Two years after Tropical Storm Helene struck Western North Carolina, new data reveals that Buncombe County has undergone the most dramatic domestic migration reversal of any large county in the United States. According to an analysis of public data by Asheville-based Dry Ridge Moving, the county saw a net loss of 2,056 residents to other parts of the country in the year after the storm, compared with a net gain of 1,768 in the year before. The swing of 13.7 net movers per 1,000 residents is the largest among the 620 U.S. counties with at least 100,000 residents, surpassing Craighead County, Arkansas, at 12.1.
The reversal has reshaped the local housing market. Active home listings in Buncombe County more than doubled from 886 in August 2024 to 1,799 in August 2026, a 103 percent increase, while national listings rose just 25 percent, according to Realtor.com data published by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. The median listing now spends 78 days on the market, up from 54. Zillow’s typical home value in the county fell 5.6 percent between September 2024 and July 2026, even as national home values rose 1.1 percent.
The workforce has also contracted. Buncombe County’s civilian labor force stood at 135,287 in July 2026, down 5.8 percent from July 2024, according to preliminary Bureau of Labor Statistics figures. Statewide, the labor force fell only 1.2 percent over the same period. The county’s unemployment rate, which spiked after the storm, was 3.4 percent in July 2026.
While the broader region continued to grow, the pace has slowed. Across 23 North Carolina counties declared for Helene aid, net domestic migration fell 54.5 percent, from 9,183 to 4,180, but remained positive. Henderson County added 1,089 residents. IRS migration data from tax years 2022 and 2023 show that Florida was the leading out-of-state source of new households for Buncombe, Haywood, Henderson, Madison and Transylvania counties, with 1,315 households moving in, while South Carolina, led by Greenville and Spartanburg counties, was the top destination for those leaving, with 1,111 households.
The study notes that Census estimates are revised annually and may not fully capture temporary displacement, and that 2026 labor force figures are preliminary. The next county population estimates, expected in spring 2027, will show whether the migration reversal continued. The full study includes methodology, charts and downloadable county data.
