Vacant Housing
The new Census shows the number of vacant homes rose from 6.7 percent to 7.5 percent, compared to a national average of 11.4 percent.
Part of the vacancy can be attributed to foreclosures, although foreclosures on homes in North Carolina fell 38.3 percent in May from a year ago and were down 3.4 percent from April, according to RealtyTrac.
That means one in every 1,050 homes in Raleigh has received a foreclosure filing in May 2011. Statewide, one in every 1,584 homes had foreclosure activity, but compared to the nation, the state ranks in the medium to low range. Raleigh’s top five zip codes for foreclosures are 27610, 27604, 27616, 27603 and 27614.
Foreclosures are down though. In Wake County, foreclosure starts from March to May of 2011 totaled 1,154, which is 20 percent lower compared to the same period last year.
The amount of vacant rental housing is usually higher in Raleigh than in Wake County or the Raleigh-Cary area, according to the City of Raleigh Consolidated Plan 2010-2015. The reason is the high number of students attending Raleigh’s many colleges and universities.
Single-family detached homes still account for almost half of the Raleigh’s housing units, though, according to the 2008 American Community Survey.