It is not raining foreclosures in the Greater Raleigh Area!

We wanted to take a moment to address the foreclosure market in the Wake County area and dispel some common myths about this niche. 

The February 2009 issue of the TARR Report, a Triangle Area Residential Realty Report that studies data from the Multiple Listing Service, Realtor.com and Wake County Revenue Department, shared that foreclosed or financial institution owned homes only account for only 2.5% of our homes for sale. This is a considerably low percentage compared to other metros and only further supports the fact that foreclosures are not taking over our market. 

• Out of $8,500 residential homes currently for sale in Wake County only 225 are classified as foreclosed or bank owned.
• Over the past 13 months, 4.5% of Wake County’s closed homes have been title transfers from the Trustee to the financial institution.
• White Oak township (Apex and Western Cary) has seen the least amount of foreclosure activity where as the Little River, Eastern Wake, St. Mary, Garner and Mark Creek townships have the majority amount of foreclosure activity.
• These stats do not include short sale or other distressed property sale situations.

FHA Limits Decrease for Wake County

Just a little FYI on FHA mortgage limits…

 

Effective January 1, 2009 are new FHA mortgage limits for Wake County. The new limit is now $271, 050 for Wake County.

 

WAKE

183

NC

$271,050

 

Upbeat Forecast for Triangle’s Economy

At last week’s economic discussions hosted by the Greater Raleigh Chamber, experts shared positive attitudes about the future of our economy!  Confirming what we recently read from other media sources, the Triangle’s solid healthcare and college systems, as well as our steady population growth will all contribute towards the Triangle’s economic turnaround.  According to William K. Atkinson II, chairman of the Greater Raleigh Chamber of Commerce, the Triangle could lead the way out of the recession for North Carolina.    Read the full article and watch a video from WRAL.

Median Sales Prices in Wake County up 3.8%

There is good news for North Carolina in the way of population growth. Our latest accolade credits N.C. as the fourth-fastest growing state in the country by the U.S. Census Bureau. As for the Greater Raleigh area, our population growth has outpaced every other metro in North Carolina since 1990. And for those new to the area, consider yourself one of the 902,951 people who are part of the projected population increase from1995 to 2020*.  Thanks in part to our county’s steady growth, the Greater Raleigh area has managed to stay above the national real estate downturn.  Triangle MLS recently reported that the median sales price in Wake County was up 3.8 percent for the month of November. 

Wake County Stats

Here are recently released statistics on Housing, the Economy, Education, Population, Transportation and Land Development. For more information visit the Wake County Planning Department’s website.

 Population

Current Wake County 2008 Projected Population:

868,121

 Wake County Projected Population:

2009 – 902,152

2010 – 933-727

2011 – 961,739

  WC Newcomers Projection:

2008 – 97 (Per Day)

2009 – 93 (Per Day)

2010 – 87 (Per Day)

 U.S. Census Estimates:

2007 – 832,970

2007 – 106 (Per Day)

  Housing

2006 Housing Units:

325,712

2006 Vacancy Rate:

9.5%

2006 Household Size:

2.58 people/household

2006 Housing Density:

392 units/square mile

2007 January Residential Average Property Value:

$186,410 (County)

•-          $222,550 (High)

•-          $98,243 (Low)

Education

2007-2008 Wake County Public School System 20^th-Day Membership:

134,002

2007-2008 Number of Schools

WCPSS – 153

Charter Schools – 14

2008-2009 WCPSS 20^th-Day Student Projection:

140,443

2006 Adult Population with B.A. or Higher:

45.6%

2007 Wake Tech Enrollment:

57,000

Economy

2006 Median Family Income:

$78,369

2006 Median Household Income:

$60,903

2006 Population Below Poverty Level:

9.1%

2007 Unemployment Rate:

3.4%

May 2008: 3.8%

2006-2007 Tax Base:

28% Commercial

72% Residential

Transportation

2007 Registered Vehicles:

706,000

2006 Average Commute Time:

23.4 minutes

2006 Commuters:

Drive Alone – 85.6%

Public Transit – 1.3%

Carpooled – 10.7%

Walked – 1.4%

2006 Working From Home:

21,606

2007-2008 April TT Bus Riders Increased:

+20.5%

Land Development

Wake County Proper:

857 square miles

2008 Municipal Jurisdiction in Wake County:

443 square miles

2008 County Planning Jurisdiction:

414 square miles

2007 New Building Permits:

Residential – 10,384

Commercial/Industrial – 595

2006 New Permits: 11,695

2006-2007 % Change: -6.5%