Real estate · Metro area · North Carolina
Real estate businesses in the Wilmington, NC metro area
How the Wilmington, NC metro area compares with other metro areas and the U.S. for real estate businesses: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 34 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #351 of 387 scored metro areas
#14 of 15 scored metro areas based in North Carolina
- Listings
- 1,174
- 75 chain locations (6%)
- Official establishments
- 844
- +31.3% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $3.1B
- On rent and homeowner costs · $15,336 a household
- Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
- 60
- 40% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 58.9
- 53% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 492,772
- +15.9% since 2020
See the real estate businesses around any address in the Wilmington metro area
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 the Wilmington metro area. 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 Wilmington metro area scores 34 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for real estate businesses, ranking #351 of 387 scored metro areas and #14 of 15 scored metro areas based in North Carolina. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
At $15,336 per household (8% below the U.S. average), households in the Wilmington metro area spend about $3.1B a year on rent and homeowner costs. Housing spending per office is 40% 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.
There are 1,174 real estate businesses on map listings in the Wilmington metro area as of September 2026. Of those, 75 are chain locations, or 6%, against 6% across the U.S. That comes to 58.9 for every 10,000 households, 53% above the U.S. rate of 38.5.
Official counts show 844 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in the Wilmington metro area in 2023, up 31.3% from 2019. That is one for every 236 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 3 SBA-backed loans worth $4.4M have gone to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in the Wilmington metro area. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Wilmington metro area grew 15.9%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Wilmington metro area 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 | Wilmington metro area | North Carolina | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 58.9 | 37.8 | 38.5 |
| Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | 60 | 92 | 100 |
| Households per official establishment | 236 | 378 | 414 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +31.3% | +20.8% | +15.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +15.9% | +7.2% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs | $15,336 | $15,139 | $16,661 |
| Median household income | $76,471 | $72,388 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 34 | 40 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 844+31.3% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 2,923
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $169.2M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 4,006Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 1,17475 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 706The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 3
- Amount
- $4.4M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in the Wilmington metro area, 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 the Wilmington metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 492,772+15.9% since 2020
- Households
- 199,271
- Median age
- 45.1
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 72%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 1,913 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 237
- Median household income
- $76,471
- Average household income
- $104,427
- Median home value
- $362,400
- Jobs located here
- 180,798
- Daytime population
- 448,307Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Wilmington metro area?
These figures cover the whole metro area. 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 the Wilmington metro area. 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 metro areas in North Carolina for real estate businesses, numbered among those based in North Carolina, with the Wilmington metro area marked.
Top metro areas in North Carolina
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Rocky Mount, NC | 68 | 101 | 17.3 | 185 | +2.8% | #43 of 387 |
| 2Winston-Salem, NC | 63 | 701 | 24.9 | 134 | +5.3% | #68 of 387 |
| 3Burlington, NC | 63 | 180 | 25.7 | 129 | +8.5% | #70 of 387 |
| 4Goldsboro, NC | 63 | 119 | 25.0 | 128 | +3.8% | #71 of 387 |
| 5Hickory-Lenoir-Morganton, NC | 62 | 298 | 19.9 | 163 | +3.2% | #76 of 387 |
| 6Durham-Chapel Hill, NC | 59 | 773 | 31.1 | 121 | +7.5% | #103 of 387 |
| 7Greensboro-High Point, NC | 52 | 913 | 28.8 | 116 | +4.1% | #162 of 387 |
| 8Raleigh-Cary, NC | 40 | 3,059 | 53.3 | 75 | +12.6% | #283 of 387 |
| 9Greenville, NC | 39 | 255 | 34.2 | 93 | +5.4% | #290 of 387 |
| 10Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC | 39 | 4,825 | 44.8 | 83 | +10.1% | #294 of 387 |
| 14Wilmington, NC | 34 | 1,174 | 58.9 | 60 | +15.9% | #351 of 387 |
Other business types in the Wilmington metro area
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 the Wilmington, NC metro area?
As of September 2026, map listings count 1,174 real estate businesses in the Wilmington metro area. 75 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 844 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023, up 31.3% from 2019. Official counts list 4,006 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in the Wilmington, NC metro area spend on rent and homeowner costs?
About $3.1B a year, or $15,336 per household. That is 8% below the U.S. average (an index of 92, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 1,174 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 40% 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. It is estimated from the incomes of the 199,271 households in the Wilmington metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Wilmington, NC metro area compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?
The Wilmington metro area has 58.9 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 53% above the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 60, where 100 is the U.S. At the U.S. ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, the Wilmington metro area would have about 706, against 1,174 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 236 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. The official count rose 31.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +15.8% for the U.S.
How fast is the Wilmington, NC metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Wilmington metro area at 492,772 people in 2025, up 15.9% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 199,271 households. Median household income in the Wilmington metro area is $76,471, 5% below the U.S. median of $80,734.
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. The Wilmington metro area scores 34 for real estate businesses (lower middle), #351 of 387 scored metro areas.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in the Wilmington metro area. 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 the Wilmington metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Wilmington metro area?
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 the Wilmington metro area. 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.