New Report Estimates Losses From Hurricane Florence Total Almost $30 Billion

Steve
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New Report Estimates Losses From Hurricane Florence Total Almost $30 Billion

Data management company CoreLogic just released a new report estimating that Hurricane Florence may have caused close to $30 billion in property damage in the Carolinas and Virginia.

According to their new report, “flood loss for residential and commercial properties in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia is estimated to be between $19 billion and $28.5 billion which includes both storm surge and inland flooding. Specifically, uninsured flood loss for the same area is estimated to be between $13 billion and $18.5 billion. Wind losses are estimated to be an additional $1 billion to $1.5 billion.”

The report also includes the estimates of losses that were insured, including a total of $6.0 billion to $10.0 billion with $4.5 billion to $7.5 billion in NC, $1.0 billion to $2.0 billion in SC, and as much as $500 million in Virginia.

The company estimates that the total number of residential homes affected by the storm is over 600,000. North Carolina was hit the hardest with over 487,000 homes damaged. South Carolina saw 109,000 homes damaged and Virginia saw about 28,000 affected.

They also estimate that damage to commercial properties includes 38,000 in North Carolina, 9,000 in South Carolina and 1,000 in Virginia.

Do you know anyone affected by the storm?

Please consider helping the hurting by donating to The Red Cross, Samaritan’s Purse, or directly to residents via Hurricane Florence GoFundMe Campaigns.

UNC Charlotte Developing Regional Five-Year Housing Study

Charlotte Stories
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UNC Charlotte Developing Regional Five-Year Housing Study

The Childress Klein Center for Real Estate at UNC Charlotte is launching a five-year research project, the State of Housing in Charlotte, to provide policymakers, real estate professionals, and the general public a comprehensive, data-driven analysis of the housing markets in the Charlotte metropolitan area. The intent is for the report to become the cornerstone data source for housing policy analysis in the Charlotte region; it is expected to be unveiled at a State of Housing Summit during the first quarter of 2019.
Charlotte Skyline
To date, more than 10 organizations and firms have pledged a total of more than $200,000 over five years to support this comprehensive report, including the Charlotte Regional Realtor® Association, the Piedmont Public Policy Institute, the National Association of Realtors®, Center City Partners, True Homes Inc., Evergreen Strategies, Crosland Southeast, the Foundation for the Carolinas, the Charlotte Housing Authority and Moore & Van Allen.

Richard Buttimer, director of the Childress Klein Center for Real Estate at UNC Charlotte, said, “The idea came to our center directly from the Charlotte real estate community, and we are now in a great position in the center with new faculty researchers to deliver this project.”

The annual State of Housing in Charlotte report will provide a comprehensive overview of housing in Charlotte, including both owner-occupied housing and rental housing. Primary goals of this report will be to demonstrate what is currently happening in the Charlotte region and what has happened in the recent past and to become a common, impartial data source for all housing stakeholders. The report will provide data and analysis for the entire Charlotte metropolitan area, and it will include the adjoining counties because of their increasing integration with the housing market in Charlotte proper.

Buttimer.jpg“Policymakers and others who wish to affect change in the Charlotte market will increasingly have to take into account how changes in the suburban markets effect Charlotte and vice versa. Currently, information on the Charlotte market is easier to find than on the surrounding counties. A major goal of this report will be to provide a consistent and uniform degree of detail, as well as a uniform data format, across the entire region,” Buttimer said.

The report is expected to include three core components: a comprehensive inventory of the current housing stock, an analysis of housing affordability across all income levels and a higher-level comparison of the Charlotte regional housing market with those of other regional metropolitan areas and with selected size-paired national metropolitan areas. The report also will highlight a series of best practices and unique programs that have been instituted in the comparison cities. This will include an analysis of how well those best practices and programs could be adapted to the Charlotte region.

One of the key components of the report will be to illustrate the affordability of housing in the Charlotte metropolitan area through data. In addition to housing data provided by the Carolina Multiple Listing Services, Inc., researchers will collect and use demographic, employment and transit data to develop an integrated view of the state of housing.

The report will be released during a half-day “State of Housing in Charlotte Summit” to be hosted by the Childress Klein Center for Real Estate at UNC Charlotte Center City and sponsored by major organizations.

“Because the report will necessarily be detailed and technical, the summit will provide an important public dialogue and a deeper dive into some of the key findings, with national and major keynote speakers on this important topic,” Buttimer said.

Organizations and firms are invited to learn more by emailingrealestate@uncc.edu or visiting realestate.uncc.edu.

Over 220,000 Meals Served by Operation BBQ Relief After Hurricane Florence

Steve
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Over 220,000 Meals Served by Operation BBQ Relief After Hurricane Florence

Operation BBQ Relief (OBR) was originally founded in May of 2011 to help bring relief to Joplin, Missouri after a tornado ravaged the area. Dozens of volunteers from competition BBQ teams from 8 different states joined together to help feed displaced families, police, fire, National Guard and emergency personnel.

OBR continued to grow over the years into one of the biggest food-based relief organizations in the South East.

Once Hurrican Florence hit the Carolinas, the organization quickly assembled hundreds of volunteers and pitmasters at 815 S. College Rd. in Wilmington, NC to provide meals for first responders and residents impacted by the storm.

According to their recent press release;

  • More than 220,000 meals have been served during this deployment, from Monday, Sept. 17 through Monday, Sept. 24, making this one of OBR’s largest deployments ever.
  • Meal preparation commences each day at 6 a.m., while the commercial-size barbecue pits are then loaded again in the late afternoon to begin the next day’s meals – low and slow isn’t just a catch-phrase, but how OBR prepares great barbecue meals.
  • More than 450 volunteers have participated to help the community, including locals impacted by the storm and flooding.

You can find out more about OBR or donate on their website here, and be sure to follow them on Facebook and Twitter.

Bomb Threat At Charlotte’s Epicenter Causes Evacuation

Steve
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Bomb Threat At Charlotte’s Epicenter Causes Evacuation

Yesterday a bomb threat was made at Uptown Charlotte’s Epicenter.

According to officials, a man made a loud disturbance and proclaimed that there was a bomb in his bag. Police quickly responded, found the bag, and evacuated the entire Epicenter as a precaution.

At about 3am yesterday morning, the CMPD Bomb Squad was called to the Epicenter to investigate the package;

After investigating the backpack, bomb squad technicians determined the bag was safe and opened the Epicenter back up to the public.

According to the CMPD, “The suspect in this case has been identified as Rayshon Javor Duncan, DOB: 10/14/1988. Duncan has been charged with Perpetrating a Hoax Device and Making a False Bomb Threat.”

Panthers Take Down Bengals Yesterday 31-21 – Advance To 2-1 For The Season

Steve
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Panthers Take Down Bengals Yesterday 31-21 – Advance To 2-1 For The Season

Yesterday was another great day for the Panthers as Cam racked up 4 touchdowns and McCaffrey achieved his first 100+ yard rushing game to take down the Cincinnati Bengals 31-21.

Panthers DE Efe Obada, an International NFL player from London, also pulled in his first interception in his first official NFL game;

Obada’s interception late in the 3rd quarter would give Cam the opportunity to make his second rushing touchdown of the game and put the Panthers up 14 with a score of 28-14.

“When you’ve got a team playing confident like we’re playing, it makes us hard to beat but as we go into this bye week, we know we can’t let off the pedal,” Newton said. “We have to mend up, get buys back, get guys healthy, keep guys healthy that are healthy and be ready to go when we get back.”

Newton ended yesterday’s game 15-of-24 with 150 passing yards, two passing touchdowns, and two rushing touchdowns.

The Panthers are now heading into their first bye week, after which they will host the NY Giants at the Bank of America Stadium on October 7th.

North Carolina Ranked 2018’s 3rd Worst State for Teachers

Charlotte Stories
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North Carolina Ranked 2018’s 3rd Worst State for Teachers

With World Teachers’ Day around the corner and teaching among the lowest-paid professions that require a bachelor’s degree, the personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on 2018’s Best & Worst States for Teachers.

In order to help educators find the best opportunities and teaching environments in the U.S., WalletHub analyzed the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 22 key metrics, ranging from teachers’ income growth potential to pupil-teacher ratio to teacher safety.

Teacher-Friendliness of North Carolina (1=Best; 25=Avg.)

  • 30th – Avg. Salary for Teachers (Adjusted for Cost of Living)
  • 32nd – Quality of School System
  • 34th – Pupil-Teacher Ratio
  • 39th – Public-School Spending per Student
  • 38th – Teachers’ Income Growth Potential
  • 46th – 10-Year Change in Teacher Salaries
  • 43rd – Teacher Safety

North Carolina ranked just slightly better than Arizona and Hawaii;

Overall Rank
(1 = Best)		 State Total Score ‘Opportunity & Competition’ Rank ‘Academic & Work Environment’ Rank
1 New York 64.55 4 6
2 Connecticut 63.72 21 2
3 Minnesota 63.26 5 8
4 Illinois 62.83 2 21
5 North Dakota 62.32 17 3
6 Pennsylvania 61.85 7 11
7 Wyoming 61.24 22 4
8 New Jersey 61.23 29 1
9 Maryland 60.81 13 9
10 Ohio 60.30 9 18
11 Utah 59.85 6 22
12 Virginia 58.54 10 24
13 Massachusetts 58.00 28 5
14 Alaska 57.95 1 50
15 Missouri 57.79 8 31
16 Wisconsin 57.59 19 19
17 Montana 56.93 23 20
18 Kentucky 56.52 18 23
19 Texas 56.47 3 46
20 Iowa 56.45 14 26
21 Washington 55.80 27 12
22 Michigan 55.62 12 36
23 Nebraska 55.48 24 25
24 Oregon 55.34 15 34
25 Delaware 55.33 30 10
26 Idaho 55.29 20 28
27 Vermont 54.54 32 14
28 Colorado 54.33 39 7
29 Rhode Island 54.29 31 17
30 Georgia 54.12 16 38
31 California 53.14 11 47
32 Nevada 51.09 25 40
33 Alabama 50.80 26 39
34 Kansas 50.66 45 15
35 South Dakota 50.53 35 27
36 Indiana 50.24 36 30
37 Arkansas 49.85 34 35
38 New Hampshire 49.48 46 16
39 Tennessee 48.71 41 29
40 Maine 47.77 49 13
41 New Mexico 47.60 33 41
42 West Virginia 47.16 42 32
43 District of Columbia 46.32 44 37
44 Oklahoma 46.15 38 45
45 South Carolina 45.56 37 49
46 Mississippi 45.10 40 48
47 Florida 44.21 48 33
48 Louisiana 44.08 43 44
49 North Carolina 42.16 47 43
50 Arizona 37.58 50 51
51 Hawaii 35.18 51 42

 

You can see the full report on WalletHub’s website here.

Charlotte Has The Nation’s #17 Lowest Renter Cost Burden Rate

Charlotte Stories
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Charlotte Has The Nation’s #17 Lowest Renter Cost Burden Rate

In spite of nearly a decade of continuous expansion in the US economy, the recent gains haven’t even remotely been evenly distributed. Almost half of all renting households are now ‘cost-burdened’, meaning they currently spend more than the recommended 30% of their income on rent.

The Census American Community Survey just released new data that shows that the share of renters who are cost-burdened fell slightly from 2016 to 2017. While the recent improvement is encouraging, it remains slight in comparison to the magnitude of the problem.

Some key findings from the report include:

  • The cost burden rate in Charlotte increased from 44.2% in 2016 to 44.5% in 2017. Charlotte has the #17 lowest cost burden rate of that nation’s 100 largest metros.
  • 20.3% of renter households in Charlotte are severely cost-burdened, while 24.2% are moderately burdened.
  • The number of cost-burdened renter households in Charlotte has increased by 45,743 since 2007.

Are you a Charlotte renter spending over 30% of your income on rent?

Has that changed over the past few years? 

Remnants of Florence Returning To The Carolinas Today

Steve
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Remnants of Florence Returning To The Carolinas Today

Update 9/25/2018 9:00am:

Invest 98, one of the 2 systems that broke off of the remnants of Hurricane Florence last week, is now showing a 50% chance of developing into a cyclone over the next 48 hours.

The National Hurricane Center sent out the following alert about Invest 98 this morning:

“1. A broad area of low pressure located about 260 miles south of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, continues to produce showers and thunderstorms on its north side. Satellite and surface data indicate that the circulation of the low is elongated and not well organized. However, this system could still become a tropical depression later today while it moves northwestward. By tonight and Wednesday, additional development appears unlikely, due to strong upper-level winds, while the system moves northward and north-northeastward near the southeastern United States coast. Regardless of tropical cyclone formation, this system is likely to bring scattered showers and thunderstorms across portions of northeastern South Carolina and eastern North Carolina later today and tonight. In addition, dangerous surf conditions and rip currents are expected along portions of the North Carolina coast today.”

Here is what the storm looked like this morning;

Update 9/23/2018 9:00am:

Ben Noll, with the National Institute of Water & Atmospheric Research, put together this video, showing the progression from Florence to Invest 98;

Invest 98 has strengthened some overnight and the GFS model is now showing a tighter path progression toward the Carolina coast;

The latest intensity forecasts are showing the possible development of a tropical storm over the next 96 hours;

Original article 9/22/2018 9:00am:

Hurricane Florence is now being called one of the worst storms to ever hit the Carolinas, and although the storm first hit over a week ago, many parts of North and South Carolina are still being devastated by flood level waters.

To make matters worse, the remnants of Hurricane Florence (which broke apart into 2 separate systems) could be bringing more rain to the Carolina coast next week.

The part of Florence now threatening the Carolinas is called ‘Invest 98’ (the yellow X on the above map).

The GFS model shows the system creeping back to the Carolina coast over the next 96 hours;

Ventusky shows the system first affecting the Carolina coast on Tuesday morning;

However, the Euro model shows the story weakening rather quickly over the next few days;

Invest 98 would not be a strong storm if it potentially makes landfall, but the last thing we need right now is more rain in an already flooded area.

We will update this article as the system develops.

Wells Fargo Just Announced Plans To Layoff Between 13,250-26,500 Employees

Steve
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Wells Fargo Just Announced Plans To Layoff Between 13,250-26,500 Employees

Charlotte and San Fransisco based Wells Fargo (NYSE: WFC), the nation’s third-largest bank, just announced plans to lay off between 5-10% of their entire workforce (13,250-26,500 total employees) over the next 3 years as part of their ongoing recovery plan.

The company currently employs around 20,000 people in our region, so if the cuts were to be made equally across the board, it could mean 1,000-2,000 people in Charlotte would lose their jobs.

Well’s CEO Tim Sloan sent out a press release yesterday noting that the layoffs will help the company in ‘accelerating adoption of digital self-service capabilities’ and improving overall efficiency around the company.

“We are continuing to transform Wells Fargo to deliver what customers want – including innovative, customer-friendly products and services – and evolving our business model to meet those needs in a more streamlined and efficient manner,” Sloan said.

Sloan did not indicate which departments or divisions of the company would see more cuts but did say that the layoffs would include both displacements and attrition over the next 3 years.

“Wells Fargo takes very seriously any change that involves its team members, and as always, we will be thoughtful and transparent, and treat team members with respect,” said Sloan. “We have robust programs to make impacted team members aware of other job opportunities within Wells Fargo and provide support as they transition to the next phase of their careers. And even as we become more efficient, Wells Fargo will remain one of the largest employers in the United States.”

Charlotte Is Home to One of the Fastest Growing Tech Sectors in America

Steve
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Charlotte Is Home to One of the Fastest Growing Tech Sectors in America

south-end-light-railFor decades Charlotte has been known as a banking hub…but our identity is now quickly expanding into the technology sector.

Red Ventures, a Charlotte-based digital marketing company was recently valued at $1 billion. Tech startups are being formed and funded almost weekly here in the Queen city (Charlotte-based Socialtopias raised $4.2 million, and Map Anything raised $7.3 million), and Time Magazine recently ranked two local Charlotteans among the top 30 most influential people on the internet.

According to Charlotte’s top tech recruiting firm Vaco, unemployment has fallen to a 17 year low of 4.1 percent in Charlotte, while hiring continues to rise.

“Charlotte is the perfect size city – it’s clean and safe with unique neighborhoods and thriving communities for newcomers,” noted Jonah Dimeo, Sr. Director, Technology Talent Solutions. He noted that CyberSecurity, Application Development, and Analytics are the currently the fastest growing tech positions in Charlotte.

You can browse available tech positions here.

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