Ranked from ACS 2023 5-Year
Lowest Price-to-Rent Ratios in North Carolina
Price-to-rent is the median home value divided by a year of median gross rent, so a ratio of 12 means the house costs about twelve years of rent. Low ratios are where buying is cheapest against the local alternative. It is the one comparison on this site that assumes nothing about mortgage rates, down payment or how long you stay, which is why it travels well between counties. Both figures are Census five-year estimates for the same period, and rent here includes the utilities a tenant pays.
Where does yours land?
Every county in America is somewhere on this scale, including the one you live in.
North Carolina ranked
| # | County | Price-to-rent | Median home | Median rent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hyde County | 8.1 yrs | $119,600 | $1,237 |
| 2 | Robeson County | 9.4 yrs | $88,600 | $784 |
| 3 | Bertie County | 9.7 yrs | $95,800 | $824 |
| 4 | Washington County | 10.8 yrs | $107,000 | $829 |
| 5 | Halifax County | 11.0 yrs | $102,500 | $776 |
| 6 | Greene County | 11.2 yrs | $114,000 | $845 |
| 7 | Northampton County | 11.4 yrs | $102,200 | $749 |
| 8 | Lenoir County | 11.4 yrs | $111,400 | $814 |
| 9 | Hertford County | 11.5 yrs | $111,100 | $806 |
| 10 | Anson County | 11.7 yrs | $119,300 | $849 |
| 11 | Edgecombe County | 11.9 yrs | $116,800 | $818 |
| 12 | Scotland County | 12.0 yrs | $109,900 | $766 |
| 13 | Martin County | 12.6 yrs | $109,900 | $729 |
| 14 | Duplin County | 12.6 yrs | $123,200 | $815 |
| 15 | Sampson County | 13.2 yrs | $128,400 | $811 |
| 16 | Cumberland County | 13.2 yrs | $183,700 | $1,156 |
| 17 | Warren County | 13.5 yrs | $124,700 | $771 |
| 18 | Richmond County | 13.5 yrs | $120,800 | $744 |
| 19 | Columbus County | 13.8 yrs | $128,300 | $775 |
| 20 | Bladen County | 13.9 yrs | $125,800 | $752 |
| 21 | Jones County | 14.1 yrs | $122,600 | $725 |
| 22 | Vance County | 14.2 yrs | $146,300 | $860 |
| 23 | Gates County | 14.5 yrs | $163,900 | $940 |
| 24 | Wayne County | 14.5 yrs | $162,700 | $932 |
| 25 | Onslow County | 15.3 yrs | $219,500 | $1,198 |
| 26 | Nash County | 15.4 yrs | $171,100 | $924 |
| 27 | Hoke County | 15.6 yrs | $196,000 | $1,047 |
| 28 | Craven County | 15.6 yrs | $206,200 | $1,100 |
| 29 | Wilson County | 15.6 yrs | $171,800 | $915 |
| 30 | Pasquotank County | 16.2 yrs | $223,300 | $1,146 |
| 31 | Rockingham County | 16.5 yrs | $156,000 | $789 |
| 32 | Perquimans County | 16.6 yrs | $211,600 | $1,061 |
| 33 | Montgomery County | 16.6 yrs | $150,300 | $753 |
| 34 | Pitt County | 16.7 yrs | $194,300 | $971 |
| 35 | Randolph County | 16.7 yrs | $171,600 | $857 |
| 36 | Harnett County | 17.0 yrs | $220,700 | $1,080 |
| 37 | Beaufort County | 17.6 yrs | $181,200 | $859 |
| 38 | Burke County | 17.7 yrs | $170,500 | $805 |
| 39 | Guilford County | 17.7 yrs | $234,900 | $1,108 |
| 40 | Cleveland County | 18.0 yrs | $180,200 | $835 |
| 41 | Caswell County | 18.0 yrs | $151,200 | $699 |
| 42 | Gaston County | 18.0 yrs | $235,000 | $1,085 |
| 43 | Forsyth County | 18.1 yrs | $227,800 | $1,046 |
| 44 | Rowan County | 18.2 yrs | $216,100 | $990 |
| 45 | Alamance County | 18.3 yrs | $221,200 | $1,007 |
| 46 | Lee County | 18.5 yrs | $213,800 | $962 |
| 47 | Surry County | 18.7 yrs | $166,400 | $741 |
| 48 | Wilkes County | 18.8 yrs | $161,400 | $715 |
| 49 | Tyrrell County | 18.8 yrs | $138,400 | $612 |
| 50 | McDowell County | 18.9 yrs | $168,300 | $741 |
| 51 | Pamlico County | 19.2 yrs | $209,800 | $909 |
| 52 | Davidson County | 19.3 yrs | $200,100 | $863 |
| 53 | Granville County | 19.5 yrs | $235,700 | $1,008 |
| 54 | Caldwell County | 19.7 yrs | $174,000 | $735 |
| 55 | Camden County | 19.8 yrs | $289,800 | $1,220 |
| 56 | Yadkin County | 20.0 yrs | $176,400 | $734 |
| 57 | Rutherford County | 20.1 yrs | $180,800 | $748 |
| 58 | Person County | 20.2 yrs | $192,800 | $796 |
| 59 | Haywood County | 20.2 yrs | $254,900 | $1,052 |
| 60 | Franklin County | 20.3 yrs | $240,900 | $988 |
| 61 | Stokes County | 20.3 yrs | $186,800 | $766 |
| 62 | Mecklenburg County | 20.3 yrs | $371,200 | $1,521 |
| 63 | Cabarrus County | 20.4 yrs | $318,600 | $1,303 |
| 64 | Catawba County | 20.4 yrs | $218,100 | $891 |
| 65 | Iredell County | 20.6 yrs | $292,300 | $1,183 |
| 66 | Brunswick County | 20.7 yrs | $314,700 | $1,267 |
| 67 | Durham County | 20.7 yrs | $351,700 | $1,415 |
| 68 | Pender County | 20.8 yrs | $267,100 | $1,072 |
| 69 | Alexander County | 21.3 yrs | $190,000 | $745 |
| 70 | Polk County | 21.5 yrs | $281,100 | $1,089 |
| 71 | Stanly County | 21.5 yrs | $214,300 | $830 |
| 72 | Cherokee County | 21.7 yrs | $208,700 | $800 |
| 73 | New Hanover County | 21.9 yrs | $353,700 | $1,343 |
| 74 | Alleghany County | 22.0 yrs | $199,000 | $755 |
| 75 | Davie County | 22.1 yrs | $235,300 | $889 |
| 76 | Johnston County | 22.1 yrs | $267,600 | $1,007 |
| 77 | Chowan County | 22.2 yrs | $204,400 | $766 |
| 78 | Moore County | 22.2 yrs | $315,300 | $1,181 |
| 79 | Graham County | 22.3 yrs | $155,800 | $581 |
| 80 | Union County | 22.4 yrs | $374,400 | $1,390 |
| 81 | Mitchell County | 22.6 yrs | $202,100 | $744 |
| 82 | Yancey County | 23.0 yrs | $222,300 | $807 |
| 83 | Wake County | 23.4 yrs | $422,800 | $1,508 |
| 84 | Buncombe County | 23.4 yrs | $360,000 | $1,281 |
| 85 | Henderson County | 23.6 yrs | $317,800 | $1,120 |
| 86 | Lincoln County | 23.8 yrs | $279,500 | $977 |
| 87 | Carteret County | 23.9 yrs | $304,200 | $1,062 |
| 88 | Ashe County | 23.9 yrs | $221,900 | $774 |
| 89 | Macon County | 24.1 yrs | $229,000 | $791 |
| 90 | Swain County | 24.5 yrs | $209,800 | $715 |
| 91 | Avery County | 24.6 yrs | $233,200 | $791 |
| 92 | Jackson County | 24.7 yrs | $253,900 | $855 |
| 93 | Watauga County | 25.1 yrs | $321,500 | $1,066 |
| 94 | Orange County | 25.7 yrs | $428,500 | $1,387 |
| 95 | Currituck County | 26.0 yrs | $351,200 | $1,126 |
| 96 | Dare County | 27.1 yrs | $425,400 | $1,307 |
| 97 | Clay County | 27.7 yrs | $263,300 | $791 |
| 98 | Madison County | 28.7 yrs | $263,500 | $764 |
| 99 | Transylvania County | 30.8 yrs | $336,100 | $909 |
| 100 | Chatham County | 31.1 yrs | $397,800 | $1,066 |
Every figure is modelled on the county's own median home with 20% down at 7.03%. Property tax and electricity are county and state specific; homeowners insurance uses the NAIC average premium for that state, which ranges from 0.16% of home value in Hawaii to 1.16% in Oklahoma. Maintenance and water are national estimates. Full methodology.
Nationwide
Lowest Price-to-Rent Ratios across all 3,133 US counties · Every county in North Carolina