Best Places24256, VA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 24256, 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.
24256 ranks 26,673rd of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on tree cover by a wide margin, and education levels rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 24256
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.
24256's strengths and weaknesses
Where 24256 ranks high
- Tree shadeBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$512 a month, better than 93% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than 92% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 90% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 83% of zip codes
Where 24256 ranks low
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 7% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than only 9% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Household income$51,712 median, better than only 12% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 14% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 24256
A household needs to earn about $29,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 24256 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $51,712, 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 24256's effective rate of 0.42%, 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 4 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 24256
24256 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 24256.
Who works in 24256, and how
Work in 24256 centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment sits above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 95%
- Work from home 5%
- Transit, walk, or bike 1%
Life in 24256
24256 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 84% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 24256 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 24256, month by month
24256 sees roughly 111 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 81 degrees. January highs sit near 42, with lows near 28. The comfortable stretch runs May through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 42° | 34° | 28° |
| April | 64° | 54° | 45° |
| July | 81° | 72° | 64° |
| October | 66° | 57° | 48° |
Flying in and out of 24256
The nearest airport, Tri-Cities, is about 52 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Charlotte/Douglas International, about 157 miles away.
The best schools in and around 24256
Schools across 24256 average an A−, better than 82% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Clintwood ElementaryA · 68% proficient
- Riverview Elementary/middleB · 50% proficient
- Sandlick ElementaryB · 45% proficient
Top middle schools
- Ridgeview MiddleA · 63% proficient
Top high schools
- Grundy HighA− · 63% proficient
- Ridgeview HighA− · 63% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 24256 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
24256 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 24256 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 24256
Is 24256 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 24256 ranks 26,673rd of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on tree cover, affordable childcare, and heat safety, and lowest on education levels and cell coverage. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 24256 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $117,346. The overall cost of living runs about 20% below the national average. Set against a $51,712 median income, cost of living beats 17% of zip codes.
Is 24256 safe?
24256 is safer than 47% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $329 per resident a year.
Compare 24256 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 24256. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 24256 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.
24256 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 24256: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 24256: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 24256: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 24256: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
24256 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.