Banner Elk is a very small town located in the state of North Carolina. With a population of 1,130 people and two associated neighborhoods, Banner Elk is the 398th largest community in North Carolina. There's nothing like the smell of a brand new house, and in Banner Elk, you'll find that a large proportion of houses were recently built. New growth in residential real estate is an indication that people are choosing to move to Banner Elk, and putting down their money on brand new construction. Banner Elk’s real estate is, on average, some of the newest in the nation. Banner Elk does seem to be experiencing an influx of affluent people, because the median household income is $66,607.00.Banner Elk is a decidedly white-collar town, with fully 93.87% of the workforce employed in white-collar jobs, well above the national average. Overall, Banner Elk is a town of sales and office workers, professionals, and service providers. There are especially a lot of people living in Banner Elk who work in sales jobs (22.88%), food service (17.45%), and office and administrative support (11.32%). Also of interest is that Banner Elk has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US. Of important note, Banner Elk is also a town of artists. Banner Elk has more artists, designers and people working in media than 90% of the communities in America. This concentration of artists helps shape Banner Elk’s character. One interesting thing about the economy is that relatively large numbers of people worked from their home: 16.41% of the workforce. While this number may seem small overall, as a fraction of the total workforce this is high compared to the rest of the county. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes. Banner Elk is a small town where college students really create the town feel and character. So many small towns have lost population over the last 20-30 years that having the local college presence in the Banner Elk area, with all of the energy of the students filling area dorms and apartments each fall, really helps Banner Elk maintain a good economy. Another notable thing is that Banner Elk is an extremely popular vacation destination. A significant portion of the population is seasonal. During the vacation season, the town experiences a large influx of people who take up residence in second homes they own in the area. As the vacation season ends, the population drops again, leaving behind a substantially quieter and smaller town. Compared to the rest of the country, citizens of Banner Elk spend much less time in their cars: on average, their commute to work is only 13.39 minutes. This also means that noise and pollution levels in the town are less than they would otherwise be. As is often the case in a small town, Banner Elk doesn't have a public transportation system that people use for their commute.Do you have a 4-year college degree or graduate degree? If so, you may feel right at home in Banner Elk. 51.57% of adults here have a 4-year degree or graduate degree, whereas the national average for all cities and towns is just 21.84%. The per capita income in Banner Elk in 2022 was $40,738, which is wealthy relative to North Carolina, and upper middle income relative to the rest of the US. This equates to an annual income of $162,952 for a family of four. However, Banner Elk contains both very wealthy and poor people as well. Banner Elk is a very ethnically-diverse town. The people who call Banner Elk home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Banner Elk residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Important ancestries of people in Banner Elk include English, German, Irish, Scottish, and Italian. The most common language spoken in Banner Elk is English. Other important languages spoken here include Spanish and Hungarian.
