Best PlacesBellemeade, Richmond, VA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Bellemeade, Richmond, 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.
Bellemeade, Richmond ranks 5,779th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. Health outcomes pulls hardest against it, while it scores best on tree cover.
The best neighborhoods in Bellemeade, Richmond
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.
Bellemeade, Richmond's strengths and weaknesses
Where Bellemeade, Richmond ranks high
- Tree shadeBetter than 85% of neighborhoods
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 83% of neighborhoods
- Air qualityBetter than 73% of neighborhoods
- Cell coverageBetter than 61% of neighborhoods
- State infrastructureBetter than 54% of neighborhoods
Where Bellemeade, Richmond ranks low
- Health outlookBetter than only 2% of neighborhoods
- Household income$42,224 median, better than only 5% of neighborhoods
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 5% of neighborhoods
- Local economyBetter than only 5% of neighborhoods
- Nice weatherabout 58 pleasant days a year, better than only 5% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Bellemeade, Richmond
A household needs to earn about $48,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Bellemeade, Richmond home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $42,224, 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 Bellemeade, Richmond's effective rate of 0.85%, 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 8 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Bellemeade, Richmond
Bellemeade, Richmond runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Bellemeade, Richmond.
Who works in Bellemeade, Richmond, and how
Work in Bellemeade, Richmond centers on retail trade and health care & social. Unemployment runs well above the national rate, and employment has held roughly flat.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 53%
- Work from home 23%
- Transit, walk, or bike 24%
Life in Bellemeade, Richmond
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across Bellemeade, Richmond.
What the weather is like in Bellemeade, Richmond, month by month
Bellemeade, Richmond sees roughly 58 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 92 degrees. January highs sit near 52, with lows near 28. The comfortable stretch runs April through June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 52° | 39° | 28° |
| April | 75° | 60° | 46° |
| July | 92° | 80° | 70° |
| October | 76° | 62° | 51° |
Flying in and out of Bellemeade, Richmond
Richmond International sits about 7 miles away. It is a medium hub and boarded 2.5 million passengers in 2025, with 72 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around Bellemeade, Richmond
Schools across Bellemeade, Richmond average a D, better than 14% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Oak Grove/bellemeade ElementaryD · 19% proficient
- Broad Rock ElementaryD · 17% proficient
Top middle schools
- Thomas C. Boushall MiddleD− · 17% proficient
Top high schools
- Armstrong HighC− · 27% proficient
- George Wythe HighD · 20% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Bellemeade, Richmond school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Bellemeade, Richmond 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 Bellemeade, Richmond against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in Bellemeade, Richmond
Is Bellemeade, Richmond a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Bellemeade, Richmond ranks 5,779th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on tree cover, cheap car insurance, and clean air, and lowest on health outcomes and low incomes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Bellemeade, Richmond expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $180,912. The overall cost of living runs about 13% below the national average. Set against a $42,224 median income, cost of living beats 6% of neighborhoods.
Is Bellemeade, Richmond safe?
Bellemeade, Richmond is safer than 31% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $624 per resident a year.
Compare Bellemeade, Richmond with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Bellemeade, Richmond. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Bellemeade, Richmond 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.
Bellemeade, Richmond detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Bellemeade, Richmond: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Bellemeade, Richmond: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Bellemeade, Richmond: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Bellemeade, Richmond: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Bellemeade, Richmond 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.