Columbus County, North Carolina Court Filings Intelligence
Analysis of property-related court filings (foreclosure, probate, divorce, partition, guardianship) in Columbus County. See methodology.
Based on public court filings, analyzed by Keystone. As of October 2026.
- Max gross cap rate 11.6% at HUD Fair Market Rent ($11,100/year, 2BR FMR × 12) on the $96,000 median estimated market value. Section-8-eligible rent ceiling; real-market rent typically exceeds FMR; excludes operating costs (taxes, insurance, maintenance, vacancy, management).
About Columbus County
Columbus County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. Its county seat is Whiteville. At the 2020 census, the population was 50,623.
Source: Wikipedia
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$96,000 median estimated property value across filings with property-value data.
3.6% North Carolina unemployment rate (BLS, as of 2026-08). Filings should be read against the local-economy backdrop.
Filing type breakdown
| Filing type | Share | |
|---|---|---|
| Divorce | 5.2% | |
| Probate | 5.1% | |
| Tax Sale | 2.6% | |
| Pre-Foreclosure | 1.5% | |
| Other | 85.6% |
Each row is a distinct case as recorded on the county docket.
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Geographic concentration by ZIP
The ZIP codes in Columbus County with the most property-related court filings, in rank order: where distressed real estate activity clusters.
| Rank | ZIP | City |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 28472 | WHITEVILLE |
| 2 | 28463 | TABOR CITY |
| 3 | 28431 | |
| 4 | 28442 | |
| 5 | 28433 | CLARKTON |
Based on filings with a parseable property address.
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Property value distribution
| Estimated value | Share | |
|---|---|---|
| Under $75k | 35.1% | |
| $75k - $150k | 33.0% | |
| $150k - $250k | 21.3% | |
| $250k - $400k | 6.4% | |
| $400k+ | 4.3% |
Source: property records. Median $96,000; mean $135,524.
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Housing stock + distress signals
Underlying housing stock and distress indicators across all 23560 Columbus County housing units, from US Census ACS 5-year data. National reference values shown for context.
| Indicator | Columbus County | US average |
|---|---|---|
| Vacancy rate (incl. seasonal + for-sale) | 18.4% | 10.5% |
| Share of owner-occupied units carrying a mortgage | 40.5% | 60.8% |
| Pre-1940 housing stock | 6.5% | 12.3% |
| Single-family detached share of housing stock | 62.8% | 61.2% |
| Residents age 65 or older | 20.4% | 17.3% |
Source: US Census Bureau American Community Survey (ACS 2023 5-year). National reference values are ACS 2022 5-year US totals. Why these matter: vacancy rate is the strongest single proxy for distressed inventory; mortgage-carrying share defines the risk pool exposed to rate environment; pre-1940 stock signals deferred maintenance and renovation opportunity; senior population correlates with probate pipeline depth.
Rent benchmark (HUD Fair Market Rent)
HUD sets Fair Market Rents at the metro area level, so the same FMRs apply to every county within the metro. Columbus County sits within the Columbus County, NC. Used to set Section 8 voucher amounts; investors use it as a defensible rent-estimate floor for buy-to-rent underwriting.
| Unit size | Fair market rent / month |
|---|---|
| Efficiency / studio | $718 |
| 1-bedroom | $722 |
| 2-bedroom | $925 |
| 3-bedroom | $1,109 |
| 4-bedroom | $1,225 |
Source: US Department of Housing and Urban Development, Fair Market Rents (None). 40th-percentile gross rent including utilities. Why this matters: Section-8-eligible tenants are a baseline demand floor for rental inventory at these price points; FMR is the official ceiling for voucher-eligible rents.
New construction (market momentum)
Annual building permits filed in Columbus County from the US Census Building Permits Survey. Trend signal on whether new housing demand is accelerating or contracting in this market.
| Indicator | Value |
|---|---|
| Total housing units permitted (2025) | 55 |
| Year-over-year change (2024 → 2025) | +0.0% |
| Single-family share of permits (2025) | 100.0% |
| Single-family units permitted | 55 |
| Multifamily units permitted (2+ units per building) | 0 |
Source: US Census Bureau Building Permits Survey, annual cumulative data. Why this matters: permits trending up signals strong demand for new inventory; permits contracting at the same time foreclosure activity rises indicates broader market softening (deals price differently). Multifamily share shows whether the market is densifying or holding to single-family stock.
Macro context: state home prices and national delinquency
Columbus County filings should be read against the broader housing-market backdrop. North Carolina state home-price trend and the national mortgage-delinquency rate are the two macro signals most directly relevant to foreclosure exposure.
| Indicator | Value | Period |
|---|---|---|
| North Carolina home price index (year-over-year) | +2.4% | 2026-04-01 |
| North Carolina home price index (cumulative since 2020) | +73.2% | 2026-04-01 |
| National mortgage delinquency rate (30+ day, single-family) | 1.86% | 2026-04-01 |
Sources: Federal Housing Finance Agency state house price indices (FRED series NCSTHPI); Federal Reserve Board, Mortgage Delinquency 30+Day Rate on Single-Family Residential Mortgages (FRED series DRSFRMACBS). Updated quarterly. Free public data.
Local-market benchmark
Demographics of the ZIPs where filings cluster, weighted by filing count and benchmarked against Census ACS 2023 5-year:
| Indicator | Filing-weighted average |
|---|---|
| Median household income (where filings cluster) | $45,841 |
| Median home value | $129,725 |
| Owner-occupancy rate | 72.9% |
| Renter share of households | 27.1% |
| Median gross rent | $761/mo |
Source: U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-year estimates, weighted by Keystone's filing volume across 5 top ZIPs.
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ZIP code distress hotspots
Distress is geographically dispersed, with no single ZIP code dominating. The ZIP codes below are ranked by property-related court filings, most active first.
| Rank | ZIP | Area |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 28472 | Whiteville |
| 2 | 28463 | Tabor City |
| 3 | 28431 | |
| 4 | 28442 | |
| 5 | 28433 | Clarkton |
ZIP codes in rank order, most court filings first.
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Distress composition
Distress diversity score: 2.91 (Shannon entropy across case types; higher = more diverse distress sources). The case-type shares are in the filing type breakdown above.
Property Value Profile
| Value range | Share |
|---|---|
| Under $100K | 67.6% |
| $100K - $250K | 25.4% |
| $250K - $500K | 7.0% |
Value breakdown by case type
| Case type | Median value | Avg value |
|---|---|---|
| Divorce | $68,500 | $84,833 |
| Probate | $72,000 | $127,175 |
| Tax Sale | $66,000 | $52,750 |
| Pre-Foreclosure | $148,000 | $149,200 |
Based on public property records for properties with court filings. Values are tax-assessed amounts, not market listing prices.
Municipality filing concentration in Columbus County
Whiteville has the most property-related court filings in Columbus County, predominantly Probate. Filings show moderate geographic spread across municipalities.
| Rank | Municipality | Top case type |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Whiteville | Probate |
| 2 | Lake Waccamaw | Probate |
| 3 | Chadbourn | Probate |
| 4 | Delco | Probate |
| 5 | Tabor City | Probate |
| 6 | Riegelwood | Probate |
| 7 | Wilmington | Probate |
| 8 | Bolton | Probate |
| 9 | Raleigh | Probate |
| 10 | Nakina | Probate |
| 11 | Evergreen | Probate |
| 12 | Cerro Gordo | Probate |
| 13 | Charlotte | Probate |
| 14 | Clarendon | Probate |
| 15 | Sw Chadbourn | Probate |
Municipalities in rank order, most court filings first, among filings with a municipality on the property record. Municipality names from public property records.
Property Value Distribution
| Price range | Share | Distribution |
|---|---|---|
| Under $50K | 44.3% | |
| $50K–$100K | 25.7% | |
| $100K–$150K | 10.8% | |
| $150K–$200K | 8.4% | |
| $200K–$300K | 5.4% | |
| $300K–$500K | 5.4% |
Value by case type
| Case type | Median value | Average value |
|---|---|---|
| Probate | $65,000 | $113,238 |
| Divorce | $66,250 | $84,833 |
| Pre-Foreclosure | $88,000 | $90,000 |
Assessed property values from public property records for filings with a valuation. Values reflect tax-assessed amounts, not market price.
Land vs improvement value composition
Across properties with assessed value breakdowns, the median land share is 13.0% (median land value $10,900, median improvement value $62,400). 11.4% of properties are land-dominant (50%+ land value), which makes them potential teardown or vacant-lot targets.
Land share distribution
| Land share bracket | % of total |
|---|---|
| Under 10% | 22.9% |
| 10–20% | 57.1% |
| 20–30% | 5.7% |
| 30–50% | 2.9% |
| 50–70% | 8.6% |
| Over 70% | 2.9% |
Analysis of filings with assessed land and improvement value breakdowns.
Methodology and data sources
- Based on public court filings, analyzed by Keystone. As of October 2026. Court records are public information.
- These statistics describe property-related court filings in Columbus County. The owner-of-record match and the entity-owner screen are applied to delivered leads, not to these aggregate statistics.
- Property value figures come from property records where available.
- Individual case data, defendant names, and property addresses are not published. Reports show aggregated statistics only.
- The methodology page at /reports/methodology documents data sources, sample sizes, and known limitations in detail.
- This report is current as of October 2026 (generated 2026-10-21).
Related North Carolina guides
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Cite: Keystone Court Data, "Columbus County North Carolina Court Filings Intelligence," 2026-10-21, https://keystonecourtdata.com/reports/columbus-nc-court-filings-intelligence