Yellen says Fed monitoring data for signs of weakening economy by Martin Crutsinger
The quotes from Yellen strike a cord with me. She refers to the job market and interest rates.
For me as well, they go hand in hand. Employment is a key watch for me.
Finally, the side bar. In the last few days in The Charlotte Observer, there are stories about “the paper”.

For well over a decade, I worked at “the paper”. The place and the people were a cornerstone of who I grew to be. I worked for both The Charlotte News and The Charlotte Observer. The heading on the side bar on this page today reads: Do-it-yourself classified ads. The Classified Ad department back then had one of the largest staffs including the phone room where operators took ads.

What we pay attention to changes as it should. But this morning, I saw the whole department still at work, familiar faces and voices as I leave to make my rounds.

February 25, 2014

The Crucible of Real Estate

It is early, the shadow time between dawn and morning light. Most of the night and early morning I worked on my new project, repackaging myself after a long and tedious illness. My business is real estate for almost thirty years. Taking a modified break meant I read almost all of my regular periodicals.
I kept up without digging deep. These days, I wear my miner’s cap. I am looking for answers, for logic, for ways to say to my people, “Let’s have a plan, be careful with decisions, and do the math”.

The Great Recession brought many to their knees. There was the massive debt, the tidal waves of disappearing assets, fingers pointed, shadows in the back room and then our new understanding of foreclosure and short sale. Classes were taught about foreclosure and short sales. Agents and brokers scrambled in a play of musical chairs. Lives were broken. A new generation began the climb, rung by rung, with debt strapped to their backs as though it were a fad. We grew used to the language of The Great Recession. But it is over. We move on.

There is a new awareness. The government knows the climb out of the recession is by the boots of real estate, construction of homes and commercial buildings. The trappings continue with mortgages and the swift talk of more stringent requirements for the buyer and on the other hand, the confessions of financial institutions that they made mistakes and they pay a fine to the government. The small hands of those who wound up on the streets are empty.

The jargon expands. We are roiled up in Big Data. We are dancing the dance with numbers and stats and charts and words we are just hearing for the first time. The play unfolds. It is mesmerizing because the set and the stage itself is all digital. The dialogue, the discussion, the reporting, the way forward is an unrelenting cacophony, the smoke screen to the past.

How do I guide and advise, be a strong advocate, a patient shepherd to my folks who are buying and selling a home? Hopefully, by listening.

February 17, 2014 Can spring be far?

February 17, 2014  6:55 a.m.Can spring be far?

Soon it will be the time for the wearing of the green...seems like a good day to begin a blog...spring is truly in the air here in Charlotte, NC...the pear trees are almost in full bloom running almost the whole length of Wendover Road...and the town itself is blooming. In many ways. Okay, especially in real estate. Charlotte used to be a sleepy Southern town. We had Mom and Pop shops, small towns as our neighbors. Cows and horses nearby. Charlotte was a peaceful town with a couple of good restaurants, a couple of movie theatres, a nearby river...and a vibrant energy. That was in the 50's...and times have changed. I sometimes smile when I tell the folks who are relocating that everything they are coming here for...is really gone. And Charlotte is still vibrant and good and fun and growing like all get out! And that is what I love and that is what I will be writing about...real estate from my point of view. Charlotte, NC has been my home for well over 50 years and real estate has been my life support for almost 30 years. I specialize in Condominiums. Condo CanDo, our registered servicemark along with The Real Estate Lady, also registered back in the late 80's...both saved my neck as a new agent in a highly competitive market. Now, I blend technology with intuition and experience with listening...observing the market for both buyers and sellers. I have three websites built over the last seventeen years. They are in the throes of being updated...the research has changed, the stats have changed, and our editor will change as we migrate to a new one. And I am one of the few remaining "Mom" shops...I open doors for folks, pour them a cup of coffee or green tea...sit on the floor and play with the children...and sometimes I give advice like, "Now is not the time to sell"... or "Wait a while". Let the green begin...and thanks for tuning in. The Real Estate Lady/ CondoCanDo. Welcome Home! Lynnsy Logue

There is an old saying,"Beginnings are difficult"...

There is an old saying,"Beginnings are difficult"...

January 2, 2014 at 10:26pm

We begin a new year with a new promise and a new hope. The last year is behind us with all the numbers of foreclosures and short sales, with an endless stream of unemployment and the miracle of the ups and downs of Wall St.. We begin to build anew promising ourselves we will remember how devastating the last several years have been. How many lives were ruined by greed or folly or sheer mistake by our own hands or the squeeze game played by the shadows we know skirt from office to tower, from bank to holding company. And we hope we have learned, we pray that we remember as the economy starts to churn, the hammers start to build, the land is swallowed up by bigger houses on smaller lots and no one is watching.The business of real estate is changing so fast that the image of real people doing the business of buying and selling will fade. The relationships will change because the economists, the giants of business know full well the government and the economy churns on the smell of earth turning, homes rising, apartments squandering our horizon, the lure of a home, a picket fence, a dog and a swingset make us feel comfortable-again. Meanwhile the banks are paying fines for their back room bargaining. But wait, there is more to be seen. It is not just the land and the hammers and the roofs and the pocket parks, it is the real estate listings themselves. Those who glean the coins from the eyes of the dying, make that the homeless, have seized upon the opportunities to gobble up the listings and tout the details only "big data" can generate so we all think that we all know everything we need to know.
It is what we do not know, as before, it is what we do not see, it is the short memory and the glaze of gold that will allow a repeat performance.I am back at my post. Reading everything I can get my hands on. Wanting to write and just write out loud what I see, what I hear, what I think might be coming. I hesitate because I am caught in the revolving door. I want to be right. Wait. I wanted to be right before but I was wrong. The sky was falling. I want to be clairyvoyant, I want to protect you because you do not know. This is not your business. This is smoke and mirrors.
So I decided that I will try. If I am wrong, I am wrong and it does not matter that it is right or not. What matters is that I do as I feel, that I speak up, that I discuss, that I care enough not to police my tongue.
Let the ego fly.
I will speak.
Lynnsy Logue,


The Real Estate Lady. SM

Getting To Know Chuck Graham

Charles 'Chuck' G. Graham
LEED Green Associate,AIA, Fellow MIM

Defining Chuck: Grew up in Daytona,
drew houses constantly,
Notre Dame, drafting talents,
worked summers for  largest
architectural firm in the world, restoring Frank Lloyd Wrights's Robie House,
business degree Harvard, research for consulting,
                    residential building, Chief Marketing Officer
When Chuck Graham takes the stage at a real estate conference, there is standing room only. Each year his research is impeccable as he explains where we have been and where we are heading as a real estate market. In 2007 his prognosis of what was coming was bleak. I heard him clearly and began to save for the drop to come.

Now as I begin my own recovery and start writing about the future of real estate, what we might expect especially for attached housing, condos, I wanted to talk to Chuck first.
He spoke of investment in real estate, the building of buildings. The old addage,"It takes money to make money" still applies.

Then he spoke of the people. He continued on about the generations, defining them with the market and what each brings.I asked if he would visit our venues and bring his perspective to both Blog and Podcast.
Be sure to catch his podcast: Chuck Graham with The Real Estate Lady

Here is Chuck's Demographic Overview

DEMOGRAPHIC OVERVIEW


There are four key generations currently active in the U.S. Economy.

Millennials (Gen Y): Born Between 1982 and 2003
Today they are between 9 and 30 years of age.
William Strauss and Neil Howe in their book Generations describe this as a “Civic” generation which grows up with protective parents, faces a secular crisis (The Great Recession) and unites into an heroic and achieving cadre of rising adults.
Historically speaking more 26 year olds rent their first apartment than any other age group.

Thirteeners (Gen X): Born 1961 – 1981
Today they are between 31 and 51 years of age.
Strauss and Howe describe this as a “Reactive” generation, which grew up unprotected and criticized during a spiritual awakening (Boomer Awakening) and matures into risk-taking alienated adults.
Historically more 33 year olds buy their first house than any other age group.
Historically more 43 year olds move-up in their housing.


Boomers: Born 1943 – 1960
Today they are between 52 and 69 years of age.
Strauss and Howe describe this as an “idealist” generation, growing up as indulged youth after a secular crisis (Cold War), comes of age inspiring a spiritual awakening (Boomer Awakening)), and fragments into narcissistic rising adults (Economic Expansion) and cultivates principle as moralistic midlifers.
Historically speaking more 52 year olds buy vacation homes.


Silents: Born 1925 – 1942
Today they are between 70 and 87 years of age.
Strauss and Howe describe this as an “Adaptive” generation, growing up overprotected during a secular crisis (depression), maturing into risk-averse, conforming adults (Superpower America), producing indecisive midlifers during a spiritual awakening (Boomer Awakening), and maintaining influence (but less respect) as sensitive elders.
Historically speaking more 70 year olds buy retirement homes.
Historically speaking more 80 year olds consider assisted living housing alternatives.

Unfortunately, due to the Great Recession all of these historical “life-stage” decisions are now delayed and presenting challenges to economic growth which will not be easily mitigated without jobs, and debt reduction.


REAL ESTATE EFFECTS

Each generation is delaying their life-stage movement.

Millennials

Millennials have remained at home or have doubled, tripled or even quadruplied up in apartments.
Very few jobs and very high educational debt has caused these reactions.
The apartment building boom will be the next “bubble” particularly the focus on the luxury side of the market when what continues to be needed are affordable and mid-market product.
Although the Millennials have not reached the peak of first home buying they are delaying this decision as well. This delay is accommodated further with delayed marriages and delayed parenthood.
The “Civic” nature of this generation will embrace “Green” building and move the market substantially forward in this area.


Thirteeners

As noted with the Millennials, Thirteeners are delaying first home buying decisions, marriage and parenthood. There will be a noticeable change of mix between high density, smaller urban and lower density smaller suburban solutions to this product. As the generation faces economic reality.
They are employed but with few income increases in comparison to those received by the Boomers during the economic recession.
Middle management is a threatened job position going forward presenting additional challenges for move-up decisions. There will be more serious consideration of higher density, smaller urban family solutions, but most will prefer the well located suburban solutions.
Exurban solutions will be challenged as commuting costs continue to rise.
Boomer’s attempting to move from their McMansions will provide some opportunity for Thirteeners to acquire more house than they might have expected. In fact the obsolescence of these houses will provide a substantial drag on the existing home market.
The education of their children will provide additional economic challenges.


Boomers

Many fewer Boomers will be considering second or vacation homes due to their household economic challenges. More likely they will consider “right-sizing” of their primary residence even if it requires selling their current residence below their expectations. Living costs will “require” such decisions in some cases.
Some boomers will return the favor to their Millennial children by creating the other side of multi-generational housing.


Silents

“Right-Sizing” is just the precursor or “retirement” housing which will face similar challenges.
In many cases “assisted” living options will prove too economically challenging requiring Silent-Thirteener multi-generational households.
Life-stage changes cause large increases in consumer spending. All life-stage changes are now in hiatus and will be delayed for as many as five – six years continue to challenge the needed increases in GDP.


Thank you to Chuck Graham for helping me to understand about the people side of the real estate equation. These are the buyers and sellers. They are the market.

May 31, 2012

Just When Charlotte Needs
A Super Hero! Condo CanDo!

How To Define Zoning

My blogs and podcasts, my web and Twitter reflect my day, that makes sense. I am face to face with zoning everyday but not in a way that is immediately recognizable. In my life as a real estate broker I have rarely looked at a building or house or driveway and remarked about a violation. Experience is the teacher we learn and after recent months of a laborious zoning discrepancy, I look at everything with a new eye. And then, of course, I theorize, I try to define “Zoning” in a way that gives it life or soul or fancy or…well, you get my drift.

Zoning gives a voice to reason. Planning the details is writing the symphony for a city or town or village. Being careful and precise and sometimes even bold as a city grows and matures falls in the realm of zoning and rezoning. I think of Paris and how the height of buildings is people-scape. Paris seems friendly. New York for example seems monolithic. Back when I worked out West for a while and in and out of Houston, well, Houston then, in the early eighties, had no zoning. For me, it was unordered, random, untamed. It was, after all, the West.

In Charlotte, I get a sense of planning. Maybe it began when the trading paths of the Natives crossed at 77 and 85 or when the Square became the center point of our city, Trade and Tryon. Planning created our parks and our neighborhoods, planning conceived and built the Queens Road loops, the wider than usual Elizabeth Ave. and Clement, planning made the bold sweeps and zoning brought the details. One of the latest good strokes was the capping the height of buildings across the city. This decision came out of a rezoning request in Myers Park. As Charlotte grows, as our density increases and urbanism becomes a watchword, the folks in planning and zoning are ever attentive, they listen to all the voices.
My awareness of zoning has grown. So I took myself off to visit with Charlotte-Mecklenburg Planning Manager, Tammie Keplinger. Her focus is on Rezoning. We had a great chat about her background and rezoning. Check out our podcast at http://therealestatelady.libsyn.com/