Best Places38471, TN Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 38471, 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.
38471 ranks 30,809th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state finances by a wide margin, and cell coverage ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in 38471
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.
38471's strengths and weaknesses
Where 38471 ranks high
- State fiscal healthBetter than 96% of zip codes
- Low property taxBetter than 96% of zip codes
- QuietBetter than 95% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$564 a month, better than 89% of zip codes
- Air qualityBetter than 88% of zip codes
Where 38471 ranks low
- Cell coverageBetter than only 1% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- BikingBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- WalkabilityBetter than only 5% of zip codes
- Household income$44,918 median, better than only 6% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 38471
A household needs to earn about $36,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 38471 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $44,918, 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 38471's effective rate of 0.30%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Who lives in 38471
38471 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 38471.
Who works in 38471, and how
Work in 38471 centers on manufacturing and retail trade. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 85%
- Work from home 14%
- Transit, walk, or bike 1%
Life in 38471
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 38471.
What the weather is like in 38471, month by month
38471 sees roughly 99 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 90 degrees. January highs sit near 52, with lows near 33. The comfortable stretch runs March through May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 52° | 42° | 33° |
| April | 73° | 61° | 50° |
| July | 90° | 79° | 70° |
| October | 76° | 63° | 52° |
Flying in and out of 38471
The nearest airport, Northwest Alabama Regional, is about 29 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Nashville International, about 100 miles away.
The best schools in and around 38471
Schools across 38471 average a D+, better than 17% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Collinwood ElementaryD · 20% proficient
- Waynesboro ElementaryD− · 15% proficient
Top middle schools
- Waynesboro Middle SchoolC · 32% proficient
- Collinwood Middle SchoolD+ · 26% proficient
Top high schools
- Collinwood High SchoolC+ · 35% proficient
- Wayne County High SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 38471 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
38471 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 38471 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 38471
Is 38471 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 38471 ranks 30,809th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on state finances, low property taxes, and quiet, and lowest on cell coverage and a weak job market. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 38471 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $147,039. The overall cost of living runs about 24% below the national average. Set against a $44,918 median income, cost of living beats 13% of zip codes.
Is 38471 safe?
38471 is safer than 20% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $591 per resident a year.
Compare 38471 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 38471. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 38471 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.
38471 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 38471: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 38471: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 38471: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 38471: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
38471 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.