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Sugar Mountain vs Seven Devils

Next-door neighbors. The biggest differences: jobs per worker (2.9× in Sugar Mountain) and average commute (9 min in Sugar Mountain).

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Sugar Mountain, NCA regional job hubNorth Carolina · 539 people
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Seven Devils, NCHomes around $553KNorth Carolina · 425 people
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Where each one shines

Two towns, two different strengths

What each town does better than most of its state (not better than each other). Tap one to see the page behind it.

Sugar MountainA regional job hub
Work630 jobsbased in Sugar Mountain, a regional job hub Outdoors18.9% conserved land1.9 miles of trails across 1 parks and preserves All about Sugar Mountain →
Seven DevilsHomes around $553K
Housing$553K typical home65% above the NC typical home Work202 jobsbased in Seven Devils, a regional job hub Outdoors27.7% conserved land3.1 miles of trails across 2 parks and preserves All about Seven Devils →
The biggest differences

Where they part ways

The rows below where the towns are furthest apart, beyond the Census margin of error. The full table is further down.

Jobs per worker2.9×
Sugar Mountain is more of a job hub
Sugar Mountain 5.53Seven Devils 1.92
Average commute9 min
Sugar Mountain has the shorter commute
Seven Devils 27 minSugar Mountain 18 min
Property tax bill+26%
Tax bills are bigger in Seven Devils
Seven Devils $2,597Sugar Mountain $2,064
Bachelor’s degree++13 pts
More adults in Seven Devils have a degree
Seven Devils 78.3%Sugar Mountain 65.3%
Trails+63%
Seven Devils has more miles of trail
Seven Devils 3.1 miSugar Mountain 1.9 mi
Conserved land+8.8 pts
Seven Devils has more conserved land
Seven Devils 27.7%Sugar Mountain 18.9%
★ What stands out · Monthly cost

A typical home costs $1,430 more a month in Seven Devils

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.

Sugar Mountain$1,750/mo
Typical home $304K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.60% · or rent about $1,500/mo · Housing →
Seven Devils$3,180/mo
Typical home $553K (Zillow) · tax rate 0.61% · or rent about $1,583/mo · Housing →

The difference: $1,430 a month, about $17,200 a year, between Seven Devils and Sugar Mountain.

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.

Where they are

Sugar Mountain and Seven Devils share a border

And the people who already live in one and work in the other.

Sugar MountainSeven DevilsSugar MountainSeven Devils
Sugar Mountain ↔ Seven Devils3.3 miles apart · They share a border
Who commutes between them
3 Sugar Mountain residents work in Seven Devils (2.6% of its workers)
Work & commute in Sugar Mountain →
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
Sugar MountainSeven Devils
Snow a year67″67″
January low20°F20°F
July high69°F69°F
Growing season (days)159d159d
Hazard risk (U.S. pctl)43rd68th
Outdoors & history
Sugar MountainSeven Devils
Trails2 mi3 mi
Conserved land18.9%27.7%
Settled1989—
Archive photos5—
Community
Sugar MountainSeven Devils
Posts this month00
Neighbors joined00

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.

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.

Sugar MountainSeven Devils
People
Population 539Highest 425Lowest
Median age 66.8±5.7Highest 71% above NC 46.8±17.8Lowest 20% above NC
Sugar Mountain and Seven Devils are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Kids under 18 9.3%±3.9Lowest NC: 21.8% 24%±12.8Highest NC: 21.8%
Seven Devils and Sugar Mountain are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Age 65+ 52.5%±18.6Highest NC: 17.2% 32.5%±13.9Lowest NC: 17.2%
Sugar Mountain and Seven Devils are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Bachelor’s degree+adults 25+ 65.3%Lowest NC: 35.7% 78.3%Highest NC: 35.7%
Enrolled in collegeshare of residents 0.9%±1.1Lowest NC: 6.4% 7.5%±6.2Highest NC: 6.4%
Seven Devils and Sugar Mountain are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Cost of living
Household incomemedian $96,094±$17kLowest 33% above NC $111,667±$16kHighest 54% above NC
Seven Devils and Sugar Mountain are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Home valuemedian, owner-occupied $343,800±$48kLowest 19% above NC $426,900±$58kHighest 48% above NC
Seven Devils and Sugar Mountain are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Rentmedian gross, monthly $1,500±$482Lowest 22% above NC $1,583±$1kHighest 29% above NC
Seven Devils and Sugar Mountain are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Property taxmedian, yearly $2,064Lowest 9% above NC $2,597Highest 37% above NC
Renters paying 30%+of income on rent 77.3%±41.7Highest NC: 48.9% 38.5%±100Lowest NC: 48.9%
Sugar Mountain and Seven Devils are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Below poverty line 6.3%Highest NC: 13% 3.3%Lowest NC: 13%
Housing
Homeownersof occupied homes 93%Highest NC: 66.6% 92.8%Lowest NC: 66.6%
Typical home builtmedian year 1985Lowest 6 yrs older than NC 1992Highest 1 yr newer than NC
Getting to work
Average commuteone way 18 minLowest 30% below NC 27 minHighest 7% above NC
Work from home 26.2%±14.9Lowest NC: 16.3% 36.3%±28.7Highest NC: 16.3%
Seven Devils and Sugar Mountain are within the Census margin of error here, so we can’t say which is really higher.
Work in townworking residents 3.5%Highest 0%Lowest
Typical commute distancemedian, straight-line 27.8 miHighest 9.8 miLowest
Jobs per working residentover 1.5 = a job hub 5.53Highest 1.92Lowest
Top workplaceoutside town Boone (10%)Boone (22%)
Between these townsresidents who work in the others 3% work in Seven DevilsFew work in Sugar Mountain
Outdoors
Conserved landshare of the town 18.9%Lowest 27.7%Highest
Trailsmapped miles 1.9 miLowest 3.1 miHighest
Trail densitymiles per sq mi 0.8 miLowest 1.4 miHighest
Parks & preservesnamed on the map 1Lowest 2Highest
Street connectivityintersections per sq mi, a walkability measure 27.0Lowest 30.6Highest
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.

Sugar Mountain neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Sugar Mountain’s Town Square.

Seven Devils neighborsTown Square →

Your question goes to Seven Devils’s Town Square.

Add a town

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Bordering Sugar Mountain

G
+ Compare
Grandfather Village14 people · $1.31M homes

Towns like Sugar Mountain

T
+ Compare
Topsail Beach406 people · $691K homes
+ Compare
Holden Beach962 people · $659K homes
+ Compare
Ocean Isle Beach903 people · $836K homes
+ Compare
Caswell Beach491 people · $648K 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.

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