Across Mecklenburg County, home values are up an average of 58% from four years ago in the newest tax revaluation. But if you live in a lower-priced home close to uptown, there’s a good chance the value at least doubled.
That means more of the tax burden is shifting to these homeowners and, indirectly, to renters in many of the city’s Corridors of Opportunity — lower-income areas that have long been overlooked, and more affordable. And for residents in these areas, there’s hope for more amenities and positive change mingled with anxiety about higher tax bills.Property values have more than quadrupled since 2011 on the 1700 block of Maribel Ave.
Washington Heights is a historically Black neighborhood in west Charlotte that still has many of its original modest bungalows and ranches. New houses don’t loom over them as in many gentrifying neighborhoods. So Frazier Lawrence, Jr. was surprised when he opened the notice from the tax assessor. His neat house with three bedrooms and two bathrooms doubled in four years.
The value jumped from $118,500 in 2019 to $252,600.
It’s a similar increase to the other homes on this block of Maribel Avenue, a couple of streets west of Beatties Ford Road. That doesn’t mean their tax bills will double this year, but they will go up. Lawrence said he hopes the increase is something he can cope with.
“I’ve got to make it manageable some kind of way,” Lawrence replied.
He knows how neighborhoods change, property values increase, residents leave and new ones move in. Since 2011, homes on this block have at least quadrupled in value. He plans to stay, although many of his neighbors have left. His parents purchased the home where he and his sister now live in 1999, leaving what would become South End.
“The place where I used to live now, it's a big-high rise, right on Hawkins Street down the street from the Krispy Kreme,” Lawrence said.'By the grace of God, I’ll turn this over to my grandchildren so they’ll have somewhere to live'
A couple of doors down, Bernice Bryant arrived home from visiting her granddaughter at University Park Creative Arts elementary school around the corner. Her 1,300-square-foot home has a wraparound porch and a well-tended lawn. She always wanted a lawn and a garden with flowers. Now, she has tulips and green grass.
“I just love it over here!” Bryant said.
She bought the house in 2002, shortly after a nonprofit built her home, and others, on this side of the street with federal low-interest loans for affordable housing. At the time, she was renting a place in Wilmore — near where Lawrence’s family lived. She paid $85,000 for her house and now gets calls every day urging her to sell.
“It has become a hassle,” said Bryant.
They tell her they’ll give her any amount she wants, but she refuses.
“Money you can spend, but a home you can live in. ... By the grace of God, I’ll turn this over to my grandchildren so that they will have somewhere to live,” said Bryant.
She said the neighborhood was “full of a lot of evil” when she moved here — and drugs and crime are still a problem. She loves seeing police cars patrol the neighborhood. She says they make her feel safe.
Bryant hopes she’ll be around for the good that often accompanies higher property values — safer streets and more stores, like the new café and wedding salon a few blocks away on LaSalle Street. But Bryant knows her property taxes are likely to rise this year.
The county hasn’t set tax rates yet, but it estimated taxes on the lowest-priced homes — like those in this neighborhood — could go up the most. Under one hypothetical scenario, those owners could pay $278 more a year. For people with low or fixed incomes, already facing inflation on everything from eggs to electricity, it’s one more higher bill to worry about.
“It hurts. But, you know, we can pay it,” Bryant said. Bryant is 64 and receives disability payments after suffering a stroke many years ago. She hasn’t heard of the county and state’s programs for tax relief.
She said her children would pitch in if things get tight. But if it goes up too high, Bryant says, “we might have to go ourselves.”
From Bryant’s backyard, you can see the fire pit of a home a couple of doors down that was purchased last year for $290,000. It’s now an Airbnb, advertised as “the perfect getaway for people looking for peace and tranquility” close to uptown. It goes for about $135 a night.
Renters worry they’ll pay higher rents to offset rising values
Across the street, Judy Merritt rents a home from a local landlord. She’s lived in her house for nearly 10 years. She says her landlord recently came to her, explaining he’d need to raise the rent since taxes went up. Merritt and her roommate used to pay $650 and now pay $900.
She’s been following the news of the county’s revaluation.
“That's my concern. How much is he going to go up on it? So I'm just going to put it in [God’s] hands and pray on it,” said Merritt.
Along with the higher rent, her landlord has made improvements. Merritt’s lawn had no grass before.
“He put down the seeds, and now we’ve got grass. He gave us driveways. And painted [the house], new roofs, the shutters, everything,” said Merritt.
Cashing out and moving on
There’s a retiree on the block who bought his house in 2001 for $71,000. He didn’t want to talk on tape, but shrugged when asked about property taxes. He plans to hold out for a few years and sell the house for a profit.
As for finding a new place, he said he’ll move back to South Carolina if he has to.
