Living in Lillington, North Carolina: homes, schools and costs

The book's checklist

Lower cost of livingEveryday prices run 11.6% below the U.S. average in the parts of North Carolina outside metro areas.
More house for the moneyA typical home costs 3 years of the typical household's income here. Across the U.S. it's 4.1.
A safer neighborhood16 violent crimes were reported in 2025, about 3.3 per 1,000 people (U.S.: 3.3). Property crime: 21.2 per 1,000 (U.S.: 15.3).
Schools in town2 public schools. No public high school in town: the nearest is Harnett Central High, about 4 miles away.
A hospital close byBetsy Johnson Regional Hospital in Dunn, about 13 miles away, has the nearest emergency room.
Within reach of a big cityRaleigh is about 30 miles away as the crow flies. The book suggests staying within about 60 miles if you'll miss big-city sports, concerts and theater.

A check means Lillington meets the rule of thumb from Frank and Dave's book. An empty box isn't a deal breaker: it's something to weigh for your family. A question mark means there isn't enough data.

For a lifetime

Homes and money

Typical home value, as owners valued them in 2020-2024: $247,200U.S.: $332,700
Home prices since then: Up 15%Harnett County, 2022 to 2025
Typical rent, with utilities: $997 a monthU.S.: $1,413
Typical household income: $81,760U.S.: $80,734
Homes owned by the people living in them: 63%U.S.: 65%
Typical property tax bill: $2,344 a yearNorth Carolina: $1,896
Homes built before 1940: 8%U.S.: 12%
Homes built since 2010: 46%U.S.: 11%
Vacation and seasonal homes: 0%U.S.: 3%
Everyday prices: 88.4U.S. average = 100 (the parts of North Carolina outside metro areas)

Home values and rents are what households told the Census Bureau across 2020 to 2024, so they trail today's market: county prices have moved up 15% since 2022. Everyday prices are the government's average for the parts of North Carolina outside metro areas, not Lillington alone. Check current listings before you budget.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates; Federal Housing Finance Agency, House Price Index for counties (all transactions); U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, Regional Price Parities, 2024.

The people

Population, 2025 estimate: 5,0402020: 4,860
Median age: 37.2 yearsU.S.: 38.9
Age 65 and older: 14%U.S.: 17%
Under 18: 22%U.S.: 22%
Adults with a bachelor's degree or more: 19%U.S.: 36%
Moved here from another county or state in the past year: 15%U.S.: 6%
College students: 5%share of all residents

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, Population Estimates (Vintage 2025); U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Work

Biggest lines of work: Schools, health care and social services (27%); retail (14%); manufacturing (10%)
Unemployment rate: 4%U.S.: 5%
Average commute: 26 minutesU.S.: 26 minutes
Work from home: 6%U.S.: 15%
Below the poverty line: 5%U.S.: 12%

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Health care

Nearest emergency room: Betsy Johnson Regional Hospital, Dunn, NC, about 13 miles away. It's a general hospital. Medicare gives it 3 of 5 stars.

Look up doctors, clinics and the hospitals themselves on Medicare's Care Compare. Ask where the most serious cases are sent.

Sources: Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospital General Information.

Schools

2 public schools in Lillington, run by Harnett County Schools. The nearest public high school is Harnett Central High, about 4 miles away.

See each school on the federal school search, then check test scores and graduation rates on North Carolina's school report card.

Sources: National Center for Education Statistics, Common Core of Data, 2023-24 (via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal); National Center for Education Statistics, IPEDS institution directory, 2024.

Internet

Homes with cable, fiber or DSL internet: 80%U.S.: 76%

Before you buy, look up the address on the FCC's National Broadband Map to see which providers serve it.

Sources: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.

Weather

January average low: 29°F
July average high: 90°F
Days 90°F or hotter: 54 a year
Nights at or below freezing: 77 a year
Rain and melted snow: 50.1 inches a year
Snow: 2 inches a year
Elevation: 141 feet

Weather stations: Lillington (1 mile away) and Dunn 4 NW (9 miles away, rain and snow). Averages for 1991 to 2020.

Sources: NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information, U.S. Climate Normals 1991-2020; U.S. Geological Survey, 3D Elevation Program.

Getting around

Betsy Johnson Regional HospitalEmergency room13

Holly Springs, NCCity of 50,00017

Raleigh, NCMetro of 1.6 million30

Straight-line miles. The road is always longer, and as the book says, an interstate at 70 is a different trip from a farm road at 45. Check the real drive: Betsy Johnson Regional Hospital, Holly Springs, Raleigh.

Harnett County is outside any metro area, with 20,000 or more people in its towns, next to a metro area (USDA rural-urban code 4, on a scale where 1 is the biggest metro areas and 9 the most rural counties).

For a day

2 places on the National Register of Historic Places, including the Summer Villa and the McKay-Salmon House.

Read about Lillington's history on Wikipedia.

Know Lillington?

Tell us what a visitor shouldn't miss, and what living there is really like. Write to Main Street at mainstreet@smalltownguide.com. The best notes from people who know the town will be added here.

Nearby

Straight-line miles.

Small towns

Angier, NC9,400 people, 8 miles
Coats, NC2,400 people, 8 miles
Erwin, NC5,000 people, 10 miles
Anderson Creek, NC13,900 people, 13 miles
Dunn, NC8,800 people, 13 miles
Barbecue, NC5,900 people, 14 miles

Smaller places

Mamers, NC (unincorporated)669 people, 7 miles
Bunnlevel, NC (unincorporated)844 people, 8 miles
Linden, NC139 people, 12 miles

Sources

Census survey figures are estimates with a margin of error; we leave out any figure whose margin is too wide to be useful. Data last gathered October 5, 2026. See something wrong? Write to mainstreet@smalltownguide.com.