Groundwork

Real estate · County · Virginia

Real estate businesses in Smyth County, VA

The real estate businesses in Smyth County, VA, the household spending behind them and how the market ranks against other counties.

Groundwork market score · out of 100

Score 59 out of 100: Upper middle

Ranked #601 of 2,229 scored counties
#29 of 100 scored counties in Virginia

Listings
15
1 chain location (7%)
Official establishments
3
Businesses with payroll, 2023
Household spending a year
$164.7M
On rent and homeowner costs · $13,011 a household
Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
253
2.5 times the U.S.
Listings per 10k households
11.8
69% below the U.S.
Population, 2025
28,882
−3.0% since 2020

See the real estate businesses around any address in Smyth 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 Smyth County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Survey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure

What this means

Map listings as of September 2026 show 15 real estate businesses in Smyth County. One of them (7%) is a chain location, against 6% across the U.S. That comes to 11.8 for every 10,000 households, 69% below the U.S. rate of 38.5.

At $13,011 per household (22% below the U.S. average), households in Smyth County spend about $164.7M a year on rent and homeowner costs. Housing spending per office is 2.5 times 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 3 businesses with payroll in Smyth County classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors. That is one for every 4,220 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Another 50 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.

Population estimates put the population change in Smyth County from 2020 to 2025 at −3.0%, against +3.1% for the U.S. The Groundwork market score for real estate businesses in Smyth County is 59 (upper middle), #601 of 2,229 scored counties and #29 of 100 scored counties in Virginia.

How Smyth 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.

Real estate in Smyth County, VA compared with Virginia and the U.S.
MeasureSmyth CountyVirginiaU.S.
Listings per 10k households11.841.038.5
Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)25395100
Households per official establishment4,220411414
Official establishment growth, 2019–2023n/a+16.8%+15.8%
Population growth, 2020–2025−3.0%+2.8%+3.1%
Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs$13,011$16,844$16,661
Median household income$49,883$93,170$80,734
Groundwork market score5940

Official counts and lending

Businesses

Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
3
Employees, 2023
21
Annual payroll, 2023
$952K
One-person businesses, 2023
50Businesses with no payroll
Map listings, September 2026
151 chain location
Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
38The 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 Smyth 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 Smyth County

Population, 2025 estimate
28,882−3.0% since 2020
Households
12,659
Median age
45.8
Homes lived in by their owners
71%
Vehicles per household
1.9
Land area
451 sq. mi.
People per square mile
65
Median household income
$49,883+21.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
Average household income
$68,477
Median home value
$139,600
Jobs located here
11,597
Daytime population
29,033Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here

Looking at a specific site in Smyth 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 Smyth County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.

Free10 actions over 3 days, no card

Real estate across Virginia

Every Virginia market ranked →

The highest-scoring counties in Virginia for real estate businesses, numbered among those based in Virginia, with Smyth County marked.

Top counties in Virginia

Counties in Virginia ranked for real estate businesses by Groundwork market score
MarketScoreListingsPer 10k householdsHousing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)Population growthU.S. rank
1Caroline County, VA851613.3275+11.3%#9 of 2,229
2Prince George County, VA7997.0523+2.0%#34 of 2,229
3King William County, VA7968.2444+9.5%#37 of 2,229
4Rockingham County, VA78268.0448+6.6%#47 of 2,229
5Frederick County, VA783610.2384+8.8%#50 of 2,229
6Greene County, VA7767.5508+6.6%#63 of 2,229
7Fluvanna County, VA761211.6328+6.2%#83 of 2,229
8Madison County, VA73712.8284+2.7%#142 of 2,229
9Southampton County, VA7157.3457+0.9%#173 of 2,229
10Amherst County, VA711411.0300+2.1%#185 of 2,229
29Smyth County, VA591511.8253−3.0%#601 of 2,229

Other business types in Smyth County

Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.

Questions

How many real estate businesses are in Smyth County, VA?

There are 15 real estate businesses on map listings in Smyth County as of September 2026. One of them (7%) is a chain location. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 3 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023. Official counts list 50 one-person businesses without payroll.

How much do households in Smyth County, VA spend on rent and homeowner costs?

About $164.7M a year, or $13,011 per household. That is 22% below the U.S. average (an index of 78, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 15 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 2.5 times 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 12,659 households in Smyth County and national spending patterns by income.

How does Smyth County, VA compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?

Smyth County has 11.8 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 69% below the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 253, where 100 is the U.S. At the national ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, Smyth County would have about 38, against 15 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 4,220 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S.

How fast is Smyth County, VA growing?

Population estimates put Smyth County at 28,882 people in 2025, down 3.0% since 2020, against +3.1% for the U.S. It has 12,659 households. The median household income in Smyth County is $49,883 a year, 38% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 21.9% 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. Smyth County scores 59 for real estate businesses (upper middle), #601 of 2,229 scored counties.

How can I see the market around a specific site?

Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Smyth 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 Smyth County

Screening a site or an acquisition in Smyth 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 Smyth 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.