Mecklenburg County Just Released The March 2020 Housing Report – More Sales and Less Listings

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Mecklenburg County Just Released The March 2020 Housing Report – More Sales and Less Listings

Mecklenburg County just released their latest housing report showing strong activity and a cautious forward outlook, with the response to COVID-19 and the March 26th ‘Stay at Home Order’ negatively impacting anticipated future activity.

The report showed our county putting up a year-over-year home sales increase of 7.7% last month, with 1,790 properties sold compared to 1,662 properties over the same period last year. Pending sales are down 10.9% for March with 1,843 this year compared to 2,069 last year. New listings were also down 3.8% with 2,289 properties up for sale compared to 2,380 properties in March of last year. The average home price was up 8.7% at $345,924 compared to $318,132 last year.

The county’s report noted that the data from this month (April 2020) will likely show a much bleaker outlook due to the COVID-19 response and stay at home order, including a reduction in sales activity.

According to the report, “Many expect a recession due to COVID-19, which would sideline potential buyers, and others may wait expecting home prices to fall. Finally, uncertainty and potential loss of income in the economy and wealth from the stock market will likely encourage more conservative behavior, and belief that the choice to buy or sell now would be financially unsound.”

What do you think about the housing market around Charlotte?

How to Get Real and Targeted Likes on Instagram in 2020

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How to Get Real and Targeted Likes on Instagram in 2020

Being popular on Instagram in 2020 is equal to having a successful brand and a powerful influence in any given niche. Your popularity results from the quality of likes that you get. To guarantee that you get maximum visibility, they have to be real and come from your target audience. 

Getting real and targeted likes for your Instagram posts may be difficult for some users. So, instead you can get and purchase free instagram followers for your profile.

Use Local Hashtags

If there is one target audience on which you can rely, it would have to include the Instagram users in your area. The people who are closest to you will follow and like your profile out of loyalty and community support.

To get the attention of people who live in your area you need to use local hashtags on all your posts. Tag your town, your local neighborhood and what gives your brand a regional sense of belonging. This way, you increase your chances of receiving likes from Insta users in your area.

Team Up with Other Users

Another way of getting likes from your target audience is to collaborate with other users in your niche. There are users out there that have similar brands to yours. They post relevant content, and you can relate to it through your photos and videos.

Look for some of the most successful Instagram users in your niche, regardless of what that is, and ask them to pitch in on one of your projects. This easy technique will increase your visibility among their followers, and you might get the targeted likes that you want. 

Get Real Likes Instantly

The easiest way to get real and targeted likes on Instagram in 2020 is to work with social media experts like Instagrowing. These professionals use all of their expertise in the field to raise the popularity of your profile almost instantly.

This service is simple to use and comes with essential long-term benefits. All kinds of brands use it from big companies to up-and-coming influencers. It is safe, quick and a guaranteed method of building social proof.

When you apply for expert support, you get likes from authentic accounts that are active and have real profile photos. Furthermore, these likes for your Instagram posts come from accounts in your target audience, so you get to build a strong, authority brand in your niche with minimal effort.

Run Giveaway Contests

You can increase the number of likes that you get from real accounts by engaging your followers in giveaway contests. This marketing technique is fairly simple to use, and you can activate it regardless of the niche in which you activate.

Let your followers know that you are willing to give one of your products or services for free. They can enter the contest to get it by liking a specific post on your profile. This way, you ensure that you get an avalanche of likes from your target audience.

Ask Followers for Help

Your followers can provide you with a substantial amount of likes even when you don’t have anything free to offer. If you have been on Instagram for a while, you have probably amassed a considerable audience. You can rely on their help to increase the number of positive impressions on your posts.

A simple way to get more real likes is to ask your followers to share your content with their followers. It is quite likely that the people who follow them are also interested in your brand, and they will like some of your posts.

Post User-Generated Content

Last, but not least, you can receive more targeted likes from real Instagram users by posting their content on your profile. If you have a reasonable number of followers, ask them to include references to your products or services in their posts.

Next, you take the best posts that contain your brand and publish them in your feed. Tag the original posters and thank them for their contribution. The positive effect that will result from this simple tactic will surprise you. Not only will you receive likes from the users who generated the content in the first place, but from their real followers as well.

Mecklenburg County Just Extended The ‘Stay at Home Order’ Until April 29th

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Mecklenburg County Just Extended The ‘Stay at Home Order’ Until April 29th

With a total of 1,098 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 21 confirmed COVID-19 deaths in Mecklenburg County, area leaders have just made the decision to extend the county-wide stay at home order to April 29th.

The initial Mecklenburg County ‘Stay at Home Order‘ was set to expire on April 16th, however, “based upon the current trends and statistics it is necessary to extend the expiration date of the local Declaration”.

The language of the revision reads:

“This Amended and Revised Joint Proclamation be adopted and hereby incorporates all the terms and provisions of the local Proclamation entered on March 13, 2020 and the local Declaration entered March 26, 2020, which terms and provisions are incorporated herein by reference, including the terms and provisions of Executive Orders No. 121 and 131, and to the extent there are inconsistencies in the foregoing Proclamation and Executive Orders, the more restrictive provision controls , and extends the local Declaration to terminate on April 29, 2020 or thirty (30) days from March 30, 2020 consistent with the Governor’s Executive Order No. 121, or to such future date if further extended by Governor to coincide with any future extensions , unless sooner revised, amended or terminated.”

Given that Mecklenburg County recently announced the newly anticipated peak date to be June 8th, it seems likely that out local stay at home order may be extended again past April 29th.

What do you think about the stay at home order? 

North Carolina Zoo Asking For Public’s Help In Naming New Baby Rhino

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North Carolina Zoo Asking For Public’s Help In Naming New Baby Rhino

The North Carolina Zoo is enlisting the public’s help to name the new female baby rhino born at the Zoo on February 24.

The new calf was born to mom Linda and dad Stormy. She weighed approximately 80-90 pounds at birth and the mom and calf are doing well. This was the second rhino birth just this year at the Zoo, and fourth in the last two years.

The public is asked to visit the online poll and rank four names, in order of their favorites, chosen by the Zoo’s rhino zookeepers.

  • Rubybelle (ru-bee-bell): name of a young female rhino rescued after her mother was poached in South Africa
  • Etosha (ee-toe-sha):  for Etosha National Park in Namibia where the Zoo has an anti-poaching conservation program.
  • Jojo (joe-joe): one of the keepers of rhino Sudan, the last male northern white rhino, at Ol Pejeta Conservancy in Kenya. Jojo and Sudan’s story was featured in the documentary movie “Kifaru” which showed at RiverRun International Film Festival in 2019.
  • Kendi (ken-dee): African origin – means loved one in Swahili

Voting opens at 12 p.m. Fri., April 17 and closes at 4 p.m., Fri., April 24 (all EDT). The online poll  can be accessed through the Zoo’s website at nczoo.org or through the Zoo’s social media channels on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. There is no charge to select a name.

A special surprise guest will announce the winning name on May 4. We can’t tell you who it is, here’s a hint — while this baby rhino is a “second,”  the special guest announcing the name is a “first.”

Students and UNC Charlotte Faculty Creating 11K Face Shields Per Day For COVID-19 Front Line

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Students and UNC Charlotte Faculty Creating 11K Face Shields Per Day For COVID-19 Front Line

Members of the UNC Charlotte community have teamed up with local high school students and manufacturers to produce recyclable protective shields designed to extend the life of the disposable face masks used by health care workers combating the COVID-19 pandemic.

What started as a homegrown effort using a host of 3-D printers producing about 250 shields per week quickly escalated. Since March 30, the group, known as Charlotte MEDI, has been working with manufacturers like Texlon Plastic Corp. and Caro-Poly to create shields via injection molding that allow for a more aggressive production timeline. The injection molder can make four shields per minute versus four every eight hours in a 3-D printer. The group is producing more than 11,000 face shields per day, and the recyclable shield effectively extends the life cycle of a mask that otherwise is a one-time-use item. To put that number in context, LEGO, one of the world’s largest toy manufacturers is creating 13,000 face shields per day.

So far, the group has delivered more than 70,000 shields for local and national frontline health care professionals and are sharing what they’ve learned with researchers across the country as they prepare for patient numbers in their states to climb. UNC Charlotte faculty members continue to explore technology options to accelerate production, and so far have shared their work with states including Maine, Iowa, Colorado and California and countries including Germany, India and Ireland. They will ship orders soon to seven states.

2020 Men of The Rail Trail Calendar Is Almost Here – Nominate Your Favorite Shirtless Male Runner

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2020 Men of The Rail Trail Calendar Is Almost Here – Nominate Your Favorite Shirtless Male Runner

If you love shirtless male runners, you’re in luck – the 2020 Men of The Rail Trail calendar is almost here!

This year, Third Rock Events has partnered with Glory Days Apparel to create the hottest charity calendar Charlotte has seen since Charlotte’s Fit Firefighter Calendar.

The Men of The Trail Calendar will benefit many of those hardest hit by the coronavirus shutdown – service industry workers. Proceeds from the calendar will go toward the NC Restaurant Workers Relief Fund.

Third Rock will be collecting nominations between today and April 24th. The public will then have the chance to vote on their favorites out of 24 final nominees.

Please email three photos and a brief description of yourself or your nominee to info@3rdrockevents.com by April 24th. Once your nomination is received you will be sent a link to donate $5.00 to benefit the NC Restaurant Workers Relief Fund.

The 12 winners will be contacted to schedule their professional photo shoot by 3rd Rock Events & Media.

The calendars will be available mid June online and at the Glory Days Apparel shop in South End and calendar sales proceeds will also benefit the NC Restaurant Workers Relief Fund.

Leaders at Charlotte’s Atrium and Novant Say Field Hospital for COVID-19 Won’t Be Needed

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Leaders at Charlotte’s Atrium and Novant Say Field Hospital for COVID-19 Won’t Be Needed

Leaders at Charlotte’s 2 major hospitals, Atrium and Novant, have announced they believe their new hospital bed surge capacity will be sufficient for the new COVID-19 forecast and that a UNCC field hospital wont be needed at this time.

In a letter the hospitals sent to Mecklenburg County Manager Dena R. Diorio, Atrium Health CEO Gene Woods and Novant Health CEO Carl Armato said our Stay at Home Orders have been making a field hospital unnecessary for the time being and that they’ve successfully identified and reallocated areas in their hospitals to satisfy the projected need.

“As a result of our combined efforts, we believe we are now in a position to meet the 600 medical bed need that was previously requested for a field hospital, assuming the effects of social distancing trend continues the current trajectory,” said both CEOs.

The letter goes on to warn that the situation could easily change if social distancing reduces around our region.

“It is important to note this trend could reverse quickly if social distancing is eased prematurely without supporting data. Recognizing the dynamic nature of this once-in-a-lifetime pandemic, we must stay committed to ongoing, prudent assessment of the situation and remain ready to adjust as needed,” said Woods and Armato.

Two weeks ago, modeling without social distancing led the hospitals to request a 3,000-bed mass care facility. They revised the request to 600 beds last week as the impact of social distancing began taking effect.

Public Health Director Gibbie Harris says the announcement is another sign that the Stay at Home Order is working.

“We are obviously pleased, but we can’t stop now,” Harris noted. “We have to continue the compliance, flatten the curve, and get beyond this.”

There have now been a total of 1,039 Mecklenburg residents who have tested positive for COVID-19 and 19 who have died from the virus.

Governor Cooper Outlines What Needs To Happen to Reopen North Carolina

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Governor Cooper Outlines What Needs To Happen to Reopen North Carolina

Yesterday NC Governor Roy Cooper released new guidelines for how our state will eventually ease COVID-19 restrictions in order to both help our economy and limit a possible second wave of infections.

“This virus is going to be with us until there is a vaccine, which may be a year or more away,” Governor Cooper said. “That means that as we ease restrictions, we are going to enter a new normal. We want to get back to work while at the same time preventing a spike that will overwhelm our hospitals with COVID-19 cases.”

Expert modeling has shown it would be dangerous to lift the restrictions all at once because it would increase the chances that hospitals become overwhelmed and unable to care for severely ill patients. Cooper emphasized that changes in restrictions must protect public health, especially those who are most vulnerable to severe illness, including people over age 65, those with underlying health conditions and people living in congregate settings.

“Experts tell us it would be dangerous to lift our restrictions all at once. Rather than an on/off light switch, we are viewing this as a dimmer switch that can be adjusted incrementally,” said Governor Cooper.

In order to ease restrictions, the state needs to make more progress in three areas: testing, tracing and trends.

TESTING

State planning relies on an increase in testing capabilities to identify, isolate and track new cases of COVID-19. This means having the supplies and lab capacity to do more testing across the state. Dr. Mandy Cohen, Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, has brought together laboratory partners from the public and private sector to coordinate efforts to ensure testing – diagnostic and antibody – is widely available across the state while also conserving protective equipment.

TRACING

Tracing requires the state to boost the public health workforce and ability to trace contacts of new cases of COVID-19. Contact tracing can be effective at containing new outbreaks, but it requires more personnel. When a person tests positive, the tracing efforts will help identify who that individual may have been in contact with so those people can get tested and take the right precautions. NC DHHS is working with its partners to increase this critical piece of our public health workforce. New digital tools can also help scale this effort.

TRENDS

In order to ease restrictions, the state needs to understand how COVID-19 is impacting the state and impacting specific populations and regions of the state to determine when to strengthen or ease social distancing policies. Trends that will influence policy decisions will be based on data like the new positive cases, hospitalizations, deaths, as well as available supply of personal protective equipment, hospital capacity.

“Because we acted early and because we acted together, we have averted the devastating scenarios we have seen playing out in other parts of our country and across the globe. We now need to look ahead at how we stay ahead of the curve. Widespread testing, aggressive contact tracing, and data-informed policy decisions are our best tools to keep our communities safe and protect our frontline workers,” said NC Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Mandy Cohen, MD.

Make sure the information you are getting about COVID-19 is coming directly from reliable sources. For more information on public health, please visit the CDC’s website at www.cdc.gov/coronavirus and NCDHHS’ website at www.ncdhhs.gov/coronavirus, which includes daily updates on positive COVID-19 test results in North Carolina.

For more information about economic relief, child care and food services, the state COVID-19 website at www.nc.gov/covid19  includes daily updates on COVID-19 assistance.

Learn more about how testing, tracing and trends will determine when the state loosens restrictions.

North Carolina Has The 3rd Biggest Increase in Unemployment Due to Coronavirus

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North Carolina Has The 3rd Biggest Increase in Unemployment Due to Coronavirus

With the U.S. losing over 22 million jobs since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, WalletHub today released updated rankings for the States with the Biggest Increases in Unemployment Due to Coronavirus.

To identify which states’ workforces have been hurt most by COVID-19, the site compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia based on increases in unemployment claims. We used this data to rank the most impacted states in both the latest week for which we have data (April 6) and overall since the beginning of the coronavirus crisis (March 16).

Increase in North Carolina Unemployment Due to Coronavirus (1=Worst, 25=Avg.):

  • 4,419.46% Increase in Unemployment Claims (April 2020 vs April 2019)
    • 137,934 the week of April 6, 2020 vs 3,052 the week of April 8, 2019
    • 8th highest increase in the U.S.
  • 3,831.98% Increase in the Number of Unemployment Claims (April 2020 vs January 2020)
    • 137,934 the week of April 6, 2020 vs 3,508 the week of January 1, 2020
    • 3rd highest increase in the U.S.
  • 4,605.70% Increase in Unemployment Claims Since Pandemic Started
    • 541,584 between March 16, 2020 and April 6, 2020 vs 11,759 between March 18, 2019 and April 8, 2019
    • 7th highest increase in the U.S.

Detailed Findings

State Increase in Unemployment Claims (2020 vs 2019)* Increase in Unemployment Claims (April vs January 2020)** Increase in Unemployment Claims (April vs Start of COVID-19 Crisis)***
Louisiana 4141.92% 4727.80% 5133.33%
Colorado 5058.22% 4222.21% 3341.62%
North Carolina 4419.46% 3831.98% 4605.70%
Florida 2757.26% 3825.79% 2794.29%
Mississippi 4123.24% 3818.51% 3384.17%
New Hampshire 4876.30% 3368.99% 6429.42%
Virginia 4554.30% 3247.65% 4706.10%
Arizona 1572.09% 3022.09% 1934.07%
Indiana 4886.67% 2565.40% 4670.06%
Nevada 2640.44% 2558.13% 3645.04%
New Mexico 2291.90% 2339.80% 2728.03%
Tennessee 3355.27% 2324.51% 2801.61%
Kentucky 5391.60% 2136.97% 4391.14%
Texas 1872.65% 2112.07% 1901.15%
District of Columbia 2263.72% 1959.04% 3419.32%
Alabama 3725.24% 1805.82% 2973.66%
Hawaii 2975.62% 1800.99% 3078.33%
Georgia 5950.42% 1761.23% 4679.15%
California 1576.34% 1700.02% 1833.86%
Oklahoma 2585.14% 1564.19% 2514.47%
Michigan 3831.17% 1560.63% 4753.10%
Utah 1672.07% 1492.29% 2560.30%
South Dakota 7495.06% 1445.73% 4200.74%
Maryland 2087.88% 1427.45% 2822.13%
Kansas 2270.49% 1423.97% 2916.69%
Delaware 2653.53% 1416.80% 3377.03%
Washington 2069.13% 1401.56% 2631.47%
Nebraska 2795.94% 1391.45% 3291.60%
Ohio 2903.21% 1361.27% 3645.86%
Vermont 1257.88% 1293.82% 2099.81%
Arkansas 2286.97% 1244.53% 1862.06%
Alaska 1185.48% 1199.90% 1352.57%
Missouri 3291.82% 1181.58% 2784.75%
North Dakota 3715.44% 1141.39% 4209.89%
Minnesota 3096.65% 1129.04% 3447.46%
Illinois 1725.17% 1097.46% 1879.42%
South Carolina 4202.55% 1073.68% 3545.27%
Rhode Island 2936.62% 1056.44% 4025.80%
Massachusetts 2207.73% 988.76% 3413.59%
Iowa 2424.84% 910.82% 2670.12%
West Virginia 1423.49% 833.18% 1559.64%
New Jersey 1740.07% 817.46% 2279.09%
New York 3163.94% 782.91% 2353.89%
Pennsylvania 1973.57% 773.17% 2882.22%
Montana 1548.71% 764.12% 2372.42%
Maine 1766.81% 698.14% 3327.58%
Oregon 1070.27% 658.56% 1135.74%
Wyoming 721.44% 640.79% 1444.62%
Idaho 1779.43% 502.54% 2289.62%
Wisconsin 1391.97% 443.68% 1591.15%
Connecticut 883.27% 332.53% 1218.54%

Charlotte Start-Up PHOOZY Donates Over $25,000 In Protective Gear to Healthcare Workers

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Charlotte Start-Up PHOOZY Donates Over $25,000 In Protective Gear to Healthcare Workers

Charlotte, NC start-up, PHOOZY, maker of protective capsules for phones, tablets, laptops and accessories, is donating more than $25,000 in products to healthcare workers and first responders across the nation, including First Responders 1st and What if Everyone, part of Mosaic Church, both based in Charlotte. The capsules will offer healthcare workers and first responders protection for their devices by reducing exposure and keeping them cleaner and safer in the environments where they work.

“I am grateful to PHOOZY for helping our first responders on the frontlines that are fighting this frightening pandemic.” commented Lonnie Clouse, Executive Director, First Responders 1st, “This capsule will help first responders give the best of themselves to their community knowing that their personal devices are protected during this difficult time.”

Additionally, PHOOZY has launched a new giveback program for health care workers and first responders. For every purchase on PHOOZY.com, the company will donate an Apollo Series Thermal Capsule to doctors, nurses and other hospital staffers, as well as police, fire and medic teams in communities across the nation. PHOOZY is providing a sitewide discount of 20% during this program.

“We are honored to be able to step in and help during this Coronavirus pandemic,” said Charlotte native, Co-Founder and CEO of PHOOZY, Kevin Conway. “Over the past week we’ve received several inquiries from workers looking to keep their devices clean and protected during this critical time. We are happy to support  those serving on the front lines of this pandemic.”

The donation to the organizations in Charlotte, where PHOOZY is based, is part of a larger donation the brand is making nationally to healthcare workers and first responders. PHOOZY is looking to outfit even more facilities with their phone capsules and is inviting members of the public to fill out this form to recommend a facility in need.

“The brave men and women on the front lines of this pandemic have our deepest respect,” commented Conway. “We are humbled to be able to offer support and provide whatever we can to help during this unprecedented time.”

To learn more, go to PHOOZY.com/GiveBack

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