The Cheapest and Most Expensive Housing Markets in North Carolina

Special Report

Aerial View of a walkway to the beach in Emerald Isle North Carolina

Published: March 30, 2024 8:50 am

Home prices have surged in the U.S. in recent years. Driven by rising demand and supply constraints during the pandemic, the median home sale price spiked by nearly 50% from the second quarter of 2020 to Q3 in 2022. While the sale price of a typical American home has fallen in recent months since, housing prices remain at historic highs.

Not only have home values soared, but borrowing costs for home buyers have also climbed. The average interest rate on a 30-year fixed mortgage has been above 6% since September 2022, a high not seen in nearly a decade and a half. In a market defined by high prices and high mortgage rates, homeownership has become prohibitively expensive for a large number of Americans.

Still, housing prices are also subject to a number of factors that can be isolated from broader, nationwide market trends — and location is one of them. Two homes that are virtually identical can vary in price by hundreds of thousands of dollars, depending on where they are. And for prospective homeowners on a budget, some North Carolina cities are far more affordable than others.

According to five-year estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2022 American Community Survey, the typical home in North Carolina is worth $234,900. But across the 42 cities, towns, and unincorporated communities in the state with populations of at least 25,000, median home values range from about $138,000 to over $500,000.

In any local market, home prices are often a reflection of what residents can afford. In North Carolina, many of the least expensive cities for homebuyers are not high-income areas. Of the 42 North Carolina cities with available data from the ACS, 20 have a median home value that is less than the statewide median. In all but one of these places, the typical household earns less than the statewide median household income of $66,186. Similarly, most of North Carolina’s more expensive housing markets have higher earning populations.

These are the cheapest and most expensive housing markets in North Carolina.

42. Rocky Mount

Median home value: $137,800
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.2%
Homeownership rate: 49.9%
Median household income: $50,092
Total population: 54,260

41. Thomasville

Median home value: $146,200
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.3%
Homeownership rate: 59.5%
Median household income: $48,457
Total population: 27,130

40. Asheboro

Median home value: $149,500
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.5%
Homeownership rate: 48.2%
Median household income: $44,405
Total population: 27,117

39. Fayetteville

Median home value: $158,500
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.6%
Homeownership rate: 45.4%
Median household income: $53,424
Total population: 208,697

38. Goldsboro

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Median home value: $162,300
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.7%
Homeownership rate: 39.1%
Median household income: $44,196
Total population: 33,566

37. Burlington

Median home value: $167,000
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.5%
Homeownership rate: 55.5%
Median household income: $52,963
Total population: 56,951

36. Wilson

Median home value: $167,400
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.3%
Homeownership rate: 49.9%
Median household income: $46,891
Total population: 47,767

35. Jacksonville

Median home value: $176,200
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.9%
Homeownership rate: 35.5%
Median household income: $50,185
Total population: 71,908

34. Sanford

Median home value: $184,100
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.0%
Homeownership rate: 51.1%
Median household income: $52,951
Total population: 30,373

33. Winston-Salem

Median home value: $187,400
Homes worth over $1 million: 1.5%
Homeownership rate: 53.9%
Median household income: $54,416
Total population: 249,571

32. Salisbury

Median home value: $190,300
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.7%
Homeownership rate: 51.3%
Median household income: $48,888
Total population: 35,437

31. Greenville

Median home value: $192,900
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.6%
Homeownership rate: 32.9%
Median household income: $47,485
Total population: 87,894

30. High Point

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Median home value: $196,500
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.3%
Homeownership rate: 58.1%
Median household income: $58,582
Total population: 114,120

29. Greensboro

Median home value: $197,200
Homes worth over $1 million: 1.3%
Homeownership rate: 49.6%
Median household income: $55,051
Total population: 297,202

28. Statesville

Median home value: $202,200
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.7%
Homeownership rate: 55.2%
Median household income: $51,784
Total population: 28,576

27. New Bern

Median home value: $202,500
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.3%
Homeownership rate: 58.4%
Median household income: $55,673
Total population: 31,373

26. Kannapolis

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Median home value: $213,300
Homes worth over $1 million: 1.8%
Homeownership rate: 62.5%
Median household income: $66,487
Total population: 53,314

25. Gastonia

Median home value: $219,700
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.3%
Homeownership rate: 55.8%
Median household income: $58,047
Total population: 80,615

24. Hickory

Median home value: $233,800
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.9%
Homeownership rate: 53.6%
Median household income: $58,251
Total population: 43,352

23. Monroe

Median home value: $234,300
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.8%
Homeownership rate: 59.5%
Median household income: $63,982
Total population: 34,897

22. Kernersville

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Median home value: $241,800
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.4%
Homeownership rate: 54.2%
Median household income: $66,151
Total population: 27,177

21. Clayton

Median home value: $260,400
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.5%
Homeownership rate: 66.5%
Median household income: $71,698
Total population: 26,837

20. Concord

Median home value: $288,100
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.4%
Homeownership rate: 69.4%
Median household income: $83,480
Total population: 105,335

19. Garner

Median home value: $288,900
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.2%
Homeownership rate: 63.9%
Median household income: $77,171
Total population: 31,684

18. Indian Trail

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Median home value: $303,100
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.4%
Homeownership rate: 83.1%
Median household income: $95,101
Total population: 40,325

17. Mooresville

Median home value: $311,600
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.7%
Homeownership rate: 59.3%
Median household income: $82,622
Total population: 50,025

16. Charlotte

Median home value: $312,800
Homes worth over $1 million: 5.9%
Homeownership rate: 52.1%
Median household income: $74,070
Total population: 875,045

15. Durham

Median home value: $316,600
Homes worth over $1 million: 1.5%
Homeownership rate: 52.0%
Median household income: $74,710
Total population: 284,094

14. Wilmington

Median home value: $318,600
Homes worth over $1 million: 5.1%
Homeownership rate: 45.9%
Median household income: $58,908
Total population: 116,933

13. Raleigh

Median home value: $347,000
Homes worth over $1 million: 4.7%
Homeownership rate: 51.1%
Median household income: $78,631
Total population: 465,517

12. Mint Hill

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Median home value: $357,100
Homes worth over $1 million: 1.2%
Homeownership rate: 79.8%
Median household income: $92,102
Total population: 26,537

11. Matthews

Median home value: $360,000
Homes worth over $1 million: 1.5%
Homeownership rate: 67.0%
Median household income: $103,405
Total population: 29,613

10. Fuquay-Varina

Median home value: $364,200
Homes worth over $1 million: 1.3%
Homeownership rate: 71.9%
Median household income: $94,142
Total population: 35,428

9. Asheville

Median home value: $376,800
Homes worth over $1 million: 4.4%
Homeownership rate: 50.0%
Median household income: $63,810
Total population: 93,695

8. Huntersville

For Sale Real Estate Sign in Front of New House.

Median home value: $393,200
Homes worth over $1 million: 2.1%
Homeownership rate: 73.1%
Median household income: $112,893
Total population: 61,202

7. Wake Forest

Median home value: $397,300
Homes worth over $1 million: 0.4%
Homeownership rate: 73.5%
Median household income: $115,159
Total population: 48,047

6. Morrisville

Median home value: $429,600
Homes worth over $1 million: 2.0%
Homeownership rate: 50.4%
Median household income: $114,075
Total population: 29,756

5. Holly Springs

Median home value: $449,600
Homes worth over $1 million: 1.4%
Homeownership rate: 82.2%
Median household income: $127,755
Total population: 42,023

4. Cornelius

Median home value: $452,300
Homes worth over $1 million: 19.9%
Homeownership rate: 69.7%
Median household income: $107,969
Total population: 31,396

3. Apex

Median home value: $458,200
Homes worth over $1 million: 1.7%
Homeownership rate: 75.3%
Median household income: $129,688
Total population: 65,541

2. Cary

Cary, North Carolina (CC BY-SA 2.0) by Doug Kerr

Median home value: $477,400
Homes worth over $1 million: 4.1%
Homeownership rate: 66.8%
Median household income: $125,317
Total population: 174,880

1. Chapel Hill

Median home value: $537,100
Homes worth over $1 million: 9.9%
Homeownership rate: 50.0%
Median household income: $85,940
Total population: 58,919

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