Best Places35098, AL Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 35098, 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.
35098 ranks 23,125th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on low property taxes by a wide margin, and long commutes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 35098
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.
35098's strengths and weaknesses
Where 35098 ranks high
- Low property taxBetter than 98% of zip codes
- State infrastructureBetter than 87% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than 86% of zip codes
- Tree shadeBetter than 84% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than 84% of zip codes
Where 35098 ranks low
- Short commute34.6 minutes each way, better than only 12% of zip codes
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 12% of zip codes
- Cell coverageBetter than only 13% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than only 13% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 14% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 35098
A household needs to earn about $50,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 35098 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $65,539, 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 35098's effective rate of 0.21%, 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 35098
35098's age mix sits close to the national median, 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 35098.
Who works in 35098, and how
Work in 35098 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 94%
- Work from home 4%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 35098
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 35098.
What the weather is like in 35098, month by month
35098 sees roughly 80 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 89 degrees. January highs sit near 52, with lows near 33. The comfortable stretch runs April through June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 52° | 41° | 33° |
| April | 73° | 61° | 50° |
| July | 89° | 78° | 69° |
| October | 75° | 62° | 52° |
Flying in and out of 35098
The nearest airport, Huntsville International-Carl T Jones Field, is about 38 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Nashville International, about 139 miles away.
The best schools in and around 35098
Schools across 35098 average a C, better than 36% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- West Point Elementary SchoolB− · 40% proficient
- Harmony SchoolC+ · 38% proficient
- West Point Intermediate SchoolC+ · 38% proficient
Top middle schools
- Good Hope Middle SchoolB− · 41% proficient
Top high schools
- Good Hope High SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
- West Point High SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
- Meek High SchoolD · 23% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 35098 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
35098 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 35098 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 35098
Is 35098 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 35098 ranks 23,125th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on low property taxes, state infrastructure, and a strong job market, and lowest on long commutes and education levels. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 35098 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $209,623. The overall cost of living runs about 6% below the national average. Set against a $65,539 median income, cost of living beats 28% of zip codes.
Is 35098 safe?
Yes, 35098 is safer than 57% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $270 per resident a year.
Compare 35098 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 35098. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 35098 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.
35098 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 35098: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 35098: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 35098: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 35098: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
35098 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.