Banner Elk is a very small town located in the state of North Carolina. With a population of 1,088 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 place where college students are a big part of the character and culture of the town. Small towns have often struggled with declining populations over the past few decades, but the presence of such a large college student population has helped Banner Elk to fight this trend. Not only does the college population add spending and jobs to local economy, but it also contributes a very tangible, youthful energy to the town. Another notable thing is that Banner Elk is a major vacation destination. Much of the town’s population is seasonal: many people own second homes and only live there part-time, during the vacation season. The effect on the local economy is that many of the businesses are dependent on tourist dollars, and may operate only during the high season. As the vacation season ends, Banner Elk’s population drops significantly, such that year-round residents will notice that the city is a much quieter place to live. Residents of the town have the good fortune of having one of the shortest daily commutes compared to the rest of the country. On average, they spend only 13.39 minutes getting to work every day. Banner Elk is a small town, and as such doesn't have a public transit system that people use to get to and from their jobs every day.If knowledge is power, Banner Elk is a pretty powerful place. 51.57% of the adults in Banner Elk have earned a 4-year college degree, masters degree, MD, law degree, or even PhD. Compare that to the national average of 21.84% for all cities and towns. 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.
