Wilmington Home Prices: $402K, Down 1.4% — 6 ZIPs Analyzed (2026)

$402,245. That’s what a typical home in Wilmington is worth as of February 2026. Prices are down 1.4% from a year ago, the eleventh straight month of small declines.

Quick answer: The average home price in Wilmington, NC is $402,245 as of February 2026, down 1.4% year over year according to Zillow.

Current Home Prices in Wilmington

The Wilmington market sits in the lower $400Ks. Six ZIP codes inside the city limits track in the Zillow data, ranging from $320,548 in the downtown core to $501,559 in the southern coastal stretch.

The 1.4% annual drop translates to about $5,800 off the typical home value over twelve months. That’s slower than the corrections seen in some Sun Belt metros, but it’s still negative — buyers who closed last spring are slightly underwater on paper.

The price spread between the cheapest and most expensive ZIP is 1.6×. That’s a wide gap for a mid-sized coastal city. It mostly reflects proximity to water and the difference between dense older neighborhoods downtown and newer subdivisions to the south and north.

Wilmington Home Prices by Neighborhood

Most Expensive

• 28409 — $501,559. The priciest Wilmington ZIP runs 25% above the citywide median and commands rents of $2,256, the only ZIP above $2,000.
• 28411 — $455,165. Roughly 13% above the city median, with rents near $1,928 — the second-highest in the city.
• 28412 — $387,033. Slightly below the median but still in the upper half, with notably low rents around $1,447.

Most Affordable

• 28401 — $320,548. The downtown ZIP is the cheapest place to buy in the city, sitting 20% below the median. Despite low values, asking rents are $1,698 — higher than two pricier ZIPs.
• 28405 — $365,766. About 9% below the city median, with rents close to $1,705.
• 28403 — $383,401. Mid-pack on price but with rents at $1,640, this ZIP offers some of the better rent-to-value ratios.

Rent vs Buy in Wilmington

Average asking rent across the six Wilmington ZIPs is around $1,779. The high end is 28409 at $2,256, and the low end is 28412 at $1,447.

Compare that with what it costs to buy. On a $402,245 home with 20% down ($80,449), you’re financing roughly $321,796. At today’s rates, principal and interest alone come to about $2,100 a month. Add property taxes and insurance, and the total monthly cost lands somewhere north of $2,500.

That gap — about $700 a month between the average rent and a typical mortgage payment — is meaningful. Renting is cheaper on a monthly basis in every Wilmington ZIP except 28409, where the gap narrows because rents are already above $2,200.

A few notes worth pulling out:

• 28401 has cheap homes but expensive rent. Buying the median home there costs around $320K, but rent is $1,698 — almost identical to ZIPs with $80K more in home value. That makes it the strongest case for buying over renting in the city.
• 28412 is the opposite. Homes cost $387K but rents are only $1,447. Renting there is significantly cheaper than carrying the mortgage.
• 28409 rents look high relative to the rest of the city but make sense given the home values — the rent-to-value ratio is roughly in line with other ZIPs.

If you plan to stay five-plus years and have the down payment, the math gets closer. If you’re not sure, renting is the cheaper option in five out of six Wilmington ZIPs right now.

Population Growth and Migration

Wilmington keeps adding people. The city grew from 115,887 in 2020 to 125,284 in 2024 — an 8.1% jump in four years.

Growth has been steady. The city added roughly 9,400 residents in four years with no single year of decline.

How does that compare to other North Carolina cities?

Wilmington is growing faster than every nearby city in the comparison set, including Charlotte and Raleigh. That kind of population pressure usually puts a floor under home prices even when values are dipping. The 1.4% drop you see in the price data is happening despite people moving in, not because they’re leaving.

Wilmington Housing Market Trends

Twelve months of price data tell a clear story: small, steady declines.

Prices peaked in early 2025 and have softened every month since. The pace of decline has slowed sharply — the drop from March to June 2025 was roughly $2,500 per month, but the most recent three months have averaged less than $200 per month.

That deceleration matters. It looks like the market is finding a floor near $402K. Whether that floor holds depends on what spring 2026 buyers are willing to pay.

Is Wilmington a Good Place to Buy in 2026?

The data points to a balanced market tilting slightly toward buyers.

Prices are down 1.4% year over year, but the rate of decline has flattened to almost nothing in recent months. Population growth is strong — 8.1% in four years, faster than Charlotte or Raleigh — which limits how far prices can fall before demand picks back up.

For buyers, the case is decent: prices are off their peak, you’re not bidding against waves of new listings dropping every week, and the long-term population trend is in your favor. The downside is that rates remain high, so monthly costs still feel painful relative to renting in most ZIPs.

For sellers, expect to negotiate. Homes priced above last year’s comps are unlikely to move quickly. Pricing in line with current ZIP-level medians — not 2024 peaks — is the realistic path to a closing.

Wilmington Housing Market Outlook for 2026-2027

The 12-month trend shows price declines slowing to a near-halt. February’s median was just $99 below January’s. If the current pace continues, prices should stabilize within the next quarter or two rather than continue falling meaningfully.

The 3-month trend suggests Wilmington is closer to the bottom of this cycle than the top. With population growing 8% over four years and rents holding above $1,700 across most ZIPs, the demand floor looks intact.

What could change the picture? A shift in mortgage rates either way would reset buyer math quickly. A jump in inventory could push prices lower. Without those shocks, expect the median to hover within a few thousand dollars of $402K through mid-2026.

Similar Markets in NC

• Asheville — another mid-sized NC city with mountain rather than coastal appeal, often compared with Wilmington for lifestyle buyers.
• Raleigh — bigger market with stronger job growth; useful comparison for buyers weighing tech-belt cities against the coast.
• Charlotte — North Carolina’s largest city; buyers wanting a larger metro often weigh Charlotte against Wilmington.
• Durham — Triangle option with similar 7.2% population growth, slightly larger than Wilmington.
• Cary — suburban Triangle market for buyers who want newer housing stock outside a downtown core.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the average home price in Wilmington?

The typical Wilmington home is worth $402,245 as of February 2026. That figure is the citywide median across six ZIP codes, with values ranging from $320,548 in 28401 to $501,559 in 28409.

Are home prices going up or down in Wilmington?

Down, but barely. Prices fell 1.4% over the past year — from roughly $408,048 in March 2025 to $402,245 in February 2026. The pace of decline has slowed to less than $200 per month since November 2025.

Is it cheaper to rent or buy in Wilmington?

Renting is cheaper monthly in five of six Wilmington ZIPs. The citywide average rent is about $1,779, while a typical mortgage on the median $402K home runs above $2,500 once taxes and insurance are included.

What is the most affordable neighborhood in Wilmington?

ZIP 28401 — the downtown area — has the lowest typical home value at $320,548. That’s about 20% below the citywide median. Rents there sit around $1,698, making 28401 one of the strongest buy-versus-rent cases in the city.

Methodology

Home values are based on the Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI), a smoothed measure of typical home values in the 35th to 65th percentile range. Rent estimates use the Zillow Observed Rent Index (ZORI). Population figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program (2020-2024 vintage). All datasets are publicly available. Housing data updated 2026-02-28.