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Tracey De Simon
Coldwell Banker Realty
Market Update • • 12 min read

The November 2026 Market Pulse: What the Fresh Numbers Mean in Charlotte, St. Louis & Naples

Here is the short version of November in my three markets: the 30-year fixed rate slipped to about 7.24 percent in the last week of October, Charlotte is balanced with the most selection buyers have seen in years, greater St. Louis keeps climbing while inventory catches up, and Naples is firming just in time for its busiest season. The winter window has opened early this year, and the relocation news hitting all three metros this week tells me the window is worth using. Here are the numbers, what they mean for your plan, and exactly what I would do this month.

A handsome brick-and-siding family home on a quiet suburban street on a crisp November morning, golden light across a leaf-strewn front yard and thinning autumn trees, representing the early-opening winter market

Clients ask me two questions every November. Is it too late to move before the holidays? And should I just wait for spring? The honest answer this year is that the month we are in now is one of the most interesting windows of 2026, because all three of my markets are sitting in a rare position at the same time: balanced enough to negotiate, active enough to get things done, and about to be busier than the holiday calendar suggests. If you have been waiting for a sign, the fresh data from the last week of October is about as clear a one as twenty years in this business has shown me.

01 -- The One Number That Frames November

Let me start with the number that frames every deal in the country: the 30-year fixed-rate mortgage averaged about 7.24 percent in Freddie Mac's Primary Mortgage Market Survey for the week ending October 29, 2026, down from 7.32 percent the week before, with the 15-year at about 6.60 percent. A one-eighth-point dip sounds small, and on a $400,000 loan it is roughly $25 a month. But the direction matters more than the size right now. Rates have been drifting in a narrow band between the high 6s and the low 7s for months, and every small dip pulls a fresh batch of buyers off the fence and back into the market.

What that means for November is simple: the people who act this month are acting into slightly easier payment math and dramatically less competition than January will bring. I covered the reasons in my 2027 forecast a few weeks ago, and the short version is that forecasters expect rates to settle lower over the next year, which sounds great until you remember what lower rates do to a market: they call buyers off the bench all at once. The prepared buyer does not wait for that crowd. And with the November midterms landing this week, expect a few quiet days around Election Day. That pause, not the spring, is the opening for anyone who is genuinely ready.

02 -- Charlotte: The Most Choice in Years

Charlotte is my home market now, and it is the one I get the most questions about, so let me give you the most current picture I have. Over the three months ending September 2026, the median sale price in Charlotte sat around $420,000, essentially flat to slightly below a year earlier, with a typical home taking about 58 days to go under contract, up from about 52 a year ago (Redfin). Active inventory has climbed to roughly 13,900 to 14,000 listings region-wide depending on the source, up anywhere from about 6 percent to 25 percent year over year, and months of supply sits near 4.4 to 4.5, the most balanced reading this market has posted in years (Homes.com, Resideline). The city's own Realtor association has been filing reports titled "More Choice, Steady Sales" all summer, and that is exactly right: demand is solid, supply is finally keeping pace, and for the first time in a long time, neither side of the table can just run over the other.

Charlotte at a Glance (October-November 2026)
  • Median sale price: about $420,000 over the three months ending September (Redfin); the rolling six-month median sat near the same mark in October (Resideline).
  • Days on market: about 58, up from about 52 a year earlier: buyers finally have time to compare.
  • Active inventory: roughly 13,900+ homes, up 6 to 25 percent year over year across sources: the most selection in years.
  • Months of supply: near 4.4 to 4.5, right at the doorstep of true balance.
  • The takeaway: buyers have real negotiating room, and sellers who price to closed sales instead of wishes are the ones getting contracts.

If you are a buyer in Charlotte, this is the market you have been asking me about for three years. Homes are not flying off the board in nine days anymore, so you can actually tour neighborhoods, compare two or three candidates, and negotiate. If you are a seller, the flip side is that your listing is now one of many, which means the first two weeks matter more than ever. The newly priced, freshly staged home is still selling; the "let's try high and see" home is the one collecting cobwebs.

03 -- St. Louis: Two Speeds, One Story

Greater St. Louis is still the value leader of my three markets, and it is also the one that rewards understanding its geography. Across the metro, the single-family median ran about $310,000 in September, up 3.7 percent year over year, while the combined City and County residential median sat near $340,000, up a healthy 7.3 percent (St. Louis REALTORS). Townhouses and condos tell a different story: a median around $217,500, down about 4 percent as the segment keeps catching up on inventory. Residential listings across City and County are up about 15 percent from a year ago, pending sales are off about 16 percent, and months of supply has stretched to roughly 2.6 to 3.4 metro-wide depending on the source. That is still a seller's-leaning market, but the edge is shrinking, and for the first time in years buyers have genuine choices.

Greater St. Louis at a Glance (September 2026)
  • Metro single-family median: about $310,000, up 3.7% year over year (September outlook); City and County residential median near $340,000, up 7.3% (St. Louis REALTORS).
  • Townhouses and condos: about $217,500, down about 4%: the one segment where buyers clearly hold leverage.
  • Inventory: residential listings up about 15.4% year over year, with pending sales down about 16%.
  • Months of supply: roughly 2.6 to 3.4 metro-wide: still seller-leaning, but the tightest squeeze is over.
  • City of St. Louis: median near $250,000 with homes selling in about 23 days (Redfin): value, speed, and a very competitive market.
  • The takeaway: suburbs still move fast, the City rewards patience with the biggest discount, and condo buyers have real negotiating power.

This two-speed market is exactly what I told St. Louis clients about for years before I moved to Charlotte, and frankly it is what makes the region so attractive to anyone coming in from a hotter market. In the City, you can still find solid homes in the mid-$200s to low-$300s with the culture and commute that matter to you. In the County and St. Charles, well-priced single-family homes still attract multiple offers, so speed matters there. And if you are buying a townhouse or condo, you now have the luxury of comparing buildings and negotiating the association docs instead of racing the calendar.

04 -- Naples: Firming Just in Time for Season

Naples spent most of 2025 and early 2026 correcting, and the correction is over. Based on the September 2026 report from the Naples Area Board of REALTORS, the median closed price came in around $575,000, up 4.5 percent from a year earlier, with the year-to-date median holding essentially flat near $600,000. Single-family homes closed near $740,000, up 2.1 percent, at about 5.3 months of supply, while condos closed around $400,000, down 2.4 percent, at about 5.8 months. Total inventory has compressed to roughly 4,250 homes, down somewhere between 17 and 21 percent from last fall, and overall months of supply has dropped to about 5.6 from about 7.8 a year ago. Homes are taking an average of 99 days to sell and closing at about 94.8 percent of list price, and more than half of Naples sales, about 53.5 percent, are all cash.

Naples at a Glance (September 2026)
  • Median closed price: about $575,000, up 4.5% year over year; year-to-date essentially flat near $600,000.
  • Single-family vs. condo: $740,000 (up 2.1%) at roughly 5.3 months of supply, versus $400,000 (down 2.4%) at roughly 5.8 months.
  • Inventory: about 4,250 homes, down 17 to 21% year over year as seasonal buyers returned.
  • Months of supply: about 5.6 overall, down from about 7.8 a year ago: near the balanced line.
  • The texture: average days on market near 99, closed at about 94.8% of list, and about 53.5% of sales all cash.
  • The takeaway: single-family is firm and tightening, condos remain the buyer's leverage story, and both favor acting before the peak-season crowd arrives.

The window that opened for Naples buyers in early 2026 is narrowing as the season approaches, and the September pending data tells that story precisely: single-family contracts rose about 1.9 percent year over year while condo contracts fell about 15 percent. In plain English, buyers are back for houses, and they are still picky about condos because insurance and association costs loom large in Florida. If Naples is on your list, the honest advice is to move before the snowbirds do. December through March is when the best seasonal inventory appears, and when the cash buyers show up with it.

05 -- The Relocation News That Actually Moves the Needle

The market numbers tell you where we are. The relocation news tells you where we are going. And the last week of October brought headlines in all three of my metros that I would put in front of any relocating family.

Charlotte, NC: the job machine keeps humming. On October 27, The Clearing House Payments Company, the New York-based firm that processes around $2 trillion in payments a day and is co-owned by Bank of America and other big banks, chose Charlotte over Atlanta, Dallas, and Tampa for a new client operations hub: a $11.5 million investment and 200 high-wage jobs with an average salary around $162,000, announced by Governor Stein under the code name "Project Secure." It joins Daimler Truck Financial Services, whose new Ballantyne headquarters opened in late September with more than 200 jobs, and Shemar Electric USA, which moved its U.S. headquarters and built its first American factory in north Charlotte this fall. Across the past year, Mecklenburg County reports roughly 5,172 new jobs and more than $563.7 million in planned investment announced, from Scout Motors to Maersk. For a relocator, the translation is simple: Charlotte keeps adding high-paying jobs faster than it adds housing, which is why prices hold firm even as inventory grows.

Greater St. Louis, MO: the value market is building its future. On October 27, McBride Homes signed an agreement with the St. Louis County Port Authority to redevelop the long-closed Jamestown Mall in north St. Louis County into roughly 540 homes, 192 apartments, neighborhood retail, a grocer, and more than 38 acres of community amenities, and in the same month filed plans for an 854-home development in Foristell. That is new supply aimed squarely at the family buyer the region courts. Boeing's Defense, Space & Security headquarters returned to St. Louis this year with the region's 18,000-plus Boeing employees behind it, the Site Selectors Guild picked St. Louis for its 2027 Fall Forum, Republic Services broke ground in October on a $70 million recycling center in Bridgeton, and the second St. Louis-area Cheesecake Factory opens at West County Center on November 10 with about 280 jobs. For relocators, St. Louis remains the play where your dollar goes furthest, and the redevelopment momentum is a reason to watch it for the next decade, not just next spring.

Naples, FL: the season, the airport, and the ballot box. On December 2, American Airlines begins scheduled commercial passenger service at Naples Airport for the first time since 2017, with twice-daily nonstops to Charlotte. That single route changes the two-metro life: if you have considered a home in both places, the December 2 start turns a day-long trip into a short flight. Also on everyone's mind is the November 3 ballot, where Collier County voters will decide whether to raise the tourist development tax from 5 percent to 6 percent to finish the Paradise Coast Sports Complex and fund beach renourishment and promotion. Tourism is already running hot, with international arrivals up a third straight month in August, about 16,400 visitors, up 18 percent year over year, led by Canada at plus 27.9 percent and Europe at plus 12.3 percent. And the county's own Q4 strategic priorities put workforce and affordable housing at the top of the list, including buying land reserved for affordable housing. That is the clearest signal yet that Naples is working to stay livable for the people who power it, not just the people who visit it.

06 -- The November Checklists: Buyers, Sellers & Relocators

Data is only useful as a plan. So here is exactly what I would do this month in each seat, market by market.

For Buyers: Use the Quiet Before January
  • Get pre-approved this week, not next month. In Charlotte, ~58 days on market means you can compare homes instead of sprinting, but you still need the lender's letter to be taken seriously.
  • Ask for a float-down option when you lock. With rates drifting down a fraction at a time, a float-down lets a late dip help your payment instead of frustrating you.
  • In Charlotte, negotiate like it is balanced, because it is: closing-cost credits, rate buydowns, and small price adjustments are all on the table when you write a clean, well-priced offer.
  • In St. Louis, buy the value: shop the City near the $250,000 median if price matters most, move fast in the suburbs where homes still sell in weeks, and press for concessions on townhouses and condos, where the median is down 4 percent.
  • In Naples, act before the season peaks, and make your offer look like cash: larger earnest money, no unnecessary contingencies, and a price anchored to September's closed comps, because the 94.8 percent close-to-list ratio tells you sellers are negotiating.
  • Do not fear the election-week pause. The buyers who freeze around the midterms are not at the open houses. That is the point.
For Sellers: Price to the Buyer's Payment, Not Your Neighbor's Wishes
  • Charlotte: you are competing against the most inventory in years and against builders still offering rate buydowns and closing-cost incentives. Price to the last 90 days of closed sales from day one, and lead with fresh paint, professional photos, and honest staging. The first two weeks decide the sale.
  • St. Louis: the suburbs still favor you, but pending sales are down about 16 percent, so do not assume multiple offers. Price with the 7.3 percent appreciation in the median as a guideline, offer a modest closing-cost credit, and list before the holidays, not after the New Year's flood of competition.
  • Naples: season is your friend and your deadline. List before Thanksgiving to catch the early seasonal buyers, price condos realistically against the down-2.4 percent segment, and count on negotiating, because buyers close at 94.8 percent of list on average.
  • Everywhere: a seller-paid buydown or closing-cost credit often costs you less than a price cut, and at 7.24 percent rates it can be the exact thing that turns a tire-kicker into a signed contract.
For Relocators: The Three-Metro Roadmap
  • Charlotte if you are following the jobs: the Clearing House 200-job expansion and the year's 5,172 new jobs mean demand, but the 4.4-plus months of supply means you can still buy without a feeding frenzy. That combination rarely lasts; the 2027 forecast expects appreciation to pick up.
  • St. Louis if you want maximum house for the payment: a ~$310,000 metro median, two-speed choices between the City and the suburbs, and 540 new homes plus 192 apartments coming at the old Jamestown Mall site tell you where the county is headed. See the full picture on my St. Louis market page.
  • Naples if you are building a two-metro life: the Charlotte nonstop starts December 2, so a December move-in month is realistic, and the county's workforce-housing push is worth watching if you are not in the $700K-plus bracket.
  • Model the full monthly cost before you fall in love: property taxes, insurance, HOA dues, and the income-tax difference between your old state and your new one. That is the difference between a house that fits your budget and one that owns it.
  • Work with a broker licensed in NC, SC, MO, and FL so the contract, tax, and timing questions get one answer instead of four, and start the conversation before you land: the best listings in every market still move while the calendar says "quiet."

07 -- The Bottom Line, In Plain English

Here is everything above in three sentences. Rates slipped to about 7.24 percent and are expected to drift lower next year, which makes this month the last one where you can shop ahead of the buyers those lower rates will invite. Charlotte is balanced with the most choices in years, St. Louis rewards patience in the City and speed in the suburbs, and Naples is firming for season with condos still favoring you. The relocation news in all three metros points one direction: more jobs, more people, more demand in 2027, so the people who move this month are negotiating from strength while everyone else waits.

This is the part of my job I love the most: sitting across the table, pulling up the real numbers for the neighborhood you are looking at, and turning a scary decision into a simple plan. I have advocated for buyers and sellers through twenty years of this business and every kind of market, and I still treat every client like family, because that is how this is supposed to feel. If you are wondering what November means for your move, bring me the question. We will look at your timeline, run the actual numbers for your market, and decide together, free, with no pressure and no obligation. That is what the next hour is for.

Let's Map Your November Move Together

Book a free consultation and we will put your timeline and your numbers on the table. Whether you are buying, selling, or relocating across state lines, you will leave with a clear plan for the months ahead and no pressure, just honest answers from a 20-year broker licensed in NC, SC, MO, and FL.

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Sources

Market data and news compiled from publicly available reports as of early November 2026. Figures vary by source, geography, and price band. This article is for general information only and is not legal, tax, or financial advice.