Real estate · County · North Carolina
Real estate businesses in Durham County, NC
The real estate businesses in Durham County, NC, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 50 out of 100: Upper middle
Ranked #1,095 of 2,229 scored counties
#45 of 90 scored counties in North Carolina
- Listings
- 418
- 27 chain locations (6%)
- Official establishments
- 320
- +10.3% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $2.3B
- On rent and homeowner costs · $16,092 a household
- Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
- 126
- 26% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 29.5
- 23% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 347,240
- +7.7% since 2020
See the real estate businesses around any address in Durham County
The site report maps the real estate businesses 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 Durham 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
As of September 2026, map listings count 418 real estate businesses in Durham County. 27 of them (6%) are chain locations, against 6% across the U.S. That is 29.5 per 10,000 households, 23% below the U.S. rate of 38.5.
At $16,092 per household (3% below the U.S. average), households in Durham County spend about $2.3B a year on rent and homeowner costs. Housing spending per office is 26% above 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 businesses take in.
In 2023, official counts showed 320 businesses with payroll in Durham County classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors, up 10.3% from 2019. That is one for every 443 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Another 1,264 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Durham County grew 7.7%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for real estate businesses in Durham County is 50 (upper middle), #1,095 of 2,229 scored counties and #45 of 90 scored counties in North Carolina.
How Durham 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 | Durham County | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 29.5 | 37.8 | 38.5 |
| Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | 126 | 92 | 100 |
| Households per official establishment | 443 | 378 | 414 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +10.3% | +20.8% | +15.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +7.7% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs | $16,092 | $15,139 | $16,661 |
| Median household income | $82,316 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 50 | 40 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 290 → 320+10.3% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 1,790
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $135.8M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 1,264Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 41827 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 527The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 0
- Amount
- $0
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Durham 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 Durham County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 347,240+7.7% since 2020
- Households
- 141,847
- Median age
- 38.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 56%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.6
- Land area
- 288 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,156
- Median household income
- $82,316+35.0% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $114,501
- Median home value
- $389,400
- Jobs located here
- 257,395
- Daytime population
- 437,816Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Durham 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 businesses on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of Durham County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardReal estate across North Carolina
Every North Carolina market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in North Carolina for real estate businesses, numbered among those based in North Carolina, with Durham 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 | 78 | 17 | 8.2 | 374 | +6.0% | #52 of 2,229 |
| 2Perquimans County, NC | 76 | 5 | 8.9 | 369 | +3.6% | #80 of 2,229 |
| 3Camden County, NC | 76 | 6 | 15.0 | 244 | +8.8% | #90 of 2,229 |
| 4Yadkin County, NC | 75 | 11 | 7.3 | 445 | +2.9% | #95 of 2,229 |
| 5Hoke County, NC | 75 | 24 | 12.5 | 264 | +9.0% | #106 of 2,229 |
| 6Franklin County, NC | 75 | 37 | 13.0 | 263 | +18.8% | #108 of 2,229 |
| 7Sampson County, NC | 71 | 21 | 9.7 | 312 | +4.1% | #182 of 2,229 |
| 8Person County, NC | 71 | 20 | 12.5 | 264 | +3.7% | #187 of 2,229 |
| 9Davidson County, NC | 70 | 100 | 14.3 | 229 | +6.6% | #208 of 2,229 |
| 10Rowan County, NC | 67 | 75 | 12.7 | 259 | +5.6% | #298 of 2,229 |
| 45Durham County, NC | 50 | 418 | 29.5 | 126 | +7.7% | #1,095 of 2,229 |
Other business types in Durham 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
Funeral services
Questions
How many real estate businesses are in Durham County, NC?
Durham County has 418 real estate businesses on map listings as of September 2026. 27 of them (6%) are chain locations. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 320 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023, up 10.3% from 2019. Official counts list 1,264 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Durham County, NC spend on rent and homeowner costs?
About $2.3B a year, or $16,092 per household. That is 3% below the U.S. average (an index of 97, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 418 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 26% above the U.S. figure. The spending figure is all rent and homeowner costs, a measure of housing demand, not money real estate businesses take in. It is estimated from the incomes of the 141,847 households in Durham County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Durham County, NC compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?
Durham County has 29.5 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 23% below the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 126, where 100 is the U.S. At the national ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, Durham County would have about 527, against 418 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 443 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. The official count rose 10.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +15.8% for the U.S.
How fast is Durham County, NC growing?
Population estimates put Durham County at 347,240 people in 2025, up 7.7% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 141,847 households. The median household income in Durham County is $82,316 a year, 2% above the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 35.0% from the 2015–2019 survey, 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. Durham County scores 50 for real estate businesses (upper middle), #1,095 of 2,229 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Durham County. It maps the real estate businesses 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 businesses · All 56 business types in Durham County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Durham 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 Durham 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.