Yancey County and Its Homes
Yancey County grew 3 percent from 2020 to 2025, to 19,084 people by the Census Bureau's estimate, in about 11,400 housing units.
Its one incorporated town, Burnsville, has a page here. About 10 percent of Yancey County's housing units are inside town limits, the rest in unincorporated areas.
Yancey County at a Glance
- Population: 19,084 (2025), 18,492 (2020)
- Housing units: about 11,400
- Median year built: 1988 (North Carolina: 1991)
- Built before 1980: 36% (statewide: 34%)
- Detached houses: 74%
- Mobile homes: 17%
- Owner-occupied: 79%
- Heated with electricity: 37% (statewide: 65%)
- Climate zone: 5 on both maps
- Towns with pages here: 1
Census Bureau estimates for Yancey County (housing: 2020 to 2024).
Towns in Yancey County
Burnsville
1,655 people · power varies by address
What We Do in Yancey County
Attic Insulation in Yancey County
Some 36 percent of Yancey County housing units predate 1980; joists showing above their insulation mean more blown-in fiberglass is due, R-60 from bare.
Attic Insulation Removal in Yancey County
Wet, moldy or animal-soiled insulation comes out of Yancey County attics, and a mouse-soiled Yancey County attic is sanitized and deodorized; in the 16 percent of homes built before 1960, vermiculite is ruled out first.
Air Sealing in Yancey County
Some 37 percent of Yancey County homes heat with electricity, often through attic ducts; their joints and the ceiling's gaps are sealed first.
Homes in Yancey County
Half of Yancey County's 11,400 housing units were built before 1988: 23 percent before 1970, 36 percent before 1980 (nearly all before the state's 1978 insulation rule) and 9 percent in 2010 or later. The largest share went up in the 1990s, under codes that asked for less than ENERGY STAR now suggests; ENERGY STAR notes insulation is often thinnest at the eaves.
Only about 8,100 of Yancey County's 11,400 housing units were someone's usual home in the Census Bureau's 2020 to 2024 survey; the heating shares below describe those households. Yancey County by type: 74 percent detached houses, 8 percent in buildings of two or more homes and 17 percent mobile homes. In Yancey County, 37 percent of households heat with electricity, 3 percent with piped gas, 16 percent with tank gas (6 percent statewide), 34 percent with oil or kerosene (2 percent statewide) and 10 percent with wood (1 percent statewide).
Yancey County Homes by Year Built
- Before 1940: about 810 units, 7% (±2)
- 1940s: about 620 units, 5% (±2)
- 1950s: about 360 units, 3% (±1)
- 1960s: about 860 units, 8% (±2)
- 1970s: about 1,420 units, 12% (±2)
- 1980s: about 2,050 units, 18% (±3)
- 1990s: about 2,230 units, 20% (±2)
- 2000s: about 1,990 units, 17% (±3)
- 2010s: about 920 units, 8% (±2)
- 2020 or later: about 120 units, 1% (±1)
Climate Across Yancey County
NOAA 1991 to 2020 normals for Yancey County towns, by station: Burnsville Ag station (Burnsville): about 4,580 heating and 640 cooling degree days. NOAA's Celo 2 S station, 9 miles from Burnsville, has about 5,050 heating and 390 cooling degree days.
Power and Gas in Yancey County
The card lists Yancey County's town utilities by the territory maps; a power bill confirms the one at an address.
Piedmont Natural Gas holds the Yancey County gas franchise (NC Utilities Commission map), and 3 percent of Yancey County homes heat with piped gas.
Who Supplies Power in Yancey County
- Duke Energy Progress: parts of Burnsville
- French Broad EMC: parts of Burnsville
Energy Programs for Yancey County Homes
Check each program's current terms for a Yancey County home; some pay only through the utility's contractor network. Insulation Pros is an approved Duke Energy trade ally for Duke's rebate.
Programs for Yancey County
- Smart $aver Insulate and Seal (Duke Energy rebate; Burnsville).
- Home Energy House Call (Duke Energy home assessment; Burnsville).
- Income-qualified Weatherization (Duke Energy income-qualified; Burnsville).
- Energy Saver North Carolina (statewide income-qualified; any Yancey County address).
- Weatherization Assistance Program (statewide income-qualified; any Yancey County address).
- Piedmont Natural Gas lists rebates for high-efficiency gas furnaces, and none for insulation or air sealing (program page).
Yancey County Insulation FAQs
Do you serve all of Yancey County?
Yes: Burnsville and every unincorporated Yancey County address.
Which utilities offer insulation rebates in Yancey County?
Duke Energy's Smart $aver Insulate and Seal (Burnsville).
Does attic insulation in Yancey County need a permit?
Ask Yancey County Building Inspections before work starts. For an address in Burnsville, the town or city hall can tell you whether Yancey County's office handles its permits.
Counties Near Yancey County
Mitchell County · McDowell County · Madison County · Buncombe County · Avery County · All service areas
Yancey County, NC
Open in Google Maps (opens in a new tab)Insulation Pros in Yancey County
An insulation contractor serving North Carolina, Yancey County included.
Send the square footage of your Yancey County attic, or call (336) 870-3893.