As the Triangle continues to establish itself as an economic engine not just for North Carolina but for the nation, the region continues to find itself at or near the top in a range of rankings, from quality of life to education and real estate prospects.
For 2022, Raleigh and Durham, along with the Greater Triangle’s smaller communities, made headlines for landing on national lists of best places to live and hottest housing markets among many other rankings. Looking ahead to 2023, that trend should continue.
But perhaps the most impactful ranking this year was the Urban Land Institute’s annual Emerging Trends in Real Estate report, which for the first time in years put the Triangle outside of the top five – the region was No. 1 in 2020 and No. 2 a year ago.
The latest ranking put the Triangle at No. 6 nationally among the cities and regions with the best real estate prospects heading into 2023. The drop from the top five came as developers and real estate investors working in the Triangle continue to evaluate how commercial real estate will change given the rise of remote work, a trend that doesn’t appear ready to fade away anytime soon.
But the Triangle did remain among the top three markets for homebuilding in ULI’s report.
In another report looking at housing heading into the new year, the Raleigh and Durham metros are coming up short.
Realtor.com’s ranking of the nation’s top housing markets for 2023 had the Durham-Chapel Hill metro at 41 while Raleigh is way down at 74th. The report expects sales in Raleigh to decline significantly year over year while remaining relatively flat in Durham. But prices are expected to see a relatively modest 5 percent increase.
On another highly regarded list, the Triangle also saw a drop out of the top five nationally. The U.S. News and World Report 2022-23 Best Places to Live placed Raleigh and Durham at No. 6. The region had reached the No. 2 ranking the year before and has been in the top 10 three of the past four years. Expect the Triangle to remain in the top 10 next year as the area continues to attract a younger demographic and people looking for a place to retire as well.
On the life sciences front, the Triangle’s growing biotech and pharma sectors had the region high on multiple lists for the nation’s top hubs for research as well as workforce talent.
On the education front, Duke University and UNC-Chapel Hill were both among the top 10 schools in that nations, as ranked by U.S. News, in terms of public and private schools.
And one notable area where the region is growing in prominence: retirement destination. The Triangle continues to attract empty-nesters and retirees. The region ranked No. 29 this year on a list dominated by communities in Florida. Asheville was the only other North Carolina city ranked higher than the Triangle.
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