Lodging Econometrics (LE) has released Q1 hotel development data for the Charlotte, North Carolina, market ahead of HITEC 2024. The Q1 2024 LE Market Trend Report for the Charlotte market reported that Charlotte has a total of 67 hotel projects and 7,772 rooms in the construction pipeline, positioning it 15th among the top 25 U.S. markets for the largest hotel construction pipeline by project count.
Within the Charlotte market, at the close of the first quarter, hotels under construction stood at 11 projects/1,435 rooms. Projects scheduled to start construction in the next 12 months stood at 31 projects/3,466 rooms and those in early planning total 25 projects/2,871 rooms. Over 65 percent of the projects in Charlotte are upscale and upper-midscale brands. Combined, these two chain scales account for 44 projects/5,007 rooms.
Three key market tracts (submarkets) within the Charlotte market with the largest hotel construction pipelines are the Monroe and Rock Hill area with 14 projects/1,458 rooms; the Concord and Salisbury area with 11 projects/897 rooms; and the Charlotte Central Business District (CBD) area with 9 projects/1,643 rooms. These three market tracts contribute to over half (51 percent) of the projects and rooms in Charlotte’s total construction pipeline as of Q1.
Charlotte also stands out for its conversion activity, ranking ninth in the United States by project volume, with a combined renovation and conversion total of 17 projects and 1,758 rooms.
Looking ahead, LE’s total forecast for new hotel openings in the Charlotte market in 2024 is 5 projects/511 rooms, for a 1.2 percent supply growth rate by rooms. In 2025, Charlotte is expected to grow its supply by 1.5 percent and is forecasted to open 6 new hotels/652 rooms.
