North Carolina

Data on state-to-state migration of people and income for North Carolina, covering the 2022–2023 federal income tax filing years.

Overview

• Cost of living: 6% below the U.S. average
• Median home value: $259,400 (national: $303,400)
• Home prices: +63.1% over the 5 years to 2023
• Monthly rent: $1,162 (national: $1,348)
• Homeownership rate: 66% (national: 65%)
• Unemployment rate: 3.5% (national: 3.6%)
• Median household income: $69,904 (national: $78,538)
• Median age: 39.1 years (national: 38.7)

Migration Summary (2022–2023)

• Net gain of 38,810 tax-filing households
• Net gain of 69,419 individuals
• Net inflow of 6.4 people per 1,000 residents (population: 10,835,491)
• Net gain of $3.9B in adjusted gross income (AGI, nominal dollars)

Largest inflow: 20,553 households from Florida. Largest outflow: 18,026 households to South Carolina.

Income Flow

• Total AGI moved in: $13.9B
• Total AGI moved out: $10B
• Net AGI gain: +$3.9B (nominal)

Top Origin States

• Florida: 20,553 households, $1.6B AGI
• South Carolina: 15,305 households, $1B AGI
• Virginia: 15,148 households, $1.2B AGI
• New York: 13,811 households, $1.1B AGI
• California: 9,978 households, $971.6M AGI

Top Destination States

• South Carolina: 18,026 households, $1.5B AGI
• Florida: 14,530 households, $1.4B AGI
• Virginia: 12,599 households, $866.9M AGI
• Georgia: 8,487 households, $590.2M AGI
• Texas: 8,387 households, $597.4M AGI

Churn by State (Two-Way Exchanges)

• Florida: 20,553 in, 14,530 out (+6,023 net, +$190.6M AGI)
• South Carolina: 15,305 in, 18,026 out (-2,721 net, -$516.8M AGI)
• Virginia: 15,148 in, 12,599 out (+2,549 net, +$336.6M AGI)
• New York: 13,811 in, 6,906 out (+6,905 net, +$618M AGI)
• Georgia: 9,082 in, 8,487 out (+595 net, +$61.4M AGI)

Net Migration by Year (2012–2023)

• 2012: +$1.2B AGI, +26,982 people
• 2013: +$1.5B AGI, +26,207 people
• 2014: +$1.3B AGI, +21,211 people
• 2015: +$1.1B AGI, +20,790 people
• 2016: +$2.2B AGI, +48,312 people
• 2017: +$3.8B AGI, +75,332 people
• 2018: +$3B AGI, +56,978 people
• 2019: +$2.8B AGI, +48,836 people
• 2020: +$3.7B AGI, +69,067 people
• 2021: +$4.6B AGI, +77,522 people
• 2022: +$4.6B AGI, +83,708 people
• 2023: +$3.9B AGI, +69,419 people
• Total (2012–2023): +$33.6B AGI, +624,364 people

Migration in Context

• Population (2023): 10,871,849
• Net migration rate: +6.4 people per 1,000 residents
• Net income per resident: +$358 (≈ +$3.9B total)

Components of population change (2023 Census):

• Births: +121,274
• Deaths: 108,957
• Net domestic migration: +98,929
• Net international migration: +53,771
• Total change: +166,081

Income and Cost of Living

• Income per person: $62,233 (11% below U.S. average)
• Price level: 94.4 (5.6% below U.S. average)
• Adjusted income: $65,925 (6% below U.S. average)

Price parity by category (index where 100 = U.S. average):

• Housing & rents: 80.8
• Goods: 96.8
• Utilities: 83.6
• Other services: 98.7

Demographics

• Median age: 39.1 years
• Median household income: $69,904 (11% below U.S. median)
• College degree: 35% of adults 25+
• Poverty rate: 13.2%
• Average commute: 25 minutes
• Broadband at home: 89% of households
• Race and ethnicity (share of residents):
• White: 61%
• Hispanic: 11%
• Black: 20%
• Asian: 3%
• Other: 5%

Housing

• Median home value: $259,400 (15% below U.S. median)
• Median rent: $1,162 (14% below U.S. median)
• Homeownership rate: 66%
• Home-price appreciation (past year): +8.8%
• Home-price appreciation (past 5 years): +63%
• New home construction (2023): 98,853 units (67% single-family, 33% multifamily)

Local Economy and Risk

• Unemployment rate: 3.5% (2023 annual average)
• Labor force: 5,272,358 (5,088,209 employed)

Migration by Income Bracket (2022–2023)

• $1–$10k: +2,001 households, +$11.2M AGI
• $10k–$25k: +5,301 households, +$94.6M AGI
• $25k–$50k: +8,596 households, +$311.3M AGI
• $50k–$75k: +6,002 households, +$371.1M AGI
• $75k–$100k: +4,068 households, +$353.3M AGI
• $100k–$200k: +7,807 households, +$1.1B AGI
• $200k+: +4,784 households, +$1.7B AGI

North Carolina ranks #3 among states for net household migration in the $200k+ bracket.

Goods Trade (2022)

• Ships to other states: $337.5B (+27% since 2017)
• Receives from other states: $274.4B (+29% since