Brunswick County NC homes
across the river.
Cross the Cape Fear to Brunswick County NC homes and everything changes — the price per square foot, the pace of new construction, the utility provider, and the bridge you’ll think about every weekday morning. Buyers come here for a specific set of trade-offs worth understanding before you commit.
Where people
actually live.
The commuter side
Leland is where most Wilmington-adjacent buyers land — master-planned communities, heavy new construction, and a real bridge conversation. I’ve written a fuller Leland buyer’s guide too.
The islands
Oak Island, Holden Beach, Ocean Isle, Sunset Beach, Caswell Beach and Bald Head each have their own character and their own rules about cars, rentals and bridges. Start with my tour of the Brunswick beaches and Southport.
Inland and historic
Southport for the waterfront-town life, Shallotte and Calabash toward the South Carolina line, and Bolivia in the middle as the county seat. Slower, further from Wilmington, and priced accordingly.
Brunswick Forest in Leland is the community I get asked about most — the amenity list is genuinely long, and the HOA structure is worth reading closely before you sign. Here’s what those dues actually cover.
The two things
everyone asks.
What about the water?
This is the first question out of nearly every Brunswick buyer’s mouth, and it deserves a real answer rather than reassurance. The county went from national headlines about PFAS to building a large reverse-osmosis upgrade — here’s where that actually stands.
What happens with the bridge?
If you live in Brunswick and work in Wilmington, the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge is your daily reality — and the toll question keeps resurfacing. What’s decided, what isn’t, and how to think about it as a buyer.
Also worth reading before you buy here: flood zones and coastal insurance, and why the tax bill changes across county and town lines.
Turning everything on
in Brunswick.
Brunswick is the one county where I can’t just hand you a single list — water and electric both depend on exactly where the house sits, and in new construction the answer sometimes isn’t settled until closing. Confirm the provider for your specific address rather than your subdivision.
Water & sewer
H2GO
(910) 371-9949
Brunswick County Public Utilities
(910) 253-2655
Or town water, depending on location
Electric
Duke Energy
(800) 452-2777
or BEMC
(800) 842-5871
Varies by subdivision
Natural gas
Piedmont Natural Gas
(800) 752-7504
License & plates
Leland, Shallotte or Bolivia DMV
The county,
by the numbers.
Brunswick County NC homes cover the state’s southeastern corner, from the Cape Fear River at Leland and Navassa west to the South Carolina line at Calabash. Here’s the county at a glance, with every figure dated and sourced so you can check it yourself.
- Population: 174,702 residents on July 1, 2025, per the U.S. Census Bureau’s Vintage 2025 estimates, up from 136,695 in the April 2020 estimates base.
- Growth: a 4.7% gain from 2024 to 2025, the largest percentage increase of any North Carolina county, according to Carolina Demography at UNC (April 7, 2026).
- Land area: about 850 square miles (850.08 square miles of land in the 2020 Census, via QuickFacts).
- County seat: Bolivia, home to the county government center on Government Center Drive.
- Municipalities: 19 towns and cities appear on the county tax office’s rate table (checked September 24, 2026): Bald Head Island, Belville, Boiling Spring Lakes, Bolivia, Calabash, Carolina Shores, Caswell Beach, Holden Beach, Leland, Navassa, Northwest, Oak Island, Ocean Isle Beach, St. James, Sandy Creek, Shallotte, Southport, Sunset Beach and Varnamtown. Communities such as Supply, Winnabow and Ash are unincorporated.
- Main corridors: US 17 runs the length of the county from Leland through Bolivia and Shallotte to the state line; US 74/76 heads west toward Whiteville; I-140 loops the north end; NC 211, NC 133, NC 130 and NC 179 carry most beach traffic.
Property taxes,
town by town.
A Brunswick tax bill is the county rate plus a town rate if the parcel sits inside municipal limits. Commissioners adopted the FY2026–27 budget on June 15, 2026 with the county rate unchanged at 34.2¢ per $100 of assessed value (Brunswick Beacon, June 2026; Brunswick County Tax Office). FY2026–27 town rates, added on top of the county rate, per the same tax office table checked September 24, 2026:
- Near the river: Leland 25¢ (down from 27¢ the year before), Belville 15¢, Navassa 27¢, Northwest 27¢, Sandy Creek 25¢.
- Beach towns: Oak Island 20¢, Holden Beach 14¢, Ocean Isle Beach 13¢, Sunset Beach 16¢, Caswell Beach 19¢, Bald Head Island 58.6¢.
- Inland and south: Shallotte 31¢, Southport 31¢, Boiling Spring Lakes 27¢, Carolina Shores 10¢, Calabash 9.8¢, St. James 5¢, Bolivia 5¢, Varnamtown 5¢.
- Smithville Township: parcels in that township carry an extra 4¢ township levy.
Worked example, $450,000 assessed value: outside town limits, 34.2¢ comes to about $1,539 a year. Inside Leland, the combined 59.2¢ comes to about $2,664. Inside Ocean Isle Beach, 47.2¢ comes to about $2,124. Fire fees and special-district charges can also appear on the bill, so pull the actual bill for the parcel you’re considering.
Revaluation timing: Brunswick last revalued in 2023, when the county rate dropped from 48.5¢ to 34.2¢ (county tax office table). The next revaluation takes effect January 1, 2027, and owners should get new-value notices in February or March 2027 (Brunswick County, September 23, 2026). The assessed value on a listing today may not be the one you’re taxed on for long. Here’s how revaluations and rate changes have played out across the region.
Flood zones
and storm season.
Flood risk in Brunswick changes from one street to the next, so check the parcel, not the ZIP code. The county’s Know Your Flood Hazard page points to three lookups:
- Brunswick County Flood Zone Viewer: search by address for the mapped zone (VE, Coastal A, AE, A or X).
- NC Flood Risk Information System: the state’s official effective flood maps and parcel-level risk details.
- FEMA Flood Map Service Center: the federal map panels and any pending changes.
Unincorporated Brunswick County is a Class 8 community in FEMA’s Community Rating System, worth up to a 10% discount on National Flood Insurance Program premiums (Brunswick County CRS page, checked September 24, 2026). Each town runs its own floodplain program, so confirm the town’s current class with your insurance agent. Ask the seller for an elevation certificate early; it drives the flood quote more than the zone letter does. My guide to homeowners insurance costs in the region covers the wind side of the premium.
For hurricane season, look up the address on North Carolina’s Know Your Zone map, which assigns every coastal address an evacuation zone. Officials call evacuations by zone, so know yours before you close. I walk through storm history and what it means for a purchase in hurricane risk for buyers.
Getting around
from here.
Brunswick is wide, and the drive is part of the decision. These are typical non-rush drive times estimated with OpenStreetMap-based routing (OSRM), checked September 24, 2026. Add time for bridge traffic and summer beach weekends.
- From Leland: downtown Wilmington about 10 miles (16 min); ILM airport about 17 miles (28 min); Oak Island about 24 miles (36 min).
- From Bolivia: downtown Wilmington about 21 miles (32 min); ILM about 27 miles (45 min); Oak Island about 9 miles (14 min).
- From Shallotte: downtown Wilmington about 35 miles (50 min); ILM about 40 miles (63 min); Ocean Isle Beach about 8 miles (13 min).
Most trips into Wilmington cross the Cape Fear on the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge, the Isabel Holmes Bridge or I-140, which is why the bridge question above matters so much. If you’re choosing between the two sides of the river, my Leland vs. Wilmington comparison lays out the trade-offs, and my roundup of 2026 road projects tracks what NCDOT is building.
Questions
buyers ask me.
What is the property tax rate on Brunswick County NC homes?
For FY2026–27 the county rate is 34.2¢ per $100 of assessed value, unchanged from last year (Brunswick County Tax Office). Town rates are added inside municipal limits, from 5¢ in Bolivia, St. James and Varnamtown to 58.6¢ on Bald Head Island. A $450,000 home in Leland pays about $2,664 a year.
When is Brunswick County’s next property revaluation?
The next countywide revaluation takes effect January 1, 2027, and owners should receive new-value notices in February or March 2027, according to Brunswick County (September 23, 2026). The last revaluation was in 2023, when the county rate dropped from 48.5¢ to 34.2¢ per $100.
How many people live in Brunswick County, NC?
The U.S. Census Bureau estimated 174,702 residents on July 1, 2025 (Vintage 2025), up from 136,695 in 2020. Carolina Demography at UNC reported the county’s 4.7% one-year gain as the largest percentage increase in North Carolina (April 7, 2026).
How do I check whether a Brunswick County home is in a flood zone?
Search the address in Brunswick County’s Flood Zone Viewer, then confirm it on the NC Flood Risk Information System (fris.nc.gov) or FEMA’s Map Service Center, and ask for the elevation certificate. Unincorporated Brunswick is a CRS Class 8 community, worth up to 10% off NFIP premiums (county CRS page, checked September 2026).
How long is the drive from Leland to downtown Wilmington?
About 10 miles and 16 minutes in typical non-rush traffic (OpenStreetMap routing, checked September 24, 2026). Bridge traffic at rush hour can stretch that, so test the drive at the hours you would actually commute before you commit to a neighborhood.
Sources (all checked September 24, 2026): Brunswick County Tax Office, county and municipal tax rates 2024–2026; Brunswick Beacon, “Brunswick County approves FY 26-27 budget” (June 2026); Brunswick County, “2027 Revaluation: Upcoming Dates” (September 23, 2026); Brunswick County 2023 Revaluation; U.S. Census Bureau QuickFacts, Vintage 2025; Carolina Demography, 2025 county estimates (April 7, 2026); Brunswick County Community Rating System; Brunswick County Know Your Flood Hazard; NC Flood Risk Information System; NC Know Your Zone; drive times from OSRM OpenStreetMap routing. Tax figures are estimates; confirm any parcel’s bill with the county tax office.
Weighing
the bridge?
The Brunswick-versus-New-Hanover math is different for everyone. Tell me where you’d be driving and I’ll give you an honest read. No pressure, no obligation.
Or call
Tabetha Klein, REALTOR® | Coldwell Banker Sea Coast Advantage · 910-983-8963 · www.makingilmhome.com. Each office is independently owned and operated. Equal Housing Opportunity.