Post-Hurricane Helene Housing: Where Are We Now

Regional Matters

October 15, 2026

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Hurricane Helene led to a slowdown in growth in WNC and a cumulative population decline in the hardest-hit counties. Subsequently, housing and rental markets in WNC slowed down significantly throughout 2025 and most of 2026. However, there are signs that the market is stabilizing.

Population Growth in WNC Has Slowed

One of the key metrics that can drive changes in the housing market is population growth. From June 2010 through June 2024, WNC's population grew steadily (6 percent), though it grew less than the United States (10 percent) and North Carolina (15 percent). This growth was much larger and steadier in counties that were the most heavily impacted by Hurricane Helene (12 percent).

The Housing Market in WNC Softened Considerably Post-Helene

The impact of Helene on the housing market is clearer now than it was immediately following the disaster. Year-over-year (YoY) home price growth in WNC, as measured by the Zillow Home Value Index, began to decline in February 2025, nearly six months after Hurricane Helene. Since July 2025, WNC's home price growth has been negative. In June 2026, price growth dropped below the United States, and by September 2025 (a full year after Helene), it was lower than North Carolina as a whole.

This trend, however, is not uniform across geographies, as home price growth declined more in the hardest-hit counties. Prior to Helene, price growth increased in Avery and Buncombe counties (7.7 percent and 4.5 percent, respectively, from July 2023 to July 2024). Two years later, price growth declined significantly in almost all the hardest-hit counties, but particularly in Buncombe, where it dropped -4.4 percent from July 2025 to July 2026.

Yearly growth in housing inventory also spiked in WNC and the hardest-hit counties post-Helene, reaching highs of 48.5 percent and 78.1 percent, respectively. The considerable increase in inventory while prices declined may suggest that - at least initially - many people were trying to leave the area and were willing to accept less to do so. However, inventory growth started to slow again in early 2026 and returned to levels more like the rest of North Carolina by May.

Since our initial post in 2025, when declines in rent growth were still moderate, YoY change in rent growth measured by the Zillow Observed Rent Index for the Asheville MSA dropped more significantly. In August 2024, rents for single-family and multifamily residences were up 4.2 percent and 2.1 percent, respectively, from the prior year. In October 2025, rent growth hit lows of 0.02 percent from the prior year for single-family and -3.2 percent for multifamily. Since then, both have increased, especially for single-family rentals.

YoY change in the Zillow Observed Rental Demand Index indicates that rental demand dropped significantly for multifamily housing post-Helene, hitting a low of -69.1 percent in the Asheville MSA in May 2025. This pattern was similar to the rest of the United States, although change in the index was more negative for the Asheville MSA through most of 2024 and 2025. YoY change in single-family rental demand also dropped - but later in the year (August 2025) and to a lesser degree (-51.3 percent). This differed from the United States, where single-family rental demand growth has stayed incredibly steady, likely due to the out-migration shown above. While YoY changes are less extreme now than in the year post-Helene - indicating that the market is settling - rental demand is still down 43.2 percent for single-family and 70 percent for multifamily, compared to where it was pre-Helene.

Conclusion

Hurricane Helene dampened WNC's once-booming population growth and housing market. An outflow of residents, especially in the hardest-hit counties, led to decreases in housing and rental demand; however, there are signs that the market may be turning a corner. Therefore, fuller recovery might be in sight as FEMA and state-level Renew NC programs begin to make funds available.

Of course, rebuilding these communities will not happen overnight: Like other disasters, funds aren't the only barrier to recovery. Infrastructure, geographic composition changes, and existing housing policies can also play a role in how quickly an area is able to recover.

Views expressed are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect those of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond or the Federal Reserve System.