Industrial Real Estate in Raleigh, NC

Cap rates for industrial properties in Raleigh vary by submarket, property class, and occupancy levels. The overall Raleigh market average cap rate is approximately 5.7%. Class A properties typically trade at lower cap rates than value-add opportunities.

Industrial has benefited from structural demand drivers including e-commerce growth (which requires 3x more logistics space than brick-and-mortar retail), supply chain reshoring and nearshoring trends, inventory stockpiling following pandemic-era disruptions, and limited developable land in infill locations. These factors have driven vacancy rates below 4% nationally and pushed rent growth well above historical averages in most markets.

Bulk warehouses are large-scale distribution centers (typically 200,000+ SF) located along major transportation corridors, used for regional storage and distribution. Last-mile facilities are smaller (20,000-150,000 SF), located closer to dense population centers, and serve the final leg of delivery to end consumers. Last-mile properties typically command higher rents per square foot due to land scarcity and proximity to customers but offer lower overall NOI given their smaller footprint.

The Triangle has the third or fourth largest concentration of life sciences employment in the US, behind Boston and the Bay Area and competitive with San Diego. Key advantages include significantly lower operating costs, proximity to three major research universities, and a deep STEM talent pool. Lab and R&D rents are a fraction of Cambridge/Kendall Square pricing, which increasingly attracts companies seeking to stretch their research budgets.

RTP has undergone a generational reinvention. The traditional campus-style office park model was losing appeal, but the Hub RTP redevelopment has introduced walkable mixed-use elements, and major employers continue to maintain large campuses. Apple's planned $1 billion campus in the Triangle validates the region's ongoing attractiveness. The park's large parcels provide development flexibility that downtown locations cannot match.