From Staff Reports 

The estimated rent for a one-bedroom apartment in Asheville has soared “by 78 percent and has made the mountainous metropolitan area’s cost of housing as the highest in North Carolina,” the Asheville Citizen Times reported on March 18.

“In the past five years, Fair Market Rent for Asheville has skyrocketed,” the ACT story noted. “Yet, Asheville is not the only North Carolina city facing steep rent increases, as well as the rapidly rising cost of homeownership. The Raleigh and Charlotte metros both saw increases of 54 percent in Fair Market Rent for a one-bedroom apartment, according to estimates from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.”

Calling it “perhaps a no-brainer,” the ACT story stated, the most expensive North Carolina areas to live in are “the metros and tourist towns.

“Asheville’s Metropolitan Statistical Area tops that list in every metric — meaning the area is estimated to be the most expensive from those looking for efficiency apartments to those looking to rent a four-bedroom house.

“Yet, there are other areas which are just as expensive in certain metrics.”

 The following are the most expensive metros North Carolina for one who is looking for a two-bedroom apartment:

(1) Asheville (Buncombe, Henderson, Madison counties): $1,680 a month.

(2) Raleigh (Franklin, Johnston, Wake counties): $1,646 a month.

(3) Durham-Chapel Hill (Chatham, Durham, Orange counties): $1,631 a month.

(4) Charlotte (Cabarrus, Gaston, Mecklenburg, Union counties): $1,554 a month.

(5) Wilmington (New Hanover County): $1,515

“Of North Carolina’s 100 counties, 26 of them have the lowest estimate of $856 a month for a two bedroom,” the ACT noted.

The lowest-rent localities in the state are led by Hamlet, followed by Eden, Tarboro, Fayetteville, Thomasville, Asheboro, Greenville, Burlington, Lexington and Greensboro. 

Meanwhile, the ACT reported in an April 7 story headlined “Facing hurdles: The ambitious Project Aspire for downtown Asheville still looks to find its footing 6 months after its approval:”

“Asheville’s Fair Market Rent is the highest for North Carolina metros, with a one-bedroom apartment going for $1,496 a month, according to U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development.

“Across North Carolina and its surrounding states, only the Atlanta and the Washington, D.C. metros have higher Fair Market Rents for one-bedroom apartments than Asheville.”