Winston-salem, NC Homes For Rent

Homes for Rent in Winston-Salem, NC: What You Need to Know

Winston-Salem’s success is intertwined with R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company. The city is sometimes called Camel City after the famous cigarette brand.

The Local History

The city’s hyphenated name stems from its dual heritage. Moravians built a settlement in the area in 1766. They called it Salem, after shalom, meaning peace in Hebrew. Winston, on the other hand, was founded in 1849. It was named in honor of Major Joseph Winston, an American Revolutionary War hero, who helped the Moravians in acquiring deeds to their settlement. Richard Joshua Reynolds founded his tobacco company in the area in 1875, fueling its success. Winston grew three times the size of Salem. By 1913, both towns agreed to consolidate them.

The Cost of Living in Winston-Salem

Winston-Salem is an affordable midsize city with a population of 247,945. Its cost of living and housing costs are 7.7% and 37.8% lower than the national average, respectively. However, food cost is 4.4% higher than the national average. The median gross rent in Winston-Salem is $782; the median two-bedroom apartment rent is $825. North Carolina collects a flat income tax rate of 5.25% and a base sales tax rate of 4.75%. Counties levy their own sales tax, with rates ranging from 2% to 2.75%. 

Know Your Neighborhoods

City residents love their hometown’s modern amenities and green spaces. Winston-Salem has a large number of renters. If you prefer the suburbs, Clemmons and Lewisville are good choices for their proximity to the city and their above-average schools. Clemmons is known for its affordability and the beautiful Tanglewood Park. Kernersville is also close to Winston-Salem. It’s popular among renters, and it boasts of a botanical garden and great schools. 

Things to Do in Winston-Salem

No visit to Winston-Salem would be complete without a tour of the Reynolda House Museum of American Art, owned by the family that built Winston-Salem into a tobacco center. Richard Joshua Reynolds, the founder of his eponymous tobacco company, was a key player in the industrialization of the South. The Reynolda House has one of the best collections of American art in the Southeast. Old Salem Museums and Gardens highlights the little-known legacies of the city’s African Americans. The site includes a historic log church and a graveyard. 

Schools and Higher Education

Winston-Salem is known for nurturing artists, thanks in part to the University of North Carolina School of the Arts (1,042 students), a top-ranked creative and performing arts conservatory. Founded in 1963, it’s the first public arts conservatory in the U.S. Wake Forest University (8,401 students), a private university, is also located in the city plus there are 17 other colleges within 50 miles of the city. Winston-Salem has 64 public schools, serving 37,225 students. Sherwood Forest Elementary School and Meadowlark Elementary School are among the highly ranked schools in the city.