Best PlacesHighlands Historic District, State College, PA Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Highlands Historic District, State College, 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.
Highlands Historic District, State College ranks 2,809th of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on heat safety by a wide margin, and empty homes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in Highlands Historic District, State College
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.
Highlands Historic District, State College's strengths and weaknesses
Where Highlands Historic District, State College ranks high
- Heat safetyBetter than 99% of neighborhoods
- School gradeA, better than 98% of neighborhoods
- Health outlookBetter than 96% of neighborhoods
- Disaster safetyBetter than 95% of neighborhoods
- Educational attainmentBetter than 92% of neighborhoods
Where Highlands Historic District, State College ranks low
- Low vacancyBetter than only 3% of neighborhoods
- Household income$29,363 median, better than only 5% of neighborhoods
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than only 6% of neighborhoods
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than only 12% of neighborhoods
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 12% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Highlands Historic District, State College
A household needs to earn about $104,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Highlands Historic District, State College home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That runs well above the area's median income of $29,363, 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 Highlands Historic District, State College's effective rate of 0.83%, 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 Highlands Historic District, State College
Highlands Historic District, State College runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Highlands Historic District, State College.
Who works in Highlands Historic District, State College, and how
Work in Highlands Historic District, State College centers on education and hospitality & food. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 44%
- Work from home 13%
- Transit, walk, or bike 42%
Life in Highlands Historic District, State College
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across Highlands Historic District, State College.
What the weather is like in Highlands Historic District, State College, month by month
Highlands Historic District, State College sees roughly 84 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 84 degrees. January highs sit near 36, with lows near 23. The comfortable stretch runs May through September.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 36° | 29° | 23° |
| April | 61° | 50° | 41° |
| July | 84° | 73° | 64° |
| October | 64° | 54° | 45° |
Flying in and out of Highlands Historic District, State College
The nearest airport, State College Regional, is about 4 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Pittsburgh International, about 126 miles away.
The best schools in and around Highlands Historic District, State College
Schools across Highlands Historic District, State College average an A, better than 98% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Easterly Parkway El SchA+ · 90% proficient
Top middle schools
- Mount Nittany MsA− · 55% proficient
Top high schools
- State College Area HsA+ · 80% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Highlands Historic District, State College school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Highlands Historic District, State College 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 Highlands Historic District, State College against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Common questions about living in Highlands Historic District, State College
Is Highlands Historic District, State College a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Highlands Historic District, State College ranks 2,809th of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on heat safety, good schools, and population health, and lowest on empty homes and low incomes. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Highlands Historic District, State College expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $397,146. The overall cost of living runs about 2% below the national average. Set against a $29,363 median income, cost of living beats 6% of neighborhoods.
Is Highlands Historic District, State College safe?
Yes, Highlands Historic District, State College is safer than 57% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $358 per resident a year.
Compare Highlands Historic District, State College with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Highlands Historic District, State College. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Highlands Historic District, State College 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.
Highlands Historic District, State College detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Highlands Historic District, State College: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Highlands Historic District, State College: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Highlands Historic District, State College: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Highlands Historic District, State College: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Highlands Historic District, State College 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.