Sawmills, North Carolina
2026 Edition · 10 cards · data as of Oct 30, 2026
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Population
Growing. Up 1.3% since 2020.
5,105
people, the 145th-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
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The workday
9 in 10 jobs here go to people who live somewhere else.
92.4%
of 686 jobs located in Sawmills are filled by in-commuters.
Census LEHD LODES, 2023. Sources: Census LEHD LODES
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Rent
Median rent is up 29% since the 2005–2009 survey, before inflation.
$730
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
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The seam
Cross one tract line and median rent jumps $380.
A $380 gap between neighbors, the sharpest rent edge between adjacent tracts in Caldwell County.
- $711 Tract 307
- $1,091 Tract 308.01
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024, adjacent tracts compared by the Almanac. Tract estimates carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
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Room to build
Local wages can carry more rent than the median charged today.
$898–$1,347
is the monthly rent range local workforce wages support.
- $730 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
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Building
Most of the housing here is older than 2000.
- 90% of all homes were built before 2000
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census ACS 5-year
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Units needed
Closing the gap would add 0.3% to the 2,370 homes here.
7
is the estimated number of missing housing units; all three estimates agree.
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
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Home value
A median home costs 24% less than North Carolina's.
$219,600
median home value in Sawmills.
- $219,600 Sawmills
- $288,900 North Carolina
- $332,700 U.S.
Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Sources: Census ACS 5-year