Best Places23451, VA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 23451, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
23451 ranks 2,269th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on good schools by a wide margin, and state finances rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 23451
BestNeighborhood is the only ranking that scores 40 measures of daily life neighborhood by neighborhood and lets you re-weight every one of them yourself.
23451's strengths and weaknesses
Where 23451 ranks high
- School gradeA−, better than 93% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than 92% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than 92% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than 92% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 90% of zip codes
Where 23451 ranks low
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 16% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 17% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 18% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 19% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 70 pleasant days a year, better than only 25% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 23451
A household needs to earn about $164,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 23451 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $110,881, so buying stretches a typical household.
Where the monthly payment goes
Assumes a 20% down payment, a 6.6% 30-year fixed rate, and a 28% share of income going to the payment. The rate is the 2026-07-23 30-year fixed average, series MORTGAGE30US from the St. Louis Fed, which publishes Freddie Mac's weekly survey. Against the median home value, property tax uses 23451's effective rate of 0.74%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices and rents, renting stays cheaper than buying across the first 10 years here, so the case for buying rests on staying much longer or on prices rising faster than assumed. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 23451
23451 runs older than the country, and households here run smaller than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 23451.
Who works in 23451, and how
Work in 23451 centers on health care & social and professional & technical. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 76%
- Work from home 17%
- Transit, walk, or bike 7%
Life in 23451
23451 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 91% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 89% of zip codes. The coast is about 1 minutes away. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 23451 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 23451, month by month
23451 sees roughly 70 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 91 degrees. January highs sit near 54, with lows near 32. The comfortable stretch runs April, May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 54° | 43° | 32° |
| April | 73° | 61° | 49° |
| July | 91° | 81° | 72° |
| October | 76° | 64° | 54° |
Flying in and out of 23451
The nearest airport, Norfolk International, is about 11 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Richmond International, about 85 miles away.
The best schools in and around 23451
Schools across 23451 average an A−, better than 93% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- W.t. Cooke ElementaryA · 67% proficient
- Seatack Elementary An Achievable Dream AcademyB · 48% proficient
- Birdneck ElementaryB− · 40% proficient
Top middle schools
- Great Neck MiddleA+ · 85% proficient
- Virginia Beach MiddleA+ · 80% proficient
- Lynnhaven MiddleA+ · 73% proficient
Top high schools
- Frank W. Cox HighA+ · 83% proficient
- Ocean Lakes HighA+ · 80% proficient
- First Colonial HighA · 78% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 23451 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
23451 measure by measure
Cards are ordered by how much each measure matters to you, so the ones you weighted highest come first. Expand to see every measure. Percentages compare 23451 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 23451 suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 90% of zip codes, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 17% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 23451
Is 23451 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 23451 ranks 2,269th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on good schools, walkability, and biking, and lowest on state finances and an overheated housing market. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 23451 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $633,820. The overall cost of living runs about 1% below the national average. Set against a $110,881 median income, cost of living beats 90% of zip codes.
Is 23451 safe?
Yes, 23451 is safer than 56% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $332 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 23451?
July highs average about 91 degrees, and January highs near 54 with lows near 32. That works out to about 70 pleasant days a year, more than 25% of zip codes.
Is 23451 good for families?
Schools beat 93% of zip codes, crime safety beats 56%, and childcare runs $999 a month.
Compare 23451 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 23451. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 23451 represents the same real quantity as a 60 anywhere else, and the ranking is a weighted average of those absolutes. The map colors come from a national scale calibrated against a population weighted random sample of 5,000 neighborhoods. That absolute scoring is what no other places-to-live ranking does: it puts a single neighborhood, a town, a metro, and a state on one scale, so the same 40 measures answer both which metro to move to and which street inside it to buy on. Read the full methodology.
23451 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 23451: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 23451: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 23451: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 23451: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
23451 detail on related sites:
- CrimeGrade: neighborhood crime rates behind the crime safety score.
- ISPreports.org: provider by provider internet availability and advertised speeds.
- CoverageWatch: the car insurance premiums behind the cheap car insurance score.
Federal and public data:
- U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey: income, home value, rent, vacancy, commute time and mode, educational attainment, home age, age structure, household type, industry, and race.
- NOAA Global Surface Summary of the Day: the daily station record behind the monthly temperatures and the pleasant-day count.
- FAA Passenger Boarding Data: airport size and annual passenger counts.
- Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey: the 30-year fixed rate used in the cost-to-buy estimate.
- FBI Crime Data Explorer: reported offenses behind the tangible crime cost estimate.
- U.S. EPA Air Quality System: five year average air quality index.
- FEMA National Risk Index: expected annual loss from natural hazards.
- CDC PLACES: disease burden, preventable risk, and barriers to care.
- National Center for Education Statistics: school enrollment and assessment inputs behind the school grade.
- FCC National Broadband Map: internet and wireless availability.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics: employment and job growth behind the local economy score.
- Religious activity uses a proprietary religious signal measurement.
Your priorities
Move a slider to say how much a measure matters. Zero turns it off.