The Point, with its 13 phases and about 900 home-sites is arguably the most well-known and popular luxury community on all of Lake Norman.  It has been fascinating to watch how the recession initially impacted its home sales and the progress it has made since then. In fact, the numbers today would indicate that The Point is actually leading the Lake Norman real estate market’s recovery.

Back in September of 2008, (see my article: Lake Norman Real Estate:  The Point, A Case Study, Part 2  ) The Point looked like this:

• 123 Active Listings
• A whopping 41-months of supply of homes for sale compared to the overall Lake Norman housing market’s 28-months of supply
• The average days on market for the 9 properties sold was 428 DAYS!

Now fast forward to today and The Point looks like this:

• 38 Active Listings (One third of the amount in 2008)
•  7.86 months of supply of homes compared to over 12-months of supply in all of our Lake Norman housing market
• The average days on market for the 29 properties sold in the past 6 months was 178 days

What a remarkable turn around during a very tough national economic slowdown!  What is so interesting is how The Point went from being significantly worse than our overall Lake Norman market in 2008 to today when it is a bit better off than our overall real estate market.

Here are two charts, one for waterfront homes and one for off-water homes to provide you an overview for the past 10 years.  Keep in mind that 2011 is not completed:

Waterfront Home Sales in The Point 

*Note that the while the number of homes sales this year to date are lower, the average price and $ per square foot are siginificantly higher.

Non-Waterfront Homes Sales in The Point

*Again, while the number of sales is down, the average price and days on market are improving.

This is yet another sign that our Lake Norman real estate market is improving.  Low inventories are key to this trend and they are continuing to fall not just in The Point but throughout our Lake Norman area.

Additional Articles

Before buying a Lake Norman Waterfront Home, See it by Boat!

Is ‘The Point’ Lake Normans Ultimate Luxury Home Community?

Relocating to Lake Norman

Fresh Sushi? Hush Puppies? The Scoop About Relocating to Mooresville Lake Norman

Mooresville on Money Magazine’s List of Best Places to Live

Lake Norman, Our Inland Sea

What You Need to Know About Buying Real Estate In North Carolina

Like it or not, most homeowners and home buyers, whether in Lake Norman or elsewhere in the U.S. think of a house as an investment, not just a home.  In the short term, I counsel prospective sellers to make their properties move-in ready since most buyers these days are not willing to do much in the way of remodeling or even painting of their new home.

There is no doubt, however, that the future of housing construction, once it is back in full force, will focus on energy efficiency, sustainable resources and other “green” components of a home.  Other cities in the country, from Portland Oregon to Austin Texas to Asheville NC, are way ahead of Lake Norman in their focus and incorporation of energy efficiency and construction of “high performance” homes.  It only stands to reason that the Lake Norman real estate market and Lake Norman home builders will be greatly impacted in the future by these growing global housing trends.

So why not get yourself one step ahead of the game as we wait for the economy to improve?  Here are some great thoughts and statistics from a recent article on the Green Building Advisor website:

• Investing in energy efficiency upgrades in your home should be included in your investment portfolio and future planning
• The average annual increase in energy prices (of all kinds) has been 6.33%
• The Consumer Price Index has only risen at an annual rate of 1.54% (Used to determine annual Social Security increases)
• Energy prices increase faster than Social Security payouts
• Drastically reducing energy demand can be an important hedge

Ted Clifton, the author of this article, focuses on what are called “net zero” homes which, while rare  right now, are certainly the future of housing.

So what if you are not in a position to build or improve your home to the level of Net Zero or better?  Why not, over time, start incorporating energy efficiency into your Lake Norman home or while looking to buy a home in the Lake Norman area, look for homes that already have some energy efficiency measures, do energy testing along with your home inspections, and look at future opportunities readily available to upgrade the home.

Here are some ideas:

• Trade your granite countertops for a better “envelope” and solar panels
• Consider sealing your crawlspace and attic
• Install good quality, Low-E windows
• When you replace your HVAC system, look for higher SEER systems and have your ducting evaluated for efficiency and flaws
• Have a Blower Door test and Thermal testing to find leaks in your existing home that can be sealed to prevent wasted heat and AC
• Have a Home Energy Rater (HERS) determine your current HERS score to see how you rate compared to today’s standard home.  (HERS ratings can be put on any MLS listing in the Charlotte MLS and is a national standard that out-of-state buyers may be using to evaluate their Lake Norman homes).
• Install solar or tankless water heaters

Energy efficiency upgrades are almost a no-loose proposition.  Not only will you enjoy lower energy bills but you are also making your home more competitive with the future housing market when it comes time to sell.  Don’t forget there are some great tax incentives for many of these products as well!

(Just as an aside, next week I will be attending a number of classes about “green housing” and meeting with numerous vendors  at the 21st Century Building Expo and Conference held in Charlotte by the North Carolina Home Builders Association as part of my responsibilities of being a “Certified Green Professional”  which is an accreditation earned through the National Association of Home Builders.  So, more to follow!).

Other Articles of Interest

EPA Launches Indoor AirPLUS to increase focus on indoor air Quality

Lake Norman Real Estate’s Business of the Week:  Think Green Recycle

Lake Norman Real Estate:  How to Harvest the Rain!

Lake Norman and Charlotte Remain At The Top of Places to Live in US

Lake Norman Relocation Resources

While  the Lake Norman real estate market is still struggling, there are some very exciting developments and amenities under construction or about break ground; a welcome sign for our communities! 

 According to a   WCNC News Release, construction is scheduled to begin in May on the  “Fountains at Mooresville Town Square, a 227-unit, $23 million luxury apartment community located at the corner of Brawley School and Williamson Rd.  This newer project is already home to some wonderful restaurants and boutiques including Fusion Bowl, JJ’s Deli, Cartucci’s, NY Bagel and Deli, Lavendar Boutique and Sweet Grass.  The new apartment community will include a salt-water swimming pool, courtyard, fire pit and grilling area, and a 5,000 sq ft clubhouse.

Also in the news today in the Mooresville Tribune is a great update about two truly awesome sports complexes that are nearing completion: The soccer/baseball complex on Mazeppa Road (Mazeppa Road Park) and Cornelius Rd. (Cornelius Road Park). 

Mazeppa Road Park will open on Labor Day with two artificial turf soccer fields, four grass soccer fields, three adult softball fields and an adult baseball field.  It will also have a one-mile walking trail and two large playgrounds.

The Cornelius Road Park, opening later this fall, will have 6 tennis courts, two youth baseball fields, expansive picnic grounds and walking trails.

Add to these the “America’s Park” 25-field youth baseball complex that will serve as host to hundreds of teams from all over the United States and Canada in June, July and August and Mooresville is fastly become THE place for sports of all kinds in addition to our car racing!

Related Articles

New Restaurants and Retail News in Mooresville Lake Norman

Lake Norman Real Estate’s Business of the Week: La Patisserie Cafe and Bakery

Lake Norman Real Estate: Is Mooresville Really Bucking the Recession?

The Point  in Mooresville NC is arguably the most prestigious luxury community in all of Lake Norman and it is also the largest with 18 miles of beautiful Lake Norman shoreline.   

Exactly one year ago I did a sales analysis of  The Point for a client looking for insight into trends as well as an accurate assessment of the current market. But, how did this same luxury community fare in the past 12 months? You may be interested to find out they did and are doing quite well…  But at what price?  Here are the answers:

 12-Month Sales By Price Range

*All data is from the Charlotte Regional Multiple Listing Service only and does not include sales that were not conducted through our MLS

Probably the most shocking number of all in the above chart of sales in The Point for the last 12 months is that there was one sale in the $300,000′s and 14 total sales under $600,000! In fact, this niche accounted for 27% of the annual sales. Almost HALF of the total number of homes sold in The Point were under $800,000. Of course, many of these were distressed sales of inventory left over from our peak building market of 2006/2007.  Note that while this niche represented 46.5% of the sales it represents only 29.3% of the current inventory.

The most significant number, in my opinion, is the months of supply of active listings in The Point which has dropped to 13.6 months a number well below the overall Lake Norman real estate market. And, this is also a vast improvement from 3 years ago.  At their peak there were over 140 active listings in The Point.  Back on September 18, 2008 I wrote:  The Point in Lake Norman: A Case Study #2.  In this report I noted that we had 123 active listings which translated at the time to a whopping 41-month supply of inventory!  Then, in: Lake Norman Real Estate: Affordable Housing at The Point…Wow! on July 25, 2009 I noted that we had 114 active listings and had sold only 19 homes since the beginning of the year for a 38-month supply of active listings.

Here is a look at both waterfront and off-water homes in The Point since 2001 so that you can put the past year’s numbers in historical context:

The Point

Home Sales: Non Waterfront

Highlights

• The $ per square foot has continued to decline since the peak in 2006 but the average sale price has actually increased slightly.
• Sales volume of non-waterfront homes increased 38.5% in 2010
• The list -to-sales price differential has dropped down to 4%

The Point

Home Sales: Waterfront 

Highlights

• The average sales price improved slightly in 2010 while the average dollar per square foot remained fairly steady until our 2011′s first quarter.
• Sales of waterfront homes rose only slightly in 2010.

The Point seems to be over the worst of its own mini meltdown. Inventory is down, sales have improved but this is clearly due to serious drops in the sales prices. Now that most of the earlier round of distressed sales are gone, the question is will the prices of the existing inventory have to drop as well before they sell or has the bleeding stopped?  I am most interested in watching their waterfront homes because up until now they have not dropped in price as much as the overall waterfront housing market in Lake Norman.  Stay tuned!

 Prompted by a great article I read today on Forbes.com:   The Foreclosure Fallacy  I decided it was time once again for me to tackle the ever growing pile of information, mostly about our national and Lake Norman housing market, that is in a stack on my desk I call “Blog Topics”.  Most of these are not worthy of their own post so I will share a quick summary of a number of them here at one time:

National:

•  The Foreclosure Fallacy  is wonderful in its simplicity.  In one short article they touch on all of the major issues related to foreclosures from the risks involved to the sage advice from one Detroit area broker:  “Don’t be too picky.  A lot of houses will need work.”  I have mentioned in previous posts the importance of being willing to “compromise” if you are search for a bargain.  So true!

• Standard & Poors: Modifications and Slower Foreclosures Shrink Shadow Inventory article in the Wall Street Journal was one of many referencing the release of Standard & Poor’s  yearly report.  (S&P defines shadow inventory as properties with borrowers who are 90 days or more delinquent on their mortgage payments).  One disconcerting figure in this article:  “The time it takes for a lender to foreclose on a borrower has lengthened—from about 20 months to about 40—”. The amount of Shadow Inventory here in Lake Norman is one of the biggest unknowns that keeps home-buyers uncertain about when to move forward with a purchase.

• The Mortgage Bankers Association released a report today, February 18th, that says that the percentage of mortgage holders who are behind in their payments dropped to the lowest number in two years in the fourth quarter of 2010.  “While delinquency and foreclosure rates are still well above historical norms, we have clearly turned the corner in the foreclosure crisis” according to MBA Chief Economist Jay Brinkman in a statement.

• There have been numerous articles recently about the death of the “McMansion Era”.  According to both the National Association of Realtors and the National Association of Home Builders the “median sized home being built today is smaller” and the future trends will be towards smaller, more energy efficient homes. Will the 8000 sq ft+ homes on Lake Norman one day be obsolete?  Probably not but it will be interesting to watch!

Local:

• CNNMoney.com recently listed Charlotte NC in their top 10 housing markets as the best recovery bets.

• Charlotte was chosen as the host city for the 2012 Democratic National Convention!

• Unfortunately, many of the ambitious housing/urban villages/mixed use developments that were in the pipeline several years ago are either drastically changed or no longer viable.  There have been a number in our local news over the past few months.  Instead of the Mooresville Cotton Mill mixed use village in the old Burlington Factory on Hwy 115 there will now be a large furniture store.  According to an article in the Charlotte Observer “In Cornelius, a massive mixed use project was planned that leaders predicted could generate thousands of jobs.  The bank now owns the farmland.”  Langtree at the Lake, the $850,000,000 upscale Lake Norman resort development that I have written about a number of times has still not broken ground.  The project was recently in the news announcing the sale of  land which will bring in enough cash to finance the first phase of their newly re-designed project which will now include 300 luxury apartments (originally planned as very high-end condominiums) with retail and commercial to come soon after as well as an hotel. 

• According to an article today in the Statesville Record & Landmark,Iredell County revaluation notices were sent out today.  “The final line is a 1.5% total decrease in value in the county…Nearly 58% of Iredell property owners saw the values of their property decline.”

• All Lake Norman residents will receive notification this month of our 2011 home revaluation. (Remember that 4 counties comprise the Lake Norman shoreline).

Personal:

• I, as I’m sure every member did, received a summary from the social network LinkedIn letting me know that 53 of my LinkedIn connections “started something new” meaning a change in job titles in 2010.  Lot’s of change, that’s for sure!

Mission accomplished!  My pile is now a full inch shorter.  Hopefully you found at least one or two of these of interest to you!