Best Places24086, VA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 24086, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Several measures below read low, and the ranked lists name which ones. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
24086 ranks 11,484th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low crime by a wide margin, and biking ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 24086
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.
24086's strengths and weaknesses
Where 24086 ranks high
- Crime safetyBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 91% of zip codes
- School gradeA−, better than 88% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than 86% of zip codes
Where 24086 ranks low
- BikingBetter than only 9% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than only 11% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than only 12% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 16% of zip codes
- Short commute32.8 minutes each way, better than only 17% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 24086
A household needs to earn about $54,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 24086 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $81,797, 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 24086's effective rate of 0.55%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Who lives in 24086
24086 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 24086.
Who works in 24086, and how
Work in 24086 centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 94%
- Work from home 2%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 24086
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 24086.
What the weather is like in 24086, month by month
24086 sees roughly 90 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 85 degrees. January highs sit near 44, with lows near 27. The comfortable stretch runs April through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 44° | 34° | 27° |
| April | 67° | 55° | 45° |
| July | 85° | 74° | 65° |
| October | 69° | 57° | 47° |
Flying in and out of 24086
The nearest airport, Roanoke/Blacksburg Regional (Woodrum Field), is about 37 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Raleigh-Durham International, about 141 miles away.
The best schools in and around 24086
Schools across 24086 average an A−, better than 88% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Eastern Elementary/middleA · 65% proficient
- Macy Mcclaugherty Elementary/middleA− · 59% proficient
Top high schools
- Giles HighA− · 63% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 24086 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
24086 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 24086 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 24086
Is 24086 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 24086 ranks 11,484th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on low crime, civic engagement, and cheap car insurance, 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 24086 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $214,400. The overall cost of living runs about 15% below the national average. Set against a $81,797 median income, cost of living beats 71% of zip codes.
Is 24086 safe?
Yes, 24086 is safer than 98% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $144 per resident a year.
Compare 24086 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 24086. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 24086 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.
24086 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 24086: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 24086: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 24086: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 24086: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
24086 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.