Best Places28721, NC Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 28721, 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.
28721 ranks 8,847th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on heat safety by a wide margin, and noise is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 28721
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.
28721's strengths and weaknesses
Where 28721 ranks high
- Heat safetyBetter than 98% of zip codes
- School gradeA, better than 94% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than 91% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 88% of zip codes
Where 28721 ranks low
- QuietBetter than only 25% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than only 26% of zip codes
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 34% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 34% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than only 35% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 28721
A household needs to earn about $79,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 28721 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $65,887, 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 28721's effective rate of 0.54%, 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 28721
28721 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 28721.
Who works in 28721, and how
Work in 28721 centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 90%
- Work from home 7%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in 28721
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 28721.
What the weather is like in 28721, month by month
28721 sees roughly 115 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 84 degrees. January highs sit near 48, with lows near 27. The comfortable stretch runs April through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 48° | 36° | 27° |
| April | 70° | 55° | 43° |
| July | 84° | 72° | 62° |
| October | 70° | 56° | 45° |
Flying in and out of 28721
The nearest airport, Asheville Regional, is about 23 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Charlotte/Douglas International, about 114 miles away.
The best schools in and around 28721
Schools across 28721 average an A, better than 94% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Riverbend ElementaryA · 70% proficient
- Junaluska ElementaryA · 66% proficient
- North Canton ElementaryA · 63% proficient
Top middle schools
- Waynesville MiddleA · 61% proficient
- Madison Middle SchoolA− · 58% proficient
- Canton MiddleA− · 53% proficient
Top high schools
- Haywood Early CollegeA+ · 92% proficient
- Madison Early College HighA · 78% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 28721 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
28721 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 28721 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 28721
Is 28721 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 28721 ranks 8,847th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on heat safety, good schools, and a strong job market, and lowest on noise and biking. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 28721 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $312,744. The overall cost of living runs about 9% below the national average. Set against a $65,887 median income, cost of living beats 34% of zip codes.
Is 28721 safe?
Yes, 28721 is safer than 78% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $250 per resident a year.
Compare 28721 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 28721. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 28721 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.
28721 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 28721: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 28721: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 28721: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 28721: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
28721 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.