Real estate · County · Virginia
Real estate businesses in Nelson County, VA
How Nelson County, VA compares with other counties and the U.S. for real estate businesses: competitors, household spending, official counts and growth.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 42 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,508 of 2,229 scored counties
#61 of 100 scored counties in Virginia
- Listings
- 16
- 0 chain locations (0%)
- Official establishments
- 16
- Businesses with payroll, 2023
- Household spending a year
- $98.6M
- On rent and homeowner costs · $15,500 a household
- Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
- 142
- 42% above the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 25.1
- 35% below the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 14,920
- +1.2% since 2020
See the real estate businesses around any address in Nelson 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 Nelson 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
Households in Nelson County spend about $98.6M a year on rent and homeowner costs, or $15,500 per household, 7% below the U.S. average. Housing spending per office is 42% 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.
There are 16 real estate businesses on map listings in Nelson County as of September 2026. None of them are chain locations, against 6% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 25.1, 35% below the U.S. rate of 38.5.
In 2023, official counts showed 16 businesses with payroll in Nelson County classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors. That is one for every 398 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Another 78 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
Population estimates put the population change in Nelson County from 2020 to 2025 at +1.2%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). Nelson County scores 42 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for real estate businesses, ranking #1,508 of 2,229 scored counties and #61 of 100 scored counties in Virginia.
How Nelson County compares
The same measures for Virginia 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 | Nelson County | Virginia | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 25.1 | 41.0 | 38.5 |
| Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | 142 | 95 | 100 |
| Households per official establishment | 398 | 411 | 414 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | n/a | +16.8% | +15.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.2% | +2.8% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs | $15,500 | $16,844 | $16,661 |
| Median household income | $72,589 | $93,170 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 42 | 40 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 7 → 16
- Employees, 2023
- 50
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $2.5M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 78Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 160 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 23The 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 Nelson 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 Nelson County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 14,920+1.2% since 2020
- Households
- 6,364
- Median age
- 49.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 80%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.1
- Land area
- 471 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 31
- Median household income
- $72,589+12.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $104,122
- Median home value
- $321,700
- Jobs located here
- 3,841
- Daytime population
- 12,142Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Nelson 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 Nelson 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 Virginia
Every Virginia market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Virginia for real estate businesses, numbered among those based in Virginia, with Nelson County marked.
Top counties in Virginia
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Caroline County, VA | 85 | 16 | 13.3 | 275 | +11.3% | #9 of 2,229 |
| 2Prince George County, VA | 79 | 9 | 7.0 | 523 | +2.0% | #34 of 2,229 |
| 3King William County, VA | 79 | 6 | 8.2 | 444 | +9.5% | #37 of 2,229 |
| 4Rockingham County, VA | 78 | 26 | 8.0 | 448 | +6.6% | #47 of 2,229 |
| 5Frederick County, VA | 78 | 36 | 10.2 | 384 | +8.8% | #50 of 2,229 |
| 6Greene County, VA | 77 | 6 | 7.5 | 508 | +6.6% | #63 of 2,229 |
| 7Fluvanna County, VA | 76 | 12 | 11.6 | 328 | +6.2% | #83 of 2,229 |
| 8Madison County, VA | 73 | 7 | 12.8 | 284 | +2.7% | #142 of 2,229 |
| 9Southampton County, VA | 71 | 5 | 7.3 | 457 | +0.9% | #173 of 2,229 |
| 10Amherst County, VA | 71 | 14 | 11.0 | 300 | +2.1% | #185 of 2,229 |
| 61Nelson County, VA | 42 | 16 | 25.1 | 142 | +1.2% | #1,508 of 2,229 |
Other business types in Nelson 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 Nelson County, VA?
As of September 2026, map listings count 16 real estate businesses in Nelson County. None of them are chain locations. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 16 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023. Official counts list 78 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Nelson County, VA spend on rent and homeowner costs?
About $98.6M a year, or $15,500 per household. That is 7% below the U.S. average (an index of 93, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 16 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 42% 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. It is estimated from the incomes of the 6,364 households in Nelson County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Nelson County, VA compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?
Nelson County has 25.1 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 35% below the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 142, where 100 is the U.S. At the U.S. ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, Nelson County would have about 23, against 16 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 398 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S.
How fast is Nelson County, VA growing?
Population estimates put Nelson County at 14,920 people in 2025, up 1.2% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 6,364 households. Median household income in Nelson County is $72,589, 10% below the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 12.9%, 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. Nelson County scores 42 for real estate businesses (lower middle), #1,508 of 2,229 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Nelson 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 Nelson County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Nelson 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 Nelson 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.