Best Places28001, NC Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 28001, 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.
28001 ranks 20,311th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state finances by a wide margin, and an overheated housing market is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 28001
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.
28001's strengths and weaknesses
Where 28001 ranks high
- State fiscal healthBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 83% of zip codes
- School gradeB, better than 80% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than 80% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than 66% of zip codes
Where 28001 ranks low
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 61 pleasant days a year, better than only 9% of zip codes
- Household income$55,679 median, better than only 18% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than only 24% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 26% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 28001
A household needs to earn about $54,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 28001 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $55,679, 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 28001's effective rate of 0.68%, 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 28001
28001 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 28001.
Who works in 28001, and how
Work in 28001 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 89%
- Work from home 9%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 28001
28001 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 67% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 74% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 28001 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 28001, month by month
28001 sees roughly 61 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 91 degrees. January highs sit near 53, with lows near 30. The comfortable stretch runs April through June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 53° | 41° | 30° |
| April | 75° | 60° | 47° |
| July | 91° | 79° | 69° |
| October | 76° | 61° | 50° |
Flying in and out of 28001
The nearest airport, Concord-Padgett Regional, is about 29 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Charlotte/Douglas International, about 43 miles away.
The best schools in and around 28001
Schools across 28001 average a B, better than 80% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Locust ElementaryA− · 60% proficient
- Badin ElementaryB+ · 50% proficient
- Endy ElementaryB · 50% proficient
Top middle schools
- West Stanly Middle SchoolB+ · 52% proficient
- North Stanly MiddleB− · 43% proficient
- South Stanly MiddleB− · 42% proficient
Top high schools
- Stanly Early College HighA+ · 93% proficient
- Stanly Stem Early CollegeA · 75% proficient
- Albemarle HighC− · 28% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 28001 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
28001 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 28001 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 28001 suits
Retirees
Set weather, quiet, and health care weights on the map to test the fit.
Common questions about living in 28001
Is 28001 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 28001 ranks 20,311th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on state finances, cheap car insurance, and good schools, and lowest on an overheated housing market and the weather. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 28001 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $212,070. The overall cost of living runs about 19% below the national average. Set against a $55,679 median income, cost of living beats 26% of zip codes.
Is 28001 safe?
28001 is safer than 26% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $497 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 28001?
July highs average about 91 degrees, and January highs near 53 with lows near 30. That works out to about 61 pleasant days a year, more than 9% of zip codes.
Is 28001 good for families?
Schools beat 80% of zip codes, crime safety beats 26%, and childcare runs $798 a month.
Compare 28001 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 28001. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 28001 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.
28001 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 28001: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 28001: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 28001: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 28001: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
28001 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.