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According to the latest U-Haul migration trends report, North Carolina was named the #1 U.S. Growth State for 2015, followed by Virginia in the #2 spot. Florida, California and Washington also made the list among the top ten. Here are some of the details of the report from U-Haul.
North Carolina bested Virginia for top growth honors, posting the biggest net gain of one-way U-Haul truck rentals entering the state versus the number leaving the state during the past calendar year.
Ohio, Florida and California round out the top five. The migration trends data was compiled from more than 1.7 million one-way U-Haul truck rental transactions that occurred in 2015.
“I am not surprised to hear North Carolina is the No.1 top growing state,” U-Haul Company of Central North Carolina president Jason Grider said. “North Carolina is a great state to live and work. I think people are drawn to the state because of the strong economy and job opportunities, the climate, and the diversity of the people and state as a whole.
“From the Atlantic Coast to the lakes and Appalachian Mountains, we have much to offer and opportunities for everyone. The growth is not limited to certain areas. We have seen tremendous growth all over the state.”
A diverse business sector and renowned academic research institutions are just a couple of ways North Carolina has lured families, students, young professionals and companies.
Diana Olick of CNBC reports on how multigenerational homes are a huge opportunity for homebuilders, due to the fact that most existing homes weren’t built for this type of living. The article and the video that accompanies it highlight Lennar as a leader in offering multigenerational home designs.
Jennifer Michaels didn’t expect her Seattle-area house would sell so quickly, especially since she hadn’t settled on a new home yet. With nowhere to go, the divorced mom moved herself and her two teenagers in with her mother, Lucy Abbott, thinking it would be temporary. Much to all of their surprise, they didn’t hate it.
“I enjoy the life that the kids bring to you when they are around you all the time, but we did have our challenges,” said Lucy, who would prefer we say only that she is in her 70s.
The challenge was the space. Lucy’s house was large but, like so many other existing homes today, not built for multigenerational living. So after a few years, with the kids getting bigger and more independent, Jennifer and Lucy went house hunting together and found what they were looking for in a newly built home designed specifically for their situation.
“Everybody has their own privacy and their own space, so for instance, my mom has her own suite,” said Jennifer. “It is essentially a full one-bedroom apartment on the main floor, so I don’t have to worry about her falling down the stairs. She has her own front door, she can have her own decor there, she can stay up however long she wants and not interrupt the family either and also, we have enough space as a family to have a regular family unit, and then she can have her separate living.”
The family moved intoThe Home Within a Home, a brand from Miami-based home builder Lennar. The brand is doing very well for Lennar, which has made a heavy push into the multigenerational space.
“Older homes were built for young families, and we have 21 million households now living multigenerationally, with one generation having to share a bathroom that’s used by the entire house, some people live in the garage,” said John Burns of John Burns Real Estate Consulting. “I think the builders figured out there was a huge opportunity here that they had missed, and Lennar was a real leader in this a few years ago, designing for these types of households.”
In a recent survey by Burns Consulting of 20,000 home shoppers, 44 percent said they would like to accommodate their elderly parents in their next home. Forty-two percent said they plan to accommodate their adult children. The numbers are increasing for several reasons: The recent recession and resulting unemployment hit young workers hardest. An abnormally high number of them therefore never moved out of their parents’ homes. Millennials are also marrying later in life, keeping them with their parents longer.
Immigration is another driver. In Asian and Hispanic cultures, multigenerational living is usually the rule. As these immigrants move to the U.S. in greater numbers, they bring the trend along with them.
Then there are retiring baby boomers. The largest generation is downsizing. Some are choosing active adult communities, but a significant number are choosing to move in with their adult children. With more dual income households, help from live-in grandparents is often a necessity.
Builders are now seeing and acting on a clear multigenerational wish list: Separate entrances are a must, then main-floor bedroom suites with private kitchenettes and living spaces, even separate outdoor spaces. The idea is that the family can live under one roof, but not entirely together.
[Read the full article and view the video]
Some might think of this Sunday’s big game as a matchup between a team that almost went undefeated this year vs. a team with the #1 defense in the league. But for those of us in the world of real estate, we also see it as a city with a steadily gaining housing market vs. a city with one of the hottest housing markets in the nation. This article from Lindsey Schober of Zillow gives us the play-by-play on how Charlotte and Denver’s hometown housing markets stack up off the field.
While the attention is focused on Santa Clara, California, we’re looking at the how Broncos’ and Panthers’ hometowns – Denver and Charlotte – stack up in a local real estate head-to-head. You decide which home field comes out on top.
Denver was ranked this year’s hottest real estate market due to its white-hot mix of job growth, income growth and low unemployment. As more people move to the Mile High City and home values only projected to go up, Denver has also garnered a reputation for being increasingly unaffordable. Renters shell out 34.3 percent of their monthly income on rent, well over the 30 percent rule of thumb for affordability.
Charlotte, on the other hand, remains one of the affordable markets in the country, with renters spending approximately 27 percent of their monthly income on rent.
“Charlotte doesn’t get the headlines Denver does, but the Queen City has quietly established itself as one of the country’s most livable markets,” said Dr. Svenja Gudell, Zillow’s chief economist.
Both the Charlotte and Denver metros are expected to continue their growth trajectories in 2016.
If you have a home to sell, and you’re fortunate enough to receive multiple offers, there are certain factors other than the offered prices that might help make your decision who to sell to. This U.S. News article from Teresa Mears highlights how home sellers are considering buyers who take the time to write a personal letter, for a more emotional appeal.
In the competitive market for a home that exists in many parts of the country, more buyers are embracing a novel tool: adding to their offers a heartfelt letter and a family photo in hopes of swaying the seller to choose their bid.
These days it’s not only rare for the buyer and seller to meet during the homebuying process, but the buyer’s agent and listing agent may never meet, doing all their interactions via text message and email. That can make the buyer’s letter the only biographical information the seller receives.
“It does help humanize the buyer in the seller’s eyes,” says Victor Quiroz, an agent with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties in the Southern California town of Cerritos. An effective letter is likely to include the buyers’ professions, the ages of their children and a nice family photo. “It doesn’t always work, but it does help a little bit.”
For sellers, the letters add another factor to evaluate when weighing competing offers. But, agents say, letters can be persuasive because sellers are often emotional about selling their homes, particularly houses in which they have raised families.
“Every seller is different, and they’re selling for a different reason,” Quiroz says. “Sometimes sellers make decisions not based on financial issues. Sometimes they make decisions for emotional reasons. … I’m actually seeing sellers accept less money and turn down fast closings because they resonated with the buyers.”
In markets where multiple offers are common, such as San Francisco and Seattle, families seeking to buy a home with a mortgage are competing with investors offering all cash and a quick closing. If a seller isn’t in a hurry, and the net proceeds will be the same, a connection with a prospective buyer can influence the seller to accept a longer closing time and a bit more uncertainty.
But the most heartfelt letter can’t trump the two most important factors in any real estate transactions: price and terms.
“If those two things don’t make sense for the seller, then the emotional appeal won’t matter,” Quiroz says.
However, Klaus Gosma, a Redfin agent in Seattle, says he’s participated in several transactions where sellers chose a buyer who wrote a personal letter over an offer of slightly more money. “They wanted it to go to someone who was going to be a good steward of the home going forward,” he says of sellers who rejected an all-cash developer’s offer for their childhood home in favor of a family who planned to live there.
While an all-cash offer from an investor with a quick closing may appear to be a sure thing, sometimes an offer with a mortgage contingency from a buyer who loves the house is actually stronger, McClelland says.
“To experience that emotional connection to the home is important for the seller,” McClelland says. “This person is not going to give up on this purchase if a number shifts to the right or the left. … These are the ones that will have a smoother transaction,” he says. “There is a monetary value to that.”
In the same way that vintage designs become popular again over time in designer clothing, accessories and furnishings, some classic vintage home features are finding their way back into the designs of new homes today. This Bankrate article by Dana Dratch highlights some of the home features that were big in decades past… and are hot again.
Not everything old is new again.
But just like Sinatra-style hats and skinny ties, some classic home features are timeless. From glass bricks to free-form pools, midcentury glamor is back.
And those midcentury modern homes “are (some) of our hottest houses now,” says Pat Vredevoogd Combs, past president of the National Association of Realtors and Realtor with Coldwell Banker AJS Schmidt Realty in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
As a result, builders are incorporating some of those design features into new homes, she says.
“We’re seeing people ask for a contemporary look, from the ’50s,” says Combs.
Look for clean lines, smaller and more organized spaces, and energy efficiency. “We’re going back to usability. Not froufrou stuff – a clean look,” she says.
Tastes are regional, too, says Ron Phipps, principal with Phipps Realty of Warwick, Rhode Island, and past president of the National Association of Realtors.
“While there are features that come back and have a great resurgence, they’re very influenced by geography,” he says.
Porches
“Porches fell out of vogue 10 years ago,” Phipps says. Homes either didn’t have them or there would be a small, token porch as a design element – not to actually use, he says.
Fast-forward to today when, “Porches are back in a big way,” he says. “And the porches that are being built today are built for function. They’re deep, and they’re wide.”
If there’s a great view, you might find rocking chairs on the front porch.
Glass blocks
In midcentury modern homes, glass blocks are used for everything from windows to basements and decorative elements in the home, Combs says.
“Today, you see it more in showers … a shower wall of glass blocks or decorative accessories with (glass) brick,” she says.
Farm sinks and white cabinets
The farm sink “is a real throwback,” says Cindy Bowman, listing agent with Keller Williams Realty in Charlotte, North Carolina. “It’s very popular now, and that’s purely an aesthetic thing,” she says.
The other thing that’s again popular in modern kitchens: simple, white cabinets.
“Fifteen years ago, white cabinets were out,” says Bowman. “Now people want that white kitchen.”
Wallpaper
Another blast from the past: wallpaper. But the modern twist is that we’re seeing more geometric patterns and metallics, says Kerrie Kelly, designer and founder of Kerrie Kelly Design Lab.
Smaller, more practical spaces
“People are going away from the ginormous house,” Bowman says.
Homeowners instead want smaller spaces – as evidenced by the popularity of micro- and minihouses, she says. Also high on their list: rooms and homes that are energy- and spatially efficient, she says.
“There’s been a cultural shift,” says Bowman. “Bigger is not always better, and energy efficiency is a big deal.”
Look for less square footage, with clean lines and plenty of organizational features, such as shelves, closets, and closet organizers.
Rec rooms
This one’s back with a vengeance. The difference this time: Instead of an old couch and a pool table shoved in the basement next to the water heater, homeowners are spending some money to finish off these rooms in style and turning them into 2nd great rooms, says Phipps.
Look for wet bars, built-in entertainment and sound systems, home theaters, and flooring that stands up to wear and still looks great (such as indoor/outdoor carpet or tile).
And families aren’t afraid to personalize these spaces; one family turned their basement into a computer lab and video-editing bay, Phipps says.
The rate of growth for jobs among sustainable businesses in the U.S. is increasing, and this article from Mike Hower, senior writer at Sustainable Brands, outlines the skills required and the most in-demand jobs where your opportunities could shine the brightest.
As sustainable business enters the mainstream, there is a growing need for a skilled labor force that can meet the needs of socially and environmentally focused firms. The rate of growth for jobs with “environmental compliance” as a keyword has increased by 24% since 2010, while jobs focusing on “energy efficiency” have grown by 500% since 2009, according to data from job search engine SimplyHired.com, compiled by Coyne College.
California, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, Texas, Wisconsin, Indiana, Georgia, Virginia and Maryland are the top states for sustainability jobs, based on the number of job listings on Simply Hired. Many of these states, particularly California, are where there has been the most job growth in the cleantech sector.
The sustainable buildings sector is also a major source for sustainable business opportunity. California, Texas, Illinois, Maryland and Virginia topped the U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) recent list for top states for number projects for LEED, the world’s most widely used and recognized green building rating system.
But sustainable job growth is happening almost everywhere. In some cases, existing plants are being repurposed for more sustainable purposes – the Philip Morris cigarette plant in Concord, North Carolina, for example, has switched to producing batteries to store energy for wind and solar farms.
What kinds of skills are these forward-thinking firms looking for? Luckily, they are quite varied. According to the Simply Hired data, here are some of the top skills sustainability-driven companies are looking for in their employees:
Create and Manage Business Relationships. It’s necessary to create relationships with investors, government agencies, and other potential sources of funding.
Technical Skills. Many of the companies, jobs, and industries focusing on environmentalism are technically focused, and a background in some technical skills is needed.
Financial Management. Proper management of finances is key in industries which rely heavily on outside funding, and there is little margin for error when applying for grants.
Management. Sustainable businesses typically operate with CSR as their cornerstone. Skilled management professionals who can manage with sustainability standards are sought after.
Product Development and Marketing. Sustainable businesses are often in the business of creating and selling alternative technology and products to less environmentally friendly options, requiring the help of specialists, both in the creative and marketing end.
Certifications, Credentials and Licenses. Certifications such as LEED for green construction and Professional Engineers (PE) licenses, among other certifications, are important in the green industry for developing relationships with potential investors, and demonstrate a specialized level of knowledge and skill in a given field.
So you think you’ve got the skills needed for a sustainability career, but what kind of job is right for you? Here are some of the high-growth occupations for sustainable business.
If you’ve always though about volunteering to help others, but haven’t taken steps to actually do it, this U.S. News article from Jon Lai of BeFrugal.com highlights a few reasons that might inspire you to make it happen.
If you’re like many of us, your New Year’s resolutions might look something like this: get healthy, lose weight, save money, travel more, find a new job or make new friends. In fact, there’s one way you can accomplish many of these things, often at once: by volunteering.
Volunteering your time, whether it’s in your community, your workplace or somewhere far across the world, is a wonderful way to give back. Volunteering is especially smart when it’s not in your budget to make a donation. Besides helping to better the lives of others, volunteering can have a lot of unexpected benefits on your own life, as well. Here are a few reasons, besides the obvious, why you might want to donate your time this year.
You can skip the gym. Many volunteer opportunities require some physical activity. Becoming a committed volunteer could mean you’re regularly burning calories and working fitness into your lifestyle. A few examples include shoveling snow and raking leaves for the injured or elderly; working in a soup kitchen lifting boxes and serving the hungry; helping build and repair homes; walking dogs; community gardening and weed clean-up; or playing with kids in need of a role model and mentor. Consider canceling your gym membership and meeting your activity goals by volunteering a few times a week.
Improve your health. There are even more proven health benefits to volunteering. The Corporation for National & Community Service reports that those who volunteer have lower mortality rates, greater functional ability and lower rates of depression later in life. Research also shows volunteering can strongly benefit older individuals that are retiring by keeping physical and social activity high during this stage of life. In that way, even opportunities that are low impact can provide physical and mental health benefits.
No more costly mixers. Hoping to meet new people this year? Whether you want to network with future colleagues or mingle with singles, the cost to attend events can be pricey. Ticket prices, beverages and membership fees can add up each month. Instead, join a community group dedicated to giving back. It’s much easier to meet new friends or potential dates when you’re working toward a common cause. As for rubbing elbows with potential colleagues, you can meet tons of like-minded volunteers and easily expand your network without paying a fee at the door.
Boost your resume and your worth. Speaking of networking, volunteering can add impressive experience to your resume. Future employers value hard workers, commitment to a cause, and those that go the extra mile for additional career experience. Having volunteering in your background might mean future employers will give you additional responsibility, sending you a few steps ahead in your career path.
If you’re planning to sell your home, Lennar has put together a downloadable guide that offers some helpful advice. And this New York Times article from Tim McKeough outlines steps you can take to stage your home for a successful selling process.
The practice of staging homes for sale has evolved over the past decade. Some ideas have changed, while others remain the same. The following is a list of current staging tips from the pros:
Reduce clutter. Long considered one of the most vital aspects of preparing a home for sale, it may be more important than ever to tidy up and sell, store, donate or dispose of unnecessary goods.
Clean out closets. The advice to declutter extends to your closets. Having space to spare makes them look larger.
A new coat of paint. It makes a place look clean and fresh. Meridith Baer, a stager, said it’s the best money you can spend on staging.
Embrace the accent wall. While most walls should be painted neutral hues, some stagers now use a bold color or wallpaper on a single wall.
Edit personal photos. Stagers used to recommend removing all personal photos. Now, many say it’s acceptable to leave some photos if they are pleasant or evocative images in handsome frames.
New towels and linens. Fresh, fluffy towels and crisp white bed linens are an inexpensive way to suggest luxury.
Avoid scents. Smells that are pleasing to you may be off-putting to potential buyers. Avoid scented candles, fragrant flowers and baking or cooking right before showings.
You’ve moved into your new home, and now it’s time to fill the empty space in your dining area where your family and friends will gather to create some wonderful memories. Choosing the right dining table is an important step, especially since there are so many different ways that different families end up using theirs. This New York Times article from Tim McKeough offers some advice from a well-know event planner on selecting the right kind of dining table for you.
When you’ve produced elaborate events for high-profile clients like Katy Perry, Stephen King and Jann Wenner, as Jung Lee has, you know something about dining tables – and what it takes to make people feel comfortable sitting elbow-to-elbow for hours. But Ms. Lee, 43, a co-owner of the event-planning firm Fête, pointed out that finding the right table to use at home can be just as challenging as choosing tables for a wedding on the beach at St. Barts or a party at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. And if you live in a big city, where most people don’t have lots of space, it’s even trickier, she said, because then “a dining table needs to do a lot of things – you might need them to expand and get smaller, to serve as a cocktail table or to double as a worktable.”
Her advice? Before you go shopping, consider a few things:
