Rainelle, West Virginia

Population

Down 4.6% since 2020.

1,180

people, the 95th-largest of West Virginia's cities and towns.

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

The workday

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

93.3%

of 796 jobs located in Rainelle are filled by in-commuters.

Census LEHD LODES, 2023. Sources: Census LEHD LODES

Rent

Median rent is up 101% since the 2005–2009 survey, before inflation.

$663

a month. West Virginia's median is $872.

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024 (latest), with earlier 5-year windows. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year

The seam

Cross one tract line and median rent jumps $247.

A $247 gap between neighbors, the sharpest rent edge between adjacent tracts in Greenbrier County.

• $679 Tract 9504.01
• $926 Tract 9504.02

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

Local wages can carry more rent than the median charged today.

$881–$1,321

is the monthly rent range local workforce wages support.

• $663 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

Most of the housing here is older than 2000.

• 3 homes permitted, 2022–2025
• 0% of those were in multifamily buildings
• 87% of all homes were built before 2000

Census Building Permits Survey, 2022–2025; Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census Building Permits Survey, Census ACS 5-year

Units needed

Closing the gap would add 0.1–1.1% to the 755 homes here.

1–8

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 50% less than West Virginia's.

$80,800

median home value in Rainelle.

• $80,800 Rainelle
• $162,600 West Virginia
• $332,700 U.S.

Census ACS 5-year, 2020-2024. Survey estimates for a place this size carry wide margins of error. Sources: Census ACS 5-year