After August, when Wake’s prices finally moved after a long flat stretch, September is a month where almost nothing moved at all. Homes took 30 days to sell, exactly the same as August and exactly the same as last September. Sellers received 98.5% of list price, identical to a year ago, and both median price and price per square foot landed within about 1% of last September. The cooling I flagged last month hasn’t deepened. It has settled into a steady, slightly slower market, with inventory building gradually underneath.
For a broader picture of what’s happening across the region, check out the Triangle Market Update series.
Here’s how September 2026 compares to August 2026 and to this time last year:
📊 Key Market Metrics
| Metric | September 2026 | August 2026 | September 2025 | Month-over-Month | Year-over-Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Median Sales Price | $460,000 | $460,000 | $465,000 | 0.0% | -1.1% |
| Median Price per Sq Ft | $219 | $221 | $221 | -0.9% | -0.9% |
| Average Days on Market | 30 days | 30 days | 30 days | 0 days | 0 days |
| % of List Price Received | 98.5% | 98.6% | 98.5% | -0.1 pts | 0.0 pts |
| Available Inventory | 5,135 | 5,076 | 4,652 | +1.2% | +10.4% |
🏠 What the Market Is Telling Us
What’s happening with prices?
Median sales price came in at $460,000, unchanged from August and down 1.1% from last September. That’s a much smaller year-over-year gap than the 5.2% I reported last month, but I’d be careful about calling it a recovery. Part of the change is the comparison point: last August’s median was unusually high at $485,000, and last September’s was lower at $465,000. Looking at the bigger picture, Wake’s median has stayed between $450,000 and $490,000 all year. Prices are a little below where they were a year ago, and they’ve been holding there rather than sliding further.
What about price per square foot?
Price per square foot landed at $219, down 0.9% from both August and last September. That’s a small move, and it agrees with the median, which tells me the slight softening is real but modest. Price per square foot has now sat a few dollars below last year’s level for two straight months, after spending most of the spring and summer right at $223 to $224. I’d describe that as values easing slightly, not falling.
How quickly are homes selling?
Homes averaged 30 days on market in September, the same as August and the same as last September. After two months of slowing pace, that flatness is the news: the slowdown has leveled off, at least for now. Thirty days is still noticeably slower than the 23 to 24 days Wake homes averaged in May and June, and well above the 18 days of September 2024, so buyers are taking their time, but they aren’t stepping back further. Call me before you start the process, because in a market that’s steady but not fast, how a home is prepared and priced in the first two weeks matters a great deal.
Are sellers holding the line on price?
Sellers received 98.5% of their final list price on average, a tenth of a point below August and identical to last September. This figure has stayed between 98.5% and 99.1% every month since March. I’ve pointed to this as a sign of pricing discipline before, and it holds again: even as other numbers softened over the summer, sellers who price realistically are still getting close to full asking.
What’s happening with inventory?
Inventory rose to 5,135 active listings, up 1.2% from August and up 10.4% from last September. The year-over-year growth has picked up a little each month since July, and it’s back in double digits for the first time since April. It’s still more measured than Durham’s or Chatham’s this month, but it’s steady and it’s building. Buyers have more to choose from than they did a year ago, and sellers are facing a bit more competition than they were.
📈 A Few More Numbers Worth Knowing
Months supply held at 3.6 for the third month in a row, up slightly from 3.4 last September, so the balance between buyers and sellers is shifting slowly rather than sharply. New listings were nearly identical across all three periods, 1,898 this month against 1,895 in August and 1,887 last September, which tells me sellers are coming to market at a perfectly normal pace. Closed sales came in at 1,331, down 6.6% from August and 3.7% from last September. That’s the third straight month of year-over-year decline, but the gap has narrowed each month, from roughly 8% in July to under 4% now. Put it together: steady listings, slightly fewer closings, and inventory slowly accumulating tells me Wake is drifting toward buyers at a measured pace, not lurching.
📌 The Bottom Line
September was Wake County catching its breath. Prices are holding just below last year’s levels, homes are selling at the same pace as a year ago, and sellers are still getting 98.5% of list price. The trend to watch is inventory, which is up over 10% and growing a little faster each month, alongside closings that are still running slightly behind last year. For buyers, that means more choice without much pressure. For sellers, it means a steady market that rewards realistic pricing and good preparation. Call, text, or write, I’m here.
Market data sourced from MarketStats by ShowingTime and Doorify MLS. Data reflects reports available at time of publication.
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