Best Places24174, VA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 24174, 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.
24174 ranks 15,698th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores best on cheap car insurance, and state finances rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 24174
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.
24174's strengths and weaknesses
Where 24174 ranks high
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 88% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than 86% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 85% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than 85% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than 82% of zip codes
Where 24174 ranks low
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 16% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 66 pleasant days a year, better than only 18% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than only 21% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than only 22% of zip codes
- Short commute31.3 minutes each way, better than only 23% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 24174
A household needs to earn about $57,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 24174 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $65,994, 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 24174's effective rate of 0.47%, 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 8 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 24174
24174 runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 24174.
Who works in 24174, and how
Work in 24174 centers on manufacturing and health care & social. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 91%
- Work from home 7%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 24174
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 24174.
What the weather is like in 24174, month by month
24174 sees roughly 66 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 91 degrees. January highs sit near 49, with lows near 28. The comfortable stretch runs April through June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 49° | 38° | 28° |
| April | 74° | 59° | 46° |
| July | 91° | 79° | 68° |
| October | 74° | 61° | 49° |
Flying in and out of 24174
The nearest airport, Roanoke/Blacksburg Regional (Woodrum Field), is about 17 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Raleigh-Durham International, about 112 miles away.
The best schools in and around 24174
Schools across 24174 average a B+, better than 77% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Stewartsville ElementaryA · 63% proficient
- Montvale ElementaryB+ · 55% proficient
- Goodview ElementaryB · 50% proficient
Top middle schools
- Liberty MiddleA− · 55% proficient
- Staunton River MiddleB+ · 52% proficient
Top high schools
- Liberty HighB+ · 53% proficient
- Staunton River HighB+ · 51% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 24174 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
24174 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 24174 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 24174
Is 24174 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 24174 ranks 15,698th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on cheap car insurance, tree cover, and low property taxes, and lowest on state finances and the weather. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 24174 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $229,187. The overall cost of living runs about 10% below the national average. Set against a $65,994 median income, cost of living beats 33% of zip codes.
Is 24174 safe?
Yes, 24174 is safer than 79% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $236 per resident a year.
Compare 24174 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 24174. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 24174 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.
24174 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 24174: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 24174: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 24174: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 24174: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
24174 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.