Raleigh, NC — Momentum Score, Home Values & Best-For

All states·North Carolina·Raleigh

Wake County · Raleigh-Cary · population 499,825

Big-city amenities
Raleigh, NC
Image: Wikipedia · Raleigh, North Carolina
OverviewCost of livingMoving guide
View watchlist →
59
Stable
Momentum score · 0–100

Where Raleigh stands

Steady, no major recent move.

Median home $435,807
1-year -2.2%
5-yr CAGR +5.2%
vs 5-yr peak -4.0%
Population +1.7%/yr

Home value trajectory · last 10 years

Zillow ZHVI · monthly
peak 2022-07$436k$223k$306k$389k$472k201620182020202220242026

Lifestyle scores

🚶
Walkability
52/100
Somewhat walkable
Estimated from population density. Higher = denser, more amenities within walking distance.
🚉
Public transit
38/100
Minimal transit
Curated list of major US transit systems + population-based estimate. Higher = real subway/rail/bus options.
💻
Remote work fit
84/100
Excellent for remote work
Composite of city size, housing cost, state tax structure, and region's remote-work track record.

Scores are heuristic estimates from population density, state, and known transit/walkable cities. Not based on a paid Walk Score / Transit Score API — see methodology for the formula.

Rent trajectory · last 5 years

Zillow ZORI · monthly
$1,576/mo$1,197$1,443$1,688202220242026

Home value vs rent · indexed to 100

Both rebased at first month of ZORI data (~2015)
Home valueRent129124100120202220242026

Rent vs buy

Price-to-rent ratio: 23.0
Lean rent

At a 23.0 price-to-rent ratio, the math is starting to lean toward renting in Raleigh. Owner-occupier ROI requires longer holds and the assumption that prices keep appreciating roughly at the rate of rent.

How the momentum score breaks down

methodology →
Home YoY
39 · w22%
Home 5-yr CAGR
66 · w22%
Distance from peak
66 · w18%
Population growth
75 · w16%
Rent YoY
46 · w12%
Home 10-yr CAGR
69 · w10%
Long thesis

Raleigh has held up across the cycle: home values at $435,807 with +5.2% 5-year CAGR. The bull case is structural — population, location, employer base — and holds even if next year's print is soft.

Short thesis

Raleigh's bear case is the boring one: the cycle is real and any market that's run hard can stall. Watch for slowing population growth, rising days-on-market, or builder discounts as the early warning signals.

About Raleigh

Raleigh is a city in Wake County, North Carolina, with an estimated population of 499,825. It anchors the Raleigh-Cary metro area. The population grew 1.7% annually from 2020 to 2024, a moderate gain. The median home value in Raleigh is $435,807 as of 2026-04, down 2.2% over the last 12 months. Over the last five years, home values have averaged +5.2% annual growth (-4.0% from the 5-year peak). Rents in Raleigh average $1,576 per month, roughly flat year-over-year (+0.2%). The composite momentum score is 59 of 100 (Stable). Conditions are neither hot nor cold, so the local fit matters more than market timing.

▲ Bull case

●Healthy 5-year run: +5.2% annualized over 5 years, outpacing US inflation.
●Net positive migration: population up 1.7% per year — demand fundamentals are intact.

▼ Bear case

●Cooling: -2.2% over the trailing year — momentum has stalled.
○Local nuance: city-level data smooths over neighborhood differences. School zones, HOA rules, and street-level character matter — visit before deciding.

About Raleigh (Wikipedia)

Raleigh is the capital city of the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the second-most populous city in the state, tenth most populous city in the Southeast, the largest city in the Research Triangle area, and the 39th-most populous city in the U.S. Known as the "City of Oaks" for its oak-lined streets, Raleigh covers 148.54 square miles (384.7 km2) and had a population of 467,665 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Wake County and is named after Sir Walter Raleigh, who founded the lost Roanoke Colony.

Source: Wikipedia · this summary is contributed and licensed under CC-BY-SA.

City facts

MayorJanet Cowell
Area149.60 sq mi
Elevation331 ft
CharteredDecember 31, 1792
Motto(Latin for "by Love and Virtue")
Density3378.33/sq mi
Named forSir Walter Raleigh

Extracted from the Wikipedia infobox. Values may be slightly out of date relative to the latest sources.

Playbook

Buyer

Lifestyle fit matters more than market timing in a Stable market. Take your time on the home and neighborhood; the macro trend isn't urgent. Negotiate normally.

Seller

Price competitively from day one or risk a 60+ day listing. Staging, photography, and presentation matter more in Stable markets than in Hot ones.

Investor

Stable cap rates, no big appreciation story to lean on. Underwrite this as a pure cash-flow play — the math has to work on rent alone.

Local safety & alerts

No active National Weather Service alerts for Wake County right now.

NWS active alerts (NC)North Carolina Emergency ManagementHow to prepare (NWS)

Public-safety links are official .gov sources, not curated by us. Wake County routes NWS alerts; check the state EM portal for non-weather emergencies.

Neighborhoods of Raleigh

18 tracked · ranked by median home value
1Glenwood$1,297,743+0.2%
2Wade$889,041+0.1%
3Five Points$813,971+0.8%
4Six Forks$782,100+0.8%
5Mordecai$698,265+1.4%
6Falls of Neuse$625,375+2.5%
7Central$521,158-2.2%
8North Central$507,244-2.5%
9North Raleigh$495,867-0.4%
10Northwest Raleigh$481,759-1.7%
11Hillsborough$464,329-3.8%
12South Central$428,365-0.5%
13East Raleigh$408,549-3.1%
14West Raleigh$348,861-4.2%
15Southwest Raleigh$334,845-4.3%
16Northeast Raleigh$329,815-4.6%
17Southeast Raleigh$296,905-4.1%
18South Raleigh$293,797-3.5%

Cities like Raleigh

Durham, NC62 · RisingCharlotte, NC65 · RisingConcord, NC65 · RisingWilmington, NC68 · Rising

Run the numbers for Raleigh

ToolCan I afford Raleigh?Income → city shortlistToolROI on a Raleigh rentalCap rate, cash-on-cash, DSCRToolCompare Raleigh to anywhereSide-by-side up to 3 citiesToolRaleigh cost-of-livingEquivalent income elsewhere

Sources: Zillow ZHVI (home values), Zillow ZORI (rents), US Census ACS + place population. Updated when source agencies publish revisions.

Climate & natural-disaster risk

Winter (Jan)
50° / 30°
avg high / low
Summer (Jul)
88° / 68°
avg high / low
Sunny days/yr
213
~58% of year
Annual precip
50″ rain
6″ snow
Disaster risk (1=very low, 5=very high)
Hurricane
High
Tornado
Moderate
Wildfire
Low
Earthquake
Very low
Flood
High

State-level averages from NOAA Climate Normals (1991-2020) and FEMA National Risk Index. City-level conditions can vary significantly within a state.

Local sports teams

Major professional teams the Raleigh-Cary area cheers for. Detailed stats, schedules, and player pages on intherafters.com.

Current weather

Loading current conditions…

7-day forecast on weather.gov →

Find rentals & listings

Open current Raleigh listings on the major real-estate sites.

Links open the live search on the destination site — results are always current.

Local news & community

Updated 2026-05-21 from Google News + Reddit RSS. Headlines link to original sources.

Local economy & environment

Humidity
71%
Humid climate
Median household income
$67,500
North Carolina state median
Top industries (state-level)
Banking (Charlotte)Tech (RTP)Manufacturing

Humidity is annual average relative humidity (NOAA). Income is Census ACS 5-year estimate. Industries are largest employment sectors statewide (BLS); the local mix in a given city may vary.

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