The High Country is open for business amid its recovery and welcomes us to its communities with open arms. Whether you're sampling local cuisine, skiing pristine slopes, or browsing unique boutiques, Blowing Rock offers an enchanting mountain getaway for the whole family. Join us on December 5th at the scenic Chetola Resort as we wrap up 2024 and welcome our 2025 leadership team.

 Register for Q4 Chapter Business Meeting

Local Restaurants

• Storie Street Grille
• Bistro Roca
• Restaurant — Gideon Ridge Inn
• The Inn at Crestwood (crestwoodnc.com) (The Table)
• Gamekeeper Restaurant | An Adventure In Wild Game Fine Dining (gamekeeper-nc.com)
• The Beacon (boonebeacon.com)
• The Cardinal | Boone, NC (thecardinalboone.com) – excellent burgers and brews
• Melanie's Food Fantasy (melaniesfoodfantasy.com) – for the best breakfast in town
• The Local (thelocalboone.com)
• Brewery | Lost Province Brewing Co | Boone - for excellent pizza and brews
• Wild Craft (wildcraftboone.com)

Family Fun

• High Country Choose & Cut Christmas Trees (highcountryhost.com)
• The Blowing Rock—Saturdays with Santa at The Blowing Rock—November 30—December 22 from 11:00 am - 2:00 pm—Enjoy a special visit with Santa and Mrs. Claus and clear winter views from North Carolina's Oldest Attraction. Admission is free for children and accompanying paid adults.
• Crazy Christmas at Mystery Hill - December 1-31, Daily—Special holiday activities and events happen throughout the season. Visit the free light tunnel starting mid-November and take your photo!
• The Children's Playhouse (goplayhouse.org) is a wonderful children’s museum and play place for children ages 0 to 8.
• Bouldering | Center 45 Climbing | Boone – for adventure enthusiasts who want to experience rock climbing in a safe and fun environment. 

Outdoor Activities

• Appalachian Ski Mtn. - North Carolina Ski Resort (appskimtn.com)  (Ice Skating and Snow Skiing)
• Sugar Mountain Resort – Sugar Mountain, North Carolina (skisugar.com)
• Beech Mountain Resort - Skiing, Snowboarding, and More
• Hawksnest Tubing | Best Snow Tubing in North Carolina

On Thursday, September 12th, members and guests gathered at The Olde Mecklenburg Brewery in Charlotte, NC for our Q3 Chapter Business Meeting. During our meeting, we had a chance to celebrate our newly designated member, Eric Straughn, MAI. Jim Birch, Chief Operating Officer, of The Olde Mecklenburg Brewery joined the Carolina Chapter meeting as a speaker. The Board and Committee members gave updates, and announcements on the upcoming virtual Real Estate Valuation Conference on September 24 and 26, and Business Practices and Ethics with John Bosworth, MAI, SRA on October 18th. We hope to see you at the Q4 Chapter Business meeting in Blowing Rock, NC at the Chetola Resort on December 5, 2024. 

View Photos

What is your name, title, and company?
Michael Sollitto

Where do you live and what do you work for?
I live in Waxhaw and work for Newmark on the Hotel team covering 7 states in the southeast as well as the Caribbeans, Mexico, and Central Americas.

On behalf of the Appraisal Institute Education and Relief Foundation (AIERF), I am reaching out to chapter leaders seeking nominations for the James H. Pritchett Award. The James H. Pritchett Award was created in 2002, in memory of the late James Pritchett. The Pritchett Award recognizes a Designated member of the Appraisal Institute for outstanding contributions to appraisal education or mentoring with a focus on litigation and condemnation. The ideal candidate is someone like Mr. Pritchett who displays leadership, integrity, and exceptional work in teaching, writing, mentoring, and professional practice in litigation support and eminent domain.

If you know a Designated member worthy of consideration, please email the name of the nominee and a brief letter of recommendation to [email protected] by July 31. Announcement of this and other AI and AIERF award recipients will take place during the Appraisal Institute’s Joint Region Meeting on September 30 in Kansas City.  

Originally published on June 6, 2024, by the Appraisal Institute. 

The Appraisal Institute, the leading association of real estate appraisers, released the second in its series of short videos profiling valuation professionals. Each video highlights their professional commitment to the public trust and their communities and shows different ways that appraisers bring high-level professional expertise and experience to their work.

Originally published on May 10, 2024, by the Appraisal Institute. 

The Appraisal Institute, the leading association of real estate appraisers, released highlights of its Second Quarter Board Meetings, May 9-10, 2024. Chief Executive Cindy Chance, PhD, updated the Board on organizational change, progress and challenges since the first quarter meeting in late February. President Sandy Adomatis, SRA, chaired the meeting at which the Board deliberated on a number of topics with the goal of serving its mission and members’ interests.

On Thursday, June 13th, members and guests gathered at Cape Fear Country Club in Wilmington, NC for our Q2 Chapter Business Meeting. During our meeting, we had a chance to celebrate our newly designated members, Michael Sollito, MAI, Jared Randhawa, MAI, Thomas D. Petz, MAI-GRS, and Heather A. Anderson, AI-GRS.  The North Carolina Chapter had a chance to vote on next year's Chapter leadership, hear committee updates, and learn what the Chapter has done so far this year and what lies ahead for the summer and fall. We hope to see you at the Q3 Chapter Business meeting in Charlotte in September.

Photo Album

This May, members Greyson S. Morgan, MAI, Rich Earley, Erica Butler, MAI and Keith Bolte, MAI, AI-GRS attended AI’s 2024 Leadership Development and Advisory Council conference in Washington, DC. On the last day, Erica Butler, MAI was presented with the coveted William T. Anglyn award which is given to the first-year participant who exhibited exemplary leadership, integrity and outstanding contributions to the conference.

The following individuals have announced their candidacies.

The process for nomination and election of the Appraisal Institute’s 2025 vice president has begun. The following individuals (listed alphabetically) have announced their candidacies and will come before the National Nominating Committee at its May 8 meeting in Chicago:

Where do you live and who do you work for?
I live in the Charlotte MSA I’m the Executive Vice President for Partner Valuation Advisors

How long have you been appraising?
I started appraising in December 2012

The members of Region V can be proud of the many individuals who have served the Appraisal Institute membership at the Regional and National levels. Through their dedicated service, Region V members have the opportunity to meet and interact with other leaders who are also active in the governance of the organization. This enriches their careers by expanding their network of peers in addition to their knowledge of appraisal and other issues outside of their individual communities. Each of you is urged to become involved in this process by seeking out leaders in your Chapter who will assist Region V with continued service on the National Board of Directors, Committees, and Panels

The Region V Nominating Committee will be meeting live stream via Zoom to prepare a slate of nominees to fill Region V positions for the years 2025-2026. Please consider members within your respective chapters or other Region V chapters who have the skills, eligibility, and character to assume the leadership positions for 2025- 2026 as listed below. You may provide your recommendations to the 2024 Region V Chair, Claire M. Aufrance, MAI, SRA  at [email protected], or the Region V Executive Director, Nancy Linton-Hall, by this Friday, February 9, 2024.

Originally published by Jacob Channel for Lending Tree on December 4, 2023. 

Though home prices have come down in some areas, they remain steep across the U.S.

Originally published on December 13, 2023, by Isabelle Novak for Redfin.

The median U.S. asking rent declined 2.1% year over year in November to $1,967—the biggest annual drop since February 2020—according to a report from Redfin (redfin.com), the technology-powered real estate brokerage. This is a 0.6% decline in asking rents since October.

Originally published on December 12, 2023, by CBRE.

Economic growth is expected to slow in 2024 and real estate transaction values should decline further, which could create compelling buying opportunities, although lending is expected to remain tight, CBRE reported Dec. 14 in its 2024 U.S. Real Estate Outlook. However, the firm also reported that it expects commercial real estate values to rebound during the second half of the year.

Executive Summary

• There is an increased chance that the U.S. will avoid a recession and achieve a soft economic landing in 2024, but economic growth will slow and downside risks are elevated.
• Commercial real estate investment activity likely will begin to pick up in the second half of 2024.
• The normalization of hybrid working arrangements will continue to limit the growth of office demand.

Read More

Originally published on December 5, 2023, by Representative Adam Smith (D-Wash.) and Senator Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.)

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Representative Adam Smith (D-Wash.) and Senator Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) teamed up to introduce the bicameral End Hedge Fund Control of American Homes Act of 2023. This legislation responds directly and forcefully to a persistent and growing problem — What Happens When Wall Street Buys Most of the Homes on Your Block? The purchasing of single-family homes by hedge funds, especially in the current housing market, has made it more difficult for middle-class Americans to become homeowners and is contributing to America’s twin crises of housing unaffordability and wealth inequality.
 
“In 1971, my father was able to buy the house I grew up in for $15,000 on the salary he earned as a baggage handler at SeaTac Airport. That same house would cost nearly $500,000 today yet wages for workers like my father have not kept up. Too many families in the Puget Sound region and across the country are struggling to afford to rent or buy a home. This crisis has been exacerbated in recent years by an increasing number of large investors purchasing a significant percentage of single-family homes, squeezing out prospective buyers,” said Rep. Adam Smith (D-Wash.). “Congress must take action to crack down on corporate greed and get hedge funds out of the single-family home market. The bill I’m introducing today with my colleagues would ban these problematic hedge funds from the single-family housing market and claw back some of the homes they already own so that more American families have a fair shot at becoming homeowners.”
 
“The housing in our neighborhoods should be homes for people, not profit centers for Wall Street. Yet, in every corner of the country, giant financial corporations are buying up housing and driving up both rents and home prices,” said Senator Merkley. “It’s time for Congress to put in place commonsense guardrails that ensure all families have a fair chance to buy or rent a decent home in their community at a price they can afford.”

Fellow NCAI Members,

As my term as President of the North Carolina Chapter of the Appraisal Institute ends, I want to take a moment to reflect on the incredible journey we have embarked on together. It has been an honor and privilege to serve as your President and work alongside such resolute individuals who share a common passion for our Chapter and the Appraisal Profession.

On December 6, 85+ members & guests celebrated at the 2023 J. Scott Robinson Installation Ceremony & Q4 Chapter Business Meeting held at the Marriott Greensboro Downtown.

Jim Lynch, MAI gave his final address as the 2023 President and the 2024 officers were installed, including incoming President, Mike Elwell, MAI, SRA. Members mixed and mingled while enjoying food and drinks. We were pleased to welcome Dr. Anthony Nelson, Dean, School of Business, North Carolina Central University, and Jarvis Martin, SRA, Principal with Stewart, Martin, & McCoy, LLC, as they both gave a presentation about NCCU’s new MBA Commercial Real Estate Program – currently the only commercial real estate program at an HBCU - and presented two scholarships for the program.