Allen Tate Realtors has been chosen as one of the two exclusive real estate agencies to assist the Chiquita relocation to Charlotte. But, at Allen Tate, that’s business as usual.

For those of you planning to relocate to Charlotte with Chiquita, you should know that we have been setting the standard in local real estate for over fifty years. And routinely we sell 3 to 4 times more Charlotte than our nearest competitor each year. Nobody knows more about Charlotte real estate or Charlotte relocation that Allen Tate and nobody does a better job.

Don't forget Becky Herring... she has been a huge player in the Charlotte relocation business at Allen Tate Realty for many years. If you want pers...

We heard the rumors for a while. Now the facts…

Governor Bev Purdue announced today that Chiquita Brands International is relocating to Charlotte its world headquarters from Cincinnati. The move will bring some 400 jobs to an economy still reeling from turmoil in the financial services sector.

The city of Charlotte and the state of North Carolina sought the relocation for several months…in competition with Ohio, Florida and Louisiana. For the move Chiquita will receive a state and local incentive package of $22.7 million. And according to the approved package, the jobs will have an average annual salary of $96,121. (The actual salaries are said to be over $100,000.)

Fernando Aguirre, c...

Home staging is not the same as spring cleaning … but the results are similar. And it feels sooo good!

Staging one’s home includes cleaning and organizing – particularly eliminating clutter throughout your home. 

Clutter such as small kitchen appliances and other counter items – other than decorations – should be out of sight. You will find that removing family photographs and small items from tables and chests will make your home appear less cluttered– and more spacious. And stop using the refrigerator for a bulletin board.

This is the real test: count the number of items in each room and remove half of them – including furniture. You should consider renting a storage unit to store e...

A big Charlotte welcome to Capgemini! Coming all the way from Paris….France, that is! 

And a hearty welcome to the new 550 employees who will be joining the company here over the next three years. 

Some of these new hires may also be moving to Charlotte; but it’s likely that many of them already reside here. Capgemini was attracted by the area’s existing talent pool, particularly those from the financial services field. 

Charlotte is considered a great fit for Capgemini because the new office will be part of their financial service unit – serving banking, insurance and capital markets clients. And, as everyone knows, Charlotte is the second largest financial center in the U.S. – with a...

“It is clear to me — if only me — that housing will mount a comeback in 2011”, so says Jim Cramer. Moreover, he goes on to predict that we will experience a housing shortage in 2012.

Who is Jim Cramer, you ask. He is not a Realtor and he is not an economist. He is just one of the great investors of all time. He has an unbelievable depth of knowledge on all subjects affecting business and investments… and all life as we know it.

Today, you may know him from his popular TV show – “Mad Money”. Or perhaps you have seen him as a guest on other TV programs, where his advice & opinion is widely sought and highly respected. 

Cramer is a Goldman Sachs alum who had a phenomenal fourteen year run...

Charlotte has done it again!

At the Charlotte Chamber’s Annual Meeting last night, Shaw Power Group CEO, Clarence Ray, announced a major increase in the company’s presence right here in Charlotte.

Starting immediately, Shaw will begin hiring 225 new employees, primarily for engineering jobs, with the average salary beginning at $95,000. This move is directly related to the parent company’s strategic partnership with Toshiba, which was announced yesterday.

Shaw will be the exclusive engineering, procurement and construction contractor worldwide — outside of Japan and Vietnam — for Toshiba’s Advanced Boiling Water Reactor.

Given the current unemployment level of 9.8% in the area, this n...

If you want to sell your Charlotte home and you’re having trouble pricing it, then keep reading! Because getting it right has never been more important. Believe me…an over-priced home during the Great Recession can cause you a lot of unnecessary pain.

Pricing a home is simple. You just need to determine its value by using data that is readily available! The hard part is getting YOU to believe the data and accept the result. To overcome this hurdle, you must understand…and master... these two pricing concepts:

One, the current Charlotte real estate market sets the value of your home. This sounds simple…but, remember this, no matter how many improvements or “love” you have invested in you...

Do you own property in Mecklenburg County? If so, get ready for the after effects of our up & down real estate market of the past seven plus years. I’m talking Charlotte property taxes!

And if you plan to buy a home soon, you had better do your due diligence. We have not had a property revaluation since 2003 and, by N.C. General Statute 104-286, we must have one every eight years or less.

It’s no secret that the Charlotte real estate market has been on a roller coaster ride the past few years. And the last revaluation in 2003 was pretty early in the ride! Consider that the average sales price of homes in our MLS did not peak until June 2007 at $248,048… four years of growth after the la...