dcharlotte

The Vue has a studio for $1475 a month ($2.0/SF) with a three bedroom going for $4,735 per month. Those are the prices that you own a home or condo in Charlotte, not rent a space. While the space in the Vue is larger and you're paying less per square foot, that number only matters to a developer who is trying to make their proforma work. Consumers think about their total cost per month as it relates to a budget. For comparison, Catalyst Apartments are $1,200 ($3.18/sf) per month. Very small gaps in rent, but the owner of the Vue really can't afford to go any lower.

The cost of permits and a few press releases through your PR firm is much lower than costs of maintaining an empty building. Ask the developer of The Vue.

Given the current construction activity in apartments, the market really isn't there to get in the ground on a large project like this right now. 3,500 units under construction, another 3,500 that could get off the ground at any moment, with the majority being midrise apartments, that's a huge risk. Being a concrete highrise with a larger structured parking deck means they will have to charge higher rents, which will not be supported with the current supply wave in the market. That said, they may still push forward once they can see how the current pipeline absorbs. Charlotte has remained strong in the apartment market as of late with a ton of young folks coming to Charlotte for the jobs and the urban culture. Live and work in Uptown or live in Cary and work in RTP?

You're correct - the power substations and power upgrades are quite costly. The amount of power it takes to power a three-car train from zero to 55 mph is quite high. Minimizing the headway times also increases the total number of trains on any given section, requiring an additional power substation within that area to feed the power for that section. That's why we have two-car trains and longer headway times: the power system on the line simply cannot accommodate more trains.

Doubtful on retail. Retail doesn't make money in Uptown like it does in other locations. We will have to have a developer that sees the retail as an amenity. Seriously, an amenity, not a necessity.

In that side of the photo: no. There is 2 million SF. Ballantyne Corp Park total: 4.38 million SF. Three Wells Fargo is 930,000 SF total. This is nearly 5 more skyscrapers in Uptown.

Uptown will see two office towers: one will have an anchor tenant moving from an existing building, the other will be built as spec. The banks are no longer interested in building or owning. So, with the banks out of the game, institutional investors moving into the market, and an understanding that Charlotte is seen as a strong non-core play, new developers and investors will be coming into the market to build. I would expect the total space to be built at around 1-1.3 million SF between the two buildings. We could see more activity if things get underway near Gateway Village since you can build a building there on cheaper land and not have to go vertical 20+ floors to make the financials really work out. I would expect to see at least three hotels built, delivering about 1200 total hotel rooms. RevPar, seasonally adjusted, can easily support this number. Two on the luxury side, one more 'modern,' as the hotel industry likes to call them. Beyond the current apartment construction, don't expect anything to get underway. The apartment wave has come to Uptown, and with the competition for tenants in South End (with more amenities honestly), nothing will get going. I will call for a condo building to be built in the next five years.

Beyond that: Imagine Ballantye competing for tenants from Uptown, University, South Park, and the airport. We would see the city giving away tax incentives for things that should not be done!

That urban 'edge' is a joke. It is surprising that people can still build a parking deck against a busy street to kill any street activity that would spill over from the greenway or Met. 100% chance this doesn't get built. He has announced his hotel after EVERYONE else has already had plans for a hotel. This guy is always late to the game, always late. He is the worst at being able to understand and time a market. He needs to sell his land and give up on the dream of real estate forever.

If successful, this area will become the next warehouse distribution area. Rail, highways, and the airport mean you can do your freight shipping and "just in time" or "just in case" distribution from one location. The Garden Parkway will also help transportation in the area (hopefully it never gets built). Think of this area as the next Alliance area of Dallas, on a much smaller scale. You can quickly get goods to Atlanta, Triangle, Triad, and deep into VA, KY, and GA from one location. The growth of the southern markets will favor distribution out of Charlotte over Atlanta.

I hate when local news media interviews people unfamiliar with real estate. You can't believe they purchased the property for pennies on the dollar to foreclose, invest a little money, sign some new leases and get some traction on a hotel site on the property and now is a perfect time to cash out? Yes, really surprising that they could take a ton of money from an investor looking to park a lot of money in a non-core market.

I shared that with my entire company last Friday - best Friday Funny video EVER.

That spur was built so they could ship the printers to the location. For some reason the rail crossing on Graham was upgraded and the ROW has been maintained over the years.

Off topic: but that was the worst part of being at App. Trying to remember all of those silly numbers drove me crazy. How many units are under construction in South End currently?

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