Life Around Lake Norman

11/18/2025

09/10/2024

Portugal Tops the Global Charts
for Luxury Real Estate
Portugal’s luxury real estate market is experiencing an unprecedented surge, attracting international investors and affluent buyers seeking a blend of lifestyle, quality, and strong investment returns.
According to the latest report by Property Market-Index, Portugal, particularly the Algarve, Lisbon, and Porto, is emerging as the top choice for high-net-worth individuals looking for prime real estate opportunities.

The report underscores the continued expansion of Portugal's luxury property sector, with the Algarve, Lisbon, and the Silver Coast leading the charge.

These regions are becoming increasingly popular among wealthy international buyers, drawn by the high quality of life, cultural richness, and favorable investment conditions that Portugal offers compared to other regions in Europe, the UK, and North America.
courtesy of Portugal Pathways.

I have some incredible contacts for you in Portugal who can help you find that perfect property in all of these areas and more. Reach out.

06/18/2024

This stunning home on Lake Norman It's off exit 36 in Mooresville 5700+ HLA, 2 kitchens, 2 fireplaces, a sauna, 4 bedrooms, and 4 bathrooms.....coming soon sometime tomorrow, and active this weekend. Here are a few sneak pics so you can be ready!!! Anyone looking for this kind of home at only $2.5 million on great water?

06/14/2024

I have watched the Waterfront homes all around Lake Norman for years in the MLS. Each day I get a report that shows me New Homes, Under Contract, Sold and also Price Changes. For the past month or so I have watched a common theme that is worth paying attention to.

So many price reductions. Why is that? Well, it's not because we have a shortage of buyers. We have an abundance of buyers especially in the Luxury Market. The Charlotte Metro area is the number 1 city that people are moving to within the United States. We have a shortage of all price points.

So why the price reductions? Sellers are overpricing their homes in the first place. They see the huge gains in values they have attained because of the Covid insanity ( much like the run-up of values in 2006 and 2007) and sellers think the values should stay overvalued.
We are no longer in a market where people would pay $50-$100,000+ over the value of the home. We are no longer in the outrageously low rates all brought on by Covid.

We are in a normalized market where rates are actually a normal rate ( not high) and Sellers need to listen to their agents on pricing. If you price too high you will only have to have price reduction after price reduction till you finally are in the right range. Then a buyer will come in and likely still offer you less.

IF on the other hand you listen to your Realtor who shows you that the smart move is just under the the value and you will likely get multiple offers over your list price and be ahead of the game.
That is all of course if you had listened to that REaltor about preparing your home to be show ready for those potential buyers and let them do what they do best.

Food for thought Sellers.

05/29/2024

I have an event next week and need a new dress hemmed before Saturday. I live in the Cornelius area. It is a simple hemming job. Is there anyone you know that can do a great job and fast for me locally?

05/18/2024

I named this Island Sunset Island. It is one of the rare islands owned by an individual vs Duke. It is up by the Bridge where Buffalo Shoals crosses over and turns into Hudson Chapel Rd. There is a series of 3 islands. If you are coming from the Mooresville area this is the first of the 3 islands. It is just past the Long Island Air Park.

My business partner Patti at the time knew the person who owned it and I became obsessed with listing it. I bugged her like crazy to reach out to him to see if he would sell. She finally did and he wanted something like $1,600,000 and this was around 2010. HA... I didn't care. I said sure let's do it and I was on a mission.

I reached out to the Lake Norman Magazine and did my best to get them to do an article on it. They didn't see my logic that this was big news. I did break them down based on the fact of it's rarity and they did a little article with this picture in it. I have saved that article to this day with great love.

Now we had to get signs on it and that was a feat. Our buddy Randy Justice Realty brokered by EXP came to the rescue with his lovely wife Sheila and their pontoon boat. I had ordered two 4x8 ft sign with HUGE lettering and we had to get them to the island and put them up for all the boating traffic to see. Well, the terrain on that island was steep and jungle-like like however between Randy, Patty, her husband John and me we did it. One on each end and it was a sight to see. I will have to see if I can dig up those pictures.

The middle island is owned by the Statesville Gated community and they made it so boats could pull up on the sandy beach. There were grills there so you could grill out as well.

So then I thought, how will I market it. People were not using Facebook like they do now and I doubt Instagram was around. So I thought we would have a broker luncheon. Randy was hired to be our taxi driver from the marina across the way. I emailed and called agents from all over to come see this rarity, have a picnic lunch on the island and come have a fun day. So they came, plenty of them. The marina let them park and Randy would go back and forth and it was great.

UNTIL..... we found out that Eagles nest there and you are not allowed to be near their nesting area. We were told that no one could go on there. It did turn out that you could buy it for a charitable reserve and I did have people ask me about it however no bites.

Did that defeat me...nooooo. I justified not being able to go get the signs and still getting calls from one of them as early as a few months ago. That was my goal all along.

This picture came up in my memories and thought it would be a good Lake Norman story to share and those who came might get a chuckle from it. Enjoy

02/02/2024

Years ago I set up a setting in the MLS ( Multiple Listing Service) to track ALL the waterfront homes on Lake Norman as they come on the market, go under contract and close. I do that because it teaches me the market that I focus on.

Here is what I have been seeing the past 30 days. A huge uptick with homes coming on the market despite rates AND them going under contract just as quickly. Not all, because some put them on too high for the value.

The most important thing a seller can do today is make your home show ready. When you hire your professional Realtor, listen to them . I have been doing this for 18 yrs and my focus has been on Lake Norman. I study it and I know it well.

I recently did a post from national moving data that said we are one of the top cities with incoming moves to the Charlotte Metro area. I have a 2 million dollar listing in Davidson and the first six people looking at the home were all cash. The luxury market is alive and well in North Carolina and across the Nation.

Most people wait till Spring however the smart one like the 6 I saw come on the market today. They are the smart ones. The supply is limited and opportunity is here.

I am a luxury waterfront specialist and my marketing not only reaches local, it is presented globally because our buyers come from all over the world. Let's Talk

01/30/2024

Charlotte Was Just Ranked The #1 Most Moved-To Big City in America

According to moveBuddha’s 2023-2024 Migration Report, Charlotte was the #1 most moved-to big city in the country from 2023 -2024.

The Queen City surpassed #2 Denver, #3 Nashville, #4 New York City, and #5 Jacksonville on the top 5 list, with an impressive move-in-to-move out ratio of 1.68.

Potential factors driving this trend include lower cost of living, affordable housing, and a robust job market with two major banks.

On a state level, NC was ranked the #5 most moved to the state this past year. South Carolina was found to be the most popular state to move to in 2023, boasting an in-to-out move ratio of 2.1, meaning twice as many moves are coming into the state than headed out.
By Charlotte Stories -January 26, 20242169

12/19/2023

Are you looking for a Church to come to for Christmas? I go to Love LKN in Cornelius. They are a non-denominational Church where you can belong before you believe and Bible based. Here are the services for this Christmas Season.

Christmas Eve at the Cain Center is this weekend, and you have 3 identical worship experiences to choose from:

December 23, 4PM
December 23, 6PM
December 24, 10AM

All three will feature uplifting music, a special Christmas message, a great program for your kids, and a lot of other fun things, including a festive photo area and some Christmas treats in the lobby!

Jesus is the Reason for the Season. Merry Christmas

09/16/2023

Want to learn about the various Schools, Communities and Fun Things to do Around the Charlotte Metro Area? Come check it out
charlotteareaschoolsandcommunites.com