Real estate · Metro area · Washington
Real estate businesses in the Bellingham, WA metro area
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for real estate businesses in the Bellingham, WA metro area, set against other metro areas and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 39 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #293 of 387 scored metro areas
#11 of 11 scored metro areas based in Washington
- Listings
- 462
- 16 chain locations (3%)
- Official establishments
- 349
- +29.3% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $1.7B
- On rent and homeowner costs · $18,166 a household
- Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
- 85
- 15% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 49.1
- 28% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 236,392
- +3.9% since 2020
See the real estate businesses around any address in the Bellingham 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 Bellingham 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 Bellingham metro area scores 39 (lower middle) on the Groundwork market score for real estate businesses, ranking #293 of 387 scored metro areas and #11 of 11 scored metro areas based in Washington. That puts it in the bottom quarter of metro areas.
Household spending on rent and homeowner costs in the Bellingham metro area comes to about $1.7B a year: $18,166 per household, 9% above the U.S. average. Housing spending per office is 15% 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.
The Bellingham metro area has 462 real estate businesses on map listings as of September 2026. Chain locations make up 3% of them, against 6% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 49.1, 28% above the U.S. rate of 38.5.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in the Bellingham metro area was 349 in 2023, up 29.3% from 2019. That is one for every 269 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Since fiscal 2022, 3 SBA-backed loans worth $785K have gone to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in the Bellingham metro area. Between 2020 and 2025, the population of the Bellingham metro area grew 3.9%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%).
How the Bellingham metro area compares
The same measures for Washington 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 | Bellingham metro area | Washington | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 49.1 | 42.1 | 38.5 |
| Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | 85 | 108 | 100 |
| Households per official establishment | 269 | 317 | 414 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +29.3% | +13.5% | +15.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +3.9% | +3.6% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs | $18,166 | $19,779 | $16,661 |
| Median household income | $81,784 | $98,141 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 39 | 56 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 349+29.3% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 2,274
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $168.7M
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 1,099Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 46216 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 394The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 3
- Amount
- $785K
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in the Bellingham 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 Bellingham metro area
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 236,392+3.9% since 2020
- Households
- 94,021
- Median age
- 39.9
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 64%
- Vehicles per household
- 2.0
- Land area
- 2,108 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 109
- Median household income
- $81,784+29.9% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $109,611
- Median home value
- $585,800
- Jobs located here
- 90,570
- Daytime population
- 221,278Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in the Bellingham 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 Bellingham 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 Washington
Every Washington market ranked →The highest-scoring metro areas in Washington for real estate businesses, numbered among those based in Washington (a market based in another state is listed without a number), with the Bellingham metro area marked.
Top metro areas in Washington
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Yakima, WA | 69 | 201 | 22.9 | 169 | +1.0% | #40 of 387 |
| 2Longview-Kelso, WA | 67 | 121 | 27.5 | 145 | +3.5% | #53 of 387 |
| Lewiston, ID-WA | 60 | 80 | 29.9 | 132 | +1.5% | #94 of 387 |
| 3Kennewick-Richland, WA | 58 | 403 | 37.3 | 115 | +6.5% | #111 of 387 |
| 4Bremerton-Silverdale-Port Orchard, WA | 57 | 397 | 36.6 | 126 | +2.7% | #117 of 387 |
| 5Mount Vernon-Anacortes, WA | 57 | 179 | 34.2 | 125 | +2.4% | #118 of 387 |
| 6Olympia-Lacey-Tumwater, WA | 55 | 455 | 38.3 | 114 | +2.8% | #135 of 387 |
| 7Wenatchee-East Wenatchee, WA | 53 | 186 | 39.2 | 108 | +5.0% | #156 of 387 |
| 8Walla Walla, WA | 50 | 81 | 34.5 | 116 | −0.4% | #181 of 387 |
| 9Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA | 49 | 7,662 | 47.6 | 103 | +3.3% | #192 of 387 |
| 11Bellingham, WA | 39 | 462 | 49.1 | 85 | +3.9% | #293 of 387 |
Other business types in the Bellingham 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 Bellingham, WA metro area?
Map listings as of September 2026 show 462 real estate businesses in the Bellingham metro area. 16 of them (3%) are chain locations. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 349 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023, up 29.3% from 2019. Another 1,099 one-person businesses have no payroll, by official counts.
How much do households in the Bellingham, WA metro area spend on rent and homeowner costs?
About $1.7B a year, or $18,166 per household. That is 9% above the U.S. average (an index of 109, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 462 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 15% 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 94,021 households in the Bellingham metro area and national spending patterns by income.
How does the Bellingham, WA metro area compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?
The Bellingham metro area has 49.1 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 28% above the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 85, where 100 is the U.S. At the U.S. ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, the Bellingham metro area would have about 394, against 462 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 269 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. The official count rose 29.3% from 2019 to 2023, against +15.8% for the U.S.
How fast is the Bellingham, WA metro area growing?
Population estimates put the Bellingham metro area at 236,392 people in 2025, up 3.9% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 94,021 households. Median household income in the Bellingham metro area is $81,784, in line with the U.S. median of $80,734. Against the 2015–2019 survey, the median rose 29.9%, 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. The Bellingham metro area scores 39 for real estate businesses (lower middle), #293 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 Bellingham 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 Bellingham metro area
Screening a site or an acquisition in the Bellingham 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 Bellingham 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.