Raleigh is a the Capital of NC with a population of ~470,000 population (2nd largest in NC and 40th in the US) and employing 259,000 people- a growth rate of 1.59% Year over Year. Raleigh is a massive hub in NC, effectively making the strongest link on the I-40 line. Between sports, music, events, local government, shopping amenities, colleges, parks, science hubs, and it's great nightlife; Raleigh simply has it all. Part of the "Research Triangle" Raleigh benefits massively from being so close to other cities. Durham/Chapel Hill being to the west, Greenville to it's near east, and Fayetteville to it's south, Raleigh has a lot of pull in the local area. Many companies are headquartered in Raleigh, and more continue to come in monthly. In the past month 9 new small businesses have opened just in downtown with 13 on the books upcoming. The Greater Raleigh area consists of around 1.1 million people (MSA-Raleigh Metropolitan Statistical Area) and the Durham-Raleigh-Chapel Hill area consists of around 2.03 million people.

Raleigh's annual population growth rate is sitting around 1.33% which is solid, 3.64% growth since the 2020 Consensus. Between 2000-2009 Raleigh grew a staggering 40% leading the entire nation the 3 years following that, led to an additional 7% growth. Raleigh is estimated to be over 530k residents by 2030 (If current trends continue). Rapid growth is nothing new for this city. Persons over 65 account for 10.8% of the population. Median age of 35, 21.6 min average commute to work, and around 20,000 veterans locally.

Inbound Migration is coming from Fayetteville NC, DC, NYC respectively with 75% of online home buyers looking for their next home in Raleigh. Outbound migration is heading towards Greensboro, Asheville, and Myrtle Beach in that order. Cost of Living (CoL) ranks 31/50 in NC which is extremely agreeable and puts it in the top 19% most expensive cities to live in the world. Seeing more buyers wanting to stay in Raleigh is a good indicator that CoL is healthy, and the local population is approving of the cities expansion in recent years.

Raleigh is currently planning to go through a massive infrastructure reboot. Mainly focusing on the need for more Hotel Rooms, and High Rises to continue to drive Raleigh as an event hub. The Kimpton Hotel with 179 rooms and 20 stories is a future project on Hillsborough St, from a NYC developer, and a huge win for Raleigh. Additionally the Union West Station which is on track to open in 2025 will be a massive transportation hub in Raleigh, and not only transportation is included in this project. Raleigh will see 560 Apartments, a Hotel, and a Retail Space included with this regional bus station.

Raleigh is also the home of the Hurricanes and the Wolfpack, and hosts a variety of sports events, music festivals, rallies, and protests.

Let's talk crime, then numbers. Raleigh sits at a 20 out 100 on the crime index (with 100 being the safest), Which is one of the safest cities in NC. Not a bad look for Raleigh, especially when compared to other cities like Charlotte which sits at a 7/100, and Charlotte is a fairly low crime city by comparison to most others in NC as well like Durham which is at 4/100- to give a point of reference.

The median home value is $340,000 median sale price is at $410,000. Average homes are going for 1% under list in 40 days, hot homes are getting multiple offers and going for 1% over list in 18 days. Slow roll homes are sitting for 55+ days. Buyers are here in, not as in force as other locations, but Raleigh continues to be a great investor location.

About a 51% owner occupied ratio, 40% MFH & 59% SFH. Poverty rate is about 12%, there is a need for affordable housing, and clearly a market in MFH that exists here. A lot of Duplexes, Condos, Townhomes in Raleigh.

NC State University in Raleigh awarded a bit over 10,000 degrees in Raleigh in 2020, to give you an idea of students it has a total undergraduate enrollment of 26,505 (fall 2021), its setting is city, and the campus size is 2,137 acres, it is the largest university in the state. Student housing is very viable in this market.

Raleigh had 15.8 Million Tourists in 2021. That should be a number that peaks the attention of any investor in NC. Short-Term Rentals, Air BnBs, Vacation Rentals are a gold mine for the savvy investor in Raleigh. MFH, SFH and appreciation buy & holds are 100% on the table. A large student base, big college teams nearby and being the Capital of NC has it perks. Raleigh was ranked 4th best place to live (out of 50) in 2022-2023 by Money.com. It has grown, continues to grow, and has many futures plans for development

If you invest in NC, and Raleigh is not on your radar you need to put it there. Every option to make an investment produce profits can be offered to you in Raleigh, so long as you can meet the prices and beat the competition.

As always looking for questions, comments, concerns, and any feedback. It's impossible to know everything about a market, so any value add information is expressly desired, and I appreciate it! I'm looking to connect with more people on here, so please reach out!

For more reading and sources:

https://www.axios.com/local/ra...

https://www.redfin.com/city/35...

https://www.realtor.com/reales...

https://worldpopulationreview....

https://www.wral.com/census-re...

https://www.census.gov/quickfa...

https://censusreporter.org/pro...

https://datausa.io/profile/geo...

https://www.neighborhoodscout....

https://livingcost.org/cost/un...

https://downtownraleigh.org/do...