You want to buy a home in Matthews NC.  You have located several properties that might meet your family's needs.  What are some of the questions that you should ask about this Matthews NC real estate so that you can make a good buying decision? 

This article is one in a series about exercising due diligence when you buy a Matthews NC home.  I hope to help you develop a set of questions that should be asked about any property that you consider for purchase and then show you how to find the answers.

The Basics

Let's start with the most basic questions...

Where is the property located?

The first question to ask about any property identified as being in Matthews NC is which county is this property in?  It is very easy to determine the county location by looking at the zip code.  Matthews NC mailing addresses with a 28105 zip code lie within Mecklenburg County and those with a 28104 zip code lie within Union County.

The Town of Matthews itself is located within Mecklenburg County.  Although most properties with a 28105 zip code are actually within Matthews town limits, a few are in Charlotte city limits and some are in Mint Hill.  These local governments have set boundaries and are unlikely to change in the vicinity of Matthews, unlike the small towns of Union County.

Buying a home in Union County NC can be very confusing because mailing addresses do not necessarily correspond to the boundaries of the many small towns in the county.  The various post offices in this once rural area serve large areas of the county.  Town boundaries change in this rapidly growing area as the municipalities annex new subdivisions and sometimes a nearby post office is not large enough to accommodate a newly annexed neighborhood.  The result:  another post office is assigned to serve the subdivision and the mailing address does not reflect the property's municipal location.

It is also important to remember that not every property in Union County NC lies within a town.  Some are located within unincorporated Union County.  Some will remain unincorporated and others will be annexed into a town in the future.

Why is it important to know a property's mailing and governmental location?

• It's important to get the postal address right so that the official documents created when you purchase a home reflect your correct mailing address.  You don't want your mortgage statements getting lost in the mail because of an incorrect address.  It can be very difficult to change a mailing address on mortgage documents after the property closes.
• Knowing which local governments have jurisdiction over your property will help you determine how much you will pay in property taxes every year and what governmental services, such as garbage collection, will be included in those taxes.

How can you determine the location and mailing address of a Matthews NC home?

• The easiest way to identify tax location and mailing address is to verify the information online at the Mecklenburg or Union County Government web sites.  Determine which county the property is in. In Mecklenburg County, go to the address information page.     In Union County, go to the e-services page and then the property search page.  Here you can enter a parcel ID code, an owner's name or a mailing address to find location and other information about each property in either county.
• Information on the Union County Property Services web site sometimes lags behind town annexations.  If you suspect that a property has been recently annexed into one of Union County's towns, you can call the town government offices to verify whether the parcel is under town jurisdiction.
• If the property is in unincorporated Union County and you would like to know whether it might be annexed into one of the towns, you should check with the town planners to determine whether they know of future plans for annexation of the property.

Related articles in this series

• Taking the Confusion out of the Matthews NC Real Estate Search
• Buy a Matthews NC Home:  The Basics of Due Diligence Part 2
• Buy a Matthews NC Home:  The Basics of Due Diligence Part 3

Want to know more about buying a home in Matthews NC?  Visit www.CarolinaSmallTownLiving.com.

About the author:  Carol Fox of Allen Tate Realtors is a veteran agent who has helped people buy Matthews NC homes and neighborhoods for over twenty years.

Copyright 2008. Carol Fox  All rights reserved.  "Buy a Matthews NC Home: The Basics of Due Diligence Part 1"