After more than a decade in which sellers set the terms, the Raleigh-Durham market has tipped toward buyers, and the shift is landing unevenly across price points. Entry-level and luxury homes remain the busiest segments, according to Michele Henderson, who leads the Michele Henderson Team at Coldwell Banker Howard Perry and Walston, while the mid-priced range between them is struggling.
The slowdown follows a steep run-up. Home values surged during the pandemic, by Henderson’s estimate, with typical homes finishing the period worth far more than when it began. Average days on market have since climbed well above the levels of recent years.
The split tracks how different buyers are reading the same conditions. At the lower end, first-time buyers remain eager and ready to act on advice rather than wait for rates to fall. At the top, buyers are either paying cash or planning to refinance once rates ease. The hesitation sits in between. “Those are probably your middle-class buyers that are worried about the economy, worried about the interest rate,” Henderson says.
In her view, waiting can cost buyers more than it saves them. A few years ago, buyers paid well above market value to win a home; now some can buy below it. “You can always refinance later,” she says. “Nothing you can do about overpaying on a house.”
Cash buyers are best positioned to take advantage. Henderson estimates that roughly half of her current buyers are paying cash. “They’re the winners right now because they’re not having to worry about interest rates and they can jump in and take advantage of some great deals,” she says.
Resale sellers are also competing with a large supply of new construction. Builders are offering closing-cost assistance and interest rate buydowns, which Henderson calls significant competition for the resale market.
Condition has become a dividing line. Move-in-ready homes still sell quickly, while buyers are passing on properties that need updates. “We kind of joke that it’s the beauty pageant houses that are getting sold right now,” Henderson says.
Many sellers still carry expectations from 2021 and 2022, when homes sold without updates, and some list high with plans to negotiate down. Henderson advises pricing correctly from the start instead. Once a price starts dropping, she says, buyers begin to wonder “what’s wrong with this property?” or hold off in case the seller comes down further.
Deals are also falling through more often than before, though still rarely. In North Carolina, buyers put down nonrefundable money from the start, which keeps cancellations uncommon. Even so, Henderson says more deals have fallen apart in the last 12 months than in many years, typically when buyers and sellers can’t agree on repairs after an inspection.
Geography matters as much as price. Cary and Apex, on the western side of the Triangle near the airport and Research Triangle Park, are among the busiest areas, and most homes there are still moving quickly.
Relocation continues to feed demand. Henderson says buyers arrive regularly from California, New York, and Florida, drawn by lower costs and more house and land for the money. The Florida group includes people who moved south from the Northeast, then decided they had gone too far. “They call themselves Halfbacks because they end up moving back up to North Carolina, which is kind of that halfway point between the Northeast and Florida,” she says.
One recent client, who had sold a tech business in California, bought a luxury home on 10 acres in Hillsborough, outside Raleigh and Durham, for a little over $1 million. Henderson says the same property would have cost several million in California.
Remote and hybrid work is widening the search area. With one or both parents working from home in many families, buyers are choosing the outskirts for more land and a lower price per square foot rather than a short commute. Inside and outside the home, they are prioritizing office space, flexible rooms, and outdoor entertaining areas such as fire pits and outdoor kitchens.
Henderson sees no job or economic trends that worry her about the market. Technology and biotech employers, along with a dense higher education network, keep employment steady, and state and local governments continue to recruit businesses that bring workers with them.
“I think we’re steady,” she says. “And our prices have leveled out a little bit, which probably they needed to because we’ve spiked pretty high before.” In her view, that leveling keeps the market affordable for most buyers after values rose so sharply.
For investors weighing the Triangle, Henderson recommends starting with the preferred tenant, whether young adults without children, families, or college students. That choice, she says, dictates both the location and the likely rent levels.
Entry-level and luxury buyers each have reasons to act now: first-time buyers are eager to get into a home, and luxury buyers can pay cash or count on refinancing later. Buyers in the middle of the market, by contrast, are waiting to see where rates and the economy go. That leaves sellers of mid-priced homes facing the most pressure, while buyers in that range who are ready to move have more room to negotiate than the Triangle has offered in more than a decade.
For sellers at any price point, Henderson says, homes tend to either sell in the first week or take a couple of months. Accurate pricing and move-in-ready condition increasingly decide which.
About The Expert: Michele Henderson leads the Michele Henderson Team at Coldwell Banker Howard Perry and Walston in the Raleigh-Durham Triangle, where she has worked for 10 years. Her team focuses on residential sales for homeowners, buyers, and investors.
This article is based on information provided by the expert source cited above. It is intended for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal, financial, or real estate advice. Readers should conduct their own research and consult qualified professionals before making any real estate or financial decisions.
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