Category Archives: North Carolina

Make Way for Multi-Family Homes

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, who recently released data concerning construction permits issued by localities in 2011, Raleigh, N.C. was the third top city with the most construction activity with 13.66 construction permits per 1000 housing units.

Why is multi-family building becoming more and more popular? According to the Trulia Rent Monitor, rents rose 5.6 percent nationally in 2011. Construction of multifamily buildings has increased because people could not necessarily afford to purchase or own a home during the recession. Therefore, more and more families are transforming their homes to become more multigenerational friendly.

While Texas and the Carolinas hold the position for the highest rate of construction in metro areas, New England, the Great Lakes, South Florida and Coastal California hold the lowest rate.

There are many factors that explain the sporadic growth in housing developments. One factor is whether there is long term employment growth in the area. Another factor is that many of the metros have had above-average job growth within the past ten years, and that there weren’t any huge home price declines during the crash.

For the U.S., one-third of construction permits in 2011 were for multi-family units, making builder trends change to meet the demand of multifamily construction.

Why does the builder market look more and more like a seesaw, up and down? First, construction activity is bet on future growth. It is a risky guess for builders to decide where to develop in areas where they are expecting a demand for housing. Also, housing units last for a long time, so they inevitably shape the metro areas they are in.

If you’re looking to buy or rent in the Raleigh area, make sure you visit our site for all of the latest North Carolina real estate news.

Raleigh Remains Atop Best Cities for Jobs List

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Raleigh recently found itself ranking seventh in New Geography‘s annual survey of the best places for jobs. This marks the seventh year in a row that Raleigh ranked within the top 15 cities.

Raleigh is one of the cities that benefits from the nationwide tech growth trend. Other cities benefiting from technology are Austin, Salt Lake City, Seattle and Denver. Other major contributing factors for many cities’ rankings include the energy sector, government-dependence, military towns, manufacturing and the housing bubble. Additionally, for the first time since the recession, 2011 saw more growth in private sector employment than in the public sector.

The list is created by ranking all 398 current metropolitan statistical areas based on employment data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics from November 200 to January 2012. These rankings are calculated based on recent growth trends, mid-term growth, long-term growth and the region’s momentum. The rankings are also broken down by size since regional economies differently due to their scale.

An increasing number of jobs and Raleigh’s ranking on this list will only serve to boost home sales in this region. For more information on North Carolina real estate, visit our site.

GreenFiber Makes Builder Magazine Editor’s Pick List

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GreenFiber, a company that produces insulation products with multiple environmental benefits, made Builder Magazine‘s 2012 Editor’s pick list. This company, which is headquartered in Charlotte, is one of the ten companies and products on the list.

GreenFiber Insulation is environmentally-friendly insulation that is made for use in attics, floors and walls. Benefits of the product include amazing thermal performance, fire-resistance and sound control. The insulation itself is made up of 85 percent recycled content and is created in a virtually waste-free manufacturing process.

GreenFiber is made and sold for use by everyone from the homeowner to the architect. Homeowners, retailers/dealers, contractors/builders and architects/building officials can all find the benefits and information they need to know on the company’s website. Consumers can also find out about the weatherization assistance program.

Baldwin, Broan-NuTone, Plain & Fancy Cabinets, Kreg Tool, Upono, Caroma USA, Nuheat and Ann Sacks also had products which made the editor’s pick list.

For more information on how you can use GreenFiber when building a new Carolina home, doing home maintenance or increasing energy efficiency, visit their website.

Nine Carolina Cities Make Improving Markets List for April

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Nine cities in North and South Carolina made the list of housing markets showing measurable improvement in April. Compiled by the National Association of Home Builders and First American Improving Markets Index (IMI), April’s list included 101 metropolitan areas across the nation.

Seven North Carolina cities: Burlington, Charlotte, Goldsboro, Greensboro, Greenville, Rocky Mount and Winston-Salem made the list. Charleston and Spartanburg made the list for South Carolina.

The IMI identifies metro areas that show increases over a six month period for each of the respective lows related to employment, housing permits and house prices. The data is collected from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the US Census Bureau and Freddie Mac. The list of 101 cities is up from the 99 listed in March, with 11 slipping from the list and 13 new ones being added.

“While housing markets across the country continue to struggle under the weight of overly tight lending conditions and other challenges, the April IMI indicates that at least 101 individual metros are showing measurable and consistent signs that they are headed in the right direction,” said NAHB Chairman Barry Rutenberg. “A total of 35 states are now represented on the list, with 10 states having four or more entries. This positive news is in line with what our builder members have observed regarding firming conditions and improved buyer interest in certain locations.”

The National Association of Home Builders is a trade organization of 140,000 plus members involved in multifamily construction, home building, subcontracting, remodeling, housing finance, property management, building product manufacturing, design and more. NAHB builder members are expected to be involved in 80 percent of new housing projects this year.

If you’re interested in buying a home in one of these booming cities in North Carolina or South Carolina, visit Carolina Real Estate Forum.

Charlotte Ranks in Top 25 U.S. Cities with the Most Energy Star Buildings

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Charlotte was recently listed as one of 25 cities with the greatest number of energy efficient buildings that earned the Environmental Protection Agency’s Energy Star certification in 2011.

These buildings sprawl over a combined 25 million square feet, and are expected to save almost $15 million annually in energy costs and prevent greenhouse gas emissions equal to the emissions of 2,600 homes.

Buildings and plants that carry the Energy Star label are the best in terms of energy efficiency. They save the most money, use the least amount of energy and significantly reduce green house emissions. Across the nation, the 16,500 Energy Star certified buildings have helped save $2.3 billion in utility bills annually and have prevented greenhouse gas emissions equal to 1.5 million homes.

The list of the top 25 cities with the greatest number of energy efficient buildings was first released in 2008. Since that time, Los Angeles has remained the top city. Other top cities include Washington D.C., Atlanta, Boston, Tampa, Colorado Springs, Salt Lake City and Riverside. This year, California was the top represented state, with six of its cities making the list.

The Energy Star rating was launched by the EPA in 1992, and is a market-based partnership to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through energy efficiency. Over the program’s 20 years, $230 billion has been saved on utility bills and 1.7 billion metric tons of carbon pollution have been prevented. There are a total of fifteen types of commercial buildings in addition to new homes that can earn this designation including office buildings, retail stores, K-12 schools and more.

If you’re interested in buying an energy-efficient new Carolina home, visit our website.