Cape Charles is a very small coastal town (i.e. on the ocean, a bay, or inlet) located in the state of Virginia. With a population of 1,265 people and two associated neighborhoods, Cape Charles is the 271st largest community in Virginia. Cape Charles has seen a significant amount of newer housing growth in recent years. Quite often, new home construction is the result of new residents moving in who are middle class or wealthier, attracted by jobs, a healthy local economy, or other amenities as they leave nearby or far away areas for greener pastures. This seems to be the case in Cape Charles, where the median household income is $51,250.00.
Cape Charles real estate is some of the most expensive in Virginia, although Cape Charles house values don't compare to the most expensive real estate in the U.S.
Also of interest is that Cape Charles has more people living here who work in computers and math than 95% of the places in the US.
Telecommuters are a relatively large percentage of the workforce: 17.81% of people work from home. While this number may seem small overall, as a fraction of the total workforce it is high relative to the nation. These workers are often telecommuters who work in knowledge-based, white-collar professions. For example, Silicon Valley has large numbers of people who telecommute. Other at-home workers may be self-employed people who operate small businesses out of their homes.
Another notable thing is that Cape Charles is an extremely popular vacation destination. A significant portion of the population is seasonal. During the vacation season, the town experiences a large influx of people who take up residence in second homes they own in the area. As the vacation season ends, the population drops again, leaving behind a substantially quieter and smaller town.
Cape Charles is also nautical, which means that parts of it are somewhat historic and touch the ocean or tidal bodies of water, such as inlets and bays. Quite often, nautical areas such as these attract visitors and locals who come to enjoy the scenery and various waterfront activities.
One of the benefits of Cape Charles is that there is very little traffic. The average commute to work is 19.05 minutes, which is substantially less than the national average. Not only does this mean that the drive to work is less aggravating, but noise and pollution levels are lower as a result.
Cape Charles is a small town, and as such doesn't have a public transit system that people use to get to and from their jobs every day.
Do you have a 4-year college degree or graduate degree? If so, you may feel right at home in Cape Charles. 57.86% of adults here have a 4-year degree or graduate degree, whereas the national average for all cities and towns is just 21.84%.
The per capita income in Cape Charles in 2022 was $62,314, which is wealthy relative to Virginia and the nation. This equates to an annual income of $249,256 for a family of four. However, Cape Charles contains both very wealthy and poor people as well.
Cape Charles is a somewhat ethnically-diverse town. The people who call Cape Charles home describe themselves as belonging to a variety of racial and ethnic groups. The greatest number of Cape Charles residents report their race to be White, followed by Black or African-American. Cape Charles also has a sizeable Hispanic population (people of Hispanic origin can be of any race). People of Hispanic or Latino origin account for 10.95% of the town’s residents. Important ancestries of people in Cape Charles include German, Irish, English, Italian, and Scots-Irish.
The most common language spoken in Cape Charles is English. Other important languages spoken here include Polish and German/Yiddish.