Charlotte: A City Of Mortgage-Debtors

More homeowners in Charlotte have mortgage debt than in most other major metro areas around the country. Are we just prone to big spending, or is something else at play in the housing market here? Almost 21 million Americans – nearly a third of the nation's homeowners – own their homes outright. In Charlotte, the percentage is much lower – just 20 percent. New York City outdoes us with 30 percent of its homeowners free and clear. In Tampa it's 33.2 percent and Pittsburgh – a whopping 38 percent of homeowners have completely paid off the mortgage. Real estate tracking firm Zillow tallied figures for the 30 largest metro areas. Charlotte's low number doesn't surprise local realtor Eric Locher. "Given that we are a market where we have a number of people move in or move out as they move up the corporate chain or are looking for new opportunities, we're a bit younger market," says Locher, a past-president of the Charlotte Regional Realtor Association. When he says young he means people who