Charlotte jumps several spots on annual list of real estate markets to watch

An annual publication that serves as a forecast for the real estate industry indicates good times are ahead for the Queen City.

In the Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2020 report by PwC and the Urban Land Institute, released Thursday morning, Southern, midsized markets — Charlotte included — dominate the top 10 list of U.S. markets to watch in the upcoming year. Charlotte moved up five spots to No. 4, from No. 9 last year, as a top market for real estate investors and developers.

[ALSO READ: Real estate roundup: A look at the latest residential projects in the Charlotte area]

Low taxes, economic diversity and a high quality of life are credited as contributing factors for the strong showing by Southern cities.

“The diversity of employers in the Charlotte market contributes greatly to its ability to attract and retain talent in an extremely tight labor market. Also, the population in Charlotte is projected by the Census Bureau to grow at a rate two times faster than the national average with more than 56,000 people moving to the area each year,” Mitch Roschelle said about what contributed to the city’s jump in the ranking. Roschelle is a partner at PwC and co-publisher of the report.

The other notable market in North Carolina to make the ranking is Raleigh/Durham, which places ahead of Charlotte at No. 2 on the list of top markets to watch. 

This slideshow shows how Charlotte stacks up among the top 10 U.S. markets to watch ranked in the report.

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