The Impact of UNC Charlotte

History of UNC Charlotte:

When UNC Charlotte was founded in 1949 it was to support the educational needs of soldiers returning from WWII looking for an education. Fast forward to 2016 and it now has an enrollment of approximately 30,000 students and is on track to grow to almost 40,000 in the next ten years. What does this mean for real estate? Everything. Combine all of this on campus growth within the university alongside the expected growth of the Charlotte region and there is truly an opportunity growing here. If you are looking for homes for sale in Charlotte than you have chosen the right town to invest in real estate. Clearly the state government also believes the same after recently approving the 600 million dollar light rail which will ultimately connect the University City area and Uptown Charlotte. When the dust settles in this rapidly ascending section of North Charlotte there will be great opportunity here. 

Examining the Competitive Market
Within the past 2 years alone 6 new off-campus housing developments have been built around the University City area alone, housing approximately 7-8 thousand college students. This has set off an arms race of sorts in the area, forcing older complexes to make renovations or price reductions to stay competitive. Not only have older off-campus complexes stepped their game up, the University has made strides itself to attract incoming freshman to live on campus freshman year and beyond building 5 new dorms and remodeling 4 old dorms within the past 3 years as well. Even with this race to put up student housing the demand for living outside of apartments have never been higher among college students.

The Current Housing Trend

Look no further than the College Downs neighborhood tucked between University City boulevard and Old Concord road, where student look to rent houses have slim windows for even a chance at booking a house for renting. College student demand here is so high that windows to book a house are often no more than a couple days, and wait lists for homes can be overflowing. This trend should only continue to rise within the University City area as the school continues to grow and more and more students will be seeking an alternative to apartment style living. 

Check out some homes for sale in Charlotte.