Best Places28054, NC Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 28054, 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.
28054 ranks 15,103rd 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 28054
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.
28054's strengths and weaknesses
Where 28054 ranks high
- State fiscal healthBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than 86% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$626 a month, better than 83% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than 82% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 80% of zip codes
Where 28054 ranks low
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 21% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 72 pleasant days a year, better than only 29% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than only 30% of zip codes
- Household income$64,541 median, better than only 33% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 28054
A household needs to earn about $61,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 28054 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $64,541, 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 28054's effective rate of 0.84%, 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 6 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 28054
28054 runs younger 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 28054.
Who works in 28054, and how
Work in 28054 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 85%
- Work from home 12%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 28054
28054 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 66% of zip codes and more parkland per resident than 76% of zip codes. Dining, parks, and nightlife concentrates in some parts of 28054 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 28054, month by month
28054 sees roughly 72 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 92 degrees. January highs sit near 56, with lows near 31. The comfortable stretch runs March through May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 56° | 43° | 31° |
| April | 76° | 62° | 48° |
| July | 92° | 79° | 69° |
| October | 78° | 63° | 51° |
Flying in and out of 28054
Charlotte/Douglas International sits about 12 miles away. It is a large hub and boarded 25.9 million passengers in 2025, with 213 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around 28054
Schools across 28054 average a B, better than 78% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Lowell ElementaryB · 48% proficient
- Robinson ElementaryB− · 43% proficient
- Carr ElementaryB− · 40% proficient
Top middle schools
- Cramerton MiddleA+ · 77% proficient
- W C Friday Middle SchoolB+ · 48% proficient
- Holbrook MiddleB · 45% proficient
Top high schools
- Gaston Early College High SchoolA+ · 92% proficient
- Ashbrook HighB+ · 51% proficient
- Warlick AcademyF · 7% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 28054 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
28054 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 28054 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 28054 suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 12% already work from home.
Retirees
Set weather, quiet, and health care weights on the map to test the fit.
Common questions about living in 28054
Is 28054 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 28054 ranks 15,103rd of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on state finances, fast internet, and affordable childcare, and lowest on an overheated housing market and noise. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 28054 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $233,761. The overall cost of living runs about 16% below the national average. Set against a $64,541 median income, cost of living beats 40% of zip codes.
Is 28054 safe?
28054 is safer than 34% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $501 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 28054?
July highs average about 92 degrees, and January highs near 56 with lows near 31. That works out to about 72 pleasant days a year, more than 29% of zip codes.
Is 28054 good for families?
Schools beat 78% of zip codes, crime safety beats 34%, and childcare runs $626 a month.
Compare 28054 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 28054. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 28054 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.
28054 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 28054: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 28054: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 28054: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 28054: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
28054 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.