State of Housing in Charlotte 2024 Report takes data-informed look at housing issues

Affordable housing remains scarce in Charlotte metro

Enough people moved to the Charlotte metro from 2022 to 2023 to create a city roughly the size of Huntersville or Kannapolis, with 49,000+ newcomers relocating. Taking a longer view from 2014 to 2023, 471,750+ people moved to the Charlotte area.

This brisk pace of growth — combined with a shortage of available housing and high interest rates — means that the Charlotte area faces a shortfall of housing that people with low and moderate incomes can afford. Although interest rates have dropped in recent months, and the supply of housing has improved somewhat, challenges persist, according to the State of Housing in Charlotte 2024 Report.

Published by the UNC Charlotte Childress Klein Center for Real Estate in the Belk College of Business, the practical, use-inspired research takes a close look at housing issues in the Charlotte metro. In its sixth year, the report was released Wednesday, Nov. 20 at the annual State of Housing in Charlotte Summit at The Dubois Center at UNC Charlotte Center City. 

“House prices have increased very quickly in Charlotte in recent years, making Charlotte housing increasingly unaffordable,” said Childress Klein Distinguished Professor of Real Estate and Urban Economics Yongqiang Chu, the study’s primary author. 

“While the market has cooled significantly since COVID-19, there are no signs of significant price declines in the near future,” Chu said. “The significant slowdown in construction during the last two years and the easing monetary policy will put significant upward pressure on house prices going forward. Much needs to be done to achieve housing affordability.”

Key takeaways from the report

• House price growth has stabilized at a much lower rate than during the COVID-19 years; however, it is still growing. The median home prices in the Charlotte market increased from $414,360 in September 2023 to $429,945 in September 2024.
• The supply side is catching up; however, significant challenges are ahead. The Charlotte Metropolitan Statistical Area provided a surplus of 5,000 housing units in 2023.
• The housing market continues to be tight. The median days-on-the-market number was still less than 20 days in the report study period.
• Houses with affordable prices have become extremely difficult to find. Only 2% of houses sold for under $150,000 — compared to 34.5% in 2014, and only about 19% of houses sold for under $300,000 in 2024 — compared to 75% in 2014.
• Housing affordability is slightly better than last year because of the declining interest rate. It would take a family income of $138,000 to afford a median-priced house in 2024. This compares to the 2023 State of Housing number, which was $152,000.
• Rents have been decreasing in 2023 and 2024, thanks to the significant increase in multifamily apartment deliveries in the last several years.

Industry panel provides insights

A conversation with industry experts followed Chu’s talk, moderated by Belk College of Business Dean Richard Buttimer, with Charisma Southerland ’94, the 2024 president of Canopy Realtor® Association and Canopy MLS; Bart Hopper, founder and CEO of Hopper Communities, a leader in residential homebuilding and land development; and Marcie Williams, a multi-family strategic advisor with RKW, a multifamily property management firm headquartered in Charlotte.

Multi-family status

“In the past 12 months, there have actually been 15,478 units that have been delivered, and over 12,600 of those have been absorbed, so you have the demand, and you have that absorption,” Williams said. Those dynamics result in stagnant rates, she said.

Charlotte region rental rates are attractive compared to other areas of the country, which drives demand for the units, Williams said. “They are double-digit percentage lower here than where other cities are today,” she said.

Interest rates and flexibility

The pace of selling and buying of homes can hinge on interest rates, Southerland said. “When you go into the 6% range, buyers will get mobilized, and so will sellers,” she said. “Interest rates are very important.”

The market is still a seller’s market at this point, and people need to be flexible and informed on location, financing and other matters, she said. “Just because we’re not two days on the market (for a sale) does not mean we’re in a buyer’s market,” she said.

Southerland also discussed a program through Canopy called Down Payment® Resource, a tool to connect homebuyers with down payment help and to equip real estate professionals to help clients.

Structural issues

Developers deal with the complexities of government requirements, such as with Charlotte’s Unified Development Ordinance and with varied regulations in surrounding communities, Hopper said. “We’ve got to work together to come up with solutions,” he said. 

In one aspect, rezoning issues have been reduced with the UDO in Charlotte, which saves time, he said. On the other hand, his company has seen the impact of tree ordinance requirements. A surveyor his company worked with proposed a day rate for the work, because of the difficulty in gauging how long it would take to assess trees on a wooded lot.

More about the report

The State of Housing in Charlotte report draws upon six data sources and considers owner-occupied, rental and subsidized housing in an eight-county area of Mecklenburg, Cabarrus, Gaston, Iredell, Lincoln and Union counties in North Carolina and Lancaster and York counties in South Carolina. Those providing financial support for the work include Canopy Realtor® Association, Faison, True Homes, Hopper Communities and Marcie Williams. The Canopy Realtor® Association provided substantial data contribution from its Multiple Listing Service.