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Raleigh Hard Money and Investor Loans

We underwrite Wake County's next revaluation, not just today's tax bill.

USA Mortgage funds investors across the Research Triangle. Universities, the research park, and state payrolls anchor Triangle demand. Cash flow and appreciation live in different Triangle towns. Business-purpose loans only, and every structure is set in underwriting.

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Cash flow runs east and south of Raleigh

Zebulon rents at 0.58% of value a month and Knightdale and Garner sit at 0.47% and 0.49%, against Cary at 0.28% and Apex at 0.33%. The tax rate and the yield move together out here: Zebulon carries the highest combined stack in Wake County at $1.1141 per $100 for tax year 2026, against Cary at $0.9046 and Holly Springs at $0.8806, so the lower-entry-basis towns pay for their cash flow in taxes.

Wake County taxes jump at revaluation, not each year

North Carolina counties reappraise on a multi-year cycle, not annually, and assessed values sit frozen in between. Wake's 2024 revaluation raised residential values 53% in one step; the next revaluation is effective 2027-01-01, with value notices and appeals opening that January, and Wake then moves to a two-year cycle starting 2029. Underwrite the reset, not just today's bill.

Three universities and a research park anchor the market

NC State, UNC-Chapel Hill and Duke sit in three different counties around Research Triangle Park, roughly 7,000 acres and more than 300 companies employing about 55,000 workers. State government adds 55,300 jobs to the Raleigh-Cary MSA on top of that, a counter-cyclical floor most USAM metros don't have.

Loan programs in Raleigh

Acquisition through exit, all funded or arranged by one lender.

Fix and Flip in RaleighRental / DSCR in RaleighGround-Up Construction in RaleighCRE Bridge in RaleighTransactional Funding in RaleighBank Statement / No-Doc in RaleighConventional Investment in RaleighPortfolio Loans in RaleighCRE Permanent in RaleighSBA Financing in Raleigh

Raleigh lending questions

Do you lend in Raleigh and the Research Triangle?
Yes, across Wake County and into Durham. We're a direct lender headquartered in Bee Cave, Texas, and we fund deals in Raleigh, Durham, Cary, Apex, Wake Forest, Garner, Knightdale, and Zebulon. Every loan is business-purpose only, on investment property, and terms are subject to underwriting. See how we lend across North Carolina or talk to us.
Why did my Wake County tax bill jump so much, and will it happen again?
Because North Carolina reassesses on a cycle, not every year, and Wake just hit its reset. Values are frozen between revaluations, then jump in one step: Wake's 2024 revaluation raised residential values 53% over 2020. The next revaluation is effective 2027-01-01, with notices and appeals opening that January, and Wake moves to a two-year cycle starting 2029. For tax year 2026, the combined Wake County and Raleigh rate is $0.9091 per $100 of assessed value, about $3,964 a year on a $436,000 house. If you're carrying a DSCR rental loan through 2027, model the reset, not just today's bill.
Can I blend Durham and Chapel Hill numbers with Wake County when underwriting a Triangle portfolio?
No. The Triangle is three counties with three different tax rates and three different revaluation years. On the same fiscal year, Durham County plus the City of Durham combined for $0.9913 per $100, about 14% more than Raleigh's $0.8721, and Chapel Hill in Orange County ran $1.1383, about 30% more. Wake revalued effective 2024-01-01; Durham and Orange counties both revalued effective 2025-01-01. Pull the parcel's county from the register of deeds, not the mailing address, before you underwrite a scattered-site portfolio loan across the metro.
Is North Carolina about to require a broker's license for residential wholesaling?
Not currently, whatever a blog post says. House Bill 797, the residential wholesaling licence bill, passed the NC House 103-0 on 2025-04-30 and has sat in the Senate Rules Committee since 2025-05-01 with no session law number. It is not law. Wholesaling in North Carolina remains legal under the ordinary owner-and-principal exemption, but the bill's direction of travel is worth watching before you scale a transactional funding strategy here. Re-check the bill's status before relying on any page that says otherwise.
Does Raleigh require short-term rental hosts to register with the city?
No, it requires an annually renewed zoning permit, not a registration. Under ordinance TC-8-20, Raleigh short-term rental operators apply for a zoning permit at the FY27 commercial fee of $278 ($289 with the technology surcharge) and renew it every year at the same rate. Whole-house rentals are allowed in ten zoning districts with no owner-occupancy requirement. North Carolina law (NCGS 160D-1207(c)) actually bars cities from requiring general rental registration statewide, so "register your rental" is the wrong instruction anywhere in the Triangle.
What credit score do I need for an investor loan in Raleigh?
It depends on the program, and on the asset-based ones there is no minimum at all. Fix and flip, bridge and construction are underwritten on the property, so credit carries far less weight than at a bank and weaker credit usually means lower leverage rather than a decline. DSCR and bank statement loans start at 640, conventional investment at 580, and transactional funding runs no credit check at all. There is no hard credit pull to start. Subject to underwriting.
How much do I need to put down on a Raleigh investment property?
Between about 10% and 30%, depending on which program fits. Fix and flip goes up to 90% of purchase plus up to 100% of rehab, DSCR and conventional investment go up to 80% LTV, construction up to 70% LTV and 85% of cost, and commercial bridge up to 75% LTV. On a $436,000 Raleigh house at 80% LTV that is $348,800 from us and $87,200 from you (436,000 x 80% = 348,800). Subject to underwriting.

Sources: files.zillowstatic.com

What is the smallest loan you will write in Raleigh?
$100,000 on most residential programs. Fix and flip, DSCR and bank statement loans all start at $100,000. SBA starts at $350,000 and portfolio loans at $500,000 across the blanket. With the Raleigh-Cary median list price at $450,000 as of July 2026, most Triangle residential deals clear that floor without effort. Subject to underwriting.

Sources: fred.stlouisfed.org

Serving Raleigh and nearby
RaleighDurhamCaryApexWake ForestGarnerKnightdaleZebulon
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About the local figures on this page

Local rules move. Every tax rate, fee, ordinance and market figure here comes from a primary source and carries the date we read it, and we correct them as the rules change. Where a number is mid-change or we could not verify it, we say so rather than guess. Before you commit a budget, confirm anything that drives it with the city or county, and talk to your attorney or CPA on questions of law or tax.

Published by USA Mortgage Funding, LLC, NMLS #152588. Researched from primary sources by our team, drafted with AI assistance, and every figure checked against its source before publishing. Where an answer rests on a public record, that record is linked under it. Figures read on 2026-08-13.

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