Best PlacesCentral Point, OR Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Central Point, 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.
Central Point ranks 1,242nd of 2,098 U.S. cities on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on short commutes by a wide margin, and distance from a big city ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Central Point
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.
Central Point's strengths and weaknesses
Where Central Point ranks high
- Short commute15.9 minutes each way, better than 98% of cities
- State infrastructureBetter than 91% of cities
- Housing crash safetyBetter than 85% of cities
- Low vacancyBetter than 83% of cities
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 79% of cities
Where Central Point ranks low
- Big-city accessBetter than only 6% of cities
- Local economyBetter than only 10% of cities
- School gradeC−, better than only 22% of cities
- Heat safetyBetter than only 26% of cities
- Tree shadeBetter than only 28% of cities
What it costs to buy a home in Central Point
A household needs to earn about $104,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Central Point home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $89,888, 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 Central Point'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 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 Central Point
Central Point runs older than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Central Point.
Who works in Central Point, and how
Work in Central Point centers on health care & social 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 83%
- Work from home 13%
- Transit, walk, or bike 4%
Life in Central Point
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across Central Point.
What the weather is like in Central Point, month by month
Central Point sees roughly 114 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 96 degrees. January highs sit near 52, with lows near 32. The comfortable stretch runs May, June, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 52° | 41° | 32° |
| April | 70° | 54° | 40° |
| July | 96° | 77° | 59° |
| October | 73° | 56° | 42° |
Flying in and out of Central Point
The nearest airport, Rogue Valley International/Medford, is about 2 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Portland International, about 222 miles away.
The best schools in and around Central Point
Schools across Central Point average a C−, better than 22% of cities.
Top elementary schools
- Abraham Lincoln ElementaryB− · 42% proficient
- Jacksonville Elementary SchoolB− · 40% proficient
- Madrone Trail Public Charter SchoolC− · 25% proficient
Top middle schools
- Hedrick Middle SchoolC+ · 37% proficient
- Scenic Middle SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
- Hanby Middle SchoolD+ · 25% proficient
Top high schools
- Eagle Point High SchoolA+ · 95% proficient
- Crater School Of Business Innovation And ScienceA− · 60% proficient
- South Medford High SchoolB+ · 56% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Central Point school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Central Point 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 Central Point against the other 2,097 cities.
Who Central Point suits
Families
Schools land around the 22nd percentile and crime safety beats 64%.
Common questions about living in Central Point
Is Central Point a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Central Point ranks 1,242nd of 2,098 cities. It scores highest on short commutes, state infrastructure, and a stable housing market, and lowest on distance from a big city 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 Central Point expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $395,961. The overall cost of living runs about 0% above the national average. Set against a $89,888 median income, cost of living beats 44% of cities.
Is Central Point safe?
Yes, Central Point is safer than 64% of cities. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $387 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Central Point?
July highs average about 96 degrees, and January highs near 52 with lows near 32. That works out to about 114 pleasant days a year, more than 68% of cities.
Is Central Point good for families?
Schools beat 22% of cities, crime safety beats 64%, and childcare runs $1,112 a month.
Compare Central Point with other cities
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Central Point. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Central Point 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.
Central Point detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Central Point: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Central Point: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Central Point: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Central Point: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Central Point 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.