Real estate · County · North Carolina
Real estate businesses in Swain County, NC
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for real estate businesses in Swain County, NC, set against other counties and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 21 out of 100: Low
Ranked #2,207 of 2,229 scored counties
#88 of 90 scored counties in North Carolina
- Listings
- 22
- 1 chain location (5%)
- Official establishments
- 14
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $81.9M
- On rent and homeowner costs · $13,622 a household
- Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
- 86
- 14% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 36.6
- 5% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 14,024
- −0.6% since 2020
See the real estate businesses around any address in Swain 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 Swain 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
Swain County scores 21 (low) on the Groundwork market score for real estate businesses, ranking #2,207 of 2,229 scored counties and #88 of 90 scored counties in North Carolina. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 22 real estate businesses in Swain County. One of them (5%) is a chain location, against 6% across the U.S. That comes to 36.6 for every 10,000 households, 5% below the U.S. rate of 38.5.
At $13,622 per household (18% below the U.S. average), households in Swain County spend about $81.9M a year on rent and homeowner costs. Housing spending per office is 14% 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 businesses take in.
In 2023, official counts showed 14 businesses with payroll in Swain County classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors. That is one for every 430 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Swain County declined 0.6%, against +3.1% for the U.S.
How Swain 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 | Swain County | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 36.6 | 37.8 | 38.5 |
| Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | 86 | 92 | 100 |
| Households per official establishment | 430 | 378 | 414 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +20.8% | +15.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | −0.6% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs | $13,622 | $15,139 | $16,661 |
| Median household income | $52,349 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 21 | 40 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 11 → 14
- Employees, 2023
- 53
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $2.2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 75Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 221 chain location
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 19The 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 Swain 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 Swain County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 14,024−0.6% since 2020
- Households
- 6,013
- Median age
- 41.4
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 73%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 528 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 27
- Median household income
- $52,349+33.2% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $74,062
- Median home value
- $207,000
- Jobs located here
- 6,242
- Daytime population
- 14,755Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Swain 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 Swain 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 Swain 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 |
| 88Swain County, NC | 21 | 22 | 36.6 | 86 | −0.6% | #2,207 of 2,229 |
Other business types in Swain 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 Swain County, NC?
There are 22 real estate businesses on map listings in Swain County as of September 2026. One of them (5%) is a chain location. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 14 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023. Official counts also show 75 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Swain County, NC spend on rent and homeowner costs?
About $81.9M a year, or $13,622 per household. That is 18% below the U.S. average (an index of 82, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 22 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 14% below 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 6,013 households in Swain County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Swain County, NC compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?
Swain County has 36.6 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 5% below the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 86, where 100 is the U.S. At the national ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, Swain County would have about 19, against 22 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 430 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S.
How fast is Swain County, NC growing?
Population estimates put Swain County at 14,024 people in 2025, down 0.6% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 6,013 households. The median household income in Swain County is $52,349 a year, 35% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 33.2% 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. Swain County scores 21 for real estate businesses (low), #2,207 of 2,229 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Swain 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 Swain County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Swain 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 Swain 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.