Real estate · County · Virginia
Real estate businesses in Salem city, VA
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for real estate businesses in Salem city, VA, set against other counties and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 27 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #2,152 of 2,229 scored counties
#92 of 100 scored counties in Virginia
- Listings
- 47
- 1 chain location (2%)
- Official establishments
- 36
- +56.5% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $151.8M
- On rent and homeowner costs · $14,798 a household
- Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
- 75
- 25% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 45.8
- 19% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 25,816
- +1.7% since 2020
See the real estate businesses around any address in Salem city
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 Salem city. 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
For real estate businesses, Salem city has a Groundwork market score of 27 (lower middle): #2,152 of 2,229 scored counties and #92 of 100 scored counties in Virginia. That puts it in the bottom quarter of counties.
Map listings as of September 2026 show 47 real estate businesses in Salem city. One of them (2%) is a chain location, against 6% across the U.S. That is 45.8 per 10,000 households, 19% above the U.S. rate of 38.5.
At $14,798 per household (11% below the U.S. average), households in Salem city spend about $151.8M a year on rent and homeowner costs. Housing spending per office is 25% 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.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Salem city was 36 in 2023, up 56.5% from 2019. That is one for every 285 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Population estimates put the population change in Salem city from 2020 to 2025 at +1.7%, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How Salem city 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 | Salem city | Virginia | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 45.8 | 41.0 | 38.5 |
| Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | 75 | 95 | 100 |
| Households per official establishment | 285 | 411 | 414 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +56.5% | +16.8% | +15.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +1.7% | +2.8% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs | $14,798 | $16,844 | $16,661 |
| Median household income | $66,725 | $93,170 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 27 | 40 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 23 → 36+56.5% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 65
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $3.6M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 97Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 471 chain location
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 35The 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 Salem city, 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 Salem city
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 25,816+1.7% since 2020
- Households
- 10,256
- Median age
- 41.0
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 63%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.9
- Land area
- 15 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 1,765
- Median household income
- $66,725+16.7% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $96,247
- Median home value
- $258,600
- Jobs located here
- 21,974
- Daytime population
- 36,320Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Salem city?
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 Salem city. 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 Salem city 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 |
| 92Salem city, VA | 27 | 47 | 45.8 | 75 | +1.7% | #2,152 of 2,229 |
Other business types in Salem city
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 Salem city, VA?
There are 47 real estate businesses on map listings in Salem city as of September 2026. One of them (2%) is a chain location. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 36 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023, up 56.5% from 2019. Another 97 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in Salem city, VA spend on rent and homeowner costs?
About $151.8M a year, or $14,798 per household. That is 11% below the U.S. average (an index of 89, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 47 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 25% 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 10,256 households in Salem city and national spending patterns by income.
How does Salem city, VA compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?
Salem city has 45.8 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 19% above the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 75, where 100 is the U.S. At the national ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, Salem city would have about 35, against 47 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 285 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. The official count rose 56.5% from 2019 to 2023, against +15.8% for the U.S.
How fast is Salem city, VA growing?
Population estimates put Salem city at 25,816 people in 2025, up 1.7% since 2020, slower than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 10,256 households. The median household income in Salem city is $66,725 a year, 17% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 16.7% 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. Salem city scores 27 for real estate businesses (lower middle), #2,152 of 2,229 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Salem city. 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 Salem city
Screening a site or an acquisition in Salem city?
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 Salem city. 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.