Blog
Charlottesville's Rising Economy
Posted on Nov 25, 2008 by The Woodlands of Charlottesville
The Woodlands is excited that Charlottesville’s condo and real estate market has been able to prosper during the country’s economic slump. Charlottesville’s real estate has not been hit as hard as many other towns, and in fact has down well. See the article below.
By Brian McNeill
Published: November 23, 2008
Thanks in large part to the area’s fairly stable mega-employers — such as the University of Virginia, Martha Jefferson Hospital, the National Ground Intelligence Center and the Defense Intelligence Agency — the local labor market has fared moderately well.
The unemployment rate in the Charlottesville Metropolitan Statistical Area — which includes Charlottesville and the counties of Albemarle, Greene, Fluvanna and Nelson — was 3.4 percent in September. While the jobless rate was higher than it was a year ago, the Charlottesville area has a lower rate than Roanoke, Richmond, Danville, Harrisonburg, Lynchburg, Winchester and the state and nation as a whole.
With the Charlottesville region’s steady work force and high quality of life, the local housing market has not been as devastated as elsewhere in Virginia. The local real estate market has undoubtedly taken a hit, but the Virginia Association of Realtors reported on Oct. 22 that sales were down across the state during the third quarter of 2008.
Some localities saw huge drops in sales: 81.4 percent for Danville; 43.4 percent for Williamsburg; and 26.4 percent in Roanoke.
The Charlottesville region’s sales fell by 21.7 percent in the third quarter to its lowest point in seven years, compared with the third quarter of 2007, according to a market report by the Charlottesville Area Association of Realtors.
Yet real estate industry professionals see some signs for optimism. Jeff Gaffney, chairman of the new homes division of Real Estate III, said the Charlottesville region’s glut of housing is beginning to be whittled away and the average number of days it takes to sell a home has decreased. The number of homes listed for sale has dropped from 3,530 last month to 3,427 on Thursday. The average number of days on market fell from 128 in October to 113 last week, according to CAAR.
“We’ve had a decline of inventory of housing for the last four months straight,” Gaffney said. “It’s still certainly a buyer’s market, but it’s headed toward balance. Maybe we’re turning a corner.”
Two bright spots of the area’s economy are the tourism and restaurant industries.
The latest lodging reports show Charlottesville-area hotel rooms are being booked at roughly the same rate as in 2007, bringing a steady number of business and leisure travelers to the region.
“We’re about where we were last year, which is pretty phenomenal in this economy,” said Allie Baer, interim executive director of the Charlottesville Albemarle Convention & Visitors Bureau. “Tougher days are probably ahead of us, but we’re about as good as good gets right now.”
Restaurants in Charlottesville and Albemarle County have continued to do brisk business, despite an overall decline of discretionary spending, according to a database of sales tax receipts compiled by The Daily Progress. The restaurants enjoyed roughly $180 million in sales between Jan. 1 and Sept. 30, marking a 6.5 percent jump over the previous year-to-date total.
Most Charlottesville-area businesses are being cautious during the downturn, but some start-up firms are beginning to emerge, said Susan Stimart, business development coordinator for Albemarle County. Stimart has been conducting interviews with CEOs and managers of existing companies, which have reported anecdotally that some longtime employees have left longtime firms such as Sperry Marine to form their own businesses.
“We’re seeing growth in our economy due to the talent and skill of our work force,” she said. “We’re growing our own, basically.”
Fuel prices are another happy sector of the Charlottesville region’s economy. Gas prices have plummeted locally and elsewhere over the past month, bringing the area’s average price to $1.97 per gallon on Thursday — down from $2.99 a month earlier and $3.07 a year ago, according to AAA Mid-Atlantic.
Tagged: charlottesville condos, charlottesville real estate, charlottesville area association of realtors, charlottesville albemarle convention & visitors bureau
Please wait… 