Columbus County, North Carolina

Columbus County has a population of 50,140 and has shrunk 0.3% since the 2020 census. The median home is worth $146,000, about 3.0 times the county's median household income of $49,442.

Home price
$146,000
Income
$49,442
Population
50,140
Unemployment
4.4%

Housing

Home values, rent, property taxes, insurance and how local prices relate to local incomes.

Median home price$146,000county
Median gross rent$824county
Median year homes here were built1982county
Share of homes built before 198047.0%county
Share of homes that are manufactured or mobile30.4%county
Share of homes that are vacant14.9%county
Share of occupied homes that are rented28.9%county
Share of homes held for seasonal or occasional use2.0%county
Typical monthly rent$1,623(statewide)
HUD fair market rent, 2-bed$925county
HUD fair market rent, 1-bed$722county
HUD fair market rent, 3-bed$1,109county
Home insurance / yr$3,124(statewide)

Money

Household earnings and buying power. Adjusted income restates local income using the statewide cost-of-living index.

Cost of living97.8(statewide)
Median household income$49,442county
Family health premium / yr$23,120(statewide)
Infant childcare / yr$11,720(statewide)
Regular gas price / gal$3.684(statewide)
Poverty rate18.2%county

Jobs

What people here do for work, who they work for, whether they work from home, and how much of the local economy sits in one industry.

Workers who work from home5.4%county
Unemployment rate4.4%county
Share of adults in the labor force50.6%county
Share of workers who are self-employed6.4%county
Share of workers employed by government16.0%county
Share of workers in the largest industry21.7%county
Economic output per resident$38,247county

Taxes

State tax rules that can affect take-home pay, investments and everyday purchases.

Property tax rate0.77%county
Top state income tax3.99%(statewide)
Capital gains tax3.99%(statewide)
Combined sales tax7.10%(statewide)

Transportation

Distance to air travel and how people get around locally. Distances are straight-line from the county's population-weighted centre, so driving is further.

Mean commute time29.3 mincounty
Miles to nearest airport with airline service43 micounty
Passengers boarding at the nearest airline airport1894929county
Miles to nearest general aviation field0.7 micounty
Airports with airline service located here0county
General aviation airfields located here1county
Passenger train stations and the railway network0county
Miles to the nearest passenger rail station39 micounty
Households without a vehicle5.5%county
Traffic deaths79.8county
Change in traffic deaths per 100,0000.5(statewide)

Schools

Public schools and colleges counted where they actually sit, plus the education level of adults who live here. Students per teacher is a staffing measure, not a quality ranking.

Adults 25+ with a bachelor's degree or higher14.6%county
Adults 25+ with a high school diploma or higher86.8%county
Public schools in the county19county
Public school enrollment8386county
Students per full-time teacher17.6county
Free lunch eligible98.2%county
Elementary schools10county
Middle schools2county
High schools4county
Institutions granting bachelor's degrees or above0county
Share of local colleges that are public100.0%county
Two-year institutions1county
Miles to the nearest bachelor's-granting institution38 micounty

Health

Primary care physicians40county
Medicare-certified hospitals in this county1county
Hospitals here with an emergency department1county
Average CMS star rating of hospitals here1county
Fine particulate matter6.5 µgcounty
Without health insurance12.7%county
Adults who were food insecure in the past year21.5%county
Adults who received food assistance in the past year19.6%county
Frequent mental distress18.5%county
No leisure-time physical activity30.2%county
Diagnosed diabetes16.2%county

Place

Who lives here and what the place is like: population, age, migration, safety and civic profile.

Population50,140county
Land area in square miles938county
People per square mile of land53.4county
Supermarkets and grocery stores14county
Convenience stores6county
Share living far from a food store0.1%county
Share living in a low-income, low-access tract0.0%county
Population change since 2020-0.3%county
Natural change per 1,000 residents-4county
Net international migration per 1,000 residents3county
Median age42.6 yrscounty
Share of residents under 1820.6%county
Share of residents 65 and over20.7%county
Share of households that are one person32.8%county
Share of residents born outside the United States3.3%county
Second languages5.9%county
Share of residents on a religious body’s rolls56.4%county
Congregations per 100,000 residents344county
Net domestic migration per 1,000 residents5county
Households that moved in928county
Households that moved away935county
Average income of arriving households$45,418county
Average income of departing households$40,604county
Homes authorised per 1,000 existing homes2county
Housing units authorised in the latest year55county
Share of permitted homes in multifamily buildings0.0%county
Violent crime rate376(statewide)

Weather

Measured annual temperature, precipitation and snowfall. These are climate facts, not a ranking.

Avg. annual temperature63.3°Fcounty
Annual precipitation45.2 incounty
Annual snowfall0.0 incounty
Average daily solar energy4.57 kWh/m²county
Days reaching 90°F50 dayscounty
Days at or below freezing54 dayscounty

Gardening

Plant hardiness zoneZone 7bcounty
Frost-free days235 dayscounty
Average last spring frostMar 21county
Average first fall frostNov 11county

Utilities

Average monthly electric bill$156county
Electric utilities serving this county3county
Electricity price per kWh14.0¢county
Household electricity use1,006 kWhcounty
Residential natural gas price$23.19(statewide)
Homes heated by electricity75.8%county
Homes heated by utility gas2.5%county
Homes heated by propane18.9%county
Homes heated by fuel oil1.1%county
Homes heated by wood0.8%county
Households with broadband83.1%county

Risk

Relative exposure to air pollution and natural hazards. Higher values indicate more measured risk, not a prediction.

Riverine flood risk64.6county
Coastal flood risk19.4county
Drought risk47.3county
Landslide risk14.5county
Hail risk44.7county
Earthquake risk82.4county
Tornado risk82.3county
Tropical cyclone risk96.7county
Extreme heat risk86.2county
Winter weather risk83.8county
Strong wind risk98.4county
Wildfire risk77.7county

Sports

Major pro teams based here0county
NFL teams based here0county
NBA teams based here0county
MLB teams based here0county
NHL teams based here0county
MLS soccer teams based here0county
Top-division college football teams0county
Second-tier college football teams0county
Affiliated minor league baseball teams0county
AHL teams based here0county
ECHL teams based here0county

Figures marked county are measured for Columbus County directly. The rest are published at state level only and show the North Carolina figure — see methodology for each source and its limits.

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