Rates dropped to 6.11% — and Wilmington just posted the biggest gain in NC

Happy Friday. The week I've had talking to agents across the state — Charlotte inventory is still tight, Raleigh is getting competitive again after a quiet February, and I found something in the Wilmington numbers this week that genuinely surprised me. All of it below. Enjoy the weekend.

Rates pulled back — and buyers noticed immediately

The 30-year fixed rate dropped to 6.11% this week — down from 6.22% at the start of March. That's a meaningful move. On a $400,000 purchase with 10% down, the monthly payment difference works out to roughly $96 less per month compared to two weeks ago.

Not life-changing on paper. But enough to push hesitant buyers off the sideline. Activity in showings and new purchase contracts reflected it immediately. According to contacts across several NC brokerages, open house traffic in Charlotte and Cary was visibly higher last weekend than the one before it.

"Every time rates dip below 6.1%, my phone goes up 30%. Buyers have been sitting on pre-approvals for months — they're ready, they just needed a reason." — Marcus Webb, Coldwell Banker HPW, Raleigh

Wilmington just posted the biggest year-over-year gain in the state

I wasn't expecting this when I pulled the data. Wilmington's median sale price is up 8.7% year-over-year — the highest appreciation rate of any major NC metro right now. Ahead of Charlotte. Ahead of Raleigh. Ahead of Asheville.

Three things driving it that don't get enough attention:

• Remote work permanence. Migration from Northeastern coastal metros never stopped. Brunswick County keeps absorbing buyers who sold $900K homes in Virginia Beach or New Jersey and arrived cash in hand. They're not rate-sensitive the same way local move-up buyers are.
• Supply is structurally constrained. Coastal geography limits new construction in a way that doesn't apply to Charlotte or Raleigh. You can't build west of the Cape Fear indefinitely. That supply ceiling is real and permanent.
• UNCW's footprint keeps growing. The university expansion and Port of Wilmington growth attract younger buyers and renters. The rental market has been exceptionally tight, driving investor appetite, which pressures the purchase market.

Brunswick County, NC — where buyers from the Northeast keep arriving, cash in hand, with no plans to leave.

For anyone watching Asheville: the −3.1% figure is misleading in one direction. The decline is concentrated in flood-affected zip codes with known Helene exposure. Properties outside the flood zone are holding value. This is a story about risk segmentation, not broad market weakness — and it creates a genuine buying opportunity for buyers willing to do their homework on elevation and flood maps.

Featured Agent · Asheville

Priya Shankar

REALTOR® · Allen Tate Realtors, Asheville NC

"The buyers working with me right now are getting the same homes they were looking at in September 2024 — for $25,000 to $40,000 less. Asheville's discount is zip-code specific. Above the flood line, the market is completely normal. The opportunity is for buyers willing to read a flood map."

What the rate move actually means for your purchasing power

Here's the table worth bookmarking. This is what today's rates look like across loan types for NC buyers with strong profiles:

One thing worth doing this weekend

March is when HVAC companies book up. I know — not the most exciting sentence. But every year the same thing happens: homeowners in Charlotte and Raleigh wait until late April, call for service, and get told the first available appointment is in June, right when the heat hits.

Book your HVAC tune-up now. Spring inspection runs $80–120 at most NC companies. It catches refrigerant issues before they become a $3,000 compressor replacement and gives you documentation for your sale disclosure if you list this spring.