Best PlacesSouth Mountain, TX Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around South Mountain, 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.
South Mountain ranks 7,707th of 50,333 U.S. towns on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on the weather by a wide margin, and summer heat is the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in South Mountain
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.
South Mountain's strengths and weaknesses
Where South Mountain ranks high
- Nice weatherabout 166 pleasant days a year, better than 96% of towns
- Low income/sales/gas taxBetter than 92% of towns
- Local economyBetter than 83% of towns
- State fiscal healthBetter than 81% of towns
- QuietBetter than 78% of towns
Where South Mountain ranks low
- Heat safetyBetter than only 8% of towns
- Internet speedBetter than only 15% of towns
- Healthcare accessBetter than only 16% of towns
- WalkabilityBetter than only 19% of towns
- Voter turnoutBetter than only 26% of towns
What it costs to buy a home in South Mountain
A household needs to earn about $67,000 a year to comfortably buy the median South Mountain home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $83,912, 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 South Mountain's effective rate of 0.64%, 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 9 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in South Mountain
South Mountain runs younger than the country.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for South Mountain.
Who works in South Mountain, and how
Work in South Mountain centers on health care & social and public administration. Unemployment is low, and the job base is shrinking.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 94%
- Work from home 3%
- Transit, walk, or bike 3%
Life in South Mountain
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across South Mountain.
What the weather is like in South Mountain, month by month
South Mountain sees roughly 166 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 96 degrees. January highs sit near 61, with lows near 37. The comfortable stretch runs March through May, October, and November.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 61° | 47° | 37° |
| April | 79° | 66° | 56° |
| July | 96° | 85° | 74° |
| October | 82° | 68° | 58° |
Flying in and out of South Mountain
The nearest airport, Robert Gray AAF, is about 27 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Austin-Bergstrom International, about 85 miles away.
The best schools in and around South Mountain
Schools across South Mountain average a C+, better than 53% of towns.
Top middle schools
- Gatesville IntB− · 41% proficient
Top high schools
- Gatesville H SB− · 44% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every South Mountain school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
South Mountain 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 South Mountain against the other 50,332 towns.
Common questions about living in South Mountain
Is South Mountain a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, South Mountain ranks 7,707th of 50,333 towns. It scores highest on the weather, low taxes, and a strong job market, and lowest on summer heat and internet speeds. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is South Mountain expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $262,214. The overall cost of living runs about 17% below the national average. Set against a $83,912 median income, cost of living beats 78% of towns.
Is South Mountain safe?
Yes, South Mountain is safer than 78% of towns. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $265 per resident a year.
Compare South Mountain with other towns
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to South Mountain. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in South Mountain 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.
South Mountain detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for South Mountain: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in South Mountain: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of South Mountain: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in South Mountain: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
South Mountain 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.