Southport, North Carolina

Southport, North Carolina, is a city on the western bank of the Cape Fear River, near the mouth where the Intracoastal meets the Atlantic Ocean. The city is about 2 miles inland from the Ocean. Southport is connected to Pleasure Island, with the cities of Fort Fisher, Kure Beach, and Carolina Beach, and the city of Wilmington, via the Southport-Fort Fisher car ferry that goes back-and-forth across the river. Southport is in Brunswick County, with a 2018 census population of 3,828. 

Find Your Next Home in Southport, North Carolina

A search for homes in Southport North Carolina results in almost 500 active listings, covering a wide range of real estate for sale: multi-million dollar acreage on Ferry Road, $1.5 Million homes on the Intracoastal Waterway in St. James Plantation (one of North Carolina's premier master planned communities), new construction single family residences at a variety of price points, and beautiful historic homes in downtown Southport. 

The oldest surviving house in Southport is the Walker-Pyke House at 239 East Bay Street, with original stonework that is ballast stone used in sailing ships from two centuries ago. The Southport Historic District is on the National Register of Historic Places, and the beautiful Victorian homes within this district are subject to oversight and restoration guidelines. Southport is one of a handful of cities in North Carolina that is proud to have preserved its late nineteenth century appearance. 

 
Southport is just plain easy and offers a great blend of quaint historic neighborhoods, great waterfront views, a walkable downtown heart with vibrant shops, restaurants, and galleries. We love taking in the active summer concerts beneath the ancient live oaks in Franklin Park, enjoying the “First Fridays” where local galleries serve refreshments and are open for strolling, and taking in the weekly wine tastings on the patio at The Wine Rack on Howe Street.

And our absolute favorite Friday night hangout spot to enjoy beautiful waterfront views and dolphin sightings, great live music, and spectacular sunsets with a cool beverage in hand is The American Fish Company.

Rick Binford, Broker/Realtor®, Southport resident & local expert, St. James Plantation real estate specialist

Southport North Carolina Weather

Like most of the southeastern North Carolina coast, winters are very mild, even by North Carolina standards. Southport is actually the warmest place in North Carolina, according to climate data, with an average yearly temperature of 65 degrees. This makes the annual temperatures of Southport more similar to coastal Georgia or the northern Florida Gulf Coast, than to the rest of the North Carolina coast.

 
Southport Close-up: Recreation & Attractions

While Southport's year-round population is under 4000 residents, during the summer - and especially during the North Carolina Fourth of July Festival - the area hosts between 40,000 and 50,000 visitors.

Southport is a hot location for films, including the novel adaptations of Nicholas Sparks. Other movies or television shows that have been filmed in this welcoming and picturesque sea town are Dawson's Creek, Under the Dome, Matlock, Revenge, I Know What You Did Last Summer, Crimes of the Heart, Nights in Rodanthe, and Safe Haven.