Best Places28791, NC Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 28791, 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.
28791 ranks 2,179th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on good schools by a wide margin, and an overheated housing market is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 28791
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.
28791's strengths and weaknesses
Where 28791 ranks high
- School gradeA, better than 97% of zip codes
- Voter turnoutBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Healthcare accessBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than 96% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than 91% of zip codes
Where 28791 ranks low
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 19% of zip codes
- TransitBetter than only 35% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than only 40% of zip codes
- Big-city accessBetter than only 40% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than only 47% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 28791
A household needs to earn about $97,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 28791 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $79,949, 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 28791's effective rate of 0.57%, 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 28791
28791 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 28791.
Who works in 28791, and how
Work in 28791 centers on health care & social and manufacturing. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 86%
- Work from home 11%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 28791
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 28791.
What the weather is like in 28791, month by month
28791 sees roughly 128 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 85 degrees. January highs sit near 48, with lows near 29. The comfortable stretch runs April through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 48° | 37° | 29° |
| April | 69° | 56° | 44° |
| July | 85° | 73° | 64° |
| October | 71° | 57° | 47° |
Flying in and out of 28791
The nearest airport, Asheville Regional, is about 6 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Charlotte/Douglas International, about 88 miles away.
The best schools in and around 28791
Schools across 28791 average an A, better than 97% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Hendersonville ElementaryA+ · 75% proficient
- Glenn C Marlow ElementaryA · 70% proficient
- Clear Creek ElementaryB− · 43% proficient
Top middle schools
- Rugby MiddleA+ · 70% proficient
- Hendersonville MiddleA− · 56% proficient
- Apple Valley MiddleB+ · 52% proficient
Top high schools
- Henderson County Early CollegeA+ · 93% proficient
- West Henderson HighA · 69% proficient
- Hendersonville HighA− · 67% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 28791 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
28791 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 28791 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 28791
Is 28791 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 28791 ranks 2,179th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on good schools, civic engagement, and health care access, and lowest on an overheated housing market and transit. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 28791 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $381,246. The overall cost of living runs about 9% below the national average. Set against a $79,949 median income, cost of living beats 64% of zip codes.
Is 28791 safe?
Yes, 28791 is safer than 90% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $208 per resident a year.
Compare 28791 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 28791. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 28791 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.
28791 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 28791: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 28791: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 28791: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 28791: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
28791 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.