Best Places79538, TX Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood inside ZIP code 79538, 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.
79538 ranks 29,184th of 33,110 U.S. zip codes on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on a stable housing market by a wide margin, and summer heat is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in 79538
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.
79538's strengths and weaknesses
Where 79538 ranks high
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 94% of zip codes
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 91% of zip codes
- Nice weatherabout 149 pleasant days a year, better than 89% of zip codes
- Cheap childcare$571 a month, better than 87% of zip codes
- State fiscal healthBetter than 82% of zip codes
Where 79538 ranks low
- Heat safetyBetter than only 2% of zip codes
- Low vacancyBetter than only 8% of zip codes
- Short commute35.8 minutes each way, better than only 9% of zip codes
- Local economyBetter than only 10% of zip codes
- Household income$50,678 median, better than only 11% of zip codes
What it costs to buy a home in 79538
A household needs to earn about $37,000 a year to comfortably buy the median 79538 home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $50,678, 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 79538's effective rate of 0.80%, 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 7 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in 79538
79538 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 79538.
Who works in 79538, and how
Work in 79538 centers on wholesale trade and construction. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 87%
- Work from home 11%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in 79538
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across 79538.
What the weather is like in 79538, month by month
79538 sees roughly 149 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 98 degrees. January highs sit near 61, with lows near 36. The comfortable stretch runs March through May, October, and November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 61° | 46° | 36° |
| April | 81° | 66° | 54° |
| July | 98° | 85° | 73° |
| October | 82° | 67° | 55° |
Flying in and out of 79538
The nearest airport, Abilene Regional, is about 30 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Dallas-Fort Worth International, about 165 miles away.
The best schools in and around 79538
Schools across 79538 average a B−, better than 52% of zip codes.
Top elementary schools
- Lawn ElB · 50% proficient
- Winters ElC− · 30% proficient
- Coleman ElC− · 28% proficient
Top middle schools
- Jim Ned MiddleA · 61% proficient
- Coleman J HB− · 42% proficient
- Winters J HD · 22% proficient
Top high schools
- Jim Ned H SA− · 62% proficient
- Coleman H SB · 47% proficient
- Winters H SD+ · 24% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every 79538 school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
79538 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 79538 against the other 33,109 zip codes.
Common questions about living in 79538
Is 79538 a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, 79538 ranks 29,184th of 33,110 zip codes. It scores highest on a stable housing market, low taxes, and the weather, and lowest on summer heat and empty homes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is 79538 expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $143,311. The overall cost of living runs about 24% below the national average. Set against a $50,678 median income, cost of living beats 28% of zip codes.
Is 79538 safe?
79538 is safer than 17% of zip codes. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $573 per resident a year.
Compare 79538 with other zip codes
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to 79538. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in 79538 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.
79538 detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for 79538: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in 79538: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of 79538: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in 79538: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
79538 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.