On June 10th, 2009 we got some stunning news regarding our Lake Norman real estate market. Mega developer Crescent Resources LLC announced that they had filed for Chapter 11. Crescent Resources, a joint venture between Duke Energy and Morgan Stanley Real Estate Fund, has been responsible for creating and developing Lake Norman’s most prestigious and popular communities including The Point, The Peninsula, The Harbour at The Pointe, The Farms, Sailview,Northview Harbour and their latest venture Falls Cove.
It wasn’t until July 15th 2010 that Crescent Communities broke their silence and sent out a news alert to Realtors announcing that they had emerged from their Chapter 11 Bankruptcy on June 9, 2010, touting their still developing communities of The Point and The Farms and announcing some interesting changes and news regarding their struggling, newest venture, Falls Cove located north of Mooresville.
With the exception of Falls Cove, I am constantly showing property in all of the Crescent Communities. For buyers looking for upscale communities with great amenities the Crescent communities are some of the best available on Lake Norman on both the east and west sides of the lake.
I decided to do a side-by-side comparison of these 7 communities’ sales and homes on the market as of today, August 26, 2010 to see if the numbers reflect my own experiences:
* All of these numbers are from the Charlotte Regional Multiple Listing Services
** These numbers include waterfront and non-waterfront listings
Active Listings/Months of Supply: If you look at the months of supply, you can see that The Farms and The Harbour at The Pointe are slightly out performing the others. However, considering that The Point and The Peninsula have many $1 million plus waterfront homes, they are actually doing quite well and all four of these communities are out-performing our overall Lake Norman real estate market. What is worrisome to see are the months of inventory of Northview Harbour and to a lesser degree Sailview and Falls Cove.
Closed Sales Year-To-Date 2010: Again, Northview Harbour stands out (in a bad way) with only 2 closed sales in the past 8 months. From my perspective, Mooresville leads the Lake Norman sales activity in general these days which is reflected by the sales in The Point, The Harbour at the Pointe and The Farms. Popular schools, low taxes, an ever growing supply of restaurants, shopping and services and the light at the end of the tunnel for the widening of Brawley School Rd. all contribute to this trend. Sailview, which is in Denver on the southwest side of Lake Norman, is still a popular location because of its convience to Charlotte and the newly completed Hwy 16. That leaves Sherrills Ford kind of hanging in the wind. Located on the northwest side of Lake Norman, it is farther from shopping and amenities and doesn’t seem to have the draw the other communities have. It is best suited as a second home or for those empty-nesters who want to get away from it all.
Days on Market (DOM): Despite being a slightly older community, The Harbour has consistently out-performed most Lake Norman communities even before the recession. Today their numbers support the fact that this is simply a great community in which to live. On the other extreme, Falls Cove, which has barely begun to be developed, has suffered the most during this recession. The higher numbers in the most upscale communities of The Point and The Peninsula are partially a function of the number of very high-end waterfront estates which tend to take substantially longer to sell.
% Listing Price to Selling Price: What is most interesting about all of these numbers is that the lowest is still very high at 93%. In our Lake Norman housing market, we see less of the low-ball sales than I have observed in other parts of the country. Here, overpriced listings will sit until they are reduced to near market value before selling. Only well-priced listings are selling because buyers are so nervous about over paying in this market. It is rare to see a sale that isn’t a “bargain” or at least perceived as a good value.
$ Per Square Foot: I actually just included these numbers as an FYI. Because The Point and The Peninsula have recently had some $3 million+ sales, and more $1million + sales their numbers are skewed when compared to the rest.
This is simply a general overview. When considering buying or selling, I highly recommend that your Realtor do a more fine-tuned market analysis focusing on the specifics of your Lake Norman home!
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The Farms, A Crescent Community in Lake Norman with a more Casual Feel
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Lake Norman Relocation Resources
Lake Norman Real Estate’s September 2010 Wallpaper Calendar is here!
Lake Norman is known for its remarkable sunsets. As a matter of fact, many of my Lake Norman waterfront buyers will choose a west facing home just for the opportunity to enjoy daily, spectacular sunsets.
But, don’t under estimate our sunrises either! I took this photo last fall early one morning. As is sometimes the case, at dawn the lake is blanketed with a beautiful foggy mist. (As in my photo below). When the sun rises, the mist gives way to a crystal clear sheen as in my photo above.
To make your desktop calendar, go to the round button at the top of this site’s home page entitled: “Lake Norman Calendar”. Click on this button and up will come an image of my Lake Norman photo wallpaper calender for September 2010. All you have to do is right click and select “set as background”. If you would like a copy of this photo without the calendar, just send me an email.
While I have great fun taking pictures of Lake Norman, I would love to use one of your favorite photos depicting life here in Lake Norman!. If you’d like to submit a photo or an idea for a future calendar, please send it to…
Articles of Interest
Lake Norman Relocation and Resource Guide
Relocating to Lake Norman
Lake Norman, Our Inland Sea
Lake Norman Real Estate: How YOU can search for Lake Norman’s ”distressed properties”!