A majority of Wake County voters think the region already has enough different housing options, but a newly launched campaign from the local realtors association says the numbers tell a very different story. According to a March survey of 500 Wake County voters conducted by Statara, 62% of respondents said existing housing options are sufficient, even as the county is projected to be 110,000 homes short of demand by 2029.
That gap between perception and projection is exactly what Raleigh Rising, an initiative from the Raleigh Regional Association of REALTORS, is trying to close. As first reported by the Raleigh News & Observer, the campaign was launched to educate residents about housing availability and affordability, and it arrives as Wake County voters increasingly describe housing costs as a very big or fairly big problem. Danielle Plourd, government affairs director for the Raleigh Regional Association of REALTORS, told the paper that an informed community that understands the need for more housing and the rezoning process makes homeownership possible for people who hold the community together.
A Shortfall Business Groups Call Urgent
The 110,000-home shortfall figure traces back to a broader statewide warning. According to the NC Chamber Foundation, North Carolina faces a total five-year housing gap of 764,478 units through 2029, split between 322,360 rental homes and 442,118 for-sale homes, with the statewide for-sale availability rate sitting at just 0.8%, far below the 2% to 3% benchmark for a balanced market. The same February 2025 research estimated that fully closing that statewide gap could generate $489 billion in economic activity and support nearly 2.2 million jobs.
Locally, the price pressure behind those numbers is already visible. Median home prices in Wake County reached $465,000 by mid-2026, a 47% increase since 2020, per Doorify MLS data cited by Raleigh Rising, and survey data indicates 82% of respondents believe essential workers cannot afford to live in the communities where they work. Raleigh Rising says it wants to give teachers, first responders, nurses and young families opportunities to live in the communities they serve, and its planners point to that widening cost gap as the reason.
Videos, Handbooks and a Town Hall at Chavis Park
Raleigh Rising, which the report notes is funded by a grant from the National Association of REALTORS, plans to give residents information to understand and participate in community growth and development. The campaign runs through February and will share a video series showcasing the real people behind housing statistics — its first episode focuses on a Wake County educator who left public schools for a private-school job in order to afford a home…