Condominiums and townhomes within a three to four block area at Cotswold.

NEW:Introduction to The Book of Condos

Rosewood at Providence

STATS HTLA: From  1986   to  3762 Bedrooms: 1,2,3 Report 7/31/15 for 6 months: From 420K         to  1.5M Exterior: Hard coat stucco, stone Description: Elegant, period piece with turrets and balconies Amenities: Elevators, fitness center, business center,
concierge services, on site property manager, massage room, storage room, garage, 2 deeded parking spaces,
pool, tennis courts, 24 hr security 

Say what you will about Rosewood...I was there on opening night as this project was presented to the Charlotte real estate community and it was a dazzling presentation. I was struck that anyone would pay the millions paid for those nearly nine acres...but I live here.

To me the house and the people had history and I had grown up with roses on that corner and the rolling land behind where horses once grazed. I felt it was special and so must these investor/developers from Georgia. I thought it was bold and gorgeous and risky.
But I live here.
More importantly, I have a love affair with Charlotte and thought this would mark the beginning of our rise as a great city of the south...with more than just red brick homes, traditional architecture and safe designs.
In CondoCanDo's library of Charlotte Condominiums, I open the book written about Rosewood for that auspicious evening and to introduce the vision to us and to prospective home owners, and read:
"The Roses. For Charlotteans, this name calls to mind splashes of vivid color embellishing the well traveled crossroads at Providence and Sharon Amity. Here passerby have been fascinated, delighted, and intrigued by the roses. Planted in remembrance of a mother who lovingly coaxed plants from unyielding soil there, these roses adorned the gardens of a family estate where Oliver and Marie Rowe raised their children and entertained their friends. The legacy of this park like setting is coming alive in a community of fine condominium homes. Rosewood takes its name from a beloved past,elegantly presented and appointed for gracious living once again."

Tropicana
 Crosby Drive

Built 1964   HTLA: From 1053  to 1690 Bedrooms: 1,2,3  Report 7/31/15 for 6 months: From 65K  to  132,900 Exterior: Brick veneer   Description:Two story. Each level has flats, exterior hallways, separate entrances. Very much like a motel. Efficient units. 1 carport,1 parking space. Amenities: Pool, recreational area.

I discovered Tropicana as I built the first condo database in Charlotte in the mid- eighties. It popped up in the tax books as a square, a courtyard perhaps like  those at colleges or the beach and here on Crosby Drive, almost across the street from Rosewood, a most unusual condominium not unlike a motor lodge from the fifties...complete with pool.

Cotswold Homes

on Woodlark Lane, Andover Road and Chelmsford Road

Once apartments converted to condos, investors brought about a slow descent and the arrival of section 8 housing. In the 80's, a couple with a retired mother or mother-in-law, I forget, bought one for her. It was close to their home. She could walk to shopping, have a place to walk her small dog and the garden condominium was just the right size. Not too big and not too small, only one story. Her daughter took note of the condition of this community and set about to make it shine. Years and years, stories, and new rules and regulations, repairs and care for the aging trees, lighting and proper landscaping followed until it is now a prize and will only get better now that it has survived the Great Recession as well.

Gaynor Arms
on Gaynor Drive   


    The woman who built this in 1971, the first newly built condominium as as condominium was an amazing woman in anything she did and I knew her. I knew her  work. 
As she reached a retirement age she discovered there were  few or no suitable homes for her or her friends, so she designed and built Gaynor Arms, the very first new condominium built in Charlotte with the Unit File Number 1. Her name is Kathryn Smetana and there is story and picture early on of this incredible woman. I met her working at the paper and helped her with her advertising.

The Cotswolds

at Sloane Square
Built in 1999 by The Boulevard Company, the complex is a micro village with a private pool in the center and secure walkways around each section. Garages, some two, some one. Some are brick, some stucco, some mixed. They are on slabs and one might find Masters on Main as well. Walking distance to Cotswold Shopping Center.
Heated living space 1785 to 2187 and recently the range is $304,0000 to $386,100 with a premium for master on main

This block boasts condominiums, apartments,  a nursing home and a rather swanky retirement community, not yet opened. Randolph Road is an artery to the city and to health care facilities..

CondoCanDo's archives: Stories from 2005 regarding condominiuums

Sep. 07, 2005 Hot trends so far in 2005 DOUG SMITH The Next Big Thing Four of seven residential high-rises announced over the past 16 months are under way uptown, and two are almost ready to start taking contracts. To satisfy demand for homes closer to the center city, apartment complexes -- and possibly even a hotel -- are going condo. A 30-acre entertainment village is under way in the northwest corner of Fourth Ward. And the uptown development surge north of The Square is finally spreading -- to South Tryon Street, West Trade Street and Second Ward. Outside the core, development booms in southwest Mecklenburg as rim counties experience a surge in commercial and residential activity. Those are some of the trends spotlighted in The Next Big Thing column, which debuted Feb. 16. The idea was to look beyond the breaking news of the day and provide context for readers to understand a real estate trend and its potential implications. In the early weeks, we wondered whether the Charlotte region was large enough to have a Next Big Thing every week. Boy, are we convinced now. We've traveled from Mooresville to Lancaster County, from Matthews to Belmont talking with developers, planners, analysts and residents. As we research the issues through the end of the year, check our list of the top trends from the first six months of The Next Big Thing. The High-Rise Buzz One of the biggest surprises in urban development is the dramatic shift toward high-rise living. Seven residential towers have been announced uptown. Construction is under way on four -- 17-story Courtside, 28-story TradeMark, 13-story 230 South Tryon and 36-story Avenue. Developer Pete Verna said he expects to start work this month on The Park, 21 stories. The Vue Charlotte, a 50-story tower, is opening its sales center Monday at 101 N. Tryon St. in One Independence Center. And Avenue plans to open its sales office Saturday at 500 W. Fifth St., Suite 120. The developer of EpiCentre's proposed 53-story residential tower hasn't disclosed details. The center city appeals to empty-nesters and young professionals attracted by cultural amenities, entertainment and restaurants. Many people also are striving to live closer to their jobs in the center city -- a trend that could become more popular in the wake of the gasoline crunch. How intense is interest? Churchill Development Group LLC, developer of The Vue Charlotte, said more than 3,000 people have requested information about that project's 403 units by phone and e-mail. And 400 have made appointments to talk with a sales agent about purchasing. The Vue Fifth & Poplar RiverGate 230 South Tryon

Let's Chat About Elizabeth, the surrounds and a favorite condo...Laureldale

                                                        

Elizabeth is neighbor to many: Myers Park, Plaza Midwood, Eastover, Uptown and Home to CPCC,
 The Street Car and Presbyterian now Novant.

A quad in many ways with nuances, Laureldale

Charlotte has at the moment seven historic districts or neighborhoods: ( Dilworth, North Davidson (No Da), Plaza Midwood, Fourth Ward, Wesley Heights, Hempstead and Wilmore, the last two, the latest. Elizabeth has a National designation historically. I am not sure of the details but here is a Google Map. Elizabeth fringes Chantilly, Eastover, Myers Park, Plaza Midwood and maybe even Villa Heights. Monroe Road becomes E. 7th, Hawthorne becomes Queens Road or vice versa, Randolph Road becomes Fourth Street and Independence, 74, slices off a stretch.

I suppose I am drawn to the trees, old and
 limber, inviting and providing shade.

Condominiums fall into a wide range as well. Off 7^th on Clement there is a wonderful historic home that has been converted to condos, Alexander House. This occurrence runs throughout Charlotte especially in the older areas. Years ago one very progressive real estate broker converted several of the big mansions in Myers Park to condos. I always think of her as visionary. And part of me believes we will see that happen again as the population ages and the luster of the large old homes and new large homes become passé.

Favorites: In Myers Park fringe area: Boxwood by Brian Speas, the gentleman builder who builds a superior product always and generally in Myers Park, Eastover, Barclay Downs, Park Road and some infill around Freedom Park. An oldie, Queens Mark, also that same fringe area, the first new wave of lofts, Elizabeth Lofts, and one of my very favorite favorites, Elizabeth on the Park

Tucked off the beaten path yet touching it. Location!

The grounds keep Laureldale's charm intact.

overlooking Independence Park, and pictured here, Laureldale. Once apartments, the setting is between Randolph and Fifth, lovely brick buildings, a pretty quad, central laundry ( a telltale sign of  apartment conversion in that era) Alson Court across Randolph is in Eastover. Once apartments and converted, Alson is a grand old building with one bedroom, two bedroom and three bedroom units, a handful of garages, built like Fort Knox.

 Laureldale’s  neighbor, The Grove, is a handsome renovation of old apartments. Density reigns approaching Hawthorne as it crosses 74 with Hawthorne Bridge, Elizabeth Village et al. A wonderful conversion, The Rutzler, 1920, renovated in 2005 has a new apartment building as its neighbor, at Louise and Central.
                                              ********************
I have been thinking about how to illustrate the variety of condominiums in any given area. Maybe I will make a chart so we can look at their differences even though they all post a prime location. It is a game I play with myself, CondoCanDo!
The location is Randolph Road at Sharon Amity, Cotswold.

The Poplar in Fourth Ward, circa 1926 Something old, something new, something borrowed, something true.

A simple, elegant entrance, hardly
noticeable to a mere passerby.

A pocket garden of roses, of course.

The Poplar, 1926 in Fourth Ward
started as apartments. Hmmmm?

July 2015

Charlotte is on the rise. Towers uptown are on the rise. Apartment projects proliferate the corners on our main thoroughfares as we wait for the surge of the Millennial Generation. First the apartments, then the conversions, then the lines blur and maybe we stop to wonder what happened. Because we are no stranger to being the Belle of the Ball. We are
 a city of the New South and we are a city of folks who tear down the old for the
 promise of newer and better and greater.
 Until there is a whiff of maybe not...
So, to ease my wondering about the cadres of investors who boast the building of apartment buildings with not just twenty or thirty apartments but hundreds, I wander around in the Charlotte I know so well. Through the sparkle of new and tall and lean and open, I wind my way to Historic Fourth Ward to one of my most favorite condominiums, The Poplar.

Like a grand dame she reposes on the fringe, too taken with her rose garden, her lovely, petite roof top, garnering a nice pleasant view of the skyline, this  city of the New South, as she gazes down on historic homes and the narrow streets with large trees.
I was a student of The Poplar long ago in the 80's. Max The Wonder Dog and I were taking pictures uptown on a Sunday morning, a young couple stopped to speak to Max, a handsome tawny Briard. They saw our license tag, "RE LADY", and asked if I were a realtor? They were looking for a condo uptown. Max got credit for the sale. I made new friends and discovered the inside workings of The Poplar.
Poplar and Tenth in  Historic Fourth Ward

Every once in a while, I like to visit to see how much I remember and to make new discoveries like the elevators fore and aft. The second I step foot in the lobby I am whisked away to New York City. The Poplar has that kind of ambiance. Is it NYC or Europe?
Hardwood floors throughout, some condo homes large and spacious with fabulous light from the old glass carefully hung in metal casings, taller ceilings and an aura of having lived many lives, these spaces whose stories include lauded musicians and artists
and people of creative bent.

Fourth Ward and Uptown Condos:

Just for fun...we know the names of the biggest, newest, shiniest,
but have heart, there are others:
Tenth Avenue Townhomes,Brennan Court, Poplar Place,Settlers Alley, 400 North Church,409 West 8th Street, Sixth and Pine Townhouses, Barringer Square,
Chapel Watch,Churchill to name a few.

And this then begs the question? Older or newer?

Next , Condo CanDo® and I take a walk through Elizabeth.
Elizabeth is a Nationally recognized historic neighborhood.
As is Myers Park.

Laureldale in Elizabeth
How to tell if they were at one time, apartments?

June 7^th, 2015 Sunday morning

The French have a saying, the gist being you
have to go too far to know where enough is.

The idea of balance comes this morning as I walk through the garden section at Lowe’s, looking at tags to see if I know the names of flowers or shrubs, scanning for those I have in my own garden to see if there is anything new. I know that I can only look these days because I have planted all I can; there is enough- except for those I need to replace only after I have tended them to see if they will come back. Many do. Often. I love the garden. I love Charlotte, NC. My home for over sixty years.

And then I think about the balance between like and love and indifference and irrelevance and how we discover those feelings or attitudes within our own beings and how they take shape by our experiences.

Whether a garden, a home, a relationship, a city…

I think about how anything can become an addiction, how we shape our thoughts and match our actions and create a rhythm that can be moderated, syncopated or out of control, and imbalanced. I am a real estate broker and have been for nigh on to thirty years now and still going strong…what does love and balance and discipline have to do with our city?

Everything.

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?