Real estate · County · North Carolina
Real estate agents and brokers in New Hanover County, NC
How New Hanover County, NC compares with other counties and the U.S. for real estate agents and brokers: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 33 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,952 of 2,176 scored counties
#75 of 88 scored counties in North Carolina
- Listings
- 585
- 13 chain locations (2%)
- Official establishments
- 326
- +32.0% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $1.6B
- On rent and homeowner costs · $15,455 a household
- Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
- 51
- 49% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 55.8
- 82% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 245,959
- +8.6% since 2020
See the real estate agents and brokers around any address in New Hanover County
The site report maps the real estate agents and brokers on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of New Hanover County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
The Groundwork market score for real estate agents and brokers in New Hanover County is 33 (lower middle), #1,952 of 2,176 scored counties and #75 of 88 scored counties in North Carolina. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Household spending on rent and homeowner costs in New Hanover County comes to about $1.6B a year: $15,455 per household, 7% below the U.S. average. Housing spending per office is 49% below the U.S. figure. The spending figure is all rent and homeowner costs, a measure of housing demand, not money real estate agents and brokers take in.
New Hanover County has 585 real estate agents and brokers on map listings as of September 2026. 13 of them (2%) are chain locations, against 4% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 55.8, 82% above the U.S. rate of 30.6.
Official counts show 326 businesses with payroll classed as offices of real estate agents and brokers in New Hanover County in 2023, up 32.0% from 2019. That is one for every 322 households, against one for every 788 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 1 SBA-backed loan worth $729K has gone to businesses classed as offices of real estate agents and brokers in New Hanover County. Population estimates put the population change in New Hanover County from 2020 to 2025 at +8.6%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How New Hanover County compares
The same measures for North Carolina and the whole U.S. Housing spending per listing divides all rent and homeowner costs by the listings counted: a measure of housing demand for each business, not money any of them take in, so it is shown against the U.S. (100) only. Households per establishment divides households by the official count.
| Measure | New Hanover County | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 55.8 | 30.2 | 30.6 |
| Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | 51 | 92 | 100 |
| Households per official establishment | 322 | 622 | 788 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +32.0% | +29.9% | +20.1% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +8.6% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs | $15,455 | $15,139 | $16,661 |
| Median household income | $75,166 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 33 | 39 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 247 → 326+32.0% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 577
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $26.7M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- Not publishedNot published for this business type
- Map listings, September 2026
- 58513 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 297The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 1
- Amount
- $729K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as offices of real estate agents and brokers in New Hanover County, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in New Hanover County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 245,959+8.6% since 2020
- Households
- 104,856
- Median age
- 41.0
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 61%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 192 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,223
- Median household income
- $75,166+36.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $107,828
- Median home value
- $387,800
- Jobs located here
- 128,058
- Daytime population
- 260,358Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in New Hanover County?
These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the real estate agents and brokers on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of New Hanover County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardReal estate agents and brokers across North Carolina
Every North Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in North Carolina for real estate agents and brokers, numbered among those based in North Carolina, with New Hanover County marked.
Top counties in North Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Duplin County, NC | 79 | 14 | 6.7 | 361 | +6.0% | #38 of 2,176 |
| 2Franklin County, NC | 76 | 32 | 11.2 | 241 | +18.8% | #73 of 2,176 |
| 3Hoke County, NC | 74 | 18 | 9.3 | 279 | +9.0% | #104 of 2,176 |
| 4Person County, NC | 74 | 16 | 10.0 | 263 | +3.7% | #107 of 2,176 |
| 5Harnett County, NC | 72 | 59 | 11.8 | 226 | +12.3% | #156 of 2,176 |
| 6Sampson County, NC | 71 | 19 | 8.8 | 274 | +4.1% | #174 of 2,176 |
| 7Davidson County, NC | 71 | 76 | 10.9 | 240 | +6.6% | #179 of 2,176 |
| 8Granville County, NC | 68 | 21 | 9.3 | 290 | +2.1% | #261 of 2,176 |
| 9Robeson County, NC | 68 | 36 | 8.3 | 271 | +3.4% | #265 of 2,176 |
| 10Alexander County, NC | 67 | 10 | 7.1 | 359 | +1.5% | #293 of 2,176 |
| 75New Hanover County, NC | 33 | 585 | 55.8 | 51 | +8.6% | #1,952 of 2,176 |
Other business types in New Hanover County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
- Real estate33
- Real estate agents and brokers33
- Property management35
- Mortgage brokers and lenders29
- Home inspectors41
Funeral services
Questions
How many real estate agents and brokers are in New Hanover County, NC?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 585 real estate agents and brokers in New Hanover County. 13 of them (2%) are chain locations. The listings count real estate agents and brokerages, commercial brokers included. Official counts show 326 businesses with payroll classed as offices of real estate agents and brokers in 2023, up 32.0% from 2019.
How much do households in New Hanover County, NC spend on rent and homeowner costs?
About $1.6B a year, or $15,455 per household. That is 7% below the U.S. average (an index of 93, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 585 real estate agents and brokers on map listings, housing spending per office is 49% below the U.S. figure. That figure is all rent and homeowner costs, used as a measure of housing demand; it is not money real estate agents and brokers take in. It is estimated from the incomes of the 104,856 households in New Hanover County and national spending patterns by income.
How does New Hanover County, NC compare with the U.S. for real estate agents and brokers?
New Hanover County has 55.8 real estate agents and brokers per 10,000 households, 82% above the U.S. rate of 30.6. The index of housing spending per office is 51, where 100 is the U.S. At the U.S. ratio of real estate agents and brokers to household spending, New Hanover County would have about 297, against 585 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 322 households, against one for every 788 across the U.S. The official count rose 32.0% from 2019 to 2023, against +20.1% for the U.S.
How fast is New Hanover County, NC growing?
Population estimates put New Hanover County at 245,959 people in 2025, up 8.6% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 104,856 households. Median household income in New Hanover County is $75,166, 7% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 36.9%, before inflation.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. New Hanover County scores 33 for real estate agents and brokers (lower middle), #1,952 of 2,176 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in New Hanover County. It maps the real estate agents and brokers on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
How the score works · Top markets for real estate agents and brokers · All 56 business types in New Hanover County
Screening a site or an acquisition in New Hanover County?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of New Hanover County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.