Best PlacesHamblen County, TN Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in Hamblen County, 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.
Hamblen County ranks 1,385th of 3,144 U.S. counties on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state finances by a wide margin, and health outcomes rank lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Hamblen County
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.
The best areas in Hamblen County
The parts of Hamblen County, ranked by the BestNeighborhood standard score across every neighborhood, highest scoring first. Each note says how that part differs from the rest of the county.
Morristown
Local pay stretches further, incomes run higher, and more adults hold degrees.
Talbott
More residents vote, though heat risk is higher.
Russellville & Whitesburg
Crime runs lower, though fewer households have young kids.
Scores across Hamblen County run from about the 9th to the 89th percentile nationally. The map is where that becomes a choice of area.
Hamblen County's strengths and weaknesses
Where Hamblen County ranks high
- State fiscal healthBetter than 94% of counties
- Disaster safetyBetter than 92% of counties
- Internet speedBetter than 92% of counties
- Low property taxBetter than 90% of counties
- Low vacancyBetter than 86% of counties
Where Hamblen County ranks low
- Health outlookBetter than only 18% of counties
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 21% of counties
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 21% of counties
- Nice weatherabout 74 pleasant days a year, better than only 28% of counties
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 28% of counties
What it costs to buy a home in Hamblen County
A household needs to earn about $52,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Hamblen County home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $61,426, 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 Hamblen County's effective rate of 0.41%, 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 Hamblen County
Hamblen County's age mix sits close to the national median.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Hamblen County.
Who works in Hamblen County, and how
Work in Hamblen County centers on manufacturing and retail trade. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 91%
- Work from home 6%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in Hamblen County
Hamblen County has more late-night spots per resident than 79% of counties. That concentrates in some parts of Hamblen County and thins out in others, which the map shows.
Is Hamblen County growing, and who is moving in?
Hamblen County has grown about 8% over the last decade. The largest inbound stream comes from Claiborne County, TN.
Where new residents come from
Where people leaving Hamblen County go
Move counts are the latest county-to-county migration flows, each county grouped into its metro.
What the weather is like in Hamblen County, month by month
Hamblen County sees roughly 74 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 88 degrees. January highs sit near 46, with lows near 27. The comfortable stretch runs April through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 46° | 35° | 27° |
| April | 70° | 56° | 44° |
| July | 88° | 75° | 66° |
| October | 72° | 57° | 46° |
Flying in and out of Hamblen County
The nearest airport, McGhee Tyson, is about 48 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Charlotte/Douglas International, about 149 miles away.
The best schools in and around Hamblen County
Schools across Hamblen County average a C+, better than 53% of counties.
Top elementary schools
- Russellville ElementaryB+ · 51% proficient
- Alpha ElementaryB · 48% proficient
- Whitesburg ElementaryB · 45% proficient
Top middle schools
- East Ridge Middle SchoolB+ · 50% proficient
- West View Middle SchoolB · 45% proficient
- Lincoln Heights Middle SchoolC · 34% proficient
Top high schools
- Morristown West HighB− · 41% proficient
- Morristown East HighC · 32% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Hamblen County school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Hamblen County 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 Hamblen County against the other 3,143 counties.
Who Hamblen County suits
Families
Schools land around the 53rd percentile and crime safety beats 63%.
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 6% already work from home.
Retirees
Set weather, quiet, and health care weights on the map to test the fit.
Common questions about living in Hamblen County
Is Hamblen County a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Hamblen County ranks 1,385th of 3,144 counties. It scores highest on state finances, low disaster risk, and fast internet, and lowest on health outcomes and civic engagement. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Hamblen County expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $211,404. The overall cost of living runs about 20% below the national average. Set against a $61,426 median income, cost of living beats 42% of counties.
Is Hamblen County safe?
Yes, Hamblen County is safer than 63% of counties. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $401 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Hamblen County?
July highs average about 88 degrees, and January highs near 46 with lows near 27. That works out to about 74 pleasant days a year, more than 28% of counties.
What are the best neighborhoods in Hamblen County?
Using the default rankings, the highest-scoring areas are Morristown, Talbott, and Russellville & Whitesburg. The ranked list and the re-weightable map above let you re-sort them for your own priorities.
Compare Hamblen County with other counties
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Hamblen County. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Hamblen County 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.
Hamblen County detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Hamblen County: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Hamblen County: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Hamblen County: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Hamblen County: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Hamblen County 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.
- U.S. Census Bureau Population Estimates Program: population growth and net migration behind the population-change section.
- 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.