Best Places27502, NC Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 27502, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
27502 ranks 111th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on what local pay buys by a wide margin, and the weather ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 27502
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.
27502's strengths and weaknesses
Where 27502 ranks high
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Health outlookBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than 97% of zip codes
- School gradeA, better than 95% of zip codes
Where 27502 ranks low
- Nice weatherabout 58 pleasant days a year, better than only 5% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 17% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$1,200 a month, better than only 20% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 22% of zip codes
- Short commute25.8 minutes each way, better than only 53% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 27502
A household needs to earn about $141,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 27502 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is only a little above the area's median income of $139,566; 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 27502's effective rate of 0.71%, 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 27502
27502 runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 27502.
Who works in 27502, and how
Work in 27502 centers on professional & technical and health care & social. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 61%
- Work from home 35%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 27502
27502 has more parkland per resident than 68% of zip codes and more late-night spots per resident than 66% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 27502 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 27502, month by month
27502 sees roughly 58 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 94 degrees. January highs sit near 56, with lows near 31. The comfortable stretch runs April, May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 56° | 43° | 31° |
| April | 77° | 62° | 48° |
| July | 94° | 81° | 71° |
| October | 77° | 63° | 51° |
Flying in and out of 27502
Raleigh-Durham International sits about 11 miles away. It is a medium hub and boarded 7.7 million passengers in 2025, with 128 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around 27502
Schools across 27502 average an A, better than 95% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Olive Chapel ElementaryA+ · 82% proficient
- Peak Charter AcademyA+ · 81% proficient
- Holly Grove ElementaryA+ · 76% proficient
Top middle schools
- Apex Friendship MiddleA+ · 80% proficient
- Salem MiddleA+ · 73% proficient
- Apex MiddleA+ · 70% proficient
Top high schools
- Apex Friendship HighA+ · 81% proficient
- Apex HighA · 79% proficient
- Vernon Malone College And Career AcademyA · 77% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 27502 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
27502 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 27502 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 27502 suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 98% of zip codes, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 35% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 27502
Is 27502 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 27502 ranks 111th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on what local pay buys, a strong job market, and population health, and lowest on the weather and noise. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 27502 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $544,455. The overall cost of living runs about 11% below the national average. Set against a $139,566 median income, cost of living beats 98% of zip codes.
Is 27502 safe?
Yes, 27502 is safer than 82% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $240 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 27502?
July highs average about 94 degrees, and January highs near 56 with lows near 31. That works out to about 58 pleasant days a year, more than 5% of zip codes.
Is 27502 good for families?
Schools beat 95% of zip codes, crime safety beats 82%, and childcare runs $1,200 a month.
Compare 27502 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 27502. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 27502 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.
27502 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 27502: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 27502: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 27502: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 27502: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
27502 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.