Best Places34953, FL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 34953, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. The coast is close, and the measures below put a number on how close. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
34953 ranks 16,583rd of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state infrastructure by a wide margin, and disaster risk is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 34953
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.
34953's strengths and weaknesses
Where 34953 ranks high
- State infrastructureBetter than 98% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 95% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than 93% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Internet speedBetter than 86% of zip codes
Where 34953 ranks low
- Disaster safetyBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than only 4% of zip codes
- Heat safetyBetter than only 9% of zip codes
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Short commute32.4 minutes each way, better than only 18% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 34953
A household needs to earn about $99,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 34953 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $85,287, 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 34953's effective rate of 1.00%, 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 34953
34953's age mix sits close to the national median, and households here run larger than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for 34953.
Who works in 34953, and how
Work in 34953 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 85%
- Work from home 12%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in 34953
34953 has fewer places to eat and drink per resident than most zip codes. The coast is about 21 minutes away. That concentrates in some parts of 34953 and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in 34953, month by month
34953 sees roughly 115 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 91 degrees. January highs sit near 74, with lows near 58. The comfortable stretch runs November through March.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 74° | 66° | 58° |
| April | 83° | 76° | 69° |
| July | 91° | 83° | 77° |
| October | 85° | 79° | 74° |
Flying in and out of 34953
The nearest airport, Vero Beach Regional, is about 28 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Palm Beach International, about 43 miles away.
The best schools in and around 34953
Schools across 34953 average a B, better than 63% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Citrus Grove ElementaryA · 66% proficient
- Allapattah Flats K-8B · 49% proficient
- Windmill Point Elementary SchoolB · 45% proficient
Top middle schools
- Hidden Oaks Middle SchoolA+ · 75% proficient
- Southern Oaks Middle SchoolC+ · 37% proficient
Top high schools
- South Fork High SchoolB · 49% proficient
- Treasure Coast High SchoolB · 48% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 34953 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
34953 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 34953 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Who 34953 suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 12% already work from home.
Common questions about living in 34953
Is 34953 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 34953 ranks 16,583rd of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on state infrastructure, low taxes, and a strong job market, and lowest on disaster risk and car insurance costs. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 34953 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $369,131. The overall cost of living runs about 11% below the national average. Set against a $85,287 median income, cost of living beats 68% of zip codes.
Is 34953 safe?
Yes, 34953 is safer than 68% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $172 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in 34953?
July highs average about 91 degrees, and January highs near 74 with lows near 58. That works out to about 115 pleasant days a year, more than 72% of zip codes.
Is 34953 good for families?
Schools beat 63% of zip codes, crime safety beats 68%, and childcare runs $937 a month.
Compare 34953 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 34953. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 34953 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.
34953 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 34953: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 34953: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 34953: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 34953: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
34953 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.