Raleigh no longer plans to widen Six Forks Road between Rowan Street and Millbrook Road. The City's project page, last updated September 10, 2026, says its real estate team is "closing the right-of-way acquisition process" for the corridor and that "all offers made to date for easements needed from the above-referenced property are hereby withdrawn." In place of a six-lane road, the stretch north of North Hills will get about $7 million in targeted safety work.
The planned widening shaped how homes along the corridor were maintained, how they were disclosed, and how long some owners stayed put. Canceling the road doesn't undo any of that.
The disclosure form has no road-widening question
North Carolina's Residential Property and Owners' Association Disclosure Statement, REC 4.22, revised 7/26, is due before any offer to purchase. None of its questions mentions road widening, condemnation, or a right-of-way taking. The closest is question E4, which asks whether the property is "subject to any utility or other easements, shared driveways, party walls, encroachments from or on adjacent property, or other land use restrictions." After that comes G1, which covers "notices from any governmental agency that could affect title to the property."
The broker's duty goes further than the owner's checkboxes. The same form says a broker "must disclose any material facts about the property that the broker knows or reasonably should know, regardless of the owner's response." The North Carolina Real Estate Commission's own course material on material facts lists "plans to widen a street" as an example of an outside factor that affects a property's use, desirability, or value. The underlying statute, G.S. 47E-4, requires the statement to address any "notice from any governmental agency affecting this real property."
Now the disclosure question on Six Forks is more specific. The full widening is gone, but the smaller project is still in design, and the City says that "if easements are needed for the spot safety improvement project, you will be contacted, and an official offer to begin negotiations may be made at that time." A seller near one of the new signals may have nothing to report. They could also get a letter before closing.
Thirteen years on paper
Owners on Six Forks lived with an undecided road plan for more than a decade:
- 2012: The corridor study begins. Council approves a three-phase implementation plan in June 2018.
- Spring 2020: Design starts on Phase 1. That phase covered about 1.9 miles from Rowan Street to Lynn Road and called for six divided lanes, separated bike and pedestrian facilities, and protected intersections. Funding was $31.3 million from the 2013 and 2017 transportation bonds.
- July 2022: Council authorizes offers on 96 properties. Some are thin easement slivers, and others are entire lots with homes on them, WRAL reported.
- May 2023: The original scope is estimated at $119.0 million, $72.9 million over budget.
- February 20, 2024: Council unanimously shortens the project to Rowan Street through Millbrook Road, with an 8-foot multi-use path on each side. WRAL reported a $56.1 million estimate and a spring 2026 construction target.
- March 2025: The smaller version is now estimated at $93.5 million, up about 67 percent.
- July 1, 2025: Council unanimously drops the widening after spending more than $9 million, INDY Week reported. Council member Corey Branch told The News & Observer, "Unfortunately, the math is the math."
- September 10, 2026: The City withdraws its right-of-way offers and confirms the spot-safety redesign is in progress.
The money that would have widened Six Forks now goes elsewhere. It will fund design of the Midtown Multi-Modal Bridge, finish the Lake Wheeler Road and Barwell Road projects, and help close a funding gap on Old Wake Forest Road and Dixie Forest Road.
What a planned taking does to a house
The timeline also tells you something about the houses. From 2022 until the offers were withdrawn, some owners on the alignment had good reasons to stop investing in their homes and to stay rather than sell.
In July 2023, WRAL reported that most affected owners were still waiting on City offers. It also explained that an owner who moved before receiving an official offer could lose relocation and mortgage assistance. In October 2023, WRAL described property owners on the alignment as left in limbo, with some holding off on spending money on houses they expected to be demolished.
Those incentives were reasonable at the time. If a home may be bought and torn down, a new roof or HVAC system is money the owner might never get back. The result, though, is that a house on this stretch can look like any other listing in photos while carrying several years of skipped capital projects. From a builder's point of view, a corridor home should get a closer look at the big systems and the exterior than its listing date or price might suggest. Check the age of the roof, the mechanicals, drainage, and any driveway or carport work that may have been put off because the City seemed likely to take it.
The cancellation changes things in the other direction too. Owners who stayed for the relocation benefits no longer have a reason to wait. Some of them may now list homes they never planned to keep long term.
Where the remaining project touches the road
The smaller project is concentrated at a few points along the corridor. Homes near those points are where new easement requests are most likely, if any come.
| Improvement | Location on Six Forks | Status per City update |
|---|---|---|
| Sidewalk gap closure, about 500 feet | In front of Carroll Middle School | Installed in August, before the school year |
| New signal | North Glen | In design |
| Signalized pedestrian crossing | Between Northbrook and Northwood | In design |
| Intersection improvements | Millbrook | In design |
The City's September 10 update says the first design phase "is scheduled to conclude this year, and the second phase is expected to conclude early next year." For anyone buying this winter, the final layout at North Glen, Northbrook, and Millbrook is still being drawn. The project page lists Riska Dees as the project manager, along with a public comment form.
Checking an address before you write an offer
You can check most of this from public records before you commit to a corridor property:
- The City's Six Forks Road Improvements page shows the current scope, design status, and right-of-way notice.
- Wake County iMAPS looks up parcels by address, owner, or intersection. The county calls its maps informational, not surveys.
- The Wake County Register of Deeds provides a Consolidated Real Property Index for searching recorded deeds, highway maps, and covenants. According to the City's recorded map guidance, recorded maps can show right-of-way and slope-easement dedications.
- NCDOT's Projects Near Me map searches state projects by address, project number, or county, NCDOT's launch announcement explains. The map notes that it does not include every project and suggests contacting local officials for the most accurate information.
It also helps to know when the disclosure statement arrives. Under G.S. 47E-5, sellers must deliver it no later than the buyer's offer, and late or missing delivery gives the buyer a limited right to cancel. This post is general information and not legal advice, so confirm how these rules apply to your purchase with a North Carolina real estate attorney.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the 2022 condemnation authorization still apply? The City's project page still includes the July 2022 authorization in its history. Its current right-of-way update says the acquisition process for the former scope is closed and all prior offers are withdrawn.
Will Six Forks still be widened north of Millbrook toward Lynn Road? That segment was dropped in the 2023 to 2024 rescope. The current project runs only from Rowan Street to Millbrook Road.
Is the new sidewalk by Carroll Middle School finished? Yes. The City says it installed the sidewalk in August, before the school year started.
If you're considering a home on Six Forks, or getting one ready to sell, Angie Murphy can go through the inspection with a general contractor's eye and help you read the parcel records before the offer goes in. Schedule a Consultation.
