Multifamily Markets: Charlotte

National Real Estate Investor named Charlotte one of the top 10 cities in the United States for multifamily investment. With annual mean wages of $50,150 and average net effective rents of $1,067, Charlotte is the second most affordable city for renters among the nation’s top 10 most active cities. Glassdoor ranks it among the 25 best cities in the nation to find a job, and it ranks as the #3 banking center in the U.S.

Charlotte’s expansion has been underway for over a decade, experiencing a population growth of 24.7% between 2007 and 2017, three times the average U.S. growth rate. It ranked in the top 25 of the U.S. News & World Report’s lists of Best Places to Live and Best Places to Retire. In 2017, its cost of living was 2% below the national average, and Forbes rated it #7 Best Places for Business and Careers.

The city is home to a burgeoning food scene, and Food & Wine named 2018 Charlotte’s breakout culinary year. Ford Fry, the Atlanta chef best known for generously portioned Tex-Mex dishes served at his flagship Superica, opened an outpost in Charlotte this May. Although the less populous Asheville typically gets the most praise in North Carolina for its craft beer, Charlotte also hosts a number of excellent breweries, including Triple C Brewing Co., Wooden Robot, and women-owned Bold Missy Brewery.

Charlotte’s economy is booming as the city seeks to diversify from its traditional reliance on banking and financial services. The success of these efforts is reflected in a $5 billion data center by Apple, Amazon’s $375 million data center wind farm, and a variety of tax incentives aimed at attracting the tech industry. All of this led Business Facilities to name Charlotte the #2 metro in the country for Economic Growth Potential.