Census-designated place · Buncombe County, North Carolina

Swannanoa, North Carolina

Swannanoa is a census-designated place in Buncombe County, North Carolina, part of the Asheville, NC metro area. It has 6,901 residents. Swannanoa, North Carolina has a quality-of-life score of 65 out of 100 (high), ranking #5,542 of 15,651 US cities and towns. Within North Carolina it ranks #131 of 458 cities and towns. It ranks best on hot days (low), primary care physicians (high) and mental health providers (high). It ranks worst on unemployment rate (high), drug overdose deaths (high) and suicide rate (high).

65High

Quality-of-life score: #5,542 of 15,651 cities and towns
North Carolina: #131 of 458 in NC
Population: 6,901 (2020-2024)
Land area: 6 mi²
Density: 1,082.5 /mi²
FIPS code: 3766280

Percentile-based score (100 is the best in the country) from 75 of 80 indicators, with the default “Explorer” weights.

Open in the map

Scores by category

Each category averages its indicators' percentile scores among US cities and towns.

Safety11#13,961/15,637
Economy42#9,048/15,631
Housing36#9,654/14,977
Health45#8,589/15,609
Healthcare74#4,025/15,650
Environment99#190/15,453
Education49#7,927/15,649
Infrastructure73#4,272/15,650
Community68#4,981/15,651
Leisure & amenities98#345/15,651

Strengths · Weaknesses

Indicators where Swannanoa, North Carolina ranks highest and lowest among US cities and towns (score = percentile, 100 = best). Values marked “Buncombe County value” are the county’s: the source publishes no figure for this city or town, and the county holding most of its residents stands in.

Strengths

Hot days · low0 days
100/100North Carolina 32 daysUnited States 42 days2016-2025NOAA National Centers for Environmental InformationBuncombe County value
Primary care physicians · high148 /100k
99/100North Carolina 71 /100kUnited States 76 /100k2022University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteBuncombe County value
Mental health providers · high948 /100k
99/100North Carolina 351 /100kUnited States 348 /100k2025University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteBuncombe County value
Arts, entertainment and recreation · high9.9 /10k
95/100North Carolina 4.9 /10kUnited States 5.5 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsBuncombe County value
Effective property tax rate · low0.38%
94/100North Carolina 0.66%United States 0.94%2020-2024U.S. Census Bureau Census table B25090
Gyms and fitness centers · high2.2 /10k
94/100North Carolina 1.5 /10kUnited States 1.3 /10k2025U.S. Bureau of Labor StatisticsBuncombe County value

Weaknesses

Unemployment rate · high14.8%
3/100North Carolina 3.8%United States 4.3%2020-2024U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Census table B23025
Drug overdose deaths · high28.6 /100k
11/100North Carolina 20.6 /100kUnited States 18.4 /100kMar 2025–Feb 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataBuncombe County value
Suicide rate · high22.5 /100k
13/100North Carolina 14.7 /100kUnited States 14.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataBuncombe County value
Property crime rate · high1,987 /100k
14/100North Carolina 1,780 /100kUnited States 1,535 /100k2025Federal Bureau of InvestigationBuncombe County value
Firearm deaths · high19.9 /100k
16/100North Carolina 16.2 /100kUnited States 12.1 /100kMay 2025–Apr 2026Centers for Disease Control and PreventionProvisional dataBuncombe County value
Injury deaths · high116 /100k
18/100North Carolina 97 /100kUnited States 87 /100k2019-2023University of Wisconsin Population Health InstituteBuncombe County value

Trends

The largest changes over about five years, next to the country's over the same periods.

PopulationRising
4,127 (2015-2019) → 6,901 (2020-2024)
+67%5 yearsCensus table B01003US 328,329,953 → 340,003,797
Broadband subscriptionsImproving
68.1% (2015-2019) → 91.3% (2020-2024)
+23 pts5 yearsCensus table B28002US 82.7% → 91.0%
Median household incomeImproving
$32,268 (2015-2019) → $69,760 (2020-2024)
+116%5 yearsCensus table B19013US $65,712 → $81,604
Unemployment rateWorsening
0.9% (2015-2019) → 14.8% (2020-2024)
+14 pts5 yearsCensus table B23025US 3.7% → 4.0%
Rent as share of incomeImproving
44.1% (2015-2019) → 32.8% (2020-2024)
−11 pts5 yearsCensus table B25071US 29.8% → 30.6%
High school diploma or higherWorsening
83.9% (2015-2019) → 74.2% (2020-2024)
−9.7 pts5 yearsCensus table B15003US 88.0% → 89.6%

What changed in five years

How each measure moved between two periods about five years apart, read against whether more or less is better, the published margin of error and the same change in other places.

Over about five years, Swannanoa, North Carolina improved on 3 of 14 measures with a comparison and declined on 1. 9 moved within the margin of error and 1 barely changed.

Earlier (2015-2019)
Latest (2020-2024)
Lower standingHigher standing

Position is the place's standing among cities and towns: further right is better, whichever way the measure counts.

Improved3

Household income+116%$32,268 → $69,760
Broadband+23 points68.1% → 91.3%
Rent / income−11 points44.1% → 32.8%

Declined1

High school+−9.7 points83.9% → 74.2%

All 14 measures

Change of every measure of Swannanoa, North Carolina between two periods about five years apart
Measure	Before	After	Change	Reading	Favourable vs peers
Average commute time	16.1 min2015-2019	18.9 min2020-2024	+2.8 min	Within the margin of error	21%
Bachelor's degree or higher	22.0%2015-2019	27.4%2020-2024	+5.4 points	Within the margin of error	70%
Broadband subscriptions	68.1%2015-2019	91.3%2020-2024	+23 points	Improved	94%
Child poverty rate	36.4%2015-2019	28.8%2020-2024	−7.7 points	Within the margin of error	77%
Effective property tax rate	0.70%2015-2019	0.38%2020-2024	−0.3 points	Little change	76%
High school diploma or higher	83.9%2015-2019	74.2%2020-2024	−9.7 points	Declined	2%
Home price to income ratio	4.2×2015-2019	4.1×2020-2024	−0.1×	Within the margin of error	84%
Income inequality (Gini index)	0.3622015-2019	0.3412020-2024	−0.021	Within the margin of error	68%
Median household income	$32,2682015-2019	$69,7602020-2024	+116%	Improved	99%
Poverty rate	20.1%2015-2019	16.8%2020-2024	−3.4 points	Within the margin of error	72%
Public transit commuters	0.0%2015-2019	0.0%2020-2024	0 points	Within the margin of error	60%
Rent as share of income	44.1%2015-2019	32.8%2020-2024	−11 points	Improved	95%
Rent-burdened households	74.2%2015-2019	78.4%2020-2024	+4.2 points	Within the margin of error	40%
Uninsured residents (under 65)	16.9%2015-2019	13.5%2020-2024	−3.3 points	Within the margin of error	78%

“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 14640 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.

Sources: American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates. Values are the latest and the one five years earlier of the same publisher dataset; datasets that changed publisher in between are never compared.

Survey estimates (American Community Survey) compare the two most recent 5-year windows that do not share years, so the margin of error of the difference holds. The 2015-2019 window predates the pandemic and 2020-2024 includes it.
A change counts only when it is larger than 1.645 times the square root of the two standard errors squared, summed (a 90% margin). Measures published without a margin must change by at least 5% to count.
“Against peers” compares the change with the same change in the 15651 cities and towns that have the same two periods. It describes how common a change is, not why it happened.
Standing is a percentile among the same places: 0 is the lowest value on the measure (or the worst when lower is better), 100 the best.

Cities and towns like Swannanoa, North Carolina five years ago that improved

The places whose measures looked most like those of Swannanoa, North Carolina in the earlier period, ranked by how many measures improved beyond the margin of error, minus how many declined. A comparison of published data, not a forecast and not advice.

For comparison, Swannanoa, North Carolina itself moved +11.5 points in standing on average over the same 10 measures (standings of all places average about zero).

How the ranking works

Similarity is the root-mean-square difference of standings in the earlier period over the measures most places have. Places are ranked by measures that improved beyond the margin of error minus those that declined (a count that estimation noise in small places cannot inflate), then by the mean change of standing over the measures a place has in both periods. Only places with more improvements than declines and a rise in standing are listed. Standings are relative, so a place can improve in absolute terms and still lose standing.

Who lives here

Age, race and education of residents, from the American Community Survey. Shares are of all residents (age), residents of every origin (race) or adults 25 and over (education).

Age and sex

6,901 residents (±1,072)

Men
Women

80 and over†
70–79†
60–69†

Income

How household income is spread, not just the middle: each bar is the share of households in that income range.

Household income

1,834 households (±310)

Swannanoa, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Under $25k6.9%†126
$25k–50k22%†396
$50k–75k

Homes

Who owns and who rents, what homes cost, and what the housing stock looks like.

Owners and renters

1,834 households (±310)

Swannanoa, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Own79%1,441
Rent21%†393

No change since 2015–2019 is larger than the margin of error.

† Wide margin of error (more than 30% of the estimate): read with care.

Table view

Getting to work

How workers travel to their job and how long it takes them.

How people get to work

2,201 workers (±491)

Swannanoa, North Carolina
North Carolina share

Drive alone81%1,780
Carpool0.9%†20
Public transit0.0%0

Jobs and pay

What the largest occupations here pay, from the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics survey.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes pay by metro area, not by county or city. The metro area page lists its largest occupations and lets you look up any job.

Pay in the Asheville, NC

Local businesses

Employer businesses and sole proprietors by industry, per resident and against the state and the nation. Counts of businesses next to counts of people, not a measure of demand.

The Census Bureau publishes business counts by county, not by city, so these are the figures of Buncombe County, the county holding most of Swannanoa's residents.

Buncombe County has 9,863 employer establishments, 357 for every 10,000 residents (1.44× the US rate of 248; 1.50× North Carolina's), with 127,409 paid employees at an average annual pay of $51,760. The Census Bureau also counts 32,527 nonemployer businesses, mostly sole proprietors.

Establishments: 9,863; 32,527 nonemployers
Per 10,000 residents: 357; US 248 · North Carolina 237
Paid employees: 127,409
Average annual pay: $51,760; US $68,342

Employer establishments, employees, average pay and nonemployers of Buncombe County by industry, with the density per resident against the nation

Ambulatory health care services	1,009	36.5	1.75×More than typical	13,814	$70,019	2,398
Restaurants and other eating places	732	26.5	1.44×More than typical	14,861	$26,931	99
Lessors of real estate	675	24.4	1.98×More than typical	1,809	$52,661	3,867
Specialty trade contractors	496	17.9	1.16×About typical	3,184	$55,464	2,099
Construction of buildings	431	15.6	2.06×More than typical	2,232	$62,728	1,239
Offices of other health practitioners	381	13.8	2.27×More than typical	4,028	$42,712	1,617
Real estate agents and brokers	381	13.8	2.83×More than typical	691	$61,634	972
Offices of physicians	358	12.9	2.00×More than typical	5,959	$98,342	392
Full-service restaurants	338	12.2	1.59×More than typical	8,222	$29,774	49
Management, scientific and technical consulting	303	11	1.63×More than typical	688	$69,283	1,395
Limited-service restaurants	266	9.6	1.20×About typical	5,204	$23,400	31
Services to buildings and dwellings	261	9.4	1.40×More than typical	2,437	$30,079	1,866

Rank places for an industry Open Buncombe County

County Business Patterns (2023); Nonemployer Statistics (2024)

Per-resident figures divide by the population estimate of 2023: 276,463 residents here, 336,755,052 in the United States. County Business Patterns counts establishments in 2023; the Nonemployer Statistics count businesses in 2024.
“More than typical” is a density at least 1.25 times the nation's per resident, “fewer” at most 0.8 times, with at least 10 establishments. It compares counts of businesses with counts of people: it says nothing about demand, incomes, size, quality or profit, and visitors and commuters are not residents.
The Census Bureau adds noise to employment and payroll to protect confidentiality, and withholds some figures: an industry with few establishments can show employees or pay as unavailable.
Industries overlap: a narrower industry (full-service restaurants) is part of a broader one (restaurants), so the rows do not add up.
Industries follow the North American Industry Classification System; the two surveys use different editions (NAICS 2017 and 2022), which this page matches industry by industry.

Federal contracts performed here

In FY2026, an estimated $0 of federal contract obligations were for work performed in Swannanoa, North Carolina: $0 per resident (US $1,995).

Obligations: $0; −100% vs FY2025
Per resident: $0; US $1,995
Sole-source: —; US 30%
Single offer: —; US 8.8%

A signal is a reason to look closer, not evidence of wrongdoing: most sole-source awards are lawful and justified.

Top buying agencies

Top recipients

Spending by fiscal year

8.9KFY2017
3KFY2018
13.4KFY2019
10.7KFY2020
9.3KFY2021
6.5KFY2022
-62.7FY2023
64KFY2025

What was bought

Source: Federal contract transactions (Federal Procurement Data System) (U.S. Department of the Treasury, USAspending.gov), data current to Oct 6, 2026, loaded Oct 6, 2026.

How this is estimated

Agencies report each contract action's place of performance as a county and a ZIP code. A ZIP code's money is split among the cities it covers by the share of its land inside each (Census 2020 ZIP code tabulation areas); the part outside city limits stays with the county.

The place of performance is what the contracting agency reports, often the contractor's office rather than where the work happens.
Shares are of land, not of people or businesses: a ZIP code that is mostly rural land but has its offices in town gives the town less than it should.
ZIP codes that are not mapped areas (post office boxes, the unique ZIP codes of large federal sites and companies) stay with their county, unless one city covers nearly all of it.
Counts of actions and awards include those only partly in Swannanoa, North Carolina, so they do not add up across cities.

Swannanoa, North Carolina's figures are part of those of Buncombe County, NC ($182.5M in FY2026), never added to them: 0.0% of that total.

Grants and other federal assistance are counted by county here, not split among cities: Swannanoa is mostly in Buncombe County.

See federal money in Buncombe County

Representation in Congress

Members serving today, with their record in the current Congress (party-unity votes cast with their caucus, roll calls missed). Not a grade.

Swannanoa, North Carolina is represented in the 119th Congress by these members.

House

Chuck EdwardsR-NC-11 · 100% of residentsWith party 96%Missed 1.6%

Senate

Explore Congress The 2026 races

County

A city can lie in several counties. Some indicators are published for counties only: the page marks them.

Buncombe County81100% of residents

Metro area

The metro or micro area the city belongs to.

Asheville, NC85

Other cities and towns in Buncombe County

Largest first.

Similar cities and towns

Closest indicator profiles across the country (no model: score distances).

Data and sources

Latest published value of each indicator; periods differ by source. Values flagged by their publisher are marked.

PLACES: Local Data for Better HealthCenters for Disease Control and Prevention · release 2025
Local Area Unemployment StatisticsU.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics · release 2025
American Community Survey 5-Year EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2017-2024
Population Estimates ProgramU.S. Census Bureau · release 2025
Small Area Health Insurance EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
Small Area Income and Poverty EstimatesU.S. Census Bureau · release 2024
County Health Rankings & RoadmapsUniversity of Wisconsin Population Health Institute · release 2022-2025+2026-03-supplement

JSON · /api/v1/places/3766280

Scores by category

Strengths · Weaknesses

Strengths

Weaknesses

Trends