Best PlacesBelle Valley, Erie, PA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Belle Valley, Erie, 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.
Belle Valley, Erie ranks 1,918th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on few empty homes by a wide margin, and biking ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Belle Valley, Erie
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.
Belle Valley, Erie's strengths and weaknesses
Where Belle Valley, Erie ranks high
- Low vacancyBetter than 97% of neighborhoods
- Disaster safetyBetter than 94% of neighborhoods
- Healthcare accessBetter than 93% of neighborhoods
- Short commute17.2 minutes each way, better than 92% of neighborhoods
- Crime safetyBetter than 91% of neighborhoods
Where Belle Valley, Erie ranks low
- BikingBetter than only 6% of neighborhoods
- Internet speedBetter than only 8% of neighborhoods
- WalkabilityBetter than only 8% of neighborhoods
- Big-city accessBetter than only 11% of neighborhoods
- State infrastructureBetter than only 14% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Belle Valley, Erie
A household needs to earn about $72,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Belle Valley, Erie home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $73,573, 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 Belle Valley, Erie's effective rate of 1.37%, 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 10 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Belle Valley, Erie
Belle Valley, Erie runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Belle Valley, Erie.
Who works in Belle Valley, Erie, and how
Work in Belle Valley, Erie centers on health care & social and education. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 87%
- Work from home 10%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in Belle Valley, Erie
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across Belle Valley, Erie.
What the weather is like in Belle Valley, Erie, month by month
Belle Valley, Erie sees roughly 78 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 84 degrees. January highs sit near 38, with lows near 23. The comfortable stretch runs May through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 38° | 30° | 23° |
| April | 59° | 48° | 38° |
| July | 84° | 74° | 65° |
| October | 67° | 56° | 48° |
Flying in and out of Belle Valley, Erie
The nearest airport, Erie International/Tom Ridge Field, is about 8 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Cleveland-Hopkins International, about 106 miles away.
The best schools in and around Belle Valley, Erie
Schools across Belle Valley, Erie average a B+, better than 84% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Wattsburg Area El CtrA+ · 80% proficient
- Robison El SchA+ · 80% proficient
- Rolling Ridge El SchA+ · 74% proficient
Top middle schools
- Wattsburg Area MsA− · 55% proficient
- Harbor Creek Junior HsA− · 54% proficient
- Fort Leboeuf MsB+ · 52% proficient
Top high schools
- Harbor Creek Senior HsA+ · 88% proficient
- Seneca HsA · 75% proficient
- Fort Leboeuf ShsA− · 67% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Belle Valley, Erie school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Belle Valley, Erie 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 Belle Valley, Erie against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in Belle Valley, Erie
Is Belle Valley, Erie a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Belle Valley, Erie ranks 1,918th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on few empty homes, low disaster risk, and health care access, and lowest on biking and internet speeds. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Belle Valley, Erie expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $254,989. The overall cost of living runs about 16% below the national average. Set against a $73,573 median income, cost of living beats 58% of neighborhoods.
Is Belle Valley, Erie safe?
Yes, Belle Valley, Erie is safer than 91% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $195 per resident a year.
Compare Belle Valley, Erie with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Belle Valley, Erie. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Belle Valley, Erie 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.
Belle Valley, Erie detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Belle Valley, Erie: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Belle Valley, Erie: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Belle Valley, Erie: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Belle Valley, Erie: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Belle Valley, Erie 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.