Silver LakeNC
A town of 6,563.
Is Silver Lake a good place to live?
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 96% of U.S. communities, with hurricanes at the top. Overall it grades C+, ranked 129th of 286 in North Carolina. It also does better than most on schools: its schools outperform 63% of the state's. Its lowest everyday mark is in cost of living: homes are expensive, about $326K for a typical one and 4.3 times the Wilmington metro’s $76K median household income. Only 26 of North Carolina’s 451 towns score lower on history. Silver Lake’s January low is 36°F, above both North Carolina’s towns (31°F) and U.S. towns (22°F). The biggest park or preserve is Arrowhead Park, at 28 acres.
Silver Lake has grown 16% from 2010 to 2020
5,598 counted in 2010 and 6,500 in 2020.
U.S. Census 2010 & 2020 counts
How Silver Lake grades
Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within North Carolina), ordered by how far Silver Lake is from typical.
How TownRatings grades towns →
Fort Fisher and 10 more within 40 miles
Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Silver Lake. Close and well known come first.
12 mi LandmarkFort Fisher
6 mi GardenOrton Plantation
7 mi MuseumBrunswick Town7 mi GardenAirlie Gardens
24 mi National BattlefieldMoores Creek National Battlefield56K visitors a year
7 mi TheatreThalian HallPhoto credits
Fort Fisher: Eric T. Gunther, CC BY 3.0 · Orton Plantation: AgnosticPreachersKid., CC BY-SA 3.0 · Brunswick Town: Brunswick1726, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Moores Creek National Battlefield: Unknown authorUnknown author, Public domain · Thalian Hall: Sanfranman59, CC BY-SA 3.0
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Moving to Silver Lake: who provides what
Silver Lake is unincorporated, so New Hanover County and regional agencies provide most services.
EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.
The data
Ordered by what stands out in Silver Lake.
Silver Lake sends most of its workers to Wilmington and beyond, but it carries more natural-hazard risk than most of North Carolina (mostly hurricanes).
1.4% of Silver Lake is conserved land
1.5 miles of trail in 1 park or preserve. The trail density in Silver Lake is 0.6 miles per square mile.
| Silver Lake | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miles of trail per square mile | 0.6 miles per square mile | 0.2 | 0.4 |
| Conserved land | 1.4% | 3.4% | 4.3% |
| Biggest places to walk | Trails | Acres |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Arrowhead Park | 0.6 mi | 28 |
Trails & parks © OpenStreetMap contributors · Conserved land: USGS PAD-US
For schools, Silver Lake earns a B
Its public schools are run by the New Hanover County Schools. One of its 2 schools is below, with why it’s listed.
| School | Level | Students | Letter |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mary C Williams ElementaryLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–5 | Grades K–5 | 355 | C+ |
NCES · EDFacts · graded within NC on state tests and graduation
Very high risk in Silver Lake, with hurricanes at the top
FEMA rates its natural-hazard risk higher than 90% of North Carolina towns, with expected losses of about $690 per resident a year; that rating is what its D− for hazard risk is built on.
Since 2018, 7 flood insurance claims have been paid out in Silver Lake.
FEMA flood insurance claims · FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA
About half of Silver Lake’s working residents commute to Wilmington
Silver Lake has 586 jobs for its 2,720 working residents: even if every job went to a resident, most would still commute out. Jobs based here grew from 442 in 2013 to 586.
Most working residents leave Silver Lake for work: only 2% work in town. Jobs based in Silver Lake grew to 586 in 2023, 144 more than in 2013. The top destinations are Wilmington (45%), Raleigh (3%) and Charlotte (3%).
| Silver Lake | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Working residents who work in town | 1.9% | 6.8% | 8% |
| Work from home | 9% | 12% | 11% |
| Below the poverty line | 9.7% | 13% | 9.6% |
| Average trip to work | 24 minutes | 24 minutes | 25 minutes |
Where working residents work
Census LEHD 2023 · ACS
In Silver Lake, expect mild winters and hot summers
Silver Lake has mild winters and warm summers, with plenty of rain. July afternoons reach 89°, January nights drop to 36° and snow is almost unheard of.
Typical low → high °F
NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020
On CDC estimates, Silver Lake is healthier than 61% of U.S. towns
Silver Lake beats the North Carolina average on 0 of 32 CDC measures and trails it on 1. 17% of adults binge drink in Silver Lake.
| Silver Lake | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Binge drink (CDC PLACES) | 17% | 14% | 16% |
| Sleep under 7 hours (CDC PLACES) | 33% | 34% | 36% |
| Depression (CDC PLACES) | 25% | 25% | 23% |
| Feel lonely (CDC PLACES) | 31% | 33% | 33% |
| What stands out | Silver Lake | NC |
|---|---|---|
| More adults who have had cancer | 9% | 7.9% |
CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA
Fewer young adults than North Carolina overall
Adults 18 to 34 are 18% of residents (23% statewide); people 65 and older are 21% of residents (17% statewide). 32% of adults 25 and older have a bachelor’s degree or more, vs 36% across North Carolina. Silver Lake’s median age is 42.9 years.
| Silver Lake | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aged 65 or older | 21% | 18% | 18% |
| Median age | 42.9 years | 40.1 years | 40.5 years |
| Under 18 | 21% | 22% | 22% |
| Bachelor’s degree or more, 25+ | 32% | 29% | 29% |
Ages · share of residents
Education · adults 25 and older
Women and men · all residents
45% women, 55% men
That’s an even split within the survey’s margin of ±6.8 points. Across North Carolina, 51.1% of residents are women.
| Silver Lake | NC | U.S. | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 10 | 10.5% | 11.6% | 11.6% |
| 10 to 17 | 10% | 10.2% | 10.3% |
| 18 to 24 | 5.8% | 9.5% | 9.1% |
| 25 to 34 | 11.9% | 13.4% | 13.7% |
| 35 to 44 | 12.4% | 12.8% | 13.2% |
| 45 to 54 | 14.2% | 12.6% | 12.2% |
| 55 to 64 | 13.9% | 12.8% | 12.7% |
| 65 to 74 | 13.5% | 10.3% | 10.2% |
| 75 and older | 7.8% | 6.9% | 7% |
| No diploma | 10.3% | 9.9% | 10.4% |
| High school | 18.1% | 24.8% | 26% |
| Some college | 28.5% | 19.6% | 19.1% |
| Associate’s | 10.9% | 10.1% | 8.8% |
| Bachelor’s | 17.7% | 22.2% | 21.6% |
| Graduate | 14.5% | 13.5% | 14.1% |
U.S. Census Bureau · ACS 2020-2024 5-year estimates
A home in Silver Lake sells for about $360K at the median
82% of Silver Lake households own their home.
| Silver Lake | North Carolina towns | U.S. towns | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households that own their home | 82% | 67% | 73% |
| Median rent | $1,416 a month | $1,084 a month | $1,185 a month |
Census ACS, 2020–24 · Zillow Home Value Index · Redfin Data Center
Everything we know about Silver Lake
Colleges nearby
3 within 15 miles of the center of Silver Lake
About 6 of every 100 Silver Lake residents are enrolled in college, about the same as North Carolina.
98% of working residents leave Silver Lake for work
Where Silver Lake’s working residents go each day. Line width shows the share.
Census LEHD 2023
About Silver Lake
CDP in North Carolina, United States
Silver Lake is a census-designated place in New Hanover County, North Carolina, United States. As of the 2020 census, Silver Lake had a population of 6,500. It is part of the Wilmington Metropolitan Statistical Area.
From Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 · facts via Wikidata (CC0)
- Area
- 2.5 sq mi
- Elevation
- 33 ft
Silver Lake’s neighbors
2 towns share a border with Silver Lake.
| Town | NC rank | Overall | Cost | Safety | Schools | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Silver Lake | #129 | C+ | C | — | B | B |
| Wilmington | #192 | C− | D | D | B | B+ |
| Myrtle Grove | #44 | B+ | C | — | B | A |
Silver Lake and Myrtle Grove report no FBI crime data of their own. Compare Silver Lake with a neighbor →
Questions about Silver Lake
Short answers, built from the data on this page.
Is Silver Lake, NC a good place to live?
Silver Lake grades C+ overall, better than 40% of U.S. towns and #129 of 286 in North Carolina. It grades B for health and B for schools. Hazard risk is its weak spot, with a D−.
Is Silver Lake, NC expensive?
The typical home is worth about $326,000, 2% below the North Carolina typical home. Cost of living, which also weighs rents, property taxes and how many households pay 30% or more of their income for housing, grades C.