HomeNorth CarolinaCatawba CountyHickory
Hickory, North Carolina: commercial real estate data.
Hickory is a Census city of 44,258 people across 32.29 square miles of land, lying across Catawba County and Burke County and Caldwell County. Median household income is $64,576, 55.0 percent of occupied homes are owned, and the SBA record carries 69 7(a) approvals to borrowers here worth $61.1 m since FY2020.
Underlined figures are computed by MMCG Analytics, not published by the agency.
Hickory
What Hickory is
- Census place typecity
- Land area32.29 sq mi
- Water area0.11 sq mi
- Population per square mile of land1,370
- County holding the largest share of its areaCatawba County, 94.2 percent
- Counties this place lies inCatawba County 94.2 percent, Burke County 3.3 percent, Caldwell County 2.5 percent
Hickory crosses a county line. The split above is measured from the Census boundary of the place against the county boundaries, by area, so it says where the ground is and not where the town hall is.
US Census Bureau, cartographic boundary file, places, 2024 vintage. US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Hickory
How many people live in Hickory
- Population44,258
- Median age37.5
- Population under 189,416
- Share under 1821.3 percent
- Population 65 and over7,564
- Share 65 and over17.1 percent
- Households18,042
- Family households10,683
- Share of households that are families59.2 percent
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Hickory
Income and work in Hickory
- Median household income$64,576
- Per capita income$38,101
- Civilian labor force21,430
- Employed20,616
- Unemployed814 plus or minus 280
- Unemployment rate3.8 percent plus or minus 1.3
- Adults 25 and over29,199
- Adults 25 and over with a high school diploma or higher90.0 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a bachelor degree or higher37.1 percent
- Adults 25 and over with a graduate degree13.2 percent
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Hickory
Housing in Hickory
- Housing units19,955
- Occupied units18,042
- Vacant units1,913 plus or minus 398
- Vacancy rate9.6 percent plus or minus 2.0
- Owner occupied9,922
- Renter occupied8,120
- Ownership rate55.0 percent
- Median owner-occupied home value$278,400
- Median gross rent, monthly$1,063
- Annual rent as a share of median income19.8 percent
- Single family units11,734
- Share single family58.8 percent
- Units in buildings of two or more7,529
- Share in buildings of two or more37.7 percent
- Mobile homes692 plus or minus 233
- Median year structure built1982
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Hickory
How Hickory gets to work
- Workers 16 and over who commute17,627
- Commuting under 15 minutes7,112
- Share commuting under 15 minutes40.3 percent
- Commuting 30 minutes or more3,898
- Share commuting 30 minutes or more22.1 percent
- Drove alone72.3 percent
- Carpooled13.1 percent
- Public transport0.1 percent plus or minus 0.1
- Walked0.9 percent plus or minus 0.5
- Worked from home12.9 percent plus or minus 2.7
US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
Hickory
SBA loans in Hickory (7(a))
- Approvals69
- Gross approval$61,059,700
- Average approval$884,923
- Median approval$403,500
- Ninetieth percentile approval$2,272,000
- Largest approval$5,000,000
- Jobs supported814
- Jobs per approval11.8
- Loans with a final outcome7
- Paid in full6
- Charged off1
- Median term120 months
- Share on real estate terms of 20 years or more23.2 percent
- Share to franchises15.9 percent
- Distinct lenders32
- Distinct industries by NAICS45
Counted by borrower city: approvals to borrowers whose address is in Hickory, in any county, FY2020 to FY2026. Only 7 loans have reached a final outcome, fewer than the 30 a charge-off rate needs, so no rate is published.
US Small Business Administration, 7(a) FOIA release, FY2020 to FY2026 year to date, as of 2026-06-30.
Hickory
SBA loans in Hickory (504)
- Approvals13
- Gross approval$8,214,000
- Average approval$631,846
- Median approval$309,000
- Largest approval$1,989,000
- Jobs supported144
- Loans with a final outcome4
- Charged off0
- Median term240 months
- Distinct CDCs3
Counted by borrower city: approvals to borrowers whose address is in Hickory, in any county, FY2010 to FY2026. Only 4 loans have reached a final outcome, fewer than the 30 a charge-off rate needs, so no rate is published.
US Small Business Administration, 504 FOIA release, FY2010 to FY2026 year to date, as of 2026-06-30.
Hickory
Flood risk in Hickory
- NFIP communityCity of Hickory
- NFIP community number370054
- Participating in the NFIPYes
- Community Rating System classNone
- Currently effective map date07/07/09
The City of Hickory participates in the National Flood Insurance Program as community 370054 and carries no Community Rating System class, so no CRS premium discount applies to it.
Federal Emergency Management Agency, NFIP Community Status Book (OpenFEMA), as of 2026-09-26.
Catawba County, not Hickory
Catawba County context, not Hickory figures
- Establishments in Catawba County4,349
- Covered employment, Catawba County89,388
- Average annual pay, Catawba County$55,761
- Housing units permitted, Catawba County2,016
Every figure in this section is published for Catawba County as a whole and is not a measurement of Hickory.
US Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, 2023. US Bureau of Labor Statistics, Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages, 2024 annual averages. US Census Bureau, Building Permits Survey, 2024 annual.
Coverage
What this page does not hold.
Parcel detail, zoning and the flood zone at an address are not on this page; they resolve at the address in the platform. How this page was built →
Common questions
Hickory questions, answered from the record.
How many people live in Hickory, North Carolina?
44,258, in 18,042 households. Hickory city covers 32.29 square miles of land, which is 1,370 people per square mile. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
What county is Hickory in?
Hickory lies in more than one. By area it is 94.2 percent in Catawba County, 3.3 percent in Burke County, 2.5 percent in Caldwell County. This page sits under Catawba County because that county holds the largest share. The split is measured from the Census boundary of the place against the county boundaries.
What is the median household income in Hickory?
$64,576. The median owner-occupied home is valued at $278,400. Median gross rent is $1,063 per month. Source: US Census Bureau, American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates, place level, 2020-2024 5-year.
How much SBA lending goes to Hickory businesses?
69 7(a) approvals totaling $61.1 m since FY2020, across 32 lenders, median approval $403,500, plus 13 504 approvals worth $8.2 m since FY2010. These count approvals to borrowers whose address is in Hickory, not projects sited inside the place boundary, and they are approvals recorded in the release rather than loans disbursed.
Do SBA loans to Hickory borrowers get paid back?
No rate is published for Hickory. Only 7 loans have reached a final outcome, fewer than the 30 a charge-off rate needs, so no rate is published. The counts are shown instead.
Is Hickory in the National Flood Insurance Program?
Yes. Hickory appears in the FEMA Community Status Book as Hickory, city of, community 370054, with no Community Rating System class, so no CRS discount applies. Whether a specific parcel sits in a mapped special flood hazard area is an address level question the platform answers.
Are the county figures on this page Hickory figures?
No, and they are labeled so. County Business Patterns, QCEW, the Building Permits Survey, BEA product and IRS migration are published for Catawba County as a whole and there is no place level equivalent. They appear in one clearly marked section as context and are never presented as measurements of Hickory.
Is zoning published for Hickory?
No. Nothing on this page presents parcel level zoning.