William Mclean - Real Estate

09/29/2026

🏡 Tuesday, September 29th - Daily Raleigh-Durham Market Briefing
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📊 Mortgage Rate Snapshot

Product Rate
30-year fixed ~7.22% to 7.37%
15-year fixed ~6.6%
5/1 ARM ~6.52%

That's roughly 20 to 30 basis points higher than last week on the 30-year, and Freddie Mac's weekly survey now has the 30-year average at 7.03%, up eight basis points from the prior week. The 10-year Treasury yield hit 5.209%, which is pushing borrowing costs up across the board.

What it means for your buyers: the rate creep is real, but it's not a reason to sit on the sidelines. ARM applications are up to 9.8% of the market as buyers look for a lower entry rate on loans they don't plan to keep 30 years. If you have a buyer who's hesitating, this is a good moment to run the numbers on a 5/1 ARM or a 15-year, especially if they're planning to move again within 5 to 7 years.
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🏘️ Raleigh/Durham Market News

1. Wake County and Durham are telling two different stories.

Wake County now has around 8,800 active listings and 3 to 4 months of supply, up substantially from a year ago and squarely in buyer-friendly territory. Durham is the opposite story: just 1.36 months of supply and roughly 1,294 active listings, still a seller's market. If you're working both sides of the Triangle, know that your pitch to a Wake County seller and a Durham seller should sound pretty different right now.

2. New construction is slowing down, and that matters for 2027-2028.

Builders pulled back on new starts significantly this year. That pipeline slowdown likely won't show up as tighter inventory until late 2027 into 2028, but it's worth flagging to sellers weighing whether to list now or wait. Waiting for a supply squeeze that's still a year or two out isn't much of a strategy.

3. Homes are taking longer to sell, even at the top of the market.

In the luxury segment, median days on market jumped to 14 days in August, up from just 6 days a year earlier, even though homes are still selling near asking price (98.75% of list). Across the broader market, the gap between list price and final sale price is widening too, a sign buyers have more room to negotiate than they did a year or two ago. Anything that sits past 20 days on market tends to see a real drop in its final sale-to-list ratio, so pricing right out of the gate still matters more than ever.

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09/26/2026

🏡 Saturday, September 26th - Daily Raleigh-Durham Market Briefing
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📊 Mortgage Rate Snapshot

Product Rate
30-year fixed ~7.1-7.2%
15-year fixed ~6.5-6.6%
5/1 ARM ~6.5%

Rising Treasury yields, sticky inflation, and higher oil prices are pushing rates up rather than down. For your Raleigh-Durham buyers, this is a good moment to mention locking sooner rather than waiting, especially since builder rate buydowns (some as low as 4.99% FHA) can offset a chunk of that increase.
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🏘️ Raleigh/Durham Market News

1. Inventory keeps climbing across the Triangle.

Wake County listings are up almost 21% year over year, median price dipped to $450K, and homes are sitting about 46 days on market, up nearly a quarter from last year. It's a genuinely mixed market: well-located, updated homes still pull multiple offers, while everything else is sitting longer and needing price cuts (over 42% of Raleigh and Durham listings have had one).

2. A "mini fall resurgence" is bringing buyers back before the holidays.

They're more selective now that there's more to choose from, and most are needs-based movers (relocation, job, family) rather than folks buying just because.

3. Builder incentives have a deadline.

New construction in Wake Forest, Knightdale, and Wendell is offering closing cost help and rate buydowns, but those programs mostly disappear December 31. Worth flagging to any fence-sitting buyer clients today.

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09/21/2026

🏡 Monday, September 21st - Daily Raleigh-Durham Market Briefing
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📊 Mortgage Rate Snapshot

Product Rate
30-year fixed 7.01%
15-year fixed 6.39%
5/1 ARM 6.75%

Rates have climbed for two weeks straight and touched a one-year high of 7.05% on September 16 before easing slightly. Compared with last week's Freddie Mac averages (6.76% on the 30-year, 6.09% on the 15-year), that's a meaningful jump, and rates now sit about 0.8 points above where they were a year ago. The 10-year Treasury moved higher again Friday, so don't be surprised if rates stay firm or tick up a bit more this week.

What it means for Triangle buyers: Financing costs are up, but so is negotiating room. Prices in Raleigh and Durham are down 3-6% year over year and more than 4 in 10 listings have already taken a price cut. Buyers who are rate-shy can often make up ground through price negotiation, seller concessions, or a temporary rate buydown rather than waiting for the market to move.
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🏘️ Raleigh/Durham Market News

1. Prices keep softening in Raleigh and Durham.

Raleigh's median sale price is $422,221, down 6.2% year over year; Durham's is $424,719, down 2.6%. Homes are sitting longer too (Raleigh: 39 days on market, up from 35 last year), and 42%+ of listings in both cities have cut their price at least once. Good talking point for sellers who want to price aggressively out of the gate.

2. The market is splitting into two speeds.

Well-priced, move-in-ready homes are still selling fast, Raleigh's "hot homes" go in about 13 days, but overpriced or dated listings are lingering. Cary remains the outlier, scoring 74 on Redfin's Compete Score ("very competitive") versus 61-64 for Raleigh and Durham. Worth coaching sellers that pricing and condition matter more than the headline market right now.

3. I-540 completion is opening new submarkets.

As sections of the Triangle Expressway wrap up, areas like Clayton, Garner, and Fuquay-Varina, along with parts of Johnston, Franklin, and Harnett counties, are becoming more attractive to buyers chasing affordability and easier commutes. A solid option to bring up with budget-conscious buyers getting priced out of Raleigh, Durham, or Cary.

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09/11/2026

🏡 Friday, September 11th - Daily Raleigh-Durham Market Briefing
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📊 Mortgage Rate Snapshot:
Product Rate
30-year fixed 6.76%
15-year fixed 6.09%
5/1 ARM 6.56%

Rates have ticked up for a second straight week and hit a one-year high in daily pricing Thursday, pushed by a jump in the 10-year Treasury ahead of today's CPI report. For Raleigh-Durham buyers, this is a modest cost increase, not a dealbreaker. Local prices have softened and inventory has grown this year, so the extra financing cost is largely offset by better negotiating room. Rate-sensitive buyers should talk about locking soon, since the trend is upward.
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🏘️ Raleigh/Durham Market News

1. Triangle moving toward balance.

Wake County inventory is up 20.9% year over year (3,528 active listings), the median price has dropped to $450,000 (down 4.3%), and homes are taking 46 days to sell on average, about 24% longer than a year ago. It's not uniform. Homes inside the Beltline and in Cary, Apex, and Holly Springs are still pulling multiple offers, while dated homes or ones outside core commuting zones are sitting longer.

2. Raleigh and Durham prices pull back.

Raleigh's median sale price is $422,221, down 6.2% year over year, with homes averaging 39 days on market. Durham's median is $424,787, down 2.3%, and its market remains a bit more competitive (Compete Score 68 vs. Raleigh's 61), with homes going pending in about 36 days.

3. Durham's 27703 zip code is booming.

New construction (177 homes currently listed) is drawing buyers with easy access to RDU, Southpoint Mall, and Duke, all at a lower price point than surrounding areas. Worth bringing up with anyone weighing new build vs. resale in that corridor.

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09/04/2026

🏡 Friday, September 4th - Daily Raleigh-Durham Market Briefing
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📊 Mortgage Rate Snapshot

Daily Raleigh-Durham market briefing for Tuesday, September 4, 2026: mortgage rates hit a one-year high (30-yr fixed at 6.78%, up from 6.66% last week) while Raleigh and Durham prices continue easing and inventory keeps building. Full briefing below:

Product Rate
30-year fixed 6.78%
15-year fixed 5.96%
5/1 ARM 6.31%

Rates have been climbing all week and sit at their highest point in a year heading into the next jobs report. For Triangle buyers, that's a real hit to purchasing power compared to earlier this year when rates flirted with the 6% range. It's worth reminding buyers that a rate lock now protects them if this upward trend continues, and that refinancing later is always an option, but the price they negotiate today is the one that sticks.
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🏘️ Raleigh/Durham Market News

1. Prices are still coming down from their peak.

Raleigh's median sale price is $420,789, down 5.4% year over year, and Durham's sits at $424,787, down 2.3%. Both markets are taking a bit longer to sell too: 33 days on average in Raleigh, 31 in Durham.

2. Inventory keeps growing.

Wake County listings were up nearly 21% year over year earlier this year, and the market has clearly shifted from the seller-favored conditions of the past few years toward something closer to balanced. About 40% of Raleigh and Durham listings have seen at least one price cut, so overpricing is getting punished fast.

3. It's not uniform everywhere.

Inside the Beltline, North Hills, Midtown, Cary, Apex, and Holly Springs are still competitive with multiple offers on the right homes. Meanwhile Wake Forest, Knightdale, and Wendell are turning into value plays, helped along by builder incentives that are pulling some buyers away from the resale market.

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09/03/2026

🏡 Thursday, September 3rd - Daily Raleigh-Durham Market Briefing
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📊 Mortgage Rate Snapshot
Product Rate
30-year fixed 6.72%
15-year fixed 6.05%
5/1 ARM 6.46%

Rates crept up a few basis points from the day before and are sitting near the top of their range for the past month. Freddie Mac's official weekly survey put the 30-year at 6.66% last week, basically flat from the week before that. Treasury yields climbed ahead of Friday's jobs report and mortgage pricing tracked right along with them. Watch the September 4 jobs report, the September 11 CPI report, and the Fed's September 16 meeting - all three could move rates in either direction.

What it means for Raleigh-Durham buyers: a $400K loan at 6.72% runs about $2,586 a month in principal and interest, roughly $52 more than the same loan a year ago. That said, rising local inventory is giving buyers real leverage right now, so a slightly higher rate doesn't mean a weaker negotiating position. Remind buyers a rate lock isn't permanent - if rates ease toward 6% as some forecasters expect later this year, refinancing stays an option.
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🏘️ Raleigh/Durham Market News

1. The Triangle has settled into a genuine buyer's market.

Median sale prices dipped to about $421K in Raleigh and $425K in Durham in July, both down year over year, and homes are sitting a bit longer (33 days in Raleigh, 31 in Durham). More than a third of active listings have taken a price cut. One local appraiser put it well: "We're finally in a balanced market, probably for the first time since 2019."

2. Apartment construction is booming, and it's already cooling rents.

Nearly 11,000 units are under construction in Raleigh-Cary, the 12th most of any metro in the country, ahead of Seattle and San Francisco. Median rent actually dropped 2.5% year over year to about $1,500. Good talking point for clients weighing renting against buying right now.

3. Growth keeps pushing outward.

Central Raleigh remains expensive, so more buyers are eyeing outer counties like Harnett for lower prices and shorter commutes. If rates do settle near 6%, NAR estimates roughly 27,000 more Triangle households could qualify for a median-priced home - worth flagging for sellers on the fence about listing this fall.

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09/01/2026

🏡 Monday, September 1st - Daily Raleigh-Durham Market Briefing
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📊 Mortgage Rate Snapshot

The 30-year fixed sits at 6.59-6.66% right now, depending on the source. Freddie Mac's weekly survey (through 8/27) has it at 6.66%, up just 1 basis point from the week before. Daily trackers from Yahoo Finance and Bankrate put it closer to 6.59-6.62%, also roughly flat week over week, with a small bump on Tuesday tied to the weekend's news out of the Middle East rather than anything domestic.

15-year fixed is running 5.98-6.00%, and the 5/1 ARM is around 6.22-6.46%. Both are mixed compared to last week, up slightly on the survey, down slightly on daily trackers.
For buyers: rates have basically been parked in the mid-6% range for weeks now. Nothing here justifies waiting for a big drop, and nothing justifies panic either. If a buyer's been sitting on the fence hoping for a number that starts with a 5, it's worth reminding them that "flat" is the story, not "falling."
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🏘️ Raleigh/Durham Market News

1. Wake and Durham counties both cooled off in July after a stronger June.

Wake sales fell 9% and Durham's average price dropped nearly 8% month over month, though Orange County bucked the trend with new listings up 24% and prices up over 8%. The Triangle-wide read: modest softening, not a downturn.

2. Durham County.

Specifically saw its median price drop to $406,250 (down almost 5% from June), days on market climb to 27, and sellers averaging 96.6% of original asking price. Good talking point for sellers: pricing right out of the gate matters more than it did in the spring.

3. Bigger picture.

Research Triangle Park just cleared the way for its first residential and mixed-use development in 67 years. The "RTP 3.0" plan, unanimously approved by park stakeholders this summer, opens the door to housing near the park for the first time since it was founded in 1959. It's a slow-moving story, but worth having in your back pocket when buyers ask about long-term growth near RTP, especially given how much appreciation nearby ZIP codes saw after the original Apple campus announcement.

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08/31/2026

🏡 Monday, August 31st - Daily Raleigh-Durham Market Briefing
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📊 Mortgage Rate Snapshot

Rates holding near 6.68%, inventory keeps rising, and nearly 40% of Raleigh listings have taken a price cut.
Product Rate
30-year fixed 6.68%
15-year fixed 5.92%
5/1 ARM 6.23%

Rates held flat from the previous session, though they've crept up about 0.06 points over the past month. On a $400,000 loan, that's roughly $42 more a month than borrowers paid a year ago at 6.52%. Nothing dramatic, but it's a good reminder for buyers that "waiting for rates to drop" hasn't paid off lately. If a deal pencils out today, it pencils out today.
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🏘️ Raleigh/Durham Market News

1. Inventory keeps climbing, and buyers have real leverage now.

Wake County listings are up sharply year over year, and homes are sitting longer, often 30 to 45+ days before going under contract. Close to 40% of Raleigh listings have taken at least one price cut. For your sellers: price it right from day one. Homes that launch too high get stigmatized and end up selling for less anyway.

2. The Triangle is really two markets right now.

In-beltline Raleigh, Cary, Apex, and Holly Springs are still competitive, some homes still pull multiple offers. But head a bit further out to Wake Forest, Knightdale, Wendell, or Harnett County, and buyers are finding real deals as builders compete harder for attention. Worth flagging to anyone who feels priced out closer in.

3. The fundamentals underneath it all are still solid.

Job growth and income gains across the metro are keeping demand steady even as the market cools from its 2022 highs. Good talking point for nervous sellers: this isn't a downturn, it's a return to a more normal, balanced market, something the Triangle hasn't really seen since 2019.

08/30/2026

🏡 Sunday, August 30th - Daily Raleigh-Durham Market Briefing
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📊 Mortgage Rate Snapshot:

Product Rate
30-year fixed 6.62-6.66%
15-year fixed 5.98-6.01%
5/1 ARM 6.62%

Rates barely moved this week, up just a few basis points across the board. Freddie Mac's weekly survey (through August 27) put the 30-year at 6.66%, a hair above last week's 6.65%. Compared to a year ago, though, buyers are paying more: the 30-year sat at 6.56% and the 15-year at 5.69% back in August 2025.

What it means locally: rates near 6.6% aren't going to spook anyone at this point, they've been in this range for months. The bigger story for Triangle buyers right now is inventory, not rate. With more homes to choose from and sellers more willing to negotiate, a flat-rate week is a good excuse to get pre-approved and start touring rather than wait on a rate drop that may not show up before spring.
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🏘️ Raleigh/Durham Market News

1. Raleigh's now a buyer's market.

Redfin has the median sale price at $424,769, down 3.5% from a year ago, with homes taking 33 days to sell (four days longer than last year) and selling for about 2% under asking on average. Zoom out to Wake County and the shift is even more pronounced: active listings are up nearly 21% year-over-year, the median price ($450,000) is down 4.3%, and homes are sitting a median of 46 days, up almost a quarter from last year.

2. It's not a uniform slowdown, though.

Well-priced homes inside the Beltline, in Cary, Apex, and Holly Springs are still pulling multiple offers, while buyers are finding the real deals in newer-construction areas like Wake Forest, Knightdale, and Wendell. Harnett County keeps coming up as the value play too, buyers are trading commute time for affordability as growth pushes further out from job centers.

3. On the builder side.

Toll Brothers just announced a new modern townhome community coming to Durham, one more sign that builders are leaning into the townhome/attached-product segment to hit price points buyers can still stomach.

Talking points for today.

Sellers need a reality check on pricing if they're outside the hot pockets, this isn't 2022 anymore. Buyers sitting on the fence should hear that negotiating room exists right now, especially in outlying submarkets, but that could tighten up if rates ease toward 6% like some forecasts expect.

Send a message to learn more

08/29/2026

🏡 Saturday, August 29th - Daily Raleigh-Durham Market Briefing
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📊 Mortgage Rate Snapshot

Product Rate Comments
30-year fixed 6.66% up slightly from 6.65% last week
15-year fixed 5.98% up from 5.95% last week
5/1 ARM 6.22%

Rates barely moved this week, per Freddie Mac's latest survey. That's the story right now, not a dip and not a spike, just a plateau in the mid 6s. For your Raleigh/Durham buyers, that means waiting on a big rate drop isn't much of a strategy at the moment. If they find the right house, locking in now and refinancing later if rates ease is the more realistic play. Pair that with the extra breathing room buyers are getting on price and terms locally, and this is still a workable moment to write an offer.
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🏘️ Raleigh/Durham Market News

1. Wake County prices climbed even as sales slowed.

The county's median sale price hit $458,500 in July, up $15,500 from June's $443,000. At the same time, total transactions dipped about 10% month over month. Fewer deals closed, but the ones that did skewed toward higher price points. Worth mentioning to sellers who assume a slower month means a weaker market.

2. Raleigh itself is leaning toward buyers.

The city's median sales price actually fell 4.4% year over year to $449,500, even though price per square foot held close to flat around $230, a sign the drop is more about which homes sold than a broad loss in value. Active listings are up 4.5%, days on market rose to 25, and closed sales fell 19% from a year ago. Translation: buyers have more to choose from and more time to decide, and the local affordability index improved nearly 7% as a result.

3. The Triangle has settled into its most balanced market since 2019.

After years of frantic appreciation, the region has leveled off, with steady job growth and continued in-migration keeping long-term demand intact. Buyers priced out of Wake and Durham's core are increasingly looking to Harnett County for more affordable options, a trend worth flagging to budget-conscious clients.

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