Best PlacesSoutheast, Raleigh, NC Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Southeast, Raleigh, 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.
Southeast, Raleigh ranks 2,723rd of 5,983 U.S. neighborhoods on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on state finances by a wide margin, and walkability ranks lowest.
The best neighborhoods in Southeast, Raleigh
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.
Southeast, Raleigh's strengths and weaknesses
Where Southeast, Raleigh ranks high
- State fiscal healthBetter than 94% of neighborhoods
- Internet speedBetter than 91% of neighborhoods
- Tree shadeBetter than 91% of neighborhoods
- Cheap car insuranceBetter than 85% of neighborhoods
- School gradeB, better than 79% of neighborhoods
Where Southeast, Raleigh ranks low
- WalkabilityBetter than only 8% of neighborhoods
- Nice weatherabout 64 pleasant days a year, better than only 14% of neighborhoods
- Big-city accessBetter than only 21% of neighborhoods
- BikingBetter than only 24% of neighborhoods
- TransitBetter than only 26% of neighborhoods
What it costs to buy a home in Southeast, Raleigh
A household needs to earn about $70,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Southeast, Raleigh home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $78,757, 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 Southeast, Raleigh's effective rate of 0.68%, 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 5 years, then pulls ahead as rent keeps rising and the mortgage builds equity. The chart tracks the running cost of each.
Who lives in Southeast, Raleigh
Southeast, Raleigh runs younger than the country, and households here run larger than average.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Southeast, Raleigh.
Who works in Southeast, Raleigh, and how
Work in Southeast, Raleigh centers on health care & social and retail trade. Unemployment is close to the national rate, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 75%
- Work from home 20%
- Transit, walk, or bike 6%
Life in Southeast, Raleigh
Southeast, Raleigh has more parkland per resident than 88% of neighborhoods. That concentrates in some parts of Southeast, Raleigh and thins out in others, which the map shows.
What the weather is like in Southeast, Raleigh, month by month
Southeast, Raleigh sees roughly 64 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 94 degrees. January highs sit near 56, with lows near 31. The comfortable stretch runs April, May, September, and October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 56° | 43° | 31° |
| April | 77° | 62° | 48° |
| July | 94° | 81° | 71° |
| October | 77° | 63° | 51° |
Flying in and out of Southeast, Raleigh
Raleigh-Durham International sits about 15 miles away. It is a medium hub and boarded 7.7 million passengers in 2025, with 128 nonstop destinations.
The best schools in and around Southeast, Raleigh
Schools across Southeast, Raleigh average a B, better than 79% of neighborhoods.
Top elementary schools
- Oak Grove ElementaryA− · 55% proficient
- Wiley ElementaryB · 48% proficient
- North Ridge ElementaryB · 48% proficient
Top middle schools
- Ligon MiddleA+ · 71% proficient
- Carnage MiddleA+ · 70% proficient
- Moore Square MiddleA+ · 68% proficient
Top high schools
- Vernon Malone College And Career AcademyA · 77% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Southeast, Raleigh school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Southeast, Raleigh 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 Southeast, Raleigh against the other 5,982 neighborhoods.
Who Southeast, Raleigh suits
Remote workers
Internet is fast and widely advertised and 20% already work from home.
Common questions about living in Southeast, Raleigh
Is Southeast, Raleigh a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Southeast, Raleigh ranks 2,723rd of 5,983 neighborhoods. It scores highest on state finances, fast internet, and tree cover, and lowest on walkability and the weather. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Southeast, Raleigh expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $272,537. The overall cost of living runs about 13% below the national average. Set against a $78,757 median income, cost of living beats 60% of neighborhoods.
Is Southeast, Raleigh safe?
Yes, Southeast, Raleigh is safer than 59% of neighborhoods. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $479 per resident a year.
What is the weather like in Southeast, Raleigh?
July highs average about 94 degrees, and January highs near 56 with lows near 31. That works out to about 64 pleasant days a year, more than 14% of neighborhoods.
Is Southeast, Raleigh good for families?
Schools beat 79% of neighborhoods, crime safety beats 59%, and childcare runs $1,201 a month.
Compare Southeast, Raleigh with other neighborhoods
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Southeast, Raleigh. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Southeast, Raleigh 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.
Southeast, Raleigh detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Southeast, Raleigh: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Southeast, Raleigh: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Southeast, Raleigh: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Southeast, Raleigh: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Southeast, Raleigh 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.