UNC Charlotte Urban Institute: Charlotte Is No Superstar City But Residents Get More Bang For Buck
As the global economy increasingly rewards technological innovation, the gains from productivity enhancements have not been distributed evenly across cities and regions. The residents of so-called “superstar” cities–including Boston, New York, San Francisco, San Jose, and Seattle–have captured a disproportionate share of higher wages.
Superstar cities emerge because of the importance of “agglomeration economies.” Cities have always been economic phenomena. At their core, cities are labor markets. People come together to exchange goods and services–and the close proximity of cities lowers transaction costs, including transport costs.
So while Charlotte may not be a superstar city, where we can expect (on average) to earn top dollar in our chosen vocation, many of us have chosen to locate here for other, non-pecuniary reasons. We enjoy the quality of life here (We’re close to both beaches and mountains! We have not-so-cold winters! Trees and flowers abound! There are lots of sports! Our food options are pretty good and getting better!). What’s more, Charlotte has offered a comparatively low cost of living–you get much more real estate bang for your buck compared to superstar cities like San Francisco, Seattle, and New York.