Luxury Real Estate Snapshot: North Carolina

With its hearty economy, varied landscape, and ideal climate, North Carolina has rapidly become a magnet for wealthy homeowners

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By Maya Roney

January 5, 2007 at 10:01 AM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

Ask a North Carolinian about the housing bubble bust, and you might get a quizzical look. Bubble? What bubble? It never happened here. In any conversation about local real estate, they will, however, be happy to tell you about "half-backers." Not a football player, but a name for affluent professionals and retirees who move from the Northeast to Florida and halfway back again, to North Carolina.

This migration pattern has contributed to the state's recent population boom and continued home sales growth, even as the U.S. housing market gets whacked due to years of speculation. North Carolina has moved past New Jersey as the 10th most populous state as its population grew 2% in 2006 to 8.8 million, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. In 20 years, it is expected to be the country's seventh most populous state.