Report: Raleigh will be No. 3 hottest housing market, prices to soar 24%

RALEIGH – Raleigh’s real estate market is already red hot with prices at record highs but they are going to get even higher in 2022 and the Raleigh market will be the third hottest market in the U.S. this year, a new study says.

Home values are forecasted to soar nearly 24% in the capital city’s real estate market, pushing a typical home value to well over $450,000 from the current average price of $391,444, an analysis from real estate company Zillow finds.

“All of the top ten markets are in the Sunbelt,” said Nicole Bachaud, an economist for Zillow. “That’s been a really hot region over the past year and it’s going to continue into 2022 as well.”

Only Tampa, Fla. and Jacksonville, Fla. are forecast to see higher home value appreciation through November 2022, the Zillow analysis finds.  The report was released early Tuesday and forecasted the home value appreciation in the Tampa market to climb nearly 25%.

Tampa was the only top five city to stay hot from 2021. Bachaud explains that most of the cities that were featured in Zillow’s 2021 analysis are seeing a pullback in demand because those areas are just no longer affordable.

 

Charlotte, meanwhile, came in ranked fifth in the analysis, which studied the top 50 metropolitan areas of the country by population size.

(Durham is not one of the top 50 metros, according to the Poynter Institute.)

Triangle prices, especially in Wake County, are already soaring.  Across the region he median sale price for a home was $369,000 in November, up from the median sale price of $365,000 in October, with 4,073 transactions closed in November compared to 4,007 transactions in October, according to the latest reports from Triangle Multiple Listing Service.

Triangle real estate reaches (another) new high with no slowdown in sight

The median price of all real estate transactions in Wake County increased in November to a record high of $405,000, according to an analysis of public records conducted by the Wake County Register of Deeds.

“Home buyers are attracted to markets in the Sun Belt that offer relative affordability, fast-growing economies and weather that allows them to enjoy the outdoors year round,” says Zillow economist Alexandra Lee in a statement. “Across the board, sellers will remain in the driver’s seat, but especially so in the hottest markets. Buyers should be ready for strong competition for homes, which means bidding wars and homes flying off the market only days after they are listed.”

Median price of Wake County real estate hit new high in November – $405,000

“The most important thing is having cash available,” said Michael Martin, a branch manager at Fairway Independent Mortgage in Raleigh.

He said rising prices make it tougher for first-time buyers to make it into the market.

“Kind of the sweet spot that I’m seeing is if they have 10% to put down, that gives us enough room that if the appraisal comes in a little short, we’ve got some room.”

The study covers real estate trends in the 50 largest U.S. markets in it hottest housing markets of 2022.

The top 10:

  1. Tampa
  2. Jacksonville
  3. Raleigh
  4. San Antonio
  5. Charlotte
  6. Nashville
  7. Atlanta
  8. Phoenix
  9. Orlando
  10. Austin

The predictions from Zillow are based on:

  • Forecasted home value growth
  • A thriving job market
  • Relative scarcity within markets
  • Fast-moving inventory
  • Demographics that indicate a good number of potential buyers

The economists from Zillow do predict that housing prices will “back off just a bit” from a tidal wave of price increases in 2021, forecasting 11% increase in home value nationwide for 2022.  But Zillow believes housing remains a “seller’s market … especially so in these hottest markets.”

The forecast is based on the following data:

  • Forecasted annual home value appreciation in Nov. 2022
  • Forecasted acceleration in home value appreciation, Nov. 2021-Nov. 2022
  • Standardized listing days per home, Jan. 2021-Nov. 2021
  • 2-year change in total non-farm employment per 2-year residential building permit total
  • Projected change in owner households, 2021-2022