Leland, North Carolina

Population

Growing. Up 42.1% since 2020.

35,731

people, the 31st-largest of North Carolina's cities and towns.

Census Population Estimates, 2025. Rank among North Carolina's cities and towns computed by the Almanac. Sources: Census Population Estimates

The workday

8 in 10 jobs here go to people who live somewhere else.

84.2%

of 5,205 jobs located in Leland are filled by in-commuters.

Census LEHD LODES, 2023. Sources: Census LEHD LODES

Unemployment, 2026

The low came in March: 3.4%.

3.4%

in August 2026, the latest month released. A year earlier it was 3.9%.

BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics, monthly, through August 2026. Not seasonally adjusted, so compare with the same month a year earlier. Sources: BLS Local Area Unemployment Statistics

Rent

Median rent is up 112% since the 2005–2009 survey, before inflation.

$1,735

a month. North Carolina's median is $1,228.

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024 (latest), with earlier 5-year windows. Sources: Census ACS 5-year

The seam

Cross one tract line and median rent doubles.

A $1,601 gap between neighbors, the sharpest rent edge between adjacent tracts in Brunswick County.

• $967 Tract 203.15
• $2,568 Tract 203.13

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024, adjacent tracts compared by the Almanac. Tract estimates carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year

Room to build

The median rent is above what local wages can carry.

$824–$1,236

is the monthly rent range local workforce wages support.

• $1,735 median

Supportable rent computed by the Almanac from 2023 source wage data. Median rent: Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Computed by the Almanac, Census ACS 5-year

Building

12% of the housing here was built before 2000.

• 9,974 homes permitted in ten years, 2016–2025
• 24% of those were in multifamily buildings
• 12% of all homes were built before 2000

Census Building Permits Survey, 2016–2025; Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census Building Permits Survey, Census ACS 5-year

Units needed

Closing the gap would add 0.2–0.4% to the 14,045 homes here.

29–52

is the estimated number of missing housing units, from the lowest to the highest of three estimates.

Range computed by the Almanac from 2023 jobs and household data, using three demand models: 1% of jobs located here, 1% of renter households, and a rate by town size applied to renters. The low end is the lowest of the three and the high end the highest. It is an estimate, not a count. Sources: Computed by the Almanac

Home value

A median home costs 38% more than North Carolina's.

$398,900

median home value in Leland.

• $398,900 Leland
• $288,900 North Carolina
• $332,700 U.S.

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census ACS 5-year