WILMINGTON, NC VS. MYRTLE BEACH, SC: 5 HONEST COMPARISONS FOR OUT-OF-STATE BUYERS

If you had to choose between Wilmington and Myrtle Beach today, which would you pick? I hear that question from buyers coming from New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania, and the answer depends entirely on what's important to you. The two are an easy drive apart, but they aren't competing for the same buyer.

I'm Kimberly Crouch, a Wilmington Realtor with eXp Realty and a former CPA (Currently Inactive). I spent 20-plus years in accounting and finance before real estate, and I now work with relocation buyers across New Hanover, Brunswick, and Pender counties every week. Here are five honest comparisons, the real carrying costs on both sides (including insurance), and who should pick which.

Wilmington vs. Myrtle Beach at a Glance

Which Has Easier Access: Wilmington or Myrtle Beach?

The first difference isn't the beach. It's how you get in, get out, and get around.

Highways. Interstate 40 begins in Wilmington and runs straight to Raleigh, a little over two hours away, connecting you to the rest of the East Coast. Myrtle Beach has no interstate. Interstate 73 has been planned for decades and still isn't built, so you reach I-95 on US 501 or Highway 22. If you'll drive north often, or have kids or grandkids in Raleigh, Durham, or Chapel Hill, you'll notice that difference on every trip.

Which side of the water you live on. In Wilmington, most neighborhoods sit on the mainland, and Wrightsville Beach, Carolina Beach, and Kure Beach are across the Intracoastal Waterway, so reaching the beach means crossing a bridge (a drawbridge at Wrightsville). In Myrtle Beach it's flipped: the core of town is on the ocean side, and newer inland growth like Carolina Forest is where you cross the water to reach the beach.

Traffic. Wilmington's is mostly commuter traffic: school buses and morning, lunch, and late-afternoon peaks. The Grand Strand runs long and narrow along about 60 miles of coast, and its traffic follows the season. Summer volume lands on Kings Highway, the US 17 Bypass, and Highway 31, the same roads residents use daily.

If you'll be on the road a lot, heading north or flying, Wilmington's interstate connection helps. If most of your week happens within a few miles of home, Myrtle Beach is easy to live with most of the year, especially on the ocean side. Whichever you lean toward, run your regular routes at the times you'll actually drive them.

How Does Everyday Life Differ?

Both have tourists. Only one runs on them.

Myrtle Beach is a real, growing metro with a major hospital, a busy airport, and a university just inland in Conway. But tourism is the center of its economy, and the town is sized for it: restaurants, entertainment, and golf built for far more people than live there. In October that's a great deal, with resort-level amenities without resort-level crowds. In July, you share all of it.

Wilmington's economy leans on the port, the university, healthcare, film, and professional jobs. Downtown restaurants stay open in February because residents eat there. Neighborhood life happens in places like Mayfaire and the Lumina corridor, Ogden, Middle Sound Loop, Porters Neck, Monkey Junction, and Scotts Hill, and the beach is close, which changes how you use it. Neither is wrong; they're two different rhythms. Do you want everyday life that runs mostly on residents, or a place where there's always something scheduled and open?

Choosing between them is really choosing a location, and that's hard to do from 800 miles away with a map and a few listings. My free Wilmington Area Match Quiz asks 11 questions about how you want to live and what you want to spend, and tells you which part of the greater Wilmington area fits. It takes about three minutes. [LINK: Wilmington Area Match Quiz]

Which Has Better Amenities for Golf, Boating, and Healthcare?

Both will tell you they have everything. The difference is who the amenities were built for.

• Golf. Golf is a huge part of Myrtle Beach's identity, and its course density reflects a market serving millions of visitors a year. If golf is the center of your week, that's hard to match. You'll also find more shopping, live entertainment, and restaurants than a town that size would normally support on its own.

• Boating. Both have the Intracoastal Waterway. What sets Wilmington apart is how close the ocean inlets are: Masonboro Inlet and Snow's Cut put you in the ocean quickly. You can keep a boat, run the waterway, and be at Wrightsville Beach within an hour or less, a big reason many of my buyers choose this market.

• Everyday amenities. Wilmington's are built mostly for residents: the Riverwalk, downtown, the Mayfaire district, and the Cross City Trail, used by locals and visitors alike.

• Healthcare. Close to even; both areas have full-service hospitals today. Brunswick County is also getting Novant Health Leland Medical Center: about 142,460 square feet, $251.3 million, 20 beds, and a 24/7 emergency department. Grading starts in early 2027 and it's scheduled to open in January 2030. It's an approved project, but more than three years out.

Which Costs More to Own: Wilmington or Myrtle Beach?

Here's a number that surprises buyers. In the core of Myrtle Beach, single-family homes cost more than in Wilmington. The August 2026 median single-family sales price in Myrtle Beach's two core zip codes was $550,000 (Coastal Carolinas Association of Realtors), about $530,000 year to date, roughly flat. Wilmington's August 2026 median sale price was $433,450 (Cape Fear Realtors MLS).

South Carolina can still mean a lower price; you move inland. Carolina Forest's August median was $490,950, and the trade is distance from the beach. Where Myrtle Beach clearly comes in lower is condos: the townhouse and condo median was $199,000 in August and $207,000 year to date. If you want a lock-and-leave place near the water, that's a real entry point.

Insurance is the biggest number after the mortgage on both sides. New Hanover, Brunswick, and Pender counties are rated as beach counties. Premiums rose 16% in 2025 and 15.9% in 2026, taking the average Wilmington homeowner's premium from about $2,600 a year to roughly $3,500. Add flood insurance if you're in an AE or VE zone (commonly around $1,500 to $5,000 or more, depending on location and home), plus wind and hail, and your full coastal insurance stack can land anywhere from $3,500 to $8,500 a year or higher. Myrtle Beach is on the same coastline with the same storms, and its insurance is built from the same pieces (homeowners, flood, wind and hail) and priced the same way: flood zone, elevation, and distance from the water. Don't assume crossing the state line changes that part of your budget. On a condo, look past the price: the HOA fee usually includes the building's master insurance policy, and that cost has been rising on coastal buildings too.

Property taxes. In North Carolina, your tax rate is the same whether the home is your primary residence or a second home. In South Carolina it depends on use: a primary residence is taxed on 4% of its value and a second home on 6%, so second homes pay a layer of tax primary homes don't.

Information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed and is subject to change. Independently verify flood zone, insurance costs, HOA rules, and property taxes for any property you consider.

What Are the Downsides of Each?

You're making a six-figure decision here, maybe seven from out of state, so here are the real trade-offs.

Wilmington:

• Risk exposure, which is measurable. Per Redfin and First Street data, 31% of Wilmington properties face severe flood risk over the next 30 years, and 65% face high wind risk from a severe hurricane. At Wrightsville Beach, the flood figure is 98%.

• Inventory. About 3.6 months of supply and 50 average days on market: more choice than a few years ago, but still limited. Many owners with 3% mortgages from 2020-2021 don't have to sell, so good listings move quickly.

• Construction. The Cape Fear Memorial Bridge project is coming, and bridge work at Wrightsville Beach may affect beach access at times. Commute traffic can be real as infrastructure catches up with growth, though that's relative if you're coming from DC or New York.

• On the plus side: demand is steady, with sales volume and median price about flat year over year, and the economy doesn't depend entirely on tourism.

Myrtle Beach: the pressure point right now is condos. In August, 1,469 townhouse and condo units were listed, up 4% year over year; the median price was down 11.5%, days on market was 125, and the year-to-date condo median is down 10%. If you buy a condo there today, you're buying into a segment where supply is up and prices are down, and you may compete with that inventory when you sell. That same softness is buyer leverage right now: condo sellers are getting about 95.5% of list price, so you have time and choice. The detached market is holding steady, with sellers getting 96.5% of list price in August. These medians don't account for sale concessions, so net numbers can differ in any market. Neither market is broken; they just have different pressure points.

Flood zones, insurance, property taxes, and which beach fits your budget are the three big questions for out-of-state buyers, and they're hard to sort from a distance. My free Coastal North Carolina Relocation Decision Guide walks through every beach on the North Carolina coast in this area, what's available at each, and how to match them to your budget and life.

Who Should Pick Myrtle Beach, and Who Should Pick Wilmington?

Which wins depends on your situation. Here's a simple checklist.

Pick Myrtle Beach if:

• Your week revolves around golf, where the course density is hard to match anywhere else on this coast.

• You want to be near the water and your budget tops out under $300,000: the $199,000 condo median, 1,469 units for sale, and 125 days on market give you choice and negotiating room.

• You like a place that's lively in summer and quieter the rest of the year.

Pick Wilmington if:

• You want a year-round economy that isn't built on tourism: a port, a university, healthcare, professional jobs, and a working downtown close together.

• Boating is part of the plan and you want the waterway and ocean inlets close to home.

• You want a detached home near the beach. Demand is steady and inventory is limited, so put the insurance number in your budget from day one.

Second-home buyers: the deciding question isn't the town, it's the rental rules. Short-term rental policy varies by community and HOA on both sides of the state line, so read the HOA documents before you go under contract.

For most buyers I talk to, it comes down to one thing: you either want a beach town, or you want a city that also has a beach. Whichever you lean toward, purchase price is only part of the decision. What it costs to own the home year after year matters just as much, so I look at every home the same way: flood zone, insurance, tax bill, HOA, likely resale, and ongoing maintenance.

I'm licensed in North Carolina, not South Carolina. If Myrtle Beach is the better fit for your life, that's absolutely okay, and I'll point you to someone licensed in South Carolina who is an expert there. If it's Wilmington, Wrightsville Beach, Leland, Porters Neck, Scotts Hill, or anywhere across New Hanover, Pender, or Brunswick counties, this is what I do every week, and I live here myself.

Know you're coming to the Wilmington area within the next year? Call or text me at 910-218-8187.

All information is deemed reliable but not guaranteed and reflects sources as of August 2026. This content is for informational purposes only and is not financial, tax, insurance, or legal advice. Community and market comparisons use objective property and market characteristics only. eXp Realty supports equal housing opportunity.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. Is Wilmington, NC or Myrtle Beach, SC cheaper for homebuyers? It depends on property type. In August 2026, the median single-family price in Myrtle Beach's two core zip codes was $550,000, versus $433,450 for Wilmington. Myrtle Beach comes in much lower on condos (a $199,000 median), and you can find lower single-family prices by moving inland, such as Carolina Forest at a $490,950 August median.

2. How do homeowners insurance costs compare in Wilmington and Myrtle Beach? They're built the same way on both sides of the state line: homeowners, flood, and wind and hail, priced by flood zone, elevation, and distance from the water. In Wilmington's beach counties, premiums rose 16% in 2025 and 15.9% in 2026, and a full coastal insurance stack can run $3,500 to $8,500 a year or more.

3. Are property taxes different in North Carolina and South Carolina for second homes? Yes. North Carolina taxes a second home at the same rate as a primary residence. South Carolina assesses a primary residence on 4% of its value and a second home on 6%.

4. Does Myrtle Beach have an interstate highway? No. Interstate 73 has been planned for decades but isn't built, so drivers reach I-95 via US 501 or Highway 22. Wilmington is the starting point of I-40, which runs to Raleigh, a little over two hours away.

5. Is the Myrtle Beach condo market a buyer's market right now? Condos show buyer leverage as of August 2026: 1,469 units listed (up 4%), median price down 11.5%, 125 days on market, and sellers getting about 95.5% of list price. The detached home market is steadier, with sellers getting 96.5% of list price.

— Kimberly Crouch, eXp Realty | Coastal Relocation Specialist | Wilmington & Wrightsville Beach, NC 25+ years of combined experience in real estate, finance, and accounting; former CPA (Currently Inactive); eXp ICON agent (top 2% of eXp Realty agents nationwide), top real estate professional in local market per the 2026 RealTrends Verified City Rankings, New Hanover and Brunswick County Real Producers Top 300 and Rising Star in 2025 and 2026.