Photo: SunDawn · CC BY-SA 4.0Even on the area’s higher pay, Mount Holly costs more to live in than 69% of U.S. towns
It ranks #196 of 290 in North Carolina for affordability. About the same as a year ago, 8% above the North Carolina typical home.
Census 2020–24 home values, rents, tax bills and cost burden, measured against the median household income of the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC metro area ($83K). How TownRatings grades cost of living
The grade measures what housing costs against what households in the area earn. Mount Holly’s area earns well above the typical U.S. town ($83K against $74K), but homes, rent and taxes here run higher still. Owners keep up better than renters: 22% of owners pay 30% or more of income for housing (typical U.S. town: 20%), against 54% of renters.
In dollars
- $358Ktypical home, 8% above the North Carolina typical homeZillow, September 2026
- $1,380a month for a two-bedroom, utilities includedHUD Fair Market Rent, 2026
- 97prices across the Charlotte metro, where the U.S. is 100 (housing 98)BEA Regional Price Parities, 2024
In paychecks the grade
- 4.1 yrsof area income buys the typical home; the typical U.S. town: 3.3$83K, Charlotte-area income
- 18%of area income goes to the median rent; the typical U.S. town: 18%Census 2020–24
- 54%of renters pay 30%+ of income for housing; across North Carolina: 49%Census 2020–24
- 22%of owners do; the typical U.S. town: 20%Census 2020–24
What kind of housing town is Mount Holly?
Read from the numbers below. The page puts what stands out first.
What’s behind Mount Holly’s grade
Measured against what households in the area earn, Mount Holly is more affordable than 31% of U.S. towns, #196 of 290 in North Carolina. The share of households paying 30%+ for housing pulls the grade down most; property tax holds it up.
Prices here have kept pace with North Carolina: up 23.4% in five years, against 22.0% statewide (Zillow).
Up 23.4% in five years
About the same pace as North Carolina (22%).
Show as a table
| January | Mount Holly | North Carolina |
|---|---|---|
| 2017 | $173,000 | $178,000 |
| 2018 | $187,000 | $189,000 |
| 2019 | $205,000 | $201,000 |
| 2020 | $221,000 | $214,000 |
| 2021 | $250,000 | $240,000 |
| 2022 | $309,000 | $285,000 |
| 2023 | $342,000 | $318,000 |
| 2024 | $347,000 | $330,000 |
| 2025 | $356,000 | $336,000 |
| 2026 | $359,000 | $334,000 |
| September 2026 | $358,000 | $332,000 |
A typical Mount Holly home worth $170K in October 2016 is worth about $358K today.
Zillow Home Value Index: the typical value of all homes (middle third), smoothed and seasonally adjusted, through September 2026.
A seller's market
Supply is tight — about 2.7 months of homes for sale at the current pace. Buyers should expect competition on well-priced homes.
Under ~4 months of supply favors sellers; over ~6 favors buyers.
Redfin Data Center, all residential sales, May 2026.
A typical home costs 4.1 years of area income
The calculator starts from the area income the grade uses. Switch to Mount Holly’s own median, or type yours.
That’s $32K short of a typical Mount Holly home.
A two-bedroom rents for about $1,380 a month here, $750 less than owning.
An estimate, not a loan offer: payments of up to 28% of income, a 30-year fixed loan, Mount Holly’s typical property tax (0.85% of value a year, from the Census) and insurance of about 0.35%. Mortgage insurance, HOA fees and other debts aren’t included.
A two-bedroom rents for about $1,380
Renters already here pay a median of $1,256.
Fair Market Rent a month, utilities included
U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fair Market Rents by ZIP code (Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC HUD Metro FMR Area): the 40th-percentile rent plus utilities for a standard unit. Median rent and renters: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey.
Property tax runs above the North Carolina norm
The median bill is $2,866 (North Carolina: $1,896), 0.85% of a home’s value a year, against 0.66% statewide.
Census American Community Survey 2020–24: the median real-estate tax bill homeowners report, and that bill ÷ the median home value. Bills include town, school and county taxes. The Census reports bills over $10,000 only as “$10,000+”.
The rest of a budget near Mount Holly
Only figures published free for the whole country, each labeled with the area it covers: the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC metro area, or North Carolina. Groceries follow the goods price level; nobody publishes them town by town.
| Cost | Here | Compared with | Area | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prices overall U.S. = 100 | 97 | NC 94 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Goods (groceries, clothing, cars…) U.S. = 100 | 97 | NC 97 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Utilities U.S. = 100 | 89 | NC 89 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
| Other services U.S. = 100 | 98 | NC 98 | metro | BEA, 2024 |
Price levels: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities 2024 (metro area and state). Electricity: U.S. Energy Information Administration, Electric Power Monthly, table 5.6.A.
Mount Holly vs. its neighbors
Of the 2 towns here with a Zillow value, Mount Holly has the lowest.
Cost next door · one source per column
| Town | Cost | Typical home Zillow, September 2026 | Median value Census 2020–24 | Tax rate bill ÷ value | 2-bed rent HUD 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mount Holly | C | $358K | $338K | 0.85% | $1,380 |
| Belmont | C− | $432K | $395K | 0.94% | $1,480 |
Questions about the cost of living in Mount Holly
Is Mount Holly expensive to live in?
Measured against what households in the area earn, Mount Holly costs more than 69% of U.S. towns: a C for cost of living, #196 of 290 in North Carolina. The typical home costs 4.1 years of the median household income of the Charlotte-Concord-Gastonia, NC-SC metro area ($83K).
How much does a house cost in Mount Holly?
About $358K, Zillow’s typical value for September 2026, up 0.1% in a year. The North Carolina typical home is $332K.
What salary do you need to live in Mount Holly?
To buy the typical home with 20% down at 6.3%, about $91,000 a year, keeping the payment (about $2,130 a month with tax and insurance) at 28% of income. To rent a two-bedroom at 30% of income, about $55,000.
How much is rent in Mount Holly?
HUD puts a two-bedroom at about $1,380 a month with utilities, the going rate for someone moving in. Renters already here pay a median of $1,256 (Census 2020–24).
What are property taxes in Mount Holly?
The median bill is $2,866 a year, 0.85% of the median home value (North Carolina: $1,896, 0.66%), from the Census 2020–24.
Are home prices in Mount Holly going up?
Barely: up 0.1% in the past year and 23.4% in five years, against 22.0% across North Carolina (Zillow).
Neighbors talk housing
What Mount Holly buyers, sellers and renters are saying.
Home values: Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI), Zillow Research, September 2026. Sales, days on market and supply: Redfin Data Center, May 2026. Income, ownership, taxes and rent: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey. Fair Market Rents: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The calculator is an estimate, not a loan offer. Regional price levels: BEA; electricity: EIA. How TownRatings grades cost of living.