Best Places23963, VA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 23963, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. This page is for people who live here or already know they want to. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
23963 ranks 21,785th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. Biking pulls hardest against it, while it scores best on clean air.
The best neighborhoods in 23963
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.
23963's strengths and weaknesses
Where 23963 ranks high
- Air qualityBetter than 86% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 86% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 86% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$591 a month, better than 86% of zip codes
- School gradeA−, better than 84% of zip codes
Where 23963 ranks low
- BikingBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than only 6% of zip codes
- Short commute37.2 minutes each way, better than only 7% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 62 pleasant days a year, better than only 12% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than only 15% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 23963
A household needs to earn about $45,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 23963 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $70,651, so a typical household can afford the median home outright.
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 23963's effective rate of 0.46%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices, buying tends to cost more than renting for about the first 9 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 23963
23963 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 23963.
Who works in 23963, and how
Work in 23963 centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 84%
- Work from home 16%
- Transit, walk, or bike 1%
Life in 23963
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 23963.
What the weather is like in 23963, month by month
23963 sees roughly 62 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 91 degrees. January highs sit near 52, with lows near 27. The comfortable stretch runs April through June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 52° | 39° | 27° |
| April | 74° | 59° | 44° |
| July | 91° | 78° | 67° |
| October | 75° | 59° | 46° |
Flying in and out of 23963
The nearest airport, Lynchburg Regional/Preston Glenn Field, is about 24 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Richmond International, about 84 miles away.
The best schools in and around 23963
Schools across 23963 average an A−, better than 84% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Phenix ElementaryA− · 60% proficient
- Brookneal ElementaryB+ · 53% proficient
Top middle schools
- Rustburg MiddleA− · 55% proficient
- Central MiddleA− · 54% proficient
- Appomattox MiddleA− · 54% proficient
Top high schools
- Appomattox County HighA · 77% proficient
- Rustburg HighA · 70% proficient
- Randolph-henry HighA− · 62% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 23963 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
23963 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 23963 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 23963
Is 23963 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 23963 ranks 21,785th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on clean air, cheap car insurance, and low property taxes, and lowest on biking and cell coverage. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 23963 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $180,731. The overall cost of living runs about 13% below the national average. Set against a $70,651 median income, cost of living beats 46% of zip codes.
Is 23963 safe?
23963 is safer than 38% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $356 per resident a year.
Compare 23963 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 23963. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 23963 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.
23963 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 23963: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 23963: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 23963: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 23963: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
23963 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.