CHARLOTTE, N.C. — As Huntersville, Ballantyne and Plaza Midwood continue to boom with home sales, new data reveal for the second year in a row, west Charlotte ranks in the top 10 for zip codes with the most home sales.
Numbers from Canopy MLS show 28216, the zip code in and around Beatties Ford Road, finished 2020 with the 10th most closed single-family, townhome and condo sales in Mecklenburg County. The data show 1,874 closed sales in 2019 and 2020 combined, with the average sold price increasing by almost 13% from $216,646 in 2019 to $244,408 in 2020.
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"To me, it's plain as day, transportation drives population," Canopy Realtor Association President David Kennedy said.
Kennedy said, generally, the most desirable zip codes are those with the most affordability and availability. Kennedy said, in this specific zip code, the Gold Line streetcar is a driver of home sales too.
"It will drive value, it will drive commerce and it will drive people to want to come in and get a piece of it and so that's what we're seeing," he said. "Wherever you see transit being constructed or transit being proposed, that proposition needs to be done responsibly, because it will ultimately drive activity."
Canopy MLS data show single-family homes, townhouses and condos continued to fly off the market in a matter of just a few weeks in 2020 in that zip code. Not only is the area close to uptown and Johnson C. Smith University, but it's also a community receiving added attention from the city as far as development. A major revitalization project broke ground at the site of the former McDonald's Cafeteria in November 2020.
City Councilmember Malcolm Graham represents the area. He said the City of Charlotte is committed to a delicate balancing act.
"It's a mixed blessing, right? On one end, you want to see the growth, you want to see the development, but you clearly understand and note the impact on individuals living here and you can't stop it," Graham said. "We've got to make sure, however, as a community that we protect the individuals here, that we don't have gentrification on steroids, that we protect the history, the tradition and the legacy of the people who built Beatties Ford Road and W. Trade Street and that they are a part of the growth and development and they're not victims of it."
The Knight Foundation has invested money in recent years to help advocate for the people who live in the Historic West End and create affordable housing so they don't have to leave.
Contact Nate Morabito at nmorabito@wcnc.com and follow him on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.