Overall Market Status

Raleigh was named as the 2^nd hottest housing market in the country earlier this year by the US News and World Report.  We did a separate blog on this accolade as it’s not doom and gloom for buyers as many people think, it actually represents the Raleigh NC housing market having the 2^nd healthiest housing market for both buyers and sellers in the country.

So far this year, buyers have felt that, as the market has been off to a fast start.

We have seen rising buyer demand from late last year as rates have begun to drop to around 7% on average.

A familiar challenge we have seen in the area over the past few years is a relatively low inventory, which is currently down compared to last year at this time but looks to be back on the rise with new listings coming to the market for the spring and summer.

As you all know, mixing high demand with low inventory can lead to a competitive market, which we have definitely seen in some areas with some homes going over asking with multiple offers.

But it’s still nothing like years past, where any house no matter the condition would sell over asking.   Your home needs to be well prepared for the market, advertised broadly, and most importantly, priced strategically to sell fast.  And it obviously helps when you’re in a prime location in Raleigh, Cary and Apex.  

But you’ll see this trend reflected in the percent of list price received fields, as we are up over last year as a whole.  The fact that it’s still below 100% though shows we are still well below the peak of the past few years, and while some homes are going over asking, just as many or more are still going below asking as well.

Homes are also selling quicker than they were a year ago, but most homes are still not selling the first or even second weekend, so as a seller, unless you have an updated home in a prime location, don’t be alarmed if your home sits on the market for at least several weeks.    

Raleigh NC housing market prices as a whole also continue to increase across the Triangle, as we are up again over last year at this time as expected.

2024 Projection

Looking towards the rest of this spring into the summer for the Raleigh NC Housing Market, buyer demand is expected to continue it’s rise as it normally does for the spring and summer months, but inventory will also increase as well.  I would still expect the market to get a little more competitive than it is now over the summer, but as of right now, no significant jump is expected.

I will caveat that statement by indicating that the market still greatly depends on what the Federal Reserve does from a rate cutting perspective, as if they do make sizable rate cuts at their next meeting, and the interest rates drive into the lower 6’s, that will no doubt bring more buyers out to seize the opportunity.

Declining rates later this year may also lead to a slightly busier fall and early winter season than normal as well.

Many know that inflation has stayed a little higher than expected so far this year, which has led to the Fed’s hesitation to cut rates just yet.  But overall, they have indicated that inflation has still been on a downward trend, and feel confident that rate cuts will occur at some point this year.  When that is will depend on inflation, which they would like to see around 2%, and we are hovering around 2.5% right now, which is still not bad considering we peaked at around 7.1%.

By year end, the general consensus among the experts is that interest rates will be in the low 6’s, assuming the Federal Reserve does in fact cut rates as expected.  This is up slightly from earlier this year, where some experts thought we would see rates break into the upper 5’s by year end.

Another major, national news item related to the housing market involves the settlement reached by the National Association of Realtors over real estate agent’s commission structure.  While the proposed changes are not really expected to change much in North Carolina specifically like the media has indicated, see our latest blog breaking the settlement impacts down, there could still be some who are waiting for that settlement to take affect in July to list their homes.

Raleigh NC Suburbs

Also, just to hit on the different areas surrounding Raleigh, Cary, Morrisville, Apex, and Northwest Raleigh will continue to be in high demand, especially as the Research Triangle Park continues its’ growth (see our blog on the Research Triangle Park).  The majority of these areas with well-kept and presented homes should expect quicker sales with the potential for multiple offers.

Holly Springs and Wake Forest remain middle of the road regarding demand for resale homes, as the large number of new construction options in those areas do impact the resale market.  

Clayton and Fuquay-Varina continue their surges in growth, but are still providing relatively affordable prices for the area, but do expect many resales to sit longer as well as there are a large number of new construction options there as well.

The east side of Raleigh is also growing, but outside a couple popular neighborhoods, demand in those suburbs is less than other areas, which is also reflected in the pricing.  There’s no doubt though that those areas will begin to fill in as the other areas of Raleigh begin to run out of space to develop.

So overall, this is a good time to both buy and sell a home, as we are in a fairly healthy market overall even with interest rates around 7%. 

Closing Thoughts

Do keep in mind that if you’re still holding out for interest rates to go down, homes prices are only going up, so at some point, you may end up paying more if you wait too long.  Additionally, even if you buy at a higher rate right now, you can still refinance when the rates go down, as long as you’re comfortable with the payment at the higher rate.

I hope this blog gave you some valuable insight into the Raleigh NC housing market.  Check out our blog to see what type of impacts we expect the NAR Settlement to carry for North Carolina, as well as the most recent pros and cons of Raleigh NC.

If you need any help buying or selling a home in the Raleigh area, we would love to help you.  We have the largest social media following of any real estate agent in the Raleigh, which for sellers, can get your listing in front of tens of thousands more than any other agent in the triangle to get more buyers in the door.  

Please reach out via our contact information below:

Phone:  919-504-5265

Email:  alison@thewgroupraleigh.com

Website:  www.thewgroupraleigh.com