Charlotte NC Real Estate News

Urban chic is the trend in Charlotte 's center city, where buyers scamper to put down deposits on high-rise condos with bird's-eye views of the skyline.

At the opposite end of the housing spectrum are the luxury condo traditionalists -- buyers more impressed with rambling ranch-home square footage and tree-canopied streets.

Traditionalists typically seek to remain in established neighborhoods such as Eastover and Myers Park .

Taking advantage of that potential market, Spectrum Properties plans to develop Queens & Selwyn, whose 18 Myers Park condos range from 2,400 to 4,000 square feet and sell for $675,000 to $1.6 million.

In this upper housing tier, buyers generally are downsizing from the large dwellings that populate older, upper-income neighborhoods such as Myers Park , but they don't want to move far away or scrimp on space for their prized possessions.

Wendy Field, Queens & Selwyn's sales manager, said she has taken six reservations -- all from people living nearby in Myers Park .

"They're a different buyer from uptown," she said. "They're empty nesters who like the feel of a large Myers Park home even though they're living in a condo."

In many cases, she said, they spend time in weekend homes at the beach or mountains and prefer not to be tied down by the demands of a large single-family house and grounds.

Also, Field said, they tend to feel comfortable in a relatively small condo project that enables them to form friendships with other owners while maintaining neighborhood contacts, club memberships and shopping patterns.

Affordability is an important driver uptown, but among traditionalists, price isn't necessarily the determining factor. Lifestyle is important.

Residential real estate analyst Emma Littlejohn of The Littlejohn Group said the condo trend in Myers Park is toward large units that blend modern conveniences with the character of an older neighborhood.

Condo buyers in Eastover or Myers Park , she said, typically are empty nesters seeking functional, secure dwellings with worry-free maintenance.

"Downtown, arguably 75 percent of the buyers are younger people looking to take advantage of the urban lifestyle and the sports and entertainment venues there," she said.

"But both markets are showing great strength -- driven by the lifestyle change and the long commutes in from the suburbs," Littlejohn said.

Capitalizing on the rush back to the core, developers have announced four uptown high-rise projects totaling nearly 600 units since April.

Demand for luxury condos in Myers Park probably isn't strong enough to support "hundreds of new condos a year," Littlejohn said, "but it can sustain 30 to 40 a year."

That's roughly the current pace of condo development in the area now, she said.

Selwyn & Queens, at the corner of Selwyn Avenue and Queens Road , will share a courtyard with 2400 Roswell , Spectrum's first condo project in Myers Park .

Spectrum Chairman Jim Dulin said 2400 Roswell 's 21 units sold out at prices ranging from the mid-$500,000s to more than $1 million. That project is to be completed in the spring.

A big magnet for both, Dulin said, was nearby Myers Park Country Club, whose dining facilities and golf course are within walking distance.

Four-story Queens & Selwyn will be set back about 60 feet from the street among oak trees to blend with the neighborhood, he said.

A focal point of the stucco, slate and stone building's Charleston-style architecture will be large porches 40 feet long and 10 feet deep with ceiling fans -- "really an outdoor room," Dulin said.

In keeping with the Charleston theme, he said, the project will have a courtyard with formal gardens, a water feature and a large outdoor veranda where residents can relax and read a book or socialize with friends.

Secured parking -- two spaces per unit -- and storage rooms will be under the building.

Field said buyers can work with Spectrum's interior design consultant to customize condos.

Among the interior features are 11-foot ceilings, hardwood floors, chandeliers for foyer and dining areas, gas fireplaces, French balcony doors and custom kitchens with granite countertops, bar seating and stainless steel appliances.

Field said master bedroom suites will include his-and-her closets and vanities, marble bathrooms and soaking tubs.

That spaciousness and array of amenities is a far cry from what's driving the market uptown, where units as small as 600 square feet have sold in the low $150,000s.

Dulin believes that as long as developers can find a suitable parcel as large as an acre in Myers Park , the luxury condo market there will be sustained.

"People like this product," he said, noting that condo hunters who were interested but didn't buy into Spectrum's first Myers Park project are boosting sales at Queens & Selwyn.

Spectrum expects to start construction during the first quarter and complete work by summer 2006.

Queens & Selwyn -- valued at roughly $16 million -- was designed by LS3P Associates Ltd. R.J. Griffin & Co. is the general contractor.

Doug Smith

Got, Alotta, Charlotte!

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