Raleigh–Durham Multifamily Report – February 2026
While demand is healthy, the wave of new supply is still being absorbed.
Raleigh–Durham’s multifamily fundamentals were mixed at the end of 2025, as elevated supply kept pressure on rents even while occupancy edged higher. Average advertised asking rents fell 0.3 percent, on a trailing three-month basis through December to $1,539, on par with the U.S. rate, which slid to $1,737. Year-over-year, rents declined 0.7 percent while the national rate was unchanged. The occupancy rate in stabilized properties inched up 10 basis points year-over-year, to 93.8 percent in November.
Employment growth held at 1.7 percent year-over-year through September, well above the 0.8 percent U.S. rate. Unemployment stood at 3.6 percent in Raleigh–Cary in November and 3.8 percent in Durham, both slightly below North Carolina (3.9 percent) and the U.S. (4.5 percent). The metro added 19,600 net jobs in the 12 months ending in September, led by education and health services (8,900) and professional and business services (4,600). Economic momentum in 2025 was reinforced by deliveries including Tower 5 at North Hills, the Horseshoe at Hub RTP, the Johnson Brothers facility in Garner, and public-facing milestones such as the RUS Bus component and the Gipson Play Plaza at Dix Park.
Developers delivered 10,899 units in 2025, with 11,854 units underway as of December, 4,283 of which broke ground in 2025. Investment totaled $1.1 billion in 2025, and the average price per unit rose 18.5 percent year-over-year, to $225,404 in December.
