Economic outlook shows Mecklenburg County changes during pandemic

CHARLOTTE — Uptown Charlotte, home to a beautiful skyline and many of Charlotte’s employers, is much different now.

Of the 4.7 million square feet of new office space under construction, 4.1 million of it is in Center City and Midtown. The county economist warns that due to the pandemic, a lot of new orders have slowed or been paused.

“We don’t know how the future is going to shift businesses around and what the demands for space is going to be,” he said.

It is no secret that the pandemic rocked our hospitality industry.

[’The virus is still raging’: Cooper extends stay-at-home order till end of February]

Hotels were once at 77% occupancy but dropped to 22% in April. They are hovering around 42% occupancy now.

“We are still well below normal levels,” said Brandon Simmons, county economist.

According to Simmons, home prices there have dropped by 12% in uptown. Prices are up nearly 10% in the rest of Mecklenburg County.

The county economist said sellers are controlling negotiations, receiving 99.2% of the listing price with homes selling in 23 days.

For those in the county who want to rent, this year is a little cheaper than last year. The average price now is $1,388 a month, which is nearly a 5% decrease.

The chairman hopes if that trend continues, it will help the county invest in apartment complexes to keep rent affordable.

“As we talk about building more affordable housing, I am wondering how this is going to impact naturally occurring affordable housing,” Chairman George Dunlap said.

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The unemployment rate in Mecklenburg County is currently 6.5%. It hit a high of 13.6% in May. In February 2020, the unemployment rate was 3.4%.

Cox Media Group