Best PlacesAthens, West Athens, CA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Athens, West Athens, 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.
Athens, West Athens ranks 4,536th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on the weather by a wide margin, and air quality ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Athens, West Athens
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.
Athens, West Athens' strengths and weaknesses
Where Athens, West Athens ranks high
- Nice weatherabout 335 pleasant days a year, better than 99% of neighborhoods
- Big-city accessBetter than 97% of neighborhoods
- TransitBetter than 84% of neighborhoods
- Low vacancyBetter than 76% of neighborhoods
- Low property taxBetter than 68% of neighborhoods
Where Athens, West Athens ranks low
- Air qualityBetter than only 4% of neighborhoods
- QuietBetter than only 8% of neighborhoods
- Tree shadeBetter than only 11% of neighborhoods
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 13% of neighborhoods
- Educational attainmentBetter than only 14% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Athens, West Athens
A household needs to earn about $187,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Athens, West Athens home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $72,586, 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 Athens, West Athens' effective rate of 0.73%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Renting versus buying
At today's prices and rents, renting stays cheaper than buying across the first 10 years here, so the case for buying rests on staying much longer or on prices rising faster than assumed. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Athens, West Athens
Athens, West Athens runs younger than the country, 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 Athens, West Athens.
Who works in Athens, West Athens, and how
Work in Athens, West Athens centers on health care & social and manufacturing. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 78%
- Work from home 13%
- Transit, walk, or bike 9%
Life in Athens, West Athens
The coast is about 8 minutes away. Distance to the water changes a lot across Athens, West Athens, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Athens, West Athens, month by month
Athens, West Athens sees roughly 335 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 79 degrees. January highs sit near 69, with lows near 49. Every month averages in that range.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 69° | 58° | 49° |
| April | 72° | 62° | 55° |
| July | 79° | 71° | 65° |
| October | 80° | 68° | 61° |
Flying in and out of Athens, West Athens
The nearest airport, Jack Northrop Field/Hawthorne Municipal, is about 2 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Los Angeles International, about 6 miles away.
The best schools in and around Athens, West Athens
Schools across Athens, West Athens average a C−, better than 35% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Bennett/kew P-8 Leadership Academy Of ExcellenceD · 19% proficient
- Woodworth-monroe Tk-8 AcademyD− · 12% proficient
Top high schools
- Middle College HighA · 73% proficient
- Early College Academy-la Trade Tech CollegeB · 50% proficient
- Stella High Charter AcademyC+ · 38% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Athens, West Athens school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Athens, West Athens 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 Athens, West Athens against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in Athens, West Athens
Is Athens, West Athens a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Athens, West Athens ranks 4,536th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on the weather, big-city access, and transit, and lowest on air quality and noise. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Athens, West Athens expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $723,094. The overall cost of living runs about 33% above the national average. Set against a $72,586 median income, cost of living beats 13% of neighborhoods.
Is Athens, West Athens safe?
Athens, West Athens is safer than 34% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $587 per resident a year.
Compare Athens, West Athens with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Athens, West Athens. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Athens, West Athens 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.
Athens, West Athens detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Athens, West Athens: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Athens, West Athens: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Athens, West Athens: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Athens, West Athens: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Athens, West Athens 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.