Triangle MLS report shows average home sales prices in Wake County top $500,000

RALEIGH, N.C. (WTVD) -- Newly released figures from Triangle MLS show despite improving inventory and fewer sales so far, home prices continue to escalate in 2022.

In Wake County, the average home sales price year-to-date is $538,894, up from $434,346 in the same time period last year, an increase of 24.1%. Median sale prices increased by a nearly identical amount (24.2%), coming in at $466,713, up from $375,591.

Surrounding counties in the Triangle are seeing similar increases; the median sales price in Orange County in June 2022 is $494,000, up 14.3% year-over-year. In Durham County, it was up 22.2%, to $430,000, and in Johnston County, it was $375,500, up 27.2%.

Across the Triangle, inventory is up from .7 months to 1.2 months, a positive step, but still well below analyst targets.

"A good amount of inventory should be four to seven months worth. And so, we've really not had a healthy amount of inventory for a couple years, so just saying it's gone up .5% compared to last month or the previous few months isn't really enough of a marginal change for us to know that we're going to have this inventory moving forward or know that the market is slowing down yet," said Thomas Babb, the Director of Communications for Triangle MLS.

Interest rates, which have nearly doubled in the past year, have done little to cool off overall enthusiasm.

"I think that the higher interest rates because what they were a year ago, people were in a better position to buy a house, get a low-interest rate, and you're comfortable. The higher interest rates are definitely sidelining some people, but the people who can afford to buy into those high-interest rates are coming in with cash and don't need to finance at all, are the ones capitalizing right now," said Babb.

The median sales price in June 2021 in Wake County was $403,350. Assuming interest rates of 2.99% (30-year mortgage) and 20% down, the buyer would have a monthly payment of about $1,700. Today, with the median house sale in June 2022 at $493,161, and interest rates at 5.7% (30-year mortgage), if a buyer were to put 20% down, their monthly payment would be close to $2,700, on top of a larger down payment.

"I definitely think that a lot of homes that would have sold two years ago are being sold at a much higher value now because they were bought by contractors during a period where there really wasn't a lot to do. So they go in, they buy this house, they fix it up, they flip it, and now they're selling it at that higher bracket," said Babb.

A lot of new construction has been geared toward the rental market, which doesn't factor into Triangle MLS figures. Raleigh has pledged to create 5,700 affordable housing units by 2026, part of the 2020 Affordable Housing Bond.