Posted on May 5, 2019

A significant number of Mecklenburg County property owners will see an increase in their tax bill this year under a budget proposal unveiled recently by County Manager Dena Diorio, which would adopt a tax rate almost 2 cents, or 3.3 percent, above revenue-neutral.

With an average property value increase of more than 50% following a countywide revaluation, the tax rate at which the County would collect the same amount of total revenue (known as the ‘revenue-neutral’ rate) is 59.7 cents per $100 of assessed value. The manager’s budget proposes a rate of 61.69 cents per $100, or 1.99 cents above revenue neutral. The impact of the higher rate means more than 65% of all Mecklenburg County homeowners, and more than 71% of all commercial property owners, will see higher tax bills this year.

Posted on April 30, 2019

The City of Charlotte is considering revisions to its Noise Ordinance that would allow the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department (CMPD) to designate specific construction sites as 'chronic noise producers' and require a the creation of a formal plan to mitigate noise impacts on surrounding neighborhoods.

The changes, approved last week by City Council's Neighborhood Development Committee, are part of an extensive update of the 2011 Noise Ordinance, which also include the creation of noise buffers around schools, churches or health care facilities, and tighter restrictions on the use of amplified sound. In addition to giving CMPD the authority to make the chronic noise designation, the ordinance would create escalating fines for repeat violations and add specific examples of construction equipment for greater clarity.

The  proposed Noise Ordinance changes are available on the City's website. REBIC will be reviewing the ordinance with our general contractor members in the coming weeks to determine how to address the proposed changes.

Posted on April 29, 2019

Proposed regulations rolled out last week by the Treasury Department should make it easier for commercial real estate practitioners to invest in qualified Opportunity Zones (OZ).

An “Opportunity Zone” is defined as “an economically-distressed community where new investments, under certain conditions, may be eligible for preferential tax treatment.” They were created as part of the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which NAIOP supported.

Investors can reduce their taxes by taking capital gains income and putting it in a Qualified Opportunity Fund that invests in designated Opportunity Zones. Under the latest IRS regulations, the funds now have 12 months instead of six to put their money to work in an OZ.

Posted on April 26, 2019

By Mark Abell

A relatively new extended-maturity loan option from the U.S. Small Business Administration is heating up the real estate market among small businesses that are anxious to purchase properties while the economy is booming and interest rates remain low.

In April 2018, the U.S. Small Business Administration announced changes to its 504 loan program to allow for a 25-year maturity on the debenture portion of the financing package. A 504 facility is structured in three parts: a bank loan for 50 percent of the amount being financed, up to a 40 percent debenture (or bond) that carries an SBA guarantee, and as little as 10 percent equity funded by the borrower. Previously, the SBA-backed debenture was available with 10- and 20-year maturities. Now that longer 25-year maturities are available, businesses can effectively borrow more funds.

Posted on April 26, 2019

Developing leader members of NAIOP Charlotte volunteered at The Harvest Center on April 24, 2019 where they helped serve dinner and facilitated activities with the kids!

Posted on April 23, 2019

The biggest thing happening in commercial real estate is digital disruption.

Traditionally, construction and CRE have lagged behind other industries, but technology is changing so rapidly it's setting the framework for how we look at CRE. It's no longer a 40-50 year asset – it's a dynamic process continually being reshaped by the convergence of technologies.

Posted on April 23, 2019

The Charlotte City Council unanimously approved a new Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) Ordinance, which sets standards for commercial and residential development in the city’s light rail corridor.

REBIC and our members worked closely with City planning staff on the ordinance over the past 18 months, and we are generally pleased with the final product. Many of our suggestions — from changes in maximum parking ratios to additional development incentives — were included in the final draft adopted by Council last week. Our only remaining significant concern remains the 130′ building height limitation, which can only be exceeded through the use of a bonus point system that encourages affordable housing investments, energy efficient construction, or the contribution of offsite infrastructure.

While we support each of these policy goals, we believe City Council should do everything possible to encourage density in our transit corridors, and not restrict itself from considering economic development opportunities that would otherwise be limited by the building height caps in each TOD district.

Click here to read more.

Posted on April 22, 2019

We are proud to introduce our new association members! The following is a list of individuals who have joined NAIOP Charlotte since January 29, 2019:

• Rob Brinkman, Bohler Engineering NC, PLLC
• Todd Brown, Choate Construction Company
• Andrew Culicento, Intercon Building Company, LLC
• Ryan Doherty, Progressive AE
• Gabriella Edmonson, ECS Southeast, LLP
• Casey Gebhardt, Lat Purser & Associates
• Josiah Goins, Barton Malow Company
• Frank Greer, GreerWalker LLP
• Daniel Mattox, JE Dunn Construction
• Nathan Medlin, GreerWalker LLP
• Patrick Nally, HFF
• Anthony Phillips, Lat Purser & Associates
• Seth Puckett, JAG Insurance Group
• Matt Robertson, Clancy & Theys Construction Company
• Eric Thompson, ARCO Design/Build, Inc.

Posted on April 16, 2019

By Jan A. deRoos, PhD and Shaun Bond, PhD

The NAIOP Research Foundation has published a new white paper titled "Creating a Private Equity Fund: A Guide for Real Estate Professionals," by Jan A. deRoos, Ph.D., HVS Professor of Hotel Finance and Real Estate at SC Johnson College of Business, Cornell University; and Shaun Bond, Ph.D., West Shell Jr. Chair in Real Estate at Lindner College of Business, University of Cincinnati.

Key Takeaways:

Posted on April 12, 2019

The Charlotte City Council will vote next Monday night on the new Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) Ordinance, following a unanimous recommendation of approval today by the Council’s Transportation & Planning Committee.

REBIC and our members have been closely engaged in the process of drafting the new TOD ordinance over the past 18 months, and the City planning staff, have incorporated many of our suggestions into the ordinance — from changes in maximum parking ratios to reduced open space requirements. And while we are pleased with many aspects of the TOD, we remain concerned that its limitations on building height could negatively impact economic development in Charlotte’s transit corridors.

The ordinance currently caps base height at a maximum of 130’ in the TOD-UC district, its most dense, and offers developers additional height in exchange for bonus points that advance other City objectives, like affordable housing, transportation improvements or energy efficiency. While we support each of these policy goals, we believe City Council should do everything possible to encourage density in our transit corridors, and not restrict itself from considering economic development opportunities that would otherwise be limited by the building height caps in each TOD district.

Click here to read more.

Posted on April 11, 2019

Join UNC Charlotte Childress Klein Center for Real Estate for the Charlotte Housing Policy Summit on Wednesday, April 24 at UNC Charlotte’s Center City Campus. This event will address Charlotte's housing policy implications based on the analysis discussed in the “State of Housing in Charlotte” report and summit.

Posted on April 9, 2019

On March 21, John W. Martin, CEO of the Institute for Tomorrow, presented Transcendent Trends Shaping the Future of North Carolina and the Future of Built Environments. In this highly entertaining and thought-provoking keynote presentation, John W. Martin, CEO of the Institute for Tomorrow, outlined the top “must know” demographic and cultural trends shaping the future of North Carolina. As a research-based futurist, John shared the implications of each trend on the built environment and the commercial real estate development industry, including how buildings, developments, activity centers, and even entire communities will be designed and constructed in the decades ahead.

Click Here to view the PowerPoint

Posted on April 8, 2019

Mecklenburg County LUESA is proposing dramatic increases to its Land Development, Zoning and Floodplain Permitting Fees for FY 2020, as it seeks to end a longstanding practice of supporting Land Development Services with excess stormwater fee revenue.

The proposed increases, combined with the elimination of two vacant stormwater positions, will allow Land Development Services to cover 100% of its operating costs, says Land Development Director Dave Canaan. With the Town of Huntersville starting its own land development permitting operation this summer, the County's Land Development Services division will handle projects in the five remaining towns and the ETJ. The City of Charlotte charges separate fees for land development permitting within its boundaries.

Both REBIC and the Greater Charlotte HBA have voiced our strong opposition to the proposed fees (listed below), which represent year-to-year increases of nearly 200% in some cases. Fees for multi-year projects will be phased in over two years, and new fees will be implemented for re-inspections and re-reviews of development plans.

Click here to read more.

Posted on April 8, 2019

This year, the Charlotte Business Journal added a new awards program to recognize established local leaders who have a strong vision for their companies, have shown commitment to culture in the workplace and made significant contributions to the community. 

The Most Admired CEO Awards was held on March 29 at The Westin Charlotte hotel uptown. Thirty-nine leaders were recognized across more than a dozen industry categories.

Nominations for this program were open to the public and came from members of the business community, within the honorees' organizations and externally. The CBJ editorial team selected honorees to recognize within each industry category.

Posted on April 1, 2019

Lawmakers return to Washington, D.C., this week after spending time in their districts. Several measures have been introduced that are important to NAIOP and commercial real estate. The Carried Interest Fairness Act of 2019, introduced in the House by Rep. Bill Pascrell (D-NJ) and in the Senate by Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI), aims to treat certain income currently taxed at the capital gains rate as ordinary income. This would be a major change, since the top capital gains rate is 20 percent and the highest rate on ordinary income is 37 percent.

Less than two years ago, Congress passed the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (TCJA), a law that NAIOP strongly supported. Lawmakers recognized that taxing carried interests at a lower rate than ordinary income provides the necessary incentive for entrepreneurs to undertake risks inherent in development. The provision was therefore kept in place in the new tax law, though a new three-year holding period was imposed. The three-year holding period was intended to ensure that “carried interests” were used primarily for longer-term capital assets.

NAIOP has opposed changes to the taxation of real estate carried interests, and is working with its real estate allies to educate lawmakers in both the House and Senate on the changes already made to carried interest taxation.

Posted on March 29, 2019

By Margarita Foster

Property managers are using “dynamic and multidimensional” information for operations but not yet for tenant engagement.

A white paper published by the NAIOP Research Foundation titled “The Office Property and Big Data Puzzle: Putting the Pieces Together”found that office building owners are capturing, storing and analyzing data to operate building systems but not to recruit and retain tenants.

Posted on March 28, 2019

Redevelopment is almost 100% of what's going on in retail real estate.

Today developers are selecting premier spots where they have access to customers, and that often means reusing existing retail locations.

Posted on March 28, 2019

Join the South Chapter of the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance for our first discussion of the year focused on Charlotte area real estate developments. Our industry experts will cover LoSo Station, RailYard South End, The River District, Apex SouthPark and more. 

Guest Speakers:
Chris Thomas, Partner, Childress Klein
Elizabeth McMillan, LEED AP, Crescent Communities
Matt Lucarelli, Director of Project Management, Beacon Partners

Moderator:
Alyson Craig, Deputy Director, City of Charlotte 

Agenda: 
11:30 - Noon : Registration and Networking
Noon - 1 p.m. : Lunch and Program 

*This event is $30 for members, $40 for access and $60 for non-members.

Posted on March 25, 2019

By Todd Burns

Facing a mix of potential risks and boosts, the U.S. construction industry is positioned to provide ample excitement in 2019. Forward indicators are flashing green, but with project margins facing pressure from all sides, a year with growth equal to that of 2018 would be considered a success.

Risks to the sector – including trade war escalation, deteriorating macroeconomic conditions and the worsening labor shortage – have many of us in the industry watching closely for signs of a slowdown. Meanwhile, potential boosts such as a large-scale federal infrastructure package, relief from tariffs and the continuation of 3.5 percent annual GDP growth, generate confidence that momentum in the industry will continue for the next few months.

Click here to read more.

Posted on March 25, 2019

As REBIC previously reported, the City of Kannapolis is rewriting its UDO.  In November 2018, City Staff along with the consultant team, Clarion, began that process.

Clarion has prepared a UDO Assessment Report for public review.  The report is diagnostic in nature, and serves as an outline of recommended changes that should be considered as the text of the UDO is drafted.

REBIC and the City of Kannapolis invite you to review the  UDO Assessment Report and provide your feedback.  You may do so by email or phone (contact information found below).