Area Information

You're going to love it here!

Welcome to 405 square-miles of rolling hills, smiling faces and sunshine. (In truth, we get a bit of refreshing rain and even snow during our four distinctly dazzling seasons!) Almost anything you desire is within reach: fine arts, quality schools, excellent shopping and dining, advanced health care facilities, and a myriad of recreational and business opportunities. Leading industries include furniture manufacturing, hosiery and textiles, and fiber optics.

The Hickory Metro area rests in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains and includes Alexander, Burke, Caldwell, and Catawba Counties for a total of 375,000 residents. The area's largest city is Hickory (population 37,000), located conveniently off Interstate 40. See Map Below.

The area has been recognized by a number of national publications:

• "the 6th top-performing small metropolitan statistical area (MSA) in the United States" Industry Week
• "the 10th best place in the US to raise a family" Reader's Digest
• "the 7th of the top ten small metropolitan areas in the nation for starting a business" Nations' Business

See for yourself! The links to the right will give you a sampling of what the area has to offer. For the real insider's tour, call one of our agents and let's get started!

Public Education
Catawba County Schools
Hickory Public Schools
Newton-Conover Schools
Alexander County Schools
Burke County Schools
Caldwell County Schools
Catawba Valley Community College 
Caldwell Community College

Private Education
Hickory Day School
Concordia Christian Day School
Hickory Christian Academy
St. Stephens Lutheran
Tri-City Christian School
Tabernacle Christian School
Lenoir-Rhyne College

Community
Catawba County
Hickory, North Carolina
Newton, North Carolina
Alexander County
Burke County
Caldwell County
Lenoir, North Carolina
Hickory Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau
Catawba County Historical Association
Catawba County Chamber of Commerce
Hickory Weather
NC Travel & Tourism

Recreation/Shopping
Catawba Science Center
Hickory Museum of Art
Crawdads Minor League Baseball
Catawba County Parks
Hickory Motor Speedway
Brushy Mountain Motor Sports
Hickory Furniture Mart 
Valley Hills Mall
20 Miles of Furniture
Hickory Velo Club
Catawba Valley Wildlife Club