Best Places29101, SC Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 29101, 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.
29101 ranks 18,799th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on a stable housing market by a wide margin, and education levels rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 29101
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.
29101's strengths and weaknesses
Where 29101 ranks high
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 90% of zip codes
- Short commute18.7 minutes each way, better than 89% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$576 a month, better than 86% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than 79% of zip codes
Where 29101 ranks low
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 12% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 21% of zip codes
- Household income$59,040 median, better than only 22% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than only 23% of zip codes
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 26% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 29101
A household needs to earn about $42,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 29101 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $59,040, 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 29101's effective rate of 0.41%, 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 9 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 29101
29101 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 29101.
Who works in 29101, and how
Work in 29101 centers on construction and manufacturing. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 90%
- Work from home 2%
- Transit, walk, or bike 8%
Life in 29101
29101 has more parkland per resident than 96% of zip codes. That concentrates in some parts of 29101 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 29101, month by month
29101 sees roughly 76 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 91 degrees. January highs sit near 55, with lows near 36. The comfortable stretch runs March through May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 55° | 44° | 36° |
| April | 76° | 63° | 51° |
| July | 91° | 79° | 71° |
| October | 77° | 65° | 55° |
Flying in and out of 29101
The nearest airport, Florence Regional, is about 34 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Charlotte/Douglas International, about 67 miles away.
The best schools in and around 29101
Schools across 29101 average a B+, better than 75% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Plainview ElementaryB− · 40% proficient
- Mcbee ElementaryC− · 30% proficient
Top middle schools
- Hartsville MiddleC · 31% proficient
Top high schools
- Mcbee HighA− · 65% proficient
- Hartsville HighB · 46% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 29101 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
29101 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 29101 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 29101
Is 29101 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 29101 ranks 18,799th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on a stable housing market, low property taxes, and short commutes, and lowest on education levels and empty homes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 29101 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $170,017. The overall cost of living runs about 20% below the national average. Set against a $59,040 median income, cost of living beats 42% of zip codes.
Is 29101 safe?
29101 is safer than 40% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $491 per resident a year.
Compare 29101 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 29101. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 29101 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.
29101 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 29101: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 29101: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 29101: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 29101: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
29101 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.