A typical home in each town, bought with 20% down at 6.3% for 30 years, plus property tax at the town’s own rate and insurance. Change the numbers to fit you.

Down paymentRate%

Mars Hill$2,360/mo

Typical home $414K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.56% · or rent about $1,043/mo · Housing →

Wingate$1,860/mo

Typical home $322K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.63% · or rent about $1,123/mo · Housing →

The difference: $510 a month, about $6,100 a year, between Mars Hill and Wingate.

Estimates, not a quote: your price, rate, tax bill and insurance will differ. Tax rate = the Census median tax bill over the median home value.

Report cards

Mars Hill places higher on 11 of 19 NC lists

Our letter grades for safety, schools and health, then every North Carolina ranking list both towns are on. A grade is one measure; read the page behind it.

Schools

B+Mars HillBetter than 70% of districts in the state A−WingateBetter than 81% of districts in the state

Health

AMars HillHealthier than 87% of U.S. towns B+WingateHealthier than 66% of U.S. towns

11Mars Hill

8Wingate

Lists won, of 19 where both are ranked. Ties go to nobody.

Closest to a top hospitalHealth · 297 towns #267#40 Fewest uninsuredHealth · 296 towns #62#210 Most conserved landOutdoors · 276 towns #269#150 Most activeHealth · 296 towns #30#134 Best schoolsSchools · 252 towns #121#209 Shortest commuteGetting around · 297 towns #213#124 HealthiestHealth · 296 towns #45#126 Fastest growingGrowth · 291 towns #154#90

Left end = #1 in North Carolina. Showing the lists where the towns are furthest apart. All of Mars Hill’s rankings →

Life in each

What daily life feels like in each

The weather, the land, the history and the people, row by row. None of it is a grade: more snow is a plus to a skier.

Seasons

Mars HillWingate

Snow a year26″2″

January low24°F 30°F

July high85°F 91°F

Growing season (days)173d 213d

Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)60th 39th

Outdoors & history

Mars HillWingate

Trails—1 mi

Conserved land—3%

National Register places4 —

Archive photos24 4

Famous people born here3 —

Community

Mars HillWingate

Library hours a week50 hrs —

Colleges in town1 1

Posts this month0 0

Neighbors joined0 0

A dot marks the most on each row. Climate: NOAA 1991–2020 normals at the nearest station. Hazard risk: FEMA National Risk Index, expected yearly damage vs U.S. towns.

Where they are

132 miles apart

Straight-line miles between town centers.

Mars HillNC WingateNC

Mars Hill ↔ Wingate132 miles apart

Everything, side by side

What matters to you?

Pick a few. Those rows jump to the top and the best fit on each is marked. There’s no overall score: what matters is up to you.

Only big differences vs North Carolina average

Mars HillWingate

People

Population 3,025Lowest 4,425Highest

Growth since 20102010 → 2020 census +7.4%Lowest NC: +9.5% +16.2%Highest NC: +9.5%

Median age 27.6±5.5Highest 29% below NC 21.8±0.9Lowest 44% below NC

Mars Hill and Wingate are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Kids under 18 21.1%±4.7Highest NC: 21.8% 17.2%±4.6Lowest NC: 21.8%

Mars Hill and Wingate are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Age 65+ 14%±2.7Highest NC: 17.2% 7.6%±3.9Lowest NC: 17.2%

Mars Hill and Wingate are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 48.1%Highest NC: 35.7% 37.9%Lowest NC: 35.7%

Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 24.1%±4.9Lowest NC: 6.4% 46.1%±5Highest NC: 6.4%

Cost of living

Household incomemedian $81,429±$9kHighest 12% above NC $63,068±$22kLowest 13% below NC

Mars Hill and Wingate are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $294,700±$37kHighest about the NC average $229,800±$15kLowest 20% below NC

Rentmedian gross, monthly $1,043±$172Lowest 15% below NC $1,123±$184Highest 9% below NC

Wingate and Mars Hill are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Property taxmedian, yearly $1,649Highest 13% below NC $1,438Lowest 24% below NC

Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 41.3%±14.8Lowest NC: 48.9% 74.9%±10.8Highest NC: 48.9%

Below poverty line 3.3%Lowest NC: 13% 17%Highest NC: 13%

Housing

Homeownersof occupied homes 64.6%Highest NC: 66.6% 60.9%Lowest NC: 66.6%

Typical home builtmedian year 1982Lowest 9 yrs older than NC 1987Highest 4 yrs older than NC

Getting to work

Average commuteone way 27 minHighest 7% above NC 23 minLowest 7% below NC

Work from home 15.5%±7.5Highest NC: 16.3% 14%±5.9Lowest NC: 16.3%

Mars Hill and Wingate are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.

Work in townworking residents 4.8%Highest 3.4%Lowest

Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 17.3 miLowest 23.3 miHighest

Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 0.93Highest 0.76Lowest

Top workplaceoutside town Asheville (28%)Monroe (23%)

Between these townsresidents who work in the others Few work in WingateFew work in Mars Hill

Outdoors

Conserved landshare of the town 0.2%Lowest 3%Highest

Trailsmapped miles 0.3 miLowest 0.8 miHighest

Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.1 miLowest 0.3 miHighest

Parks & preservesnamed on the map 0Lowest 2Highest

Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 42.1Lowest 43.4Highest

Schools

Public school scoresrank in state, math + reading #121 of 252 in NC #209 of 252 in NC

School district Madison County SchoolsUnion County Public Schools

High school in town None in townNone in town

North Carolina average“±” Census margin of errorACS 2020–2024

Deciding?

Ask the people who live there

The numbers stop at the town line. Neighbors can tell you about the commute at 7am, the schools, the winters and the feel of the place.

Mars Hill neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Mars Hill’s Town Square.

Wingate neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Wingate’s Town Square.

Add a town

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Towns like Mars Hill

+ Compare

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Cramerton5,450 people · $343K homes

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Boiling Springs4,757 people · $265K homes

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey 5-year estimates, 2010 & 2020 censuses, LEHD commute flows; Zillow Home Value Index; NCES Common Core of Data; FBI crime reporting; CDC PLACES; FEMA National Risk Index; NOAA U.S. Climate Normals 1991–2020; USGS PAD-US and OpenStreetMap. “±” is the Census margin of error; differences inside it are never called. Property tax is top-coded by the Census at $10,000+. There is no overall score: which town is better depends on what matters to you.

Mars Hill vs Wingate

Two towns, two different strengths

Where they differ most

A typical home costs $510 more a month in Mars Hill

Mars Hill places higher on 11 of 19 NC lists

What daily life feels like in each

132 miles apart

What matters to you?

Ask the people who live there

Set another town beside Mars Hill and Wingate

Towns like Mars Hill

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