Best Places24556, VA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 24556, 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.
24556 ranks 4,039th 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 24556
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.
24556's strengths and weaknesses
Where 24556 ranks high
- School gradeA, better than 94% of zip codes
- Crime safetyBetter than 93% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than 93% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 90% of zip codes
Where 24556 ranks low
- State fiscal healthBetter than only 16% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than only 18% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 67 pleasant days a year, better than only 19% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than only 23% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than only 25% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 24556
A household needs to earn about $95,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 24556 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $91,366; the gap is small, which keeps homes within reach of local pay.
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 24556's effective rate of 0.41%, 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 24556
24556 runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 24556.
Who works in 24556, and how
Work in 24556 centers on education and construction. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 84%
- Work from home 14%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 24556
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 24556.
What the weather is like in 24556, month by month
24556 sees roughly 67 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 91 degrees. January highs sit near 50, with lows near 26. The comfortable stretch runs April through June and August through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 50° | 37° | 26° |
| April | 74° | 58° | 44° |
| July | 91° | 78° | 66° |
| October | 74° | 60° | 47° |
Flying in and out of 24556
The nearest airport, Lynchburg Regional/Preston Glenn Field, is about 11 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Raleigh-Durham International, about 108 miles away.
The best schools in and around 24556
Schools across 24556 average an A, better than 94% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Forest ElementaryA+ · 85% proficient
- New London Academy ElementaryA · 70% proficient
- Big Island ElementaryA · 70% proficient
Top middle schools
- Forest MiddleA+ · 76% proficient
- Liberty MiddleA− · 55% proficient
Top high schools
- Jefferson Forest HighA · 70% proficient
- Liberty HighB+ · 53% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 24556 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
24556 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 24556 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 24556
Is 24556 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 24556 ranks 4,039th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on good schools, low crime, and few empty homes, and lowest on state finances and cell coverage. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 24556 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $383,863. The overall cost of living runs about 12% below the national average. Set against a $91,366 median income, cost of living beats 80% of zip codes.
Is 24556 safe?
Yes, 24556 is safer than 93% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $179 per resident a year.
Compare 24556 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 24556. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 24556 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.
24556 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 24556: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 24556: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 24556: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 24556: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
24556 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.