Best PlacesSouthmont, NC Best Neighborhoods
2026–2027 edition · Data updated July 2026
Every neighborhood in and around Southmont, scored on 40 measures of daily life and ranked to fit what matters to you. Local pay runs high here, and housing takes the biggest bite out of it. To work out which city fits you best, start with the best places to live tool.
Southmont ranks 4,770th of 50,333 U.S. towns on the BestNeighborhood index. It scores highest on a strong job market by a wide margin, and empty homes are the weak spot.
The best neighborhoods in Southmont
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.
Southmont's strengths and weaknesses
Where Southmont ranks high
- Local economyBetter than 99% of towns
- Voter turnoutBetter than 97% of towns
- Cost of living vs incomeBetter than 95% of towns
- Healthcare accessBetter than 94% of towns
- Household income$115,795 median, better than 92% of towns
Where Southmont ranks low
- Low vacancyBetter than only 10% of towns
- QuietBetter than only 13% of towns
- Housing crash safetyBetter than only 14% of towns
- Short commute32.6 minutes each way, better than only 22% of towns
- Air qualityBetter than only 27% of towns
What it costs to buy a home in Southmont
A household needs to earn about $76,000 a year to comfortably buy the median Southmont home, at 20% down and today's 30-year rate. That is below the area's own median income of $115,795, 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 Southmont's effective rate of 0.50%, and insurance is estimated at 0.4% of home value a year.
Who lives in Southmont
Southmont runs older than the country, though fewer residents are over 65 than the national share.
Residents by age
Racial and ethnic makeup has its own map. See the race and diversity map for Southmont.
Who works in Southmont, and how
Work in Southmont centers on transportation & warehousing and education. Unemployment is low, and jobs are growing.
Largest industries
How people get to work
- Drive or carpool 87%
- Work from home 11%
- Transit, walk, or bike 2%
Life in Southmont
The map and measures below break down dining, culture, and green space by neighborhood across Southmont.
What the weather is like in Southmont, month by month
Southmont sees roughly 82 pleasant days a year. July highs average about 89 degrees. January highs sit near 51, with lows near 31. The comfortable stretch runs April through June and August through October.
Show the monthly temperatures
| Month | Avg high | Avg | Avg low |
|---|---|---|---|
| January | 51° | 40° | 31° |
| April | 73° | 60° | 49° |
| July | 89° | 78° | 69° |
| October | 73° | 61° | 51° |
Flying in and out of Southmont
The nearest airport, Concord-Padgett Regional, is about 31 miles away and is a small airport. The nearest major hub is Charlotte/Douglas International, about 49 miles away.
The best schools in and around Southmont
Schools across Southmont average a B, better than 71% of towns.
Top elementary schools
- Southwood ElementaryB · 47% proficient
- Southmont ElementaryC+ · 37% proficient
- Dole ElementaryD− · 12% proficient
Top middle schools
- Central Davidson MiddleA− · 53% proficient
- North Rowan MiddleC− · 28% proficient
Top high schools
- Rowan Co Early CollegeA− · 65% proficient
- Central Davidson HighB+ · 58% proficient
Grades come from K-12 test scores, with scores projected for schools missing data. See every Southmont school and its grade on SchoolGrade.
Southmont 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 Southmont against the other 50,332 towns.
Common questions about living in Southmont
Is Southmont a good place to live?
Using BestNeighborhood's default rankings, Southmont ranks 4,770th of 50,333 towns. It scores highest on a strong job market, civic engagement, and what local pay buys, and lowest on empty homes and noise. How good it is for you depends on which of those you weight most, which the map lets you set.
Is Southmont expensive to live in?
The median home is worth $302,117. The overall cost of living runs about 14% below the national average. Set against a $115,795 median income, cost of living beats 95% of towns.
Is Southmont safe?
Yes, Southmont is safer than 63% of towns. Safety varies a lot by neighborhood. Crime costs an estimated $287 per resident a year.
Compare Southmont with other towns
Sources and methodology
Every measure on this page is scored for each neighborhood, then rolled up to Southmont. Scores are absolute rather than ranked, which means a 60 in Southmont 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.
Southmont detail on BestNeighborhood maps:
- Walk Grade for Southmont: walkability, transit, and biking, measured on the real street network rather than by straight line distance.
- Noise in Southmont: road, rail, and aviation sound modeling calibrated against federal ground truth measurements.
- Conservative vs liberal map of Southmont: precinct level election results apportioned to neighborhoods.
- Mobile and cell coverage in Southmont: carrier by carrier coverage behind the cell score.
Southmont 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.