HomeNorth CarolinaGraham County
Graham County, North Carolina: commercial real estate data.
Graham County, North Carolina has a population of 8,072 across 292 square miles, up 1.9 percent since the 2020 census base. County output reached $329.9 m in 2024, 164 establishments operate here, and the SBA record carries 6 7(a) approvals worth $10.5 m.
107 sourced county values · tier FULL · 11 sections
Graham County
How many people live in Graham County
- Population8,072
- Households3,524
- Average household size2.29
- Median household income$49,684
- Median age45.6
- Median gross rent$676 per month
- Median owner-occupied home value$170,600
- Home value to household income3.4 times
- Annual rent as a share of median income16.3 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a bachelor degree or higher17.6 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a graduate degree5.3 percent
- Adults 25 and over6,013
- Population under 181,544
- Share under 1819.1 percent
- Population 65 and over2,062
- Share 65 and over25.5 percent
- Working age population, 18 to 644,466
- Civilian labor force3,434
- Unemployment rate7.0 percent
- Labor force participation, adults 18 and over52.6 percent
- Rank by population among North Carolina counties98th of 100
- Rank by population among US county-equivalents2650th
Graham County is the 98th largest of 100 North Carolina counties by population. A median home costs 3.4 times median household income, which is an affordable ownership market by national standards. Residents 65 and over outnumber those under 18, at 25.5 percent against 19.1 percent, which points demand at health care, services and single storey product rather than schools.
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, 2020-2024 5-year.
Graham County
Is Graham County growing
- Population change since the 2020 census base1.86 percent
- Census 2020 base population8,030
- Births, 202499
- Deaths, 2024121
- Natural change, 2024-22
- Net domestic migration, 2024119
- Net international migration, 20243
- Total net migration, 2024122
- Cumulative net domestic migration, 2021 to 2024224
- Rank by growth among US county-equivalents1215th
The county has grown 1.86 percent since the 2020 census base. Deaths exceeded births in 2024, so all of the growth came from people moving in. A market held up by migration alone is more sensitive to a change in relative cost than one growing from household formation.
US Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2024, Vintage 2024, estimates 2020 to 2024.
Graham County
Where people moving to Graham County come from
- Tax returns filed by households arriving141
- People arriving, from those returns274
- Adjusted gross income arriving$8.3 m
- Net adjusted gross income movement$0
- Average income of an arriving household$58,830
- Largest single originGraham County Non-migrants (2,775 households)
- Largest single destination (2,775 households)
| Origin | Households | People | Adjusted gross income |
|---|---|---|---|
| Graham County Non-migrants | 2,775 | 5,892 | $149.7 m |
| Other flows - Different State | 83 | 165 | $5.3 m |
| Other flows - South | 83 | 165 | $5.3 m |
| Other flows - Same State | 58 | 109 | $3.0 m |
The largest single source of arrivals is Graham County Non-migrants, which is the catchment a retail or multifamily study should look at first.
US Internal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income county migration flows, 2021 to 2022 filing years.
Graham County
What the Graham County economy runs on
- County GDP, 2024$329.9 m
- County GDP, 2023$317.6 m
- GDP change, 2023 to 20243.9 percent
- GDP change over five years28.6 percent
- Rank by GDP among North Carolina counties94th
- Rank by GDP among US county-equivalents2656th
- GDP per resident$40,866
Output grew 3.9 percent in the latest year and 28.6 percent over five, which is the trend line a lender will read behind any single year figure.
US Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional, table CAGDP2, CAGDP2, through 2024.
Graham County
Who employs people in Graham County
- Covered employment, annual average2,011
- Establishments reporting228
- Average annual pay$48,748
- Average weekly wage$937
- Sector 23, employment421
- Sector 23, average annual pay$66,132
- Sector 44-45, employment237
- Sector 44-45, average annual pay$29,056
- Sector 56, employment71
- Sector 56, average annual pay$59,276
- Sector 52, employment56
- Sector 52, average annual pay$56,885
- Sector 42, employment31
- Sector 81, employment30
| Sector | Employment | Establishments | Average annual pay |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sector 23 | 421 | 46 | $66,132 |
| Sector 44-45 | 237 | 26 | $29,056 |
| Sector 56 | 71 | 15 | $59,276 |
| Sector 52 | 56 | 8 | $56,885 |
| Sector 42 | 31 | 8 | $83,913 |
| Sector 81 | 30 | 15 | $28,035 |
| Sector 51 | 13 | 4 | $55,790 |
| Sector 53 | 11 | 12 | $64,281 |
The largest sector is the biggest private employer group at 421 jobs, 20.9 percent of covered employment. Average pay per job sits below median household income, so households here typically need more than one earner.
US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2024 annual averages.
Graham County
What businesses operate in Graham County
- Establishments, all industries164
- Employment at those establishments1,439
- Annual payroll$69.4 m
- Establishments per 1,000 residents20.3
These are counts of establishments physically operating in the county, not listings, so they are the supply side a feasibility study measures demand against.
US Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, 2023.
Graham County
What is being built in Graham County
- Housing units authorised by permit, 202431
- Declared construction value permitted$9.0 m
- Single family units authorised31
- Multifamily units authorised0
- Multifamily share of units0.0 percent
- Average declared value per unit$291,733
- Units authorised per 1,000 households8.8
Multifamily is 0.0 percent of units authorised, so the pipeline is predominantly for sale product.
US Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey, 2024 annual.
Graham County
How much SBA lending happens in Graham County
- 7(a) approvals recorded6
- 7(a) gross approval dollars$10.5 m
- Average 7(a) approval$1,746,900
- Median 7(a) approval$1,166,700
- 10th percentile approval$353,000
- 90th percentile approval$5,000,000
- Largest single approval$5,000,000
- Jobs reported supported, 7(a)88
- Jobs per approval14.7
- Distinct 7(a) lenders active5
- Distinct industries receiving approvals4
- Median 7(a) term306 months
- Share of loans on real estate terms, 240 months or longer83.3 percent
- Loans on real estate terms5
- Loans on working capital terms, 120 months or shorter1
- Franchise loans0
- Franchise share of approvals0.0 percent
- Leading industry by approval countHotels (except Casino Hotels) and Motels (3)
- Most active lenderCitizens Bank (2)
The average approval of $1,746,900 sits well above the median of $1,166,700, so a small number of large deals is pulling the mean up. The median is the better guide to what a typical borrower here actually gets. 83.3 percent of approvals run on real estate terms of 240 months or more, so this is a market where SBA credit is buying buildings, not just funding operations.
US Small Business Administration, 7(a) FOIA release, FY2020 to FY2026 year to date, as of 2026-06-30.
Graham County
Do SBA loans in Graham County get paid back
- Loans with a final outcome recorded0
- Paid in full0
- Charged off0
- Status: Cancelled3
- Status: Exempt from disclosure3
Too few loans have reached a final outcome to publish a charge off rate. only 0 resolved loans, too few to publish a rate. A rate computed on a handful of loans is noise, so none is shown.
US Small Business Administration, 7(a) FOIA release, FY2020 to FY2026 year to date, as of 2026-06-30.
Graham County
How big is Graham County
- Land area292 sq mi
- Rank by land area among North Carolina counties83rd of 100
- Width, east to west25.5 mi
- Height, north to south17.1 mi
- Geographies sharing a boundary3
- Residents per square mile of land28
- Establishments per square mile0.56
US Census Bureau county boundary geometry, TIGER, adjacency computed from shared boundary vertices, TIGER county boundaries. US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, 2020-2024 5-year. US Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, 2023.
Graham County
What hazards affect Graham County
- EPA radon zone predicted average indoor radon screening level from 2 to 4 pCi/LZone 2
- Communities in the NFIP Community Status Book4
- Of those, participating in the NFIP4
- NFIP participation rate100.0 percent
- Communities carrying a CRS class0
The EPA places the county in radon zone 2, a predicted average indoor radon screening level from 2 to 4 pCi/L.
US EPA, Map of Radon Zones, county spreadsheet, 2024-05 publication, EPA 402/A-16/001. FEMA OpenFEMA, NFIP Community Status Book, Community Status Book, as retrieved.
Coverage
What this page does not hold.
Every item below could be filled with a plausible figure. None of them is. On a page a lender may read, a number that cannot be traced is worse than an absence, so the absences are named.
- No 504 approvals recorded in this county in the FOIA release covering FY2010 onward.
- Flood zone record counts are not held. The flood coverage export has not landed, so no count is shown rather than an estimated one.
- Traffic counts resolve in the platform, not in this dataset, so no AADT figure is printed here.
- Zoning is in build. Parcel level zoning is not published on this page.
Feasibility studies
When a Graham County site needs a document a lender will accept.
The same data layer behind this page is the one the studies are written from. A study for a Graham County site starts with the figures you are reading, carrying the same source and period into the credit file.
- Population8,072
- Households3,524
- Average household size2.29
- Median household income$49,684
- Median age45.6
Common questions
Graham County questions, answered from the record.
How many people live in Graham County, North Carolina?
8,072, in 3,524 households, ranking 98th of 100 North Carolina counties. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, 2020-2024 5-year.
Is Graham County growing?
The population has grown 1.86 percent since the 2020 census base. In 2024 there were 99 births against 121 deaths, with net migration of 122. Source: US Census Bureau, Population Estimates Program, Vintage 2024, Vintage 2024, estimates 2020 to 2024.
What is the median household income in Graham County?
$49,684. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $170,600, which is 3.4 times income, and median gross rent is $676 per month. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, 2020-2024 5-year.
How many businesses are there in Graham County?
164 establishments, employing 1,439 people with an annual payroll of $69.4 m. These are establishments physically operating in the county, not listings. Source: US Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, 2023.
What is the average wage in Graham County?
Average annual pay is $48,748, or $937 a week, across 2,011 covered jobs. Source: US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2024 annual averages.
How much SBA lending happens in Graham County?
6 7(a) approvals totalling $10.5 m since FY2020, across 5 lenders, with a median approval of $1,166,700. These are approvals recorded in the release, not loans disbursed.
What is being built in Graham County?
31 housing units were authorised by permit in 2024, with a declared construction value of $9.0 m. Multifamily was 0.0 percent of units. Source: US Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey, 2024 annual.
What is the radon zone for Graham County?
Zone 2, a predicted average indoor radon screening level from 2 to 4 pCi/L. Source: US EPA, Map of Radon Zones, county spreadsheet, 2024-05 publication, EPA 402/A-16/001.
Where do people moving to Graham County come from?
The largest single origin is Graham County Non-migrants, with 2,775 households. Arriving households report an average income of $58,830 against null for those leaving. Source: US Internal Revenue Service, Statistics of Income county migration flows, 2021 to 2022 filing years.
Are traffic counts available for Graham County on this page?
No. Annual average daily traffic resolves in the platform rather than in this dataset, so no AADT figure is printed here. It is a gap we know about rather than a figure we estimated.
Is zoning published for Graham County?
Not yet. The zoning layer is in build. Nothing on this page presents parcel level zoning, and where a statutory framework applies it is marked as the statewide frame with confirm locally attached.