Raleigh - One of the Healthiest Housing Markets for 2009
Raleigh has been named the 6th strongest residential real estate market in the country lead only by 5 cities in Texas according to a recent report by Hanley Wood Market Intelligence. Raleigh, like most of the other leading markets, is a great place to live and avoided the huge run-up in home prices that preceded the market downturn in other parts of the nation.
Based on population trends and job growth - along with home prices - the top 75 housing markets managed to hold the line on home values.
The report sites the area's multiple universites and an annual job rate increase of 1.9 percent through the third quarter of 2008. It continues "With a population of more than 1 million, it also has one of the highest rates of population growth of any top metro market in the country over the last five years: nearly 5 percent annually.
Though the price of a median home here, $221,900, is above the national average, it is well below other cities in the mid-Atlantic and Northeast. With a glut of national builders in the market, locals ... have experimented with different looks and styles to keep sales alive."
Among 27 major cities in a nationwide survey, a January 27 Wall Street Journal article reports that the Raleigh area has the second lowest decline in homes prices. Its decline of 2.5% is just above the 1.8% decline in Dallas and far better than the 26.8% decline in Las Vegas and 23.5% decline in Miami.
Area sellers who take a slight cut in home values here may reap the benefit of deeper cuts when they purchase in other parts of the country. Locally, they may experience a lower purchase price after they've sold their current home. Savy sellers will negoitate acceptable offers on their current homes so they can bargain for a new purchase.
With mortgage rates at a 50 year low, NAR's affordability index has risen 17% from 2007 figures indicating that households earning the national median income have 131% of the income needed to buy the national median-priced house. With home sales down to a ten year low, successful sellers are competitive with prices, home condition and incentives.
This is a great time to take advantage of home ownership while rates are low, prices are competitive and buyer's incentives are high.
The 2008 National Association of Realtors Profile of Home Buyers and Sellers has just been released and shows that nationally, first-time buyers have risen in market share and plan to own their homes longer than buyers in the past.
The NAR report reiterates the local sentiment that first-time buyers are more flexible to enter the market without concern of selling an existing house as well as having the benefits of low home prices, plentiful supply and affordable interest rates.
Forbes Magazine has named Raleigh #5 on the country's list of recession-proof cities. "Stable home prices and growth across the different sectors of its economy has kept Raleigh strong," states the April '08 edition. With a median home price increase of 4%, Raleigh continues better off than most of the nation where the real estate bubble has bursted.
Among the fastest growing North Carolina town's, Wake County's Rolesville ranked #1; Holly Springs, #3; Knightdale, #4; Wake Forest, #5; and Fuquay-Varina, #6.
The Raleigh-Durham housing market is one of a handful of metropolitan areas nationwide to post a price median increase over the last year" reports the April 26 Raleigh News and Observer.
Buyer conditions are favorable while 42% of MLS listings showed a reduction in price compared to last year's rate of 32%.
Homes that are repaired, staged well and priced in the more active range under $500,000 continue to get the most activity as sellers position their homes above competitors.
The April 26 Raleigh News and Observer reports that The Triangle region continues to add jobs, but at a slower rate than previous years. The NC Employment Security Commission released its report in April stating that Raleigh's new jobs were a 3.6% increase over a year ago with the Triangle accounting for more than half the state's job creation over the past year.
The Raleigh/Cary real estate market has just been forecast as the #2 strongest market in the country by Veros Real Estate Solutions, a California company that has covered the nation's residential real estate market for five years. The Triangle market is the only one of the top five areas not in the Midwest.
Homes priced near or below the average market value in the $200's continue to move steadily without major concessions. As in all markets, location is the key factor.
"North Carolina is insulated but not immune from recession" reports the 1/30/08 Raleigh News and Observer. It further states that "Right now, North Carolina is better positioned than most of the country, and the Triangle is in better shape than the state."
"With an economy rooted in state government, three major universities and a booming tech sector, the Triangle is buffered against housing downturns, credit problems and energy prices that roil other regions," says a senior economist at Wachovia Bank.
Growth continues along the new outer loop, I540, as accessibilty to rural areas is made easier. To the East, Knightdale, Wendell and Zebulon offer more for the money and to the South and Southwest, Fuquay-Varina and Holly Springs offer a variety of price ranges.
While Wake County new home prices continue to increase, neighboring counties, while still lower, are taking up the price gaps that Wake has left behind. Johnston County offers a wide range of new contruction in the $200-$300K range on larger lots than more urban Wake and has become more easily accessible with new bypasses.
(Exerpts taken from Realty Times Market Conditions)