Best Places28704, NC Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 28704, 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.
28704 ranks 6,836th 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 28704
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.
28704's strengths and weaknesses
Where 28704 ranks high
- State fiscal healthBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than 90% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 88% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than 87% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than 87% of zip codes
Where 28704 ranks low
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 12% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 16% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 32% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 40% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than only 48% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 28704
A household needs to earn about $100,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 28704 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $88,194, so buying stretches a typical household.
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 28704's effective rate of 0.52%, 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 28704
28704's age mix sits close to the national median.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 28704.
Who works in 28704, and how
Work in 28704 centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 78%
- Work from home 19%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 28704
28704 has more restaurants and bars per resident than 66% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 28704 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 28704, month by month
28704 sees roughly 94 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 87 degrees. January highs sit near 51, with lows near 27. The comfortable stretch runs April through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 51° | 38° | 27° |
| April | 72° | 57° | 44° |
| July | 87° | 75° | 65° |
| October | 73° | 59° | 47° |
Flying in and out of 28704
The nearest airport, Asheville Regional, is about 2 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Charlotte/Douglas International, about 91 miles away.
The best schools in and around 28704
Schools across 28704 average a B, better than 65% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Hendersonville ElementaryA+ · 75% proficient
- Glenn C Marlow ElementaryA · 70% proficient
- Glen Arden ElementaryA− · 57% proficient
Top middle schools
- Rugby MiddleA+ · 70% proficient
- Valley Springs MiddleA · 59% proficient
- Enka MiddleA− · 53% proficient
Top high schools
- Henderson County Early CollegeA+ · 93% proficient
- Middle CollegeB · 50% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 28704 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
28704 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 28704 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 28704 suits
Remote workers
Cost of living against local pay beats 70% of zip codes, internet is fast and widely advertised, and 19% already work from home.
Retirees
The weather beats 59% of zip codes and health care access beats 60%.
Common questions about living in 28704
Is 28704 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 28704 ranks 6,836th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on state finances, tree cover, and cheap car insurance, and lowest on an overheated housing market and empty homes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 28704 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $395,989. The overall cost of living runs about 6% below the national average. Set against a $88,194 median income, cost of living beats 70% of zip codes.
Is 28704 safe?
Yes, 28704 is safer than 64% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $308 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 28704?
July highs average about 87 degrees, and January highs near 51 with lows near 27. That works out to about 94 pleasant days a year, more than 59% of zip codes.
Is 28704 good for families?
Schools beat 65% of zip codes, crime safety beats 64%, and childcare runs $852 a month.
Compare 28704 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 28704. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 28704 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.
28704 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 28704: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 28704: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 28704: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 28704: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
28704 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.